Acme United Corporation (NYSE Amex: ACU) is a supplier of cutting, measuring and safety products for the school, home, office, craft, hardware & industrial markets. Its principal products are scissors, shears, rulers, pencil sharpeners, first aid kits and related products.
Acme released solid growth numbers for the fourth quarter and full year 2011. The Company managed to increase its net sales with 16%, from $63.1 million in fiscal year 2010 to $73.3 million in 2011. This growth was also reflected in the bottom line. Net income for the year ended December 31, 2011, was $2,811,000, or $.91 per diluted share, compared with $2,573,000, or $.81 per diluted share last year, a 9% increase in net income and a 12% increase in diluted earnings per share.
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The Company has been paying a quarterly dividend for many years and has increased the amount by 1 cent every 6 to 8 quarters. Currently, the quarterly dividend sits at 7 cents per share, which gives an annual yield of almost 3% at today’s share price.
Acme United’s products are organized under five global brands: Westcott, Clauss, Camillus, PhysiciansCare and Pac-Kit.
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Westcott is the school and office products brand of the Company. It sells between 60 to 80 million scissors, and 15 to 18 million Westcott rulers annually, making them the leading scissors brand in the United States and one of the leading ruler brands in North America.
Westcott is also known for the iPoint electric pencil sharpener. Its trendy design and ease of use have made the iPoint a phenomenal success. In 2011, the sharpener’s revenues reached about $11 million, making it one of Acme United’s best selling products.
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Clauss primarily manufactures cutting instruments for professionals in the hardware & industrial, lawn & garden, food processing, sewing and housewares markets.
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Camillus is one of the best known brands in the hunting, fishing, sporting and tactical knives industries. Late 2011, Acme United signed an agreement with Les Stroud, the star of the six-time Gemini-nominated hit TV series Survivorman, to co-design and promote a new line of Camillus survival knives and tools. The impact from Les Stroud was obvious at the 2012 Shot Show, where several new and existing customers immediately placed orders.
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PhysiciansCare offers a wide assortment of first aid kits, emergency and disaster kits, kit refills, hearing, eye, and head protection, and ergonomic supports and braces. PhysiciansCare also carries a successful branded line of over-the-counter medications, including the active ingredients aspirin, acetaminophen and Ibuprofen, etc.
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Pac-Kit sells first aid kits, industrial stations and refills, emergency medical travel and recreational kits for the industrial, safety, transportation and marine markets. Although its products are somewhat similar to PhysiciansCare’s, Pac-Kit is especially known for tailoring its products to meet user requirements and for rapid turnaround. Pac-Kit was acquired in February of 2011 by Acme United for $3.4 million in cash, and immediately contributed about $5.1 million in sales in 2011.
Acme United succeeds in re-inventing everyday products like scissors, knives and school and office items by applying new materials to them. For example, many of the Company’s products have a titanium carbonitride coating, making the knifes and scissors blades more than 3 times harder than stainless steel. Or scissors blades get a non-stick coating, making them useful in difficult environments like the floral area for cutting and trimming flowers and bushes, or in the arts and crafts area, where lots of glue and paste is used. Also, some school and office products have Microban® antimicrobial protection added during the manufacturing process to prevent the growth of bacteria on the surface.
The Company’s products are available at Staples, Office Depot, Office Max, United Stationers, SP Richards, W.B. Mason, Home Depot, Target, Wal-Mart, Walgreen, School Specialty, Grainger, McMaster Carr, Meijer, Fred Meyer, Zellers, Schlecker, WH Smith, and many other major chains.
Overviews
Interviews with Walter Johnsen, Chairman and CEO of Acme United Corporation