Reflecting the rebounding strength of the state’s manufacturing sector, the majority of the top-performing stocks of publicly traded companies based in southeastern Wisconsin in the first half of the year were manufacturers.
Ten of the 18 local stocks that posted gains in the first six months were manufacturers: Magnetek Inc.; Harley-Davidson Inc.; Badger Meter Inc.; Snap-on Inc.; Johnson Outdoors Inc.; A.O. Smith Corp.; Actuant Corp.; Strattec Security Corp.; Briggs & Stratton Corp. and Koss Corp.
Menomonee Falls-based Magnetek led the way in percentage gained, as its stock grew nearly 32 percent to $15.77 from the beginning of the year.
Magnetek reported first quarter net income of $6.9 million, or $2.14 per share, up from $971,000, or 30 cents per share, in the same period of 2011.
The company’s quarterly net sales grew to $28.7 million from $27.8 million a year earlier.
“We’re very pleased with the performance of our business during the first quarter, highlighted by significant year-over-year increases in gross profit and income from operations. Conditions in most of our end markets remained favorable during the first quarter, particularly on the industrial side of our business. We capitalized on that during the quarter, growing sales into material handling markets 32 percent year-over-year to more than $18 million, while sales into mining markets increased 36 percent over last year to more than $2.7 million,” said Peter McCormick, Magnetek’s president and chief executive officer. “Over the past several quarters, we’ve demonstrated our ability to outpace overall economic growth rates, and we believe we can continue to do so with our continuing focus on market share gains, new product introductions and new market penetration.”
Magnetek also shored up its balance sheet by growing its cash balances by $5.1 million in the quarter to $26.0 million.
Financial companies Waterstone Financial Inc. and Bank Mutual Corp. joined the list of top-performing local stocks in the first half of the year, as their modest stock prices grew by 100.5 percent and 31.80 percent, respectively.
The other top-performing local stocks over the past six months were financial technology provider Fiserv Inc.; newspaper printer and broadcaster Journal Communications Inc.; trucking and logistics provider Roadrunner Transportation Systems Inc.; utility Wisconsin Energy Corp.; grocer Roundy’s Inc.; and hospitality and theater company Marcus Corp.
Nineteen local stocks saw their share prices decline in the first half of the year.
The local stocks losing the largest percentage of their prices were: Merge Technologies Inc.; Twin Disc Inc.; ZBB Energy Corp.; MGIC Investment Corp. and Joy Global Inc.
