Bergen Brunswig Earnings Up 58% in 3rd Quarter

Bergen Brunswig Corp., one of the nation’s major distributors of prescription drugs and prerecorded videocassettes, said Thursday that its third-quarter earnings jumped 58% to $21.3 million.

The Orange-based company’s earnings for its latest quarter, ended May 31, were aided by a one-time gain of $3.5 million resulting from early payment of debt.

Revenue for the third quarter was $1.1 billion, up 16% from $986.9 million in the year-earlier period.

Emil P. Martini Jr., chairman and chief executive, attributed the improved profits to increased sales and “operating expense efficiencies.”

Jeffrey Kilpatrick, who tracks the company’s performance for Newport Securities Corp. in Costa Mesa, said he was not surprised at the results.

“It has been on a decent track in the last year,” he said. “They’ve had higher investment income and lower interest cost on debts.”

But the improved results didn’t help Bergen Brunswig’s stock. The company’s shares closed Thursday at $27.375 per share, down $1.

Kilpatrick said the market’s sour reception was mainly attributed to “inflated expectations” among speculators.

“The company illustrated its confidence in future performance by raising its June, 1990, quarterly dividend by 25%,” he said, adding that a company usually does not increase its dividend unless it expects continued financial improvement.

The company’s earnings for the nine months ended May 31 were $51.5 million, up 40% from $36.9 million a year ago.

Revenue for the same period was $3.3 billion, up 13% from $2.9 billion in the same period a year ago.

BERGEN BRUNSWIG’S FINANCIAL STATEMENT

In the third quarter ended May 31, Bergen Brunswig Corp. reported that revenue increased 15.7% and net income jumped 57.8% percent over the same period in 1989. The 1990 results include a $3.5 million extraordinary gain from early debt retirement.

Figures are in thousands except per share data.

3rd Quarter 3rd Quarter 9 Months 9 Months 1990 1989 1990 1989 Revenue $1,141,942 $986,959 $3,317,770 $2,925,328 Net income 21,283 13,471 51,549 36,899 Per share 57 cents 44 cents 1.43 1.32

Source: Bergen Brunswig Corp.