United Stationers Inc.

United Stationers Inc. (USTR - Snapshot Report) continued its string of earnings surprises in the second quarter as it beat for the fourth consecutive time. The Zacks Consensus Estimates are rising. The stock is trading with a forward P/E of 14.3.

Company Description

United Stationers distributes business products in the United States and Mexico from 67 distribution centers and 30,000 reseller customers.

The company provides over 100,000 items, including technology products, traditional office products, janitorial and breakroom supplies, office furniture, and industrial supplies. USTR is able to ship overnight to customers in more than 90% of the United States and major cities in Mexico.

United Stationers Surprised by 27.54% in the Second Quarter

On July 30, United Stationers reported second quarter results of 88 cents which easily beats the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 69 cents. However, it was below the year ago number of 91 cents per share.

Sales declined 7.4% to $1.16 billion compared with $1.25 billion in the year ago quarter. Not surprisingly, furniture, industrial, technology and traditional office supplies all declined due to the tough economic environment. The janitorial/breakroom segment, however, saw sales growth.

Cautious Outlook

Like many companies, United Stationers is seeing some improvement quarter over quarter. The company said July sales improved but were still down about 5%. The company is focusing on controlling costs.

Zacks Consensus Estimates Rise

There is only 1 analyst covering United Stationers but that analyst is optimistic about the third quarter and the full year.

The third quarter Zacks Consensus Estimate rose 14.5% to 95 cents from 83 cents in the last 2 months.

The 2009 Zacks Consensus Estimate jumped 36 cents to $3.24 in the prior 60 days.

Value Fundamentals

United Stationers is a Zacks #1 Rank (strong buy) stock. It has a price-to-book of 1.77. The company has a solid 5-year return on equity (ROE) of 14.62%.

Read the full analyst report on USTR