- Net earnings per share for the quarter up 22 percent to a record $0.61
- Third quarter sales increase 4.5 percent to a record $627.9 million
- Strong results driven by increased demand for professional segment products
BLOOMINGTON, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 24, 2017-- The Toro Company (NYSE: TTC) today reported net earnings of $68.4 million, or $0.61 per share, on net sales of $627.9 million, an increase of 4.5 percent, for its fiscal third quarter ended August 4, 2017. In the comparable fiscal 2016 period, the company delivered net earnings of $55.8 million, or $0.50 per share, on net sales of $601.0 million. For the first nine months, Toro reported net earnings of $233.9 million, or $2.10 per share, on a net sales increase of 4.8 percent to $2.017 billion. In the comparable fiscal 2016 period, the company posted net earnings of $200.8 million, or $1.79 per share on net sales of $1.924 billion. “We are pleased to deliver strong results for the quarter driven by positive momentum in our professional segment,” said Richard M. Olson, Toro’s chief executive officer. “Innovative new offerings across our professional portfolio fueled the growth. Products such as the Exmark® Radius® and the Toro® TITAN® HD zero-turn riding mowers have been well received by customers. In our golf and grounds business, the Groundsmaster® and Greensmaster® mower lines also contributed to the favorable results. Finally, the Perrot irrigation products have proven to be a good addition to our international business, where we achieved nice sales growth for the quarter.” “With the fourth quarter underway, we are encouraged by the retail trends we are seeing, particularly across many of our professional businesses. BOSS® is well positioned with several new product offerings to support the needs of our contractor customers as they prepare for the snow season. Similarly, sales of our residential snow throwers have also been favorable as the channel anticipates the upcoming snow season.” “As we enter our final quarter of the three-year Destination PRIME employee initiative, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize our team for their hard work and accomplishments throughout this multi-year journey. We are encouraged by the progress we have made and remain focused on driving further improvement in the remainder of the fiscal year and into our next initiative.” The company now expects revenue growth for fiscal 2017 to be at least 4.5 percent and net earnings per share to be about $2.38. | 
