Conrad Industries Inc. announced yesterday that its third quarter financial results and backlog as of Sept. 30 were down compared to a year ago.
For the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2015, Morgan City, La.-based Conrad had net income of $2.0 million and earnings per diluted share of 35 cents compared to net income of $4.5 million and earnings per diluted share of 74 cents during the third quarter of 2014. The shipyard had net income of $7.2 million and earnings per diluted share of $1.24 for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2015, compared to net income of $17.7 million and earnings per diluted share of $2.96 for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2014. Results for the three and nine months ended Sept. 30, 2015 included research and development tax credits of $800,000 and $2.5 million respectively.
Conrad’s backlog was $91.1 million on Sept. 30, down from $180.2 million at Dec. 31, 2014 and $135 million at Sept. 30, 2014.
“Our results for the first nine months of 2015 reflect a continued challenging operating environment, with decreased demand and pricing pressure in both new construction and repair,” Johnny Conrad, president and CEO, said in a statement. "The repair market continues to be soft, which we believe is due primarily to the decline in crude oil prices.
“Our management team has been working hard to pursue opportunities to expand our products and services,” Conrad continued. “During March 2015, we entered into a contract to construct the first LNG bunker barge to be built for the marine market in North America. In November 2015, we entered into contracts to construct articulated tug barges (ATBs), which include 80,000 barrel barge units. We believe our capital improvement program at our Deepwater South yard has strengthened our ability to compete for these types of projects.”
Conrad, established in 1948, designs, builds and overhauls tugboats, ferries, liftboats, barges, offshore supply vessels and other steel and aluminum products for both the commercial and government markets. The company provides both repair and new construction services at its five shipyards located in southern Louisiana and Texas.
