NBTY (NYSE: NTY) announced their results for their fiscal third quarter and the numbers overall are good. The fiscal third quarter, which ended June 30th saw net sales improve 6% over the previous year. Net sales were $535 million compared to $503 million in 2007.
Net income for the fiscal third quarter ended was $46 million, or $0.72 per diluted share, compared to $51 million, or $0.74 per diluted share, for the fiscal third quarter ended June 30, 2007. While net sales increased, overall gross profit saw a slight decline as advertising costs rose.
During the third quarter, NBTY repurchased 600,000 shares of its common stock for $17 million. Last year, NBTY announced a share repurchase program, and for the fiscal year of 2008, NBTY has so far repurchased 6.7 million shares - another healthy sign of the company.
NBTY, which operates through retail locations, and through independent distributors, just recently purchased the assets of Leiner Health Products, a manufacturer of some major store brand vitamins. The purchase cost the company $371 million dollars.
The purchase of Leiner Products strengthens NBTY’s presence in the nutritional supplement market as well as their ability to provide top notch products for its consumers. The purchase of Leiner also gives NBTY four additional manufacturing plants, 4 in the US and one in Canada, allowing the company to expand their offerings.
NBTY has a large presence in the US and Canada that has grown exponentially over the last year with their acquisition of a major supplement retailer. They have seen sales steadily rise over the last few years both in retail and independent distributor sectors. This might be a company to watch in the future.
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