The Toro Co. posted $976.8 million in fiscal 2020 third quarter revenue, compared to $841 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2019, a 16.2-percent year-over-year increase. Net earnings were $96.3 million compared to $89 million a year ago, an 8.3-percent increase.
For the first nine months of fiscal 2020, Toro posted $3 billion compared to $2.54 billion in the first nine months of fiscal 2019, an 18.2-percent increase. Net earnings for the nine-month period were $349.8 million compared to $257.5 million in the year-ago period, a 35.8-percent jump.
In Toro’s professional segment, third quarter net sales were $718.5 million compared to $623.6 million in the year-ago third quarter, a 15.2-percent increase, primarily driven by strong demand for landscape contractor, golf, snow and ice management, rental and specialty construction and Ventrac products, slightly offset by decreased sales of underground construction equipment because of product availability.
Professional segment earnings for the third quarter were $122.3 million compared with $113.7 million in the same period last year, a 7.6-percent increase. When expressed as a percentage of net sales, the total was a 17-percent decrease, largely because of higher material and freight costs, partially offset by net price realization and productivity improvements.
Residential segment net sales for the third quarter were $252.1 million compared with $205 million in the year-ago period, a 23-percent hike. The increase was primarily the result of strong retail demand for zero-turn and walk power mowers. Residential segment earnings for the third quarter were $31.5 million compared with $28.5 million a year ago, a 10.5-percent increase.
“Robust sales continued throughout the quarter in both our professional and residential segments,” said Richard Olson, chairman and CEO. “As we capitalized on the current demand environment and focused on serving our customers, our dedicated team and channel partners demonstrated extraordinary resolve in navigating global supply chain challenges. We delivered double-digit net sales growth for the second quarter in a row for the professional segment, with continued strength in landscape contractor and golf markets worldwide, increased pre-season shipments of BOSS snow and ice management products, and higher demand for rental and specialty construction equipment and Ventrac products. Residential segment net sales were also up double digits on top of a very strong third quarter last year, driven by increased retail demand for zero-turn and walk power mowers. Customers are excited about our new and enhanced products across both segments, including our expanding line of battery-powered offerings. Our continued investment in key technology areas underscores our commitment to provide a broad range of innovative and sustainable solutions.
“As we enter the final quarter of our fiscal year, we anticipate continued strong demand for our innovative product offerings and are encouraged by the benefits we are realizing from our productivity and synergy initiatives. We continue to align with market dynamics and are prudently managing expenses for what is likely to be a challenging supply chain, inflation and labor environment into next year. All in, we are positioned to delivery excellent results for the full fiscal year, including record organic growth as we approach $4 billion in annual revenue.”
The company is increasing its full-year fiscal 2021 guidance, and now expects net sales growth of about 17 percent, up from a range of 12 percent to 15 percent previously. The company’s updated guidance is based on management’s current visibility, and reflects expectations of a strong demand environment, coupled with continuing supply chain, inflation and labor pressures.
