Universal Forest Products (NASDAQ: UFPI) reported Q2 EPS of $0.71, $0.02 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.73. Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.29 billion versus the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion.

“The employees of Universal continue to work hard to set records, and I am privileged to announce the results,” stated CEO Matt Missad. The company’s second-quarter results benefited from unit sales growth and a rising lumber market but were adversely impacted by rising costs for transportation and labor.

“Our focus remains on growing unit sales organically and through acquisitions, while enhancing our sales mix of new and value-added products,” Matt added. “Our recently completed acquisition of North American Container Corp. (NACC) will enhance our goal of being the packaging solutions provider and adds non-wood packaging alternatives to our product offering. Additionally, our increased resource allocation to new products and services is paying dividends, as new product sales year-to-date have increased to $262 million from $211 million in 2017. We’ll also continue to focus on margin improvement and improving productivity through automation, including the expanded use of specialized material processing equipment and robotics.”

Second Quarter 2018 Highlights (comparisons on a year-over-year basis):

• Diluted earnings per share were $0.71, up from $0.55
• Net earnings attributable to controlling interest were $44.0 million, up 31 percent
• EBITDA was $77.0 million, up 14 percent
• Gross sales increased 21 percent, with gains of 19 percent in the Retail and Industrial markets and 26 percent in the Construction market
• Unit sales contributed 8 percent of gross sales growth; higher prices due to the lumber market contributed 13 percent
• Organic sales contributed 7 percent to unit growth while acquisitions added 1 percent
• New product sales were $153.1 million, up 25 percent

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Universal Forest Products (UFPI) click here.