Herman Miller Q4 Results Top Estimates; Boosts Dividend

(RTTNews) - Office furniture maker Herman Miller, Inc. (MLHR) reported net income for the fourth quarter of $23.4 million or $0.39 per share, compared to $16.6 million or $0.28 per share for the year-ago quarter.

Excluding items, adjusted earnings for the fourth quarter were $0.47 per share, compared to $0.50 per share in the prior year quarter.

Net sales in the fourth quarter rose 13% to $550.7 million from $487.5 million a year ago.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $0.41 per share on revenue of $543.63 million for the fourth quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Looking forward to the first quarter, the company forecasts net sales of $545 million to $565 million and earnings of $0.44 to $0.48 per share. Analysts currently expect the company to earn $0.50 per share on revenue of $564.40 million for the first quarter.

The company also announced an increase in its quarterly cash dividend to $0.1475 per share payable in October. The change represents an increase of over 5% from the current dividend payout of $0.14 per share.