Brunswick Declares Dividend of $0.17 Per Share

Brunswick (BC) has a market cap of $4.4 billion. It rose 0.48% to close at $48.34 per share on October 18, 2016. The stock’s weekly, monthly, and year-to-date (or YTD) price movements were -0.14%, 4.1%, and -3.3%, respectively, on the same day. BC is trading 0.98% below its 20-day moving average, 1.6% above its 50-day moving average, and 4.9% above its 200-day moving average.

The Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth ETF (IVOG) invests 0.28% of its holdings in Brunswick. The ETF tracks a market-cap-weighted index of growth companies culled from the S&P 400. The YTD price movement of IVOG was 7.6% on October 18.

The market caps of Brunswick’s competitors are as follows:

• Caterpillar (CAT) — $51.0 billion
• Cummins (CMI) — $21.5 billion

Brunswick has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share, a rise of 10%, on its common stock. The dividend will be paid on December 15, 2016, to shareholders of record on November 22, 2016.

Brunswick reported 2Q16 net sales of $1.2 billion, a rise of 9.1% over the $1.1 billion reported in 2Q15. Sales of the company’s Marine Engine, Boat, and Fitness segments rose 4.4%, 5.4%, and 32.2%, respectively, between 2Q15 and 2Q16.

The company’s cost of sales as a percentage of net sales fell 0.05%, and its operating earnings rose 5.0% between 2Q15 and 2Q16. It reported restructuring and integration charges of $2.6 million in 2Q16.

Brunswick’s net income and EPS (earnings per share) fell to $108.1 million and $1.17, respectively, in 2Q16, compared with $117.8 million and $1.25 in 2Q15. It reported adjusted EPS of $1.19 in 2Q16, a rise of 13.3% from 2Q15.

Brunswick’s cash and cash equivalents fell 25.0%, and its inventories rose 3.2% between 4Q15 and 2Q16. Its current ratio and debt-to-equity ratio fell to 1.9x and 1.3x, respectively, in 2Q16, compared with 2.0x and 1.5x, respectively, in 4Q15.

Brunswick made the following projections for 2016:

• revenue growth rates of 10%–11%, including 5% from acquisitions announced in 2015 and 2016
• adjusted EPS of $3.40–$3.50
• positive free cash flow of more than $200 million

In the next article, we’ll look at Fortune Brands Home & Security (FBHS).