National Presto Third-Quarter Profit Hits $19.977 Million, Up From $5.317 Million, On Defense Shipments And Tariff Refund
Defense sales rose 31.3% and a tariff refund lifted housewares operating earnings to $8.1 million from a loss a year earlier.
National Presto Industries, which makes small appliances and housewares, defense ammunition and smoke alarms, earned $19.977 million in the third quarter, or $2.79 a share, up from $5.317 million, or $0.74, a year earlier. Defense shipments from backlog and a refund of tariffs the Supreme Court declared unauthorized did most of the work, according to an 8-K filed Monday that carries the company's October 30 results release.
Defense does the heavy lifting
Net sales for the quarter ended October 4 rose to $144.308 million from $115.463 million in the comparable 2025 quarter. President Maryjo Cohen said Defense segment sales were up $29 million, or 31.3%, reflecting increased shipments from backlog.
Defense operating earnings climbed $7.1 million, or 61.8%. Cohen credited the added volume, a more favorable mix and increased operating efficiencies.
Safety segment sales, still nominal, rose $296,000, or 88.9%, on distribution of a broader line. The segment posted a loss, which Cohen said was anticipated.
A tariff refund flips housewares to profit
The Housewares/Small Appliance segment posted operating earnings of $8.1 million, in contrast to a loss a year earlier. Most of that, Cohen said, came from a refund of a portion of the tariffs the segment had paid that the Supreme Court declared unauthorized in its February decision.
Segment sales dipped $469 thousand, or 2.1%. The segment designs and sells small household appliances and pressure cookers under the PRESTO brand.
Nine months and the business behind them
For the first nine months, net earnings were $42.465 million, or $5.93 a share, against $18.079 million, or $2.53, a year earlier. Sales for the period were $409.553 million, compared with $339.551 million.
The Eau Claire, Wisconsin, company's Defense segment makes 40mm ammunition, cartridge cases, detonators and metal parts, primarily for the US Government and defense prime contractors. Its defense contract backlog was about $1.748 billion at the end of 2025, according to its annual report.
With most of housewares' $8.1 million coming from the tariff refund, the segment's next quarter will show how it earns without one.
