March 9, 2010

Alamo Group reaps Q4 profit from recent purchase

Alamo Group Inc. harvested a fourth-quarter profit as the mowing equipment manufacturer's agricultural division received a boost from a recently completed acquisition.

The company said Monday that it earned $8 million, or 70 cents per share, during the final three months of last year. That reversed a loss of $1.9 million, or 19 cents per share, in the same 2008 period.

Revenue fell 8% to US$112.8 million because of weak demand in Alamo Group's industrial products division.

But the company's agricultural sales surged 15% to US$29.2 million. The acquisition of another mowing equipment manufacturer, Bush Hog, accounted for nearly US$11 million of the division's revenue gain.

Alamo Group bought Bush Hog for 1.7 million shares valued at about US$27 million when the deal closed in October. If not for the benefits and costs of the Bush Hog deal, Alamo Group said it would have earned US$4 million.

For all of 2009, Alamo Group earned US$17.1 million on revenue of US$446.5 million. In 2008, the company earned US$11 million on revenue of US$557.1 million.