ARMSTRONG, Iowa — Art's Way Manufacturing Co. Inc. (NASDAQ (NBI): ARTW), a diversified, international manufacturer and distributor of equipment serving agricultural, research, water treatment and steel cutting needs, announced its financial results for the year ended Nov. 30, 2015 yesterday. 

Sales: Consolidated sales decreased 22.8%, from $36,170,000 in fiscal year 2014 to $27,936,000 in fiscal year 2015. This decrease was primarily attributable to a decrease in sales of our agricultural products, in particular our Universal Harvester product line, but we experienced decreased sales volume across all of our agricultural product lines. We do not believe that the sales decreases in fiscal 2015 represent a loss of market share, but rather lower demand in the overall market place for agricultural equipment. Our pressurized vessels and tools segments also experienced lower net sales in fiscal 2015. The decrease in sales by our pressurized vessels segment was largely due to a sizable project that used significant shop capacity during the fourth quarter that will not be delivered or invoiced until the first quarter of fiscal 2016, and our tools segment was affected by a decrease in market demand, most notably in the energy industry.  Net sales by our modular buildings segment increased slightly over fiscal 2014.

Income (Loss): Consolidated operating loss for the 2015 fiscal year was ($404,000) compared to operating income of $1,665,000 in fiscal year, while net loss for the 2015 fiscal year was ($558,000) compared to net income of $935,000 for fiscal 2014. These decreases are largely attributable to the $619,000 noncash charge for the impairment of goodwill related to our Universal Harvester product line, which was incurred in the third fiscal quarter of fiscal 2015, as well as decreased sales volume, offset somewhat by increased sales oat our modular buildings segment.

Chairman of the Art's Way Board of Directors, Marc H. McConnell reports, "As has been the case for our peers in the agricultural and energy industries, 2015 was clearly a challenging year for us. Poor market conditions impacted demand for several of our business units, most notably our row-crop oriented agricultural products. 

“From April through the end of the fourth quarter, we implemented substantial cost cutting measures to adapt to market conditions and prepare us for a new day in 2016. These measures continue and are allowing us to remain competitive in the marketplace. We are very pleased that despite the current economic headwinds, we were able to not only maintain our gross margins, but improve them through costs savings initiatives. While many of our peers have forecasted further reductions in demand for 2016, we believe our diverse model will be somewhat more stable in the year ahead. We are cautiously optimistic that we have put ourselves into a position to succeed in the new fiscal year, and are excited about numerous opportunities we are pursuing."    

About Art's Way Manufacturing Inc.

Art's Way manufactures and distributes farm machinery niche products including animal feed processing equipment, sugar beet defoliators and harvesters, land maintenance equipment, crop shredding equipment, round hay balers, plows, hay and forage equipment, manure spreaders, reels for combines and swathers, and top and bottom drive augers, as well as pressurized tanks and vessels, modular animal confinement buildings and laboratories and specialty tools and inserts. After-market service parts are also an important part of the Company's business. The Company has four reporting segments: agricultural products; pressurized tanks and vessels; modular buildings; and tools.