Kennametal has reported 2016 sales of US$2,098 million, compared with US$2,647 million last year. Sales decreased by 21%, driven by 11% organic sales decline, divestiture impact of 5% and 5% unfavorable currency exchange.
Fiscal Q4 sales were US$521 million compared with US$638 million in the same quarter last year. Sales decreased by 18%, reflecting a 9% decline due to divestiture, a 9% organic sales decline and a 1% unfavorable currency exchange impact, offset partially by a 1% increase due to more business days.
‘We continued to make meaningful progress to better position Kennametal to outperform over the long term, even though the operating environment remained challenging in the fourth quarter,’ said Ron De Feo, Kennametal president and CEO. ‘We are diligently focused on driving growth on the commercial side of our business, as well as aggressively executing the already-announced cost reduction programs. This is in addition to pursuing substantially deeper cost reductions across our North American and EMEA operations.’
‘As we look to fiscal year 2017, we expect to see some improvements in certain end markets,’ he added. We have a solid plan, and even without a modest upturn in our end markets, we believe our improving cost position in combination with a more robust and proactive commercial strategy will produce improved margins. I am optimistic about the future for Kennametal as we concentrate our efforts on highly relevant products, applications, and solutions positioned properly in the marketplace for our global customers.’
This story is reprinted from material from Kennametal, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
