Allegion posts modest quarterly profits

Security-products company Allegion PLC on Thursday reported third-quarter profits of $1.6 million, after reporting a $27.3 million loss in the same period a year earlier.

On a per-share basis, the Dublin-based company said it had net income of 2 cents. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, were 93 cents per share.

Allegion’s Americas region headquarters is in Carmel. The company, which was spun off from Ingersoll Rand in 2013, also has three manufacturing and R&D facilities in Indianapolis that are operated by Schlage Lock Co. LLC and Von Duprin LLC.

The results fell short of Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of six analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 95 cents per share.

Allegion reported revenue of $581.1 million in the period, which also fell short of Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $586.9 million.

The company said its profits last quarter were hurt by a loss on divestiture charge of $84.4 million (87 cents per share), which was mostly related to an impaired receivable related to a previously divested business in China. During the same period last year, the company recorded an $80.6 million loss associated with the sale of that business, and a $26.1 million loss associated with the divestiture of its Venezuelan business.

Allegion expects full-year adjusted earnings in the range of $3.38 to $3.43 per share. That represents an update of the company’s previous guidance of $3.30 to $3.40 per share.

Allegion shares have fallen 0.5 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has increased nearly 5 percent. The stock has increased slightly more than 2 percent in the last 12 months.

In unrelated news, Schlage Lock Co. LLC has signed a state incentives agreement for a $13 million expansion project first announced in February.

The agreement, signed last week, includes a $13 million capital investment in the company’s Carmel headquarters and its three Indianapolis facilities. The company is also receiving local incentives for the project.

Schlage says it will add 283 jobs among all four locations by the end of 2020. That number includes 158 jobs in Marion County and 125 in Carmel.

In return, the Indiana Economic Development Corp. approved Schlage for up to $4.8 million in performance-based EDGE tax credits. That contract was signed Oct. 20.

IEDC spokeswoman Abby Gras said the March announcement mentioned only 158 jobs because at the time Schlage did not want to mention the additional Carmel jobs.