By Kosaku Narioka
Makita Corp. shares fell sharply Wednesday morning after the Japanese power-tools maker posted a 51% drop in first-quarter net profit.
The company’s shares were recently 8.1% lower at 3,296 yen after falling as much as 8.9% earlier.
Makita said Tuesday after market close that net profit dropped to Y10.56 billion ($77.1 million) for the quarter ended June from Y21.61 billion a year earlier.
The company said Covid-19 lockdowns in China disrupted its production there while sharply higher costs of raw materials weighed on its margins.
Revenue rose 5.4% to Y195.35 billion thanks to strong sales in Japan, Oceania and Latin America.
Makita kept its earnings forecasts for the fiscal year ending March 2023, projecting that will revenue rise 0.1% to Y740.00 billion and that net profit will fall 8.9% to Y59.00 billion.
The Topix subindex for machinery makers was recently down 0.4% and the Nikkei Stock Average was 0.1% lower.
Write to Kosaku Narioka at kosaku.narioka@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 26, 2022 21:15 ET (01:15 GMT)
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Read More: Makita Shares Slump After First-Quarter Net Profit Fell 51%