Swedish fastener manufacturer Bulten AB reported sales rose 37.6% to a record SEK 1.08 billion (US$130.2 million) in the final quarter of 2021, including SEK 129 million from PSM Int’l, which Bulten acquired in early 2020 for SEK 230 million.

Q4 operating earnings rose to SEK 92 million, equating to an operating margin of 8.5%, while after-tax earnings increased to SEK 63 million.  Earnings were boosted by “strong demand, higher capacity utilization and a positive outcome from the streamlining initiatives begun in 2019,” the company stated.

Order bookings during the quarter gained 41% to SEK 1.19 billion, including SEK 140 million from PSM.

Sales in 2020 grew 3.3% to SEK 3.19 billion, with SEK 369 million attributable to PSM.  Operating earnings totaled SEK 116 million, equating to an operating margin of 3.6%. 

Full-year order bookings increased 16.2% to SEK 3.6 billion.

“The relocation of our production units in Taiwan and the USA has gone according to plan, and we still see potential in synergies with our acquired company PSM, which has now been fully integrated in the Bulten organization,” stated CEO Anders Nyström.

In addition to acquiring PSM, Bulten acquired a minority holding in TensionCam Systems AB (TensionCam) for SEK 6 million.

In late 2019, Bulten opened its new automotive fastener factory in Tianjin, China – about 90 miles southeast of Beijing.

Founded in 1873, Sweden-based Bulten supplies fasteners to the international automotive industry, with 1,400 employees in eight countries.  Web: Bulten.com