Steven Brass
Analyst · D.A. Davidson
Thanks, Garry, and good afternoon. As Garry mentioned earlier, consolidated net sales were $98.6 million in the first quarter, down 3% year-over-year. On a constant currency basis, net sales would have been $100.8 million in the first quarter, relatively constant compared to last fiscal year. Before I discuss what's happening in individual segments, I'd like to remind investors about something Garry has shared with you many times. Though we don't consider our business to be seasonal, it is quite common for our sales results to fluctuate from one period to another. These fluctuations can be driven by a myriad of things, including the level of promotional activities, specific programs being run at customer locations, the timing of customer orders or the impact of new product launches. This is all a normal part of our business, and we are accustomed to these types of fluctuations and manage them as part of our regular business activities. So now let's start with the Americas. Net sales in the Americas, which includes the United States, Latin America and Canada, were down 2% in the first quarter to $46.7 million. Sales and maintenance products decreased nearly 2% in the Americas, primarily due to lower sales of WD-40 Specialist in the United States. Sales of WD-40 Specialist in the U.S. were down 19% due to the timing of promotional activities. We were up against a very tough comparable period in the United States due to a successful WD-40 Specialist or the give back promotion we ran in the first quarter of last fiscal year. Maintenance product sales in the first quarter remained relatively constant in Canada and Latin America. As a reminder, our maintenance products exclude our homecare and cleaning products. Sales of our homecare and cleaning products in the Americas decreased 6% in the first quarter compared to the prior year, largely due to lower sales of Lava and Spot Shot, which declined 17% and 8%, respectively. We continue to consider our homecare and cleaning products, except for those listed as 2025 brands, as harvest brands that continue to generate meaningful contributions and cash flows but are generally expected to become a smaller part of our business over time. In total, our Americas segment made up 47% of our global business at the end of the first quarter. Over the long term, we anticipate sales within this segment will grow between 3% to 6% annually. Now on to EMEA. Net sales in EMEA, which includes Europe, the Middle East, Africa and India, increased to $39.2 million in the first quarter, up about 1% from last year. EMEA's reported results in the first quarter were negatively impacted by foreign currency exchange rates. On a constant currency basis, sales in EMEA would have increased to $41.1 million, up about 46 -- sorry, up about 6% compared to last year. As you know, we sell into EMEA through a combination of direct operations and marketing distributors. Net sales in our EMEA direct markets, which accounted for 63% of the region's sales in the first quarter, remained flat during the first quarter compared to last year. Although overall sales in the direct markets remained constant for the quarter, sales of 1001 Carpet Fresh in the U.K. increased by 30% during the quarter. 1001 continues to benefit from favorable impacts of digital marketing associated with the brand. Net sales in our EMEA distributor markets, which accounted for 37% of the region's sales in the first quarter, increased 3% during the quarter. This increase was primarily due to increased sales of WD-40 Multi-Use Product in the Middle East due to the timing of customer orders. In total, our EMEA segment made up 40% of our global business at the end of the first quarter. Over the long term, we anticipate sales within the EMEA segment will grow between 8% to 11% annually. Now on to Asia-Pacific. Consolidated net sales in Asia-Pacific, which includes Australia, China and other countries in the Asia region, decreased to $12.6 million in the first quarter, down 15% from last year. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates had an unfavorable impact on sales in the region. On a constant currency basis, sales in Asia-Pacific would have decreased to $12.9 million in the first quarter, down 13% from last year. In Australia, net sales were $4.1 million in the first quarter, up 5% compared to last year, driven by a higher level of promotional activities and continued growth of the base business. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates had an unfavorable impact on sales in the region. On a constant currency basis, sales in Australia would have increased 11% from last year. In our Asia distributor markets, net sales were $6.2 million for the quarter, down 21% compared to last year. The significant decrease in sales is primarily attributable to the timing of customer orders in the region. We had significant fourth quarter sales in our Asia MD markets, which has resulted in a lighter first quarter. Our Asia distributor markets are not impacted by currency since we sell our product in U.S. dollars in this region. In China, net sales in U.S. dollars decreased to $2.3 million in the first quarter, down 23% compared to last year due to the timing of customer orders. Sales in China during the quarter were also negatively impacted by activities associated with the 70th anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, which resulted in slowed market conditions in certain geographies. In constant currency, sales in China were down 21% for the quarter. We remain optimistic about the long-term opportunities in China, although we expect a lot of volatility along the way due to the timing of promotional programs, the building of distribution, shifting economic patterns and varying industrial activities. In total, our Asia-Pacific segment made up 13% of our global business in the first quarter. Over the long term, we expect sales within this segment will grow between 10% to 13% annually. Now I'll turn over the call to Jay for an update on the financials.