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HOOKER - FURNITURE Hooker Furniture Achieves Double - Digit Sales , Income Gains in Second Quarter September 9 , 2021 MARTINSVILLE , Va . , Sept. 09 , 2021 ( GLOBE NEWSWIRE ) -- Hooker Furniture Corporation ( NASDAQ - GS : HOFT ) today reported consolidated net sales of $ 162.5 million for its fiscal 2022 second quarter ended August 1 , 2021 , a $ 32.0 million , or 25 % , increase compared to the prior year period . Net income for the second quarter was $ 7.5 million , or $ 0.62 per diluted share , a 29 % increase from a year ago . Consolidated operating income for the fiscal 2022 second quarter was $ 9.7 million vers us $ 7.5 million in the prior year period , and operating margin improved moderately despite higher freight and raw material costs and ongoing shortages of ocean vessel and trucking capacity . ' For the second consecutive quarter , Hooker Furnishings achieved double - digit sales and profitability increases , with all three of our reportable segments posting year - over - year sales gains of more than 20 % , " said Jeremy Hoff , chief executive officer and director of Hooker Furnishings . " While we expected sizable improvements compared to the early months of the pandemic a year ago , we continue to surpass our goal to return to our pre - pandemic growth track . Consolidated sales were up over $ 10 million compared to the second quarter of fiscal 2020 , and profits were up about 79 % compared to the same quarter . " In addition , " Consumer and retail demand remain historically strong , with consolidated backlogs nearly double and incoming orders up 27 % over last year for the six - month period , " Hoff added . " While industry - wide demand continues to be high , we're facing significant headwinds on the supply side that will impact us in the short term , " said Hoff . " The surge of the Delta variant of COVID - 19 has caused factories in our source countries of Vietnam and Malaysia to close , with reopening prospects currently uncertain . In addition , global logistics challenges with higher freight and transit costs and lower transportation capacity , along with raw materials inflation and some labor shortages , remain ongoing . " ' We believe we are utilizing all available levers to help mitigate these headwinds , and we remain optimistic about our long - term position as we work our way through these transitory disruptions , " Hoff said . For the fiscal 2022 first half , consolidated net sales were $ 325.4 million , an increase of $ 90.2 million or 38 % , and net income was $ 16.9 million , or $ 1.40 per diluted share , compared to a net loss of $ 29.0 million or ( $ 2.46 ) per diluted share , all compared to the prior year first half . The loss a year ago in the first half was due to non - cash impairment charges related to a write - down of goodwill and tradenames in the Home Meridian segment and goodwill in the Shenandoah division prompted by the impact of the COVID - 19 downturn . Segment Reporting : Hooker Branded " The Hooker Branded Segment again had an exceptionally strong quarter , exceeding management's expectations in sales , profitability , product flow and efficiency , " Hoff said . Net sales increased by $ 11.1 million or 29 % , versus the prior year period . Incoming orders increased by 38 % , and the backlog tripled as compared to the prior - year second quarter . Operating income for the fiscal 2022 second quarter was $ 8.9 million , or 17.9 % of net sales , compared to $ 6.1 million or 15.7 % of net sales in the prior - year second quarter . " We attribute our strong sales and profitability performance in the Hooker Branded Segment to industry - wide demand and the dramatic improvements and expansions of our product lines , " said Hoff , adding that the recent June High Point International Market was " the biggest in written orders since April 2016. The Commerce & Market collection , with pricing , scale and styling targeting Millennials , was one of our largest accent furniture launches in our company's history . In addition , our strategy to rationalize our stocking inventory to focus on top sellers is helping us maximize shipping and production capacity , product flow and cash utilization , " Hoff said . Segment Reporting : Home Meridian HMI's second quarter sales were $ 87 million , up approximately 23 % over the prior year . Revenues were boosted by continued strong retail demand versus weak shipments during the second quarter last year due to Covid - 19 - related disruptions . " Year to date , we have seen a strong sales rebound with our traditional furniture channel retail base , as those customers pick up share lost to emerging channels during the opening months of the pandemic shutdowns last year . These emerging channel declines are the result of exceptionally strong demand in the prior year period , " he said . " Lower allowances , reduced fixed and other operating expenses were all favorable , but not enough to mitigate the impact of all - time record freight costs , " Hoff said . The Home Meridian segment finished the quarter at essentially breakeven due to all the factors discussed above . Incoming orders increased by about 4 % as compared to the fiscal 2022 first quarter but decreased by 35 % compared to the prior year second quarter when business rebounded dramatically after the height of the initial Covid crisis . Backlog at the end of the quarter was 62 % higher than the prior year's second quarter . Segment Reporting : Domestic Upholstery The Domestic Upholstery Segment net sales increased by $ 5.0 million or 28.7 % in the fiscal 2022 second quarter compared to the prior year quarter due to significant sales increases at Bradington - Young and Shenandoah and to a lesser extent at Sam Moore . Operating income for the fiscal 2022 second quarter was $ 457,000 or 2.0 % of net sales compared to a small operating loss in the prior - year second