Acme United Corporation
ACU
$37.07 -0.46%
Exchange: AMEX | Sector: Consumer Defensive | Industry: Household Personal Products
Q2 2025
Published: Aug 6, 2025

Earnings Highlights

  • Revenue of $54.00M down 2.6% year-over-year
  • EPS of $1.16 increased by 4.1% from previous year
  • Gross margin of 41.0%
  • Net income of 4.75M
  • "The market environment was particularly challenging due to tariffs. We shifted production from China to other locations, including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Egypt and our own factories." - Walter C. Johnsen, Chairman and CEO
ACU
Company ACU

Executive Summary

Acme United delivered a resilient QQ2 2025 performance despite meaningful tariff headwinds. Net sales declined 3% year over year to $54.0 million, while net income rose to $4.8 million and diluted EPS reached $1.16, marking a quarterly earnings record when excluding legacy onetime items. The gross margin stood at 41.0%, with operating margin at 11.8% and net margin at 8.8%. Management attributes the top-line softness primarily to 145% tariffs on Chinese imports, which disrupted Westcott (cutting tools) and to a lesser extent other segments, prompting customers to delay or cancel orders. Acme responded with price discipline, cost reduction, and accelerated localization of production. The company continues to invest for capacity and efficiency gains, including the Mount Pleasant Spill Magic facility acquisition ( ~$6 million ), expanded Medโ€‘Nap operations in Florida, and automation upgrades across multiple plants. Management remains confident in growth in the second half of 2025, with anticipated sequential growth in Q3 and Q4 driven by recovery of delayed programs and share gains in Westcott and First Aid products. Net debt declined meaningfully to about $30.7 million (vs. ~$33 million a year prior), while free cash flow for the trailing twelve months was around $12 million, supporting an unchanged or increasing dividend and ongoing buyโ€‘back capacity if pursued. The company also signaled ongoing supplyโ€‘chain diversification, including shifting production away from China to Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Egypt, and internal facilities, to better navigate tariff risk and strengthen service levels.

Key Performance Indicators

Revenue
Decreasing
54.00M
QoQ: 17.49% | YoY: -2.58%
Gross Profit
Decreasing
22.15M
41.02% margin
QoQ: 23.62% | YoY: -2.11%
Operating Income
Increasing
6.39M
QoQ: 163.40% | YoY: 0.24%
Net Income
Increasing
4.75M
QoQ: 187.48% | YoY: 6.74%
EPS
Increasing
1.26
QoQ: 186.36% | YoY: 4.13%

Revenue Trend

Margin Analysis

Historical Earnings Comparison

PeriodRevenue ($M)EPS ($)YoY GrowthReport
Q3 2025 0.05 0.46 -99.9% View
Q2 2025 54.00 1.16 -2.6% View
Q1 2025 45.96 0.41 +2.2% View
Q4 2024 45.94 0.41 +9.5% View
Q3 2024 48.17 0.54 -4.4% View