February 25, 2005

Rona reports fourth-quarter profit up 41%

MONTREAL

Rona Inc., the largest Canadian-owned hardware and home-improvement retailer, says its fourth-quarter profit shot up 41 per cent to $29.8 million.

Earnings for the quarter ended Dec. 26. 2004, amounted to 52 cents a share diluted, compared with $21.2 million or 37 cents per share a year earlier, the Montreal-based firm reported Wednesday.

Analysts’ consensus forecast for earnings was 48 cents a share, according to Thomson One Analytics.

Sales rose 18 per cent to $932.7 million.

Rona’s net earnings for fiscal 2004 were $138.2 million or $2.39 a share diluted, up 77.3 per cent from $78 million or $1.44 per share a year earlier, as annual sales jumped 36 per cent to $3.68 billion.

“Rona’s growth was robust all across Canada, both in the fourth quarter and for the entire year,” CEO Robert Dutton said in a release.

“More significantly, this growth stems from all our areas of focus: strong organic growth, fuelled by existing stores and additions to our store network; surpassed objectives with regards to affiliate recruitment . . . and smart, carefully integrated acquisitions like Reno-Depot.”

The Canadian Press

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