Universal Forest Products Inc. ( UFPI - Analyst Report ) reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2011 on February 15, 2012. Earnings per share, adjusted for non-cash items, in the quarter were at break-even levels as compared with a loss of 9 cents incurred in the year-ago quarter. Results fared well as compared with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 4 cents.

Including the non-cash adjustments, fourth quarter weakened, recording a 9 cent per share loss versus one cent earnings in the year-ago quarter.

For the fiscal year 2011, reported earnings per share were 23 cents versus 89 cents reported in the previous year.

Revenue

Universal Forest’s net sales in the fourth quarter jumped 11.4% year over year to $422.0 million.

Retail Building Materials revenue (38% of fourth quarter total gross sales) increased 7.7% year over year to $165.3 million. Residential Construction sales (11.1%) declined 19.2% year over year to $46.6 million. Commercial Construction and Concrete Forming sales (5%) were $20.9 million, up 16.8% year over year.

Industrial sales (30.0%) were $128.6 million, up 22.4% year over year. Manufactured Housing and Recreation Vehicles sales (16.0%) were up 35.1% year over year to $67.3 million.

In the fiscal year 2011, total revenue plummeted 3.6% to $1.82 billion.

Margins

In the fourth quarter, Universal Forest’s cost of goods sold represented 88.8% of total revenue, up 100 basis points year over year. Gross margin decreased by the same magnitude to 11.2%. Selling, general and administrative expenses were roughly $45.5 million and represented 10.8% of total revenue, a decrease of 180 basis points year over year.

Balance Sheet

Exiting the fourth quarter, Universal Forest’s cash and cash equivalents were approximately $11.3 million versus $18.6 million at the end of the previous quarter. Long-term debt reached approximately $12.2 million from $52.2 million at the end of the previous quarter.

Cash Flow

Cash flow from operating activities in the fiscal year 2011 was $11.3 million, down from $29.3 million in 2010. Capital spending jumped 21.6% to $32.9 million. Share repurchase activity during the year was nil while dividend payments amounted to $7.8 million.

Outlook

Universal Forest expects challenging conditions to persist going forward and thus refrained from providing any financial guidance for the year.

Universal Forest Products Inc. manufacturers treats, distributes, and installs lumber, composite wood, plastic and other building products. The company faces stiff competition from its peers like Bluelinx Holdings Inc. ( BXC ) , Builders FirstSource Inc. ( BLDR - Snapshot Report ) , and Louisiana-Pacific Corp. ( LPX - Snapshot Report ) .