Airgas Inc. (ARG) said Thursday that it may miss the low end of its fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share guidance of $1.18 by about 4%, citing weaker-than-expected sales. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to report earnings of $1.22 per share for the fourth-quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
While announcing the third-quarter, the company had expected adjusted earnings per share of $1.18 to $1.24 for the fourth-quarter.
The company said that organic sales growth in its Distribution segment has been disappointing for the fourth-quarter.
Although organic sales growth in January was in-line with the low-single-digit growth assumption in its fourth quarter guidance, organic sales growth for the month of February was negative 2%. As a result, quarter-to-date organic sales growth through February was flat compared to the prior year and roughly 2% to 3% behind its guidance assumptions, with the shortfalls being volume-related and in both gases and hardgoods, the company said.
The impact of $600 million share repurchases in the fourth-quarter will be immaterial due the timing of the purchases and the pre-funding of the financing to take advantage of the attractive debt markets, the company noted.
The company said it continues to be very optimistic about the long-term prospects for the U.S. manufacturing and energy industries, as well as non-residential construction, and its ability to leverage its unique value proposition and unrivaled platform to drive growth.
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