3M chief executive says distributor sales growth will extend into third quarter
The comment backs 3M's case for a stronger second half of the year.
Published
Chart: MMM, one-minute prices, three sessions
3M's chief executive said sales growth through the company's distributor channel would continue into the third quarter, adding to the case for stronger sales in the second half of the year.
The comment follows 3M's second-quarter results, in which chief executive William Brown said all three of the company's business groups had grown organically for a third straight quarter, giving the company confidence to raise its full-year earnings guidance, according to a 3M press release.
By the time 3M reported third-quarter results in October, sales had reached $6.5 billion, up 3.5% from a year earlier, with adjusted organic sales growth of 3.2%. The company again raised its full-year guidance, this time to an adjusted earnings range of $7.95 to $8.05 a share, according to a 3M press release carried by PRNewswire.
The distributor channel's continued strength suggests the improvement in sales is broad-based rather than confined to one part of the business, and it validates the second-half recovery 3M had already told investors to expect. That matters for the company's finances: 3M recently raised €1.5 billion in debt, and the distributor growth points to the company being positioned to fund its operations through the rebound it has been forecasting.