Furon 1st-Quarter Profit Down 50% From Last Year

Furon Co., a manufacturer of industrial polymer products, reported Wednesday that its first-quarter earnings were down 50% contrasted with the corresponding period last year.

Sales for the three months ended May 4 totaled $81.4 million, down 8% from $88 million in the first quarter of last year. Earnings for the quarter were just $1.6 million, off from $3.2 million a year earlier.

But while the year-to-year comparison was bleak, company Chairman Peter Churm noted that the results for the latest quarter were an improvement over the preceding quarter and may indicate that the worst effects of the recession are over.

Furon said new orders during the first quarter were up 2% from the fourth quarter.

“Comparing this quarter to last year’s first quarter is difficult since last year was an all-time record period and it was pre-recession,” Churm said in a prepared statement. “We are encouraged to see the first quarter improve over the prior quarter. We hope this is the first indication that the economy is bottoming out and ready to recover.”

Furon said it reduced its bank debt by $4 million during the first quarter.

Furon manufactures products for a variety of industries including petrochemical, aerospace, medical, transportation, pollution control and fluid power.