BlueLinx builds profits in Q1

Building products distributor BlueLinx reported first quarter sales of $1 billion for the first quarter, marking a 52% climb compared to sales of $662 million in the first quarter of 2020.

First quarter sales for specialty products, which include engineered wood, cedar, moulding, siding, metal products, and insulation, jumped nearly 47% to $563 million from $421 million in the first quarter a year ago. 

Sales of structural products, including lumber, plywood, oriented strand board, rebar, and remesh, benefited from wood-based commodity price inflation and were $462 million. This is nearly double total structural product sales of $240 million for the first quarter last year.

BlueLinx also posted a net income of $62 million in the first quarter compared to a net loss of $0.8 million during the corresponding quarter in 2020.

Based in Marietta, Ga., BlueLinx services 15,000 national, regional, and local dealers, specialty distributors, national home centers, and manufactured housing customers in 40 states. 

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The Bottom Line: BlueLinx leaps to a net income of $62 million from a loss year ago as inflated lumber prices propel sales.

What the CEO said: “The ongoing supply-demand imbalances for many of our products contributed to further price escalations during the first quarter, a trend that is continuing in the second quarter,” said Mitch Lewis, president and CEO of BlueLinx.  “We are a beneficiary of these price escalations, which are a key near-term driver of improved margin realization and profitability, while remaining focused on preemptive actions to help mitigate the impact of downside commodity price risk.”

Last month, BlueLinx announced that  Lewis will retire as president and CEO, effective June 7. The company’s board of directors has elected Dwight A.K. Gibson as its incoming president and CEO. The succession is also effective June 7.

Company info: The full first quarter 2021 financial report from BlueLinx is available here.