DANBURY, Conn. — Ethan Allen Interiors reported record fourth quarter 2022 earnings and fiscal year 2022 year-end results. Sales for the quarter were $229.7 million, an increase of 28.8% over the prior year.
Sales rose 19.4% to $817.8 million for the full year ended June 30, and earnings per share increased 70.9% to $4.05, an increase of 70.9% over the prior year.
“In what was a dynamic and volatile fiscal year marked by rising costs and global supply chain challenges, we delivered strong sales growth and record earnings for the full fiscal year,” said Farooq Kathwari, chairman, president and CEO. “We are pleased with the strong results showing the strength of our vertical integration, strong order backlogs, increased production capacity and the excellent work of our interior designers combining personal service and technology.
“We continue to develop relevant product offerings, of which about 75% are made in our North American manufacturing workshops,” he added.
Ethan Allen’s operating margin grew to 18.3% for the quarter and to 16.9% for the fiscal year.
The company noted retail written orders were down 19.5% for the quarter and 4.6% lower for the full fiscal year, but when compared with 2019, retail orders were up 12.9% in the quarter and up 14.9% for the full year.
On the conference call that followed the earnings release, when asked about import, freight and logistics costs increasing, Kathwari responded, “I would say that for us, the worst is over. In the past few months, if anything, costs are coming down.”
Kathwari indicated that Ethan Allen’s exposure to the volatile freight issues were mitigated by its producing 75% of product in North America, but he did acknowledge that the cost of transportation in the U.S. had major increases but not on the same level as containers coming from Asia.
When asked if Ethan Allen would be doing more promotions this year, Kathwari indicated that, at this stage, the company would keep in place its current programs and not resort to any further discounting.
Ethan Allen also announced a special cash dividend for shareholders of an additional 50 cents per share and indicated the company has cash and investments of $121.1 million and no debt as of June 30.
