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K. SCHIPPER: Hi, I’m K. Schipper with the latest hard surfaces industry news from Radio Stone Update.
0:32
The latest financial report out of Israel for Caesarstone Ltd. shows a distinctly mixed picture for 2021 revenues, although nothing out of the ordinary considering the pandemic.
On the plus side, the company reported double-digit growth in the fourth quarter and for full-year 2021, fueled mainly by U.S. sales. On the downside other financial considerations led to a net fourth quarter 2021 loss for the company and a suspension of the common-stock dividend.
Caesarstone CEO Yuval Dagim says the record growth in revenue reflects increasing demand for the company’s countertops globally. Says Dagim, “We have a clear path forward into the next stage of our growth journey and are excited to introduce today a long term financial goal for 2025 which includes revenue growing to $1 billion.”
Over the fourth quarter of last year, the United States proved to be Caesarstone’s largest market, with sales of $77.6 million from the U.S., which accounted for 45.3 percent of the company’s global revenues. The final three months of 2021 represented the second largest quarterly revenue for U.S. operations. The company had $79 million in U.S. sales in last year’s third quarter.
The gain in U.S. revenues was attributed to growth of sales at Home Depots nationwide, and a 50 percent quarter-on-quarter gain in IKEA in-store sales. Early last year, Caesarstone also acquired Omicron Granite and Tile, and its 17 locations in the Southeast and Midwest also boosted company revenues.
However, the company’s fourth quarter operating income of $3.3 million was offset by financial expenses of $7.4 million. After other adjustments, Caesarstone’s resulting net loss of $3.3 million — or 11 cents per share — meant it won’t be paying a quarterly dividend.
Overall, the company showed $643.8 million in worldwide revenue in 2021, leading to a net income of $18.9 million. Looking into his crystal ball, Dagim expressed confidence in the company’s future, citing the rollout of its CS Connect online platform and improved efficiencies at its Richmond Hill, Ga., plant
The company is experiencing increased costs, particularly in polyester binding material, although it raised its prices effective Jan. 1. For 2022, Caesarstone is projecting worldwide revenues between $710 and $725 million.
03:22
Restoration stonework on Wyoming’s state capitol drew the approval of judges, topping the list of honorees in the 2021 Pinnacle Awards of Excellence from the Natural Stone Institute.
Wiss, Janney Elstner Associates of Northbrook, Ill., won the Grande Pinnacle Award for its work on the seat of Wyoming’s state government. The capitol is a National Historic Landmark, and the project was also recognized as one of the Pinnacle winners in the Restoration/Renovation category.
The structure was built in stages completed in 1888, 1890 and 1917. Since then, the building’s Wyoming and Colorado sandstone suffered damage due to water exposure, weathering, and incorrect previous repairs.
A challenge of the project was balancing the necessary stone repairs to address life-safety and long-term performance while preserving the original stone and providing an acceptable appearance within an established budget.
To accomplish this, the effort included accessing the original stone quarries to select new slabs. Stone Dutchman repairs were then shop-fabricated and hand-carved and blended by stone masons in the field. Approximately 1,135 units were fabricated for the project.
A total of 15 projects were recognized with Pinnacle Awards during the TISE show earlier this month in Las Vegas. A full report on the winners will be included in the March/April 2022 issue of Stone Update Magazine. Sponsors of the awards include Marmomac, MAPEI, GranQuartz and Coldspring.
6:17
The Rockheads Group has named Rich Katzmann as its new executive director. Katzmann took the reins of the Cleveland-based fabricator network Feb. 1.
Katzmann previously served as president of Laser Products. He was also the founder and CEO of Stone Services Group. He said his plan is to immediately focus on reaching out to all members and vendors during a time in which he anticipates the group will see rapid growth.
Jon Kaplan, a Rockheads Group owner/director, says he’s confident Katzmann is the perfect executive to lead the Rockheads into the next phase of its strategic plan by aggressively adding new members to leverage its buying power, while simultaneously directing more revenue to its supplier partners.
The group continues to leverage its members’ combined buying power of more than $1 billion and the industry’s most comprehensive benchmarking process.
7:15
EMERSON SCHWARTZKOPF: This is Emerson Schwartzkopf. 2021 ended on a high note with U.S. hard-surface imports, with the $469.1 million in December showing a 21.3% increase from the same time in 2020 … and a leap of almost 50 percent from December two years ago.
Quartz slabs maintained the prime position in U.S. hard-surface imports, with the 18.1 million ft² received in December outpacing the same time in 2020 by 30.4%. But, in comparison to November 2021, shipments only went up by a mere 0.3% . and the totals actually went down for major U.S. suppliers like India, Spain and Turkey.
Is this the first signs of the dreaded slowdown? Well, that’s a tough call, given that demand and shipments always slack off between December and February. We’ll know about the queasy quarter next month, when January data is available.
8:25
K: SCHIPPER: Another company that’s shown some success over the years is Dallas-based Dal-Tile Corp., which is celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2022. Over the years the company has grown from operating out of a small Quonset hut in Dallas to a seat on the New York Stock Exchange and more than 300 company-owned sales service centers, stone slab yards and design studios, as well as through independent distributors and leading home centers.
Founded in 1947 by Robert Brittingham as The Dallas Ceramic Company, the operation grew by manufacturing tile while acquiring companies such as Keystone Ridgeway in 1980 and American Olean Tile in 1995. It changed its name to Dal-Tile in 1980. The company moved into the natural-stone market with its first Tile and Stone Gallery in Dallas in 1999. The company went public on the NYSE in 1996.
Flooring giant Mohawk Industries acquired Dal-Tile in 2002, in a deal at the time valued at $1.8 billion. Three years ago, Dal-Tile moved into the domestic production of quartz-surfaces at its Dickson, Tenn., plant. Today it’s the largest tile and countertop company in the world and manufactures everything from 1” mosaic tiles to 11’ tall quartz slabs.
Matt Kahny, Dal-Tile president, said, “While so much has changed, we are proud to say that the fundamental values that made Dal-Tile great over the years have remained. Chief among these values is the spirit of our people – the loyalty, passion and commitment they have for Dal-Tile, our customers and each other.”
In other industry news…
10:17
A truck loaded with heavy granite slabs traveled all the way from Nebraska to the Tacoma, Wash., area before succumbing to an accident Feb. 12. The semi-truck was forced to slam on its brakes when a car in front of it suddenly slowed down. The two stacks of granite slabs on the truck-bed broke through their restraining straps and momentum carried them into the truck’s tractor.
Fortunately, the driver of the semi wasn’t injured. State patrol officers investigating the accident said the slabs had been properly secured for the size and weight of the load. However, the truck had to be towed from the scene, and traffic was reduced to one northbound lane for more than four hours.
11:00
LATICRETE has elected Jerry Perkins as the newest member of its board of directors. Perkins is formerly the president of Henkel North and South America. He also led the company’s Global General Industry Adhesive business unit.
LATICRETE Chairman David A. Rothberg described Perkins as coming to his new position with a wealth of strategic experience growing premium value, branded product businesses, and accelerating operational efficiency in global scale businesses using differentiated channels of distribution and digital platforms. Perkins is a resident of Princeton, N.J., and holds degrees from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Central Connecticut State University.
Remember, for a monthly report on all the latest industry import data, turn to Hard Surface Report at www.hardsurfacereport.com. Our online newsletter, Slab and Sheet, appears on alternate Wednesdays. For notes and a full transcript of this podcast, go to www.radiostoneupdate.com.
For Radio Stone Update, I’m K. Schipper, and we’ll see you here again soon.
r and we’ll see you here again soon.
