Key Tronic Announces Results for Q2 of Fiscal Year 2024

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Key Tronic Corporation, a provider of electronic manufacturing services (EMS), announced its results for the quarter ended December 30, 2023.

For the second quarter of fiscal year 2024, Key Tronic reported total revenue of $145.4 million, up 18% from $123.7 million in the same period of fiscal year 2023. Revenue growth for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024 was driven by increased production at the Company’s US-based and Vietnam-based facilities, as well as by the sale of approximately $8.1 million of inventory from a discontinued program. For the first six months of fiscal year 2024, total revenue was $293.2 million, up 12% from $261.0 million in the same period of fiscal year 2023.

For the second quarter of fiscal year 2024, the Company’s gross margin was 8.1% and operating margin was 2.7%, compared to a gross margin of 7.2% and an operating margin of 2.9% in the same period of fiscal year 2023. The increase in gross margin in the second quarter of fiscal year 2024 reflects a favorable product mix for the quarter and improved operating efficiencies.

For the second quarter of fiscal year 2024, net income was $1.1 million or $0.10 per share, compared to $1.0 million or $0.09 per share for the same period of fiscal year 2023. For the first six months of fiscal year 2024, net income was $1.4 million or $0.13 per share, compared to $2.1 million or $0.20 per share for the same period of fiscal year 2023. The Company’s profitability in fiscal year 2024 continued to be negatively impacted by increased labor costs, unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates in Mexico and higher interest rates on its line of credit. 

“We’re pleased with the successful ramp of new programs in the second quarter of fiscal 2024, driven by increased utilization of our US and Vietnam facilities,” said Craig Gates, President and Chief Executive Officer. “During the quarter, we continued to expand our customer base, winning new programs involving security products, medical devices and military aerospace. We also continued to make gradual improvements in our gross margins and continued to make significant reductions to inventory, as well as reducing our accounts payable, debt and other liabilities.”

“While we continue to see the favorable trend of contract manufacturing returning to North America, the strength of the Mexican peso and continued wage increases in Mexican wages, particularly along the US-Mexico border, have created a shift in the way we allocate our production across our US and Juarez locations. In order to remain competitive, our Juarez site will be restructured to focus on higher-volume manufacturing, while lower-volume products with higher service level requirements will migrate to our other sites.

Accordingly, we are currently reducing our workforce in Mexico and will incur $1.0 million to $2.5 million of severance in the third quarter. We currently expect the payback period for these severance costs to be less than six months and our US and Vietnam facilities to contribute a growing portion of our revenue in coming periods.”

The financial data presented for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024 should be considered preliminary and could be subject to change, as the Company’s independent auditor has not completed their review procedures.

Business Outlook

For the third quarter of fiscal 2024, Key Tronic expects to report revenue in the range of $135 million to $145 million. The Company also expects to incur a severance expense in the range of $1.0 million to $2.5 million from headcount reductions in its Mexico-based operations, resulting in a net income in the range of $0.00 to $0.15 per diluted share. These expected results assume an effective tax rate of 20% in the coming quarter.