NCI Building (NCS) CFO To Retire, Search On For Replacement

NCI Building Systems, Inc. (NYSE:NCS) recently announced that its executive vice president-cum-chief financial officer (CFO) and treasurer, Mark E. Johnson, is about to retire. The company veteran, with a 12-year stint, will hold the posts until the succession process is completed and a new CFO is named.

Johnson has played an integral role in the development of NCI Building, including the establishment of the company’s current capital structure, and formulated a strong financial and operational position. Also, of late, Johnson has been supporting the change in the reportable business segments of the company.

In the fourth-quarter 2017 conference call, Johnson stated that modification of NCI Building’s business segments from three reportable divisions to four new segments will enable the company to focus more on operating performance and allocating resources. Johnson also stated that the change in its internal operating structure following the retirement of Norm Chambers and the succession of Don Riley as the CEO was essential as realigning the reporting framework will be apt for strategically managing the business.

NCI Building begun reporting its financial results under the new segments in first-quarter fiscal 2018, in which the Insulated Metal Panels (IMP) segment posted the highest year-over-year revenue growth of 16%, among all segments.

Notably, NCI Building’s growth strategy focused on IMP products will drive long-term results. Moreover, the company’s IMP product lines are expected to expand at a low-double digit rate in fiscal 2018, driven by solid underlying demand, current backlog and incoming order rates.

However, NCI Building’s shares have underperformed the industry it belongs to over the past year due to escalating steel prices. The company’s shares have gained 9% compared to 14% growth recorded by the industry.

Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

NCI Building sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Other top-ranked stocks in the same space include Patrick Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:PATK) , Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (NYSE:AWI) and PGT Innovations, Inc. (NYSE:PGTI) . While Patrick Industries flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Armstrong World and PGT Innovations carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Patrick Industries has a long-term earnings growth rate of 11.4%. The company’s shares have rallied 44%, over the past year.

Armstrong World has a long-term earnings growth rate of 16.8%. The company’s shares have appreciated 26% during the past year.

PGT Innovations has a long-term earnings growth rate of 17.9%. The stock has surged 84% in a year’s time.

Today's Stocks from Zacks' Hottest Strategies

It's hard to believe, even for us at Zacks. But while the market gained +21.9% in 2017, our top stock-picking screens have returned +115.0%, +109.3%, +104.9%, +98.6%, and +67.1%.

And this outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. Over the years it has been remarkably consistent. From 2000 - 2017, the composite yearly average gain for these strategies has beaten the market more than 19X over. Maybe even more remarkable is the fact that we're willing to share their latest stocks with you without cost or obligation.

See Them Free>>