04/13/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/13/2026 14:19
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Forward-Looking Statements
The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with the condensed consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in Part I, Item 1 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (this "report") and the audited consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto included in Part II, Item 8, "Financial Statements and Supplementary Data," as well as Part II, Item 7, "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2025. Some of the statements in this report may be forward-looking statements that reflect our current view on future events, future business, industry and other conditions, our future performance, and our plans and expectations for future operations and actions. In some cases you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "may," "should," "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "plan," "future," "intend," "could," "estimate," "predict," "hope," "potential," "continue," "foresee," "opportunity," or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. Many of these forward-looking statements are located in this report under Part I, Item 2, "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," but they may appear in other sections as well. Forward-looking statements in this report generally relate to: (i) our expectations with respect to order backlog, future demand for products, expected product mix and resulting sales; (ii) our beliefs regarding the sufficiency of working capital and cash flows; (iii) our expectation that we will continue to be able to renew or obtain financing on reasonable terms when necessary as well as our continued positive relationship with our creditors and lenders; (iv) our beliefs regarding production capabilities; (v) our intentions and beliefs relating to our costs, business strategies, and future performance, including without limitation, the impact of cost cutting measures, process improvement measures and new product development; (vi) our beliefs that normalizing dealer equipment stock levels may positively impact future demand for our agricultural products (vii) our beliefs regarding our early order program providing a picture of future demand; (viii) our expected financial results, including without limitation, our expected results for the Modular Buildings and Agricultural Products segments; and (ix) our expectations concerning our primary capital and cash flow needs.
You should read this report thoroughly with the understanding that our actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements for many reasons, including events beyond our control and assumptions that prove to be inaccurate or unfounded. We cannot provide any assurance with respect to our future performance or results. Our actual results or actions could and likely will differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements for many reasons, including but not limited to: (i) the impact of changing credit markets on our ability to continue to obtain financing on reasonable terms; (ii) our ability to repay current debt, continue to meet debt obligations and comply with financial covenants; (iii) the effect of inflation as well as general economic conditions, including consumer and governmental spending, on the demand for our products and the cost of our supplies and materials; (iv) impacts caused by fluctuating commodity prices and fluctuating farm income; (v) fluctuations in seasonal demand and our production cycle; (vi) the ability of our suppliers to meet our demands for raw materials and component parts; (vii) fluctuations in the price of raw materials, especially steel and the impact of U.S. tariff policy and retaliatory tariffs on our business; (viii) our ability to predict and meet the demands of each market in which our segments operate; (ix) the impact of future interest rate changes on our business and the demand of our products, or interest rate changes may be different than we currently expect; and (x) other factors described from time to time in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings. We do not intend to update the forward-looking statements contained in this report other than as required by law. We caution you not to put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this report. You should read this report and the documents that we reference in this report and have filed as exhibits completely and with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from what we currently expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.
Critical Accounting Policies
Our critical accounting policies involving the more significant judgments and assumptions used in the preparation of our financial statements as of February 28, 2026 remain unchanged from November 30, 2025. Disclosure of these critical accounting policies is incorporated by reference from Part II, Item 7, "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2025.
Results of Operations
Net Sales and Cost of Sales
Our consolidated corporate sales from continuing operations for the three- month period ended February 28, 2026 were $ 6,640,000 compared to $5,141,000 during the same period in fiscal 2025, an increase of $1,499,000, or 29.2%. Consolidated gross margin for the three months ended February 28, 2026 was 28.8% compared to 29.1% for the same periods in fiscal 2025.
Sales in our Agricultural Products segment during the first quarter of fiscal 2026 were $3,754,000 compared to $2,948,000 during the same period of fiscal 2025, an increase of $806,000, or 27.3%. We have experienced increased demand this quarter, as compared to the same period in 2025, with increased sales on grinder mixers, manure spreaders and bale processors. While row crop commodity prices have increased from their lowest point in 2024, they remain substantially below the peak levels experienced in 2022. The slight increase in commodity prices and product availability did, however, lead to improved results for the first quarter of fiscal 2026. Livestock prices remained elevated through Q1 of fiscal 2026 and are driving most of the demand for our agricultural products as a large portion of our customer base raises livestock and row crops. Sugar beet prices declined in the first fiscal quarter of 2026 and we are expecting less demand for our sugar beet equipment for the remainder of fiscal 2026. To offset some of the anticipated decrease in demand, we are deploying a product specialist into our primary beet territory to drive new customer activity and technological development as we unveil a new product in that market for fiscal 2026. Our fall early order program ended with a 62% increase in orders on our non beet equipment, while our beet orders were down 63%. Overall order book from the early order program was up 11%, which leads us to believe the agricultural market is entering a recovery despite continued increasing input costs. Gross margin for our Agricultural Products segment for the three-month period ended February 28, 2026 was 34.5% compared to 26.7% for the same period in fiscal 2025. The margin increase is due primarily to the mix of products sold in Q1 of fiscal 2026. Our grinder mixer sales were up $909,000 year-on-year and was our most profitable product line for the first quarter of fiscal 2026. We continue to carry strong grinder mixer backlog into the second quarter of fiscal 2026 and foresee steady shipments in the second quarter of fiscal 2026.. Steel prices continued to rise in the first quarter of fiscal 2026 and will challenge our strong first fiscal quarter margins. Rising fuel prices in fiscal 2026 could negatively affect demand if it has a large impact on farmer's input costs and
Our first fiscal quarter sales in our Modular Buildings segment were $2,886,000 compared to $2,193,000 for the same period in fiscal 2025, an increase of $693,000, or 31.6%. We carried strong modular building backlog into fiscal 2026, unlike a year ago, which drove the revenue increase this year. We experienced continued strong demand for our buildings on both the livestock and research sides in the first quarter of fiscal 2026. Current backlog is expected to carry us well into the third quarter of fiscal 2026, which is somewhat unusual given the sales life cycle in our Modular Buildings segment. Our leads remain abundant and we continue to be optimistic about the future prospects and continued success of this business segment. Gross margin in the Modular Buildings segment for the three- month period ended February 28, 2026 was 21.3% compared to 32.3% for the same period in fiscal 2025. Our margin decrease in the first fiscal quarter of fiscal 2026 is due to the selling of a warrantied agriculture modular building at cost and project overages on site work while completing current contracts.
Expenses
Consolidated selling expenses from continuing operations for the three months ended February 28, 2026 were $437,000, compared to $350,000 for the same period in fiscal 2025. The increase in selling expenses is due to increased commissions and royalties on increased sales along with additional targeted advertising campaign expenditures. Selling expenses as a percentage of sales were 6.6% for the three months ended February 28, 2026 compared to 6.8% for three months ended February 28, 2025.
Consolidated engineering expenses from continuing operations were $107,000 for three months ended February 28, 2026 compared to $85,000 for the same period in fiscal 2025. The increase in engineering expenses is related to additional research and development costs incurred in 2026 as we made product changes that we felt could drive more sugar beet product demand. Engineering expenses as a percentage of sales were 1.6% for the three months ended February 28, 2026, compared to 1.7% for the same period in fiscal 2025.
Consolidated administrative expenses from continuing operations for the three- month period ended February 28, 2026 were $1,038,000 compared to $1,059,000 for the same period in fiscal 2025. Administrative expenses as a percentage of sales were 15.6% for the three months ended February 28, 2026, compared to 20.6% for the same period in fiscal 2025. Administrative expenses have decreased slightly in fiscal 2026 despite the increase in sales as we have not replaced overhead cut in previous years. We continue to be conscious of adding additional overhead while market conditions are still slow in the Agricultural Products segment.
Net income (loss)
Consolidated net income was $196,000 for the three-month period ended February 28, 2026, compared to net loss of $56,000 for the same period in fiscal 2025. We are reporting positive operating results in both of our business segments through the first quarter of fiscal 2026. The small uptick in the agricultural market coupled with cost cutting procedures enacted in fiscal 2024 in the Agricultural Products segment has stabilized our operating result to prepare us for a future uptrend in the agriculture cycle. We continue to focus on remaining competitive with pricing, features and availability to ensure we are considered for retail opportunities. Our Modular Buildings segment's success is expected to continue as solid leads make their way to our sales team.
Order Backlog
The consolidated order backlog net of discounts as of April 7, 2026 was $7,287,000 compared to $4,482,000 as of April 7, 2025, a 62.6% increase. The order backlog in our Agricultural Products segment was $2,774,000 as of April 7, 2026 compared to $2,016,000 in fiscal 2025, a 37.6% increase. Demand has remained steady throughout fiscal 2026 for our agriculture products and is much improved from a year ago due to higher row crop prices and record cattle prices. The backlog for the Modular Buildings segment was $4,513,000 as of April 7, 2026, compared to $2,466,000 in fiscal 2025, an 83% increase. Quoting activity in both the research and agriculture buildings markets have been strong so far in fiscal 2026, with further contracts expected to execute with customers we are performing design agreements for. Our order backlog is not necessarily indicative of future revenue to be generated from such orders due to the possibility of order cancellations and dealer discount arrangements we may enter into from time to time.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Our primary source of funds for the three months ended February 28, 2026 was cash generated by operating activities including profitability and the increase of customer deposits and accounts payable as we incurred costs on construction contracts. We expect the collection of accounts receivable, progress on construction contracts and reduction of inventory to be primary sources of cash for the remainder of fiscal 2026. We expect our primary cash needs for the remainder of the fiscal year to be tied to operating expenses and retirement of debt.
As of February 28, 2026, our revolving credit line had an outstanding principal balance of $3,431,937. We renewed our revolving line of credit with Bank Midwest on March 19, 2026, with a scheduled maturity date of March 30, 2027. In our most recent renewal, we negotiated an interest rate 50 basis points lower than our previous line of credit tied to SOFR to recognize expected interest rate decreases sooner. Bank Midwest's credit committee has preapproved an additional $1,500,000 of principal for the 2026 renewal, consistent with the borrowing availability of our previous line of credit, in the event we need additional funding.
We believe our current financing arrangements will provide sufficient cash to finance operations and pay debt when due during the next twelve months. We expect to continue to be able to procure financing upon reasonable terms.