Zeeland, MI, December 21, 2006--Office furniture maker Herman Miller Inc. on Wednesday said fiscal second-quarter net income grew more than 31 percent, driven by the company's strongest order level in six years.
A quarterly profit of $36.6 million, or 56 cents per share, compared with $27.9 million, or 40 cents per share, last year. Sales grew to $499.1 million from $438.2 million in the year-ago period, according to a company release.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial, on average, expected profit of 56 cents per share on sales of $503.6 million.
"Orders were over $500 million for the second consecutive quarter," said Beth Nickels, chief financial officer. "North American orders grew 20 percent over the prior year, and orders outside of North America once again led the way with growth of almost 40 percent for the quarter."
Looking ahead, the company expects third-quarter earnings of between 50 cents and 54 cents per share on sales between $480 million and $500 million, both above Wall Street estimates.
The company said it is on pace to double its business to $2.6 billion in revenue by 2010.
