Reports of tornadoes, hail and frightening winds blasted the Deep South on Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. Over 20,000 residents from Mississippi to the Florida Panhandle woke up without power, if they were able to get any sleep at all.

The first of the severe weather reports began trickling in with a blast of hail in the far east corner of Texas in Beaumont. At 10:51 a.m., CST, reports of quarter-sized hail were recorded, with damage reports running east quickly thereafter.

In Louisiana, hail was first recorded in Singer shortly before 11 a.m., local time, and pieces the size of ping-pong balls were reported in Lacamp less than an hour later.

A construction area in New Orleans was the site of the outbreak's first injury reports, as scaffolding over a pedestrian sidewalk collapsed amid high winds. According to the New Orleans Emergency Medical Services, one individual was transported with minor injuries.

AccuWeather Meteorologist Isaac Longley said the severe burst was birthed in the Gulf of Mexico.

"Ample moisture from the Gulf of Mexico fueled these storms, causing flash flooding to occur in many spots due to heavy rainfall," Longley said. "In addition to flooding, many storms produced damaging wind gusts and even a few possible tornadoes, which brought down trees and resulted in structural damage across the states of Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee."

From New Orleans into Alabama and Mississippi, the damage from high winds and tornadoes raged on for hours.

The first tornado report came from a spotter in Simpson County in Mississippi. According to the National Weather Service (NWS) Storm Prediction Center (SPC), trees were downed and structural damage was reported in the Martinville area. Minutes later, a storm chaser had visual confirmation of the possible tornado and more reports of downed trees and power lines were confirmed on Highway 540.

"I heard a roaring sound, kinda like a freight train coming, like when it's breaking down to a slow speed, and well by the time I got to the door to look, it was already blowing really hard," J.C. Powell, a Simpson County resident, told WLBT.com. "[The tornado] just took everything. It took the pickup bed out of my neighbor's pickup truck and brought it over to my house and that's what knocked my window out on my car... Wasn't nothing I could do."

Possible tornadoes leading to downed and snapped trees, structural damage and blown off roofs were also reported in the counties of Smith, Yazoo, Holmes, Leake and Jasper, Mississippi, through the afternoon and evening.

In Clarke County, located in eastern Mississippi, a reported tornado in Enterprise overturned an 18-wheeler and shut down numerous major roadways. The driver of that 18-wheeler was initially trapped in his vehicle. Emergency Director Eddie Ivy reported that there were no injuries, according to WTOK.com.

Alabama also had extensive damage, including a deadly sweep of strong winds that claimed a life and injured another individual in Marengo County. According to the county's emergency manager, the deadly storm hit shortly after 2 a.m., local time.

The storm-related death isn't being connected to a tornado report at this time, as the NWS is reporting the fatality as being linked to strong wind reports. According to the SPC, the death is in connection to the destruction of two manufactured homes.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

Four barns were also reportedly destroyed in Hale, Alabama, amid strong, straight-line winds.

Tornado watches and warnings were in effect as severe thunderstorms, with high winds, continued moving through eastern Alabama and Georgia, leading to widespread traffic hazards and delays.

In Dunwoody, Georgia, a tree fell on a vehicle traveling on Interstate-285, temporarily shutting down the eastbound lanes. No injuries were reported.

The ongoing severe weather and tornado threat in Alabama and northwestern Georgia prompted widespread school closures. In addition to tornado watches and warnings, widespread flash flood warnings blanket the region through Thursday afternoon.

At 8:43 a.m, local time, the Gordon County Sheriff's Office in Georgia confirmed reports of structural damage in Adairsville, with several trees and wires down.

Farther north and east, flash flood and severe thunderstorm warnings cover much of Tennessee while an enhanced risk spreads into South Carolina and Virginia. Meteorologists urge residents to stay alert for the threat of damaging winds and potential tornadoes through the day and into the night.

"Another round of severe weather is expected to impact the Southeast Thursday and Thursday night with cities such as Atlanta, Raleigh and Orlando all within the threat zone," Longley said. "While damaging winds and flooding downpours will be the main threats, a few tornadoes cannot be ruled out."

Keep checking back onAccuWeather.comand stay tuned to theAccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.

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Sleepless night in Southeast after deadly severe outbreak rocks the area with tornado reports - msnNOW

Automaker Hosts Pet Adoption Events with Partner Shelters in Greater Chicago Area

CAMDEN, N.J., Feb. 07 /CSRwire/ - Subaru of America, Inc. today announced it will continue its mission to unite pets with loving homes by hosting adoption events during the 2020 Chicago Auto Show. From February 8 17, attendees are invited to the Subaru exhibit inside the McCormick Place Convention Center to interact with shelter pets in their community and potentially adopt and take one home.

Subaru has partnered with three shelters from the Chicago area in order to facilitate the adoption pop-ups:Anderson Animal Shelter,Hopeful Tails Animal RescueandFetching Tails Foundation. Shelter partners will alternate their presence daily throughout the event.

We are proud of our commitment to protect and improve the lives of animals everywhere, and at Subaru, that means helping our canine friends find love and companionship, said Alan Bethke, Senior Vice President, Marketing of Subaru of America, Inc. With help from our partner shelters in the Greater Chicago area, we hope this pet adoption event brings joy to all auto show attendees and ultimately unites local shelter animals with loving homes.

Auto show attendees will be able to interact with the adoptable pets from the three partnering shelters during select times and dates:

Saturday, February 8, 10AM to 9PM Fetching Tails Foundation

Sunday, February 9, 10AM to 9PM Hopeful Tails Animal Rescue

Monday, February 10, 10AM to 9PM Fetching Tails Foundation

Tuesday, February 11, 10AM to 9PM Fetching Tails Foundation

Wednesday, February 12, 10AM to 9PM Fetching Tails Foundation

Thursday, February 13, 10AM to 9PM Anderson Animal Shelter

Friday, February 14, 10AM to 9PM Anderson Animal Shelter

Saturday, February 15, 10AM to 9PM Anderson Animal Shelter

Sunday, February 16, 10AM to 9PM Hopeful Tails Animal Rescue

Monday, February 17, 10AM to 7PM Hopeful Tails Animal Rescue

All adopters are subject to standard guidelines and procedures. Prospective adopters should bring with them a photo ID.

This Chicago Auto Show adoption event is a part of theSubaru Loves Petsinitiative, which is dedicated to helping improve the safety and well-being of animals in communities nationwide. The automakers commitment to pets is one part of itsLove Promisecompany vision. For more information about Subaru Loves Pets, please visitwww.subaru.com/pets.

About Subaru Love Promise

The Subaru Love Promise is our vision to show love and respect to all people at every interaction with Subaru. Together with our retailers, we are dedicated to making the world a better place.

About Subaru of America, Inc.

Subaru of America, Inc.(SOA) is a wholly owned subsidiary ofSubaru Corporation of Japan. Headquartered at a zero-landfill office in Camden, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 630 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill production plants andSubaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc.is the only U.S. automobile production plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. SOA is guided by theSubaru Love Promise, which is the companys vision to show love and respect to everyone, and to support its communities and customers nationwide. Over the past 20 years, SOA has donated more than $165 million to causes the Subaru family cares about, and its employees have logged more than 40,000 volunteer hours. As a company, Subaru believes it is important to do its part in making a positive impact in the world because it is the right thing to do.

For additional information visitmedia.subaru.com. Follow us onFacebook,Twitter, andInstagram

###

Diane AntonCorporate Communications Manager(856) 488-5093danton@subaru.com

Charles BallardProduct & Technology Communications(856) 488-8759cballard@subaru.com

MWW PRSubaru@mww.com

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Subaru of America Helps Find Homes for Pets in Need at 2020 Chicago Auto Show - CSRwire.com

Imagine if we could grow a building the way coral polyps grow a reef, or if living cells in our clothes could break down sweat and body odor. Imagine colonies of bacteria on space stations produced the filament for 3D printers. Imagine materials we use every day could repair themselves.

It sounds like science fiction, butNeel Joshi, an associate professor of chemistry and chemical biology at Northeastern, believes such feats are achievable. And the National Science Foundation agrees.

Engineered living materialssubstances made of or by reprogrammed cellscould improve on and replace plastics, concrete, and other materials that are currently made with more standard manufacturing practices, Joshi says.

The carbon footprint of materials manufactured for our entire built environment is huge, Joshi says. Being able to decrease that by following the model of how biology builds things is going to be very important.

This idea, submitted by Joshi and his team, has been selected as a grand prize winner in the National Science Foundations2026 Idea Machine competition, which sought grand challenges to help shape the U.S. research agenda for years to come. The teams proposal was one of four grand prize winners selected from close to 800 submissions.

The idea of using bacteria to build things isnt as wild as it may seem, Joshi says. The biomanufacturing industry already uses microbes to make fragrances, vitamins, pharmaceuticals, and other useful molecules. And there are a few larger materials being created by living cells as well.

Some of our compostable plastics that you might find in the cafeteria are made from polymers that are harvested from microbes, Joshi says. Thats a step in the right direction. But there are very few examples of those types of materials, and they also dont really cover the wide range of material properties that we would want. The real vision of engineered living materials is to go beyond that and program cells to make functional materials and goods directly, circumventing traditional manufacturing practices.

Getting living cells to build a coherent material, as opposed to a molecule, is more challenging, but this happens regularly in nature. Some colonies of microorganisms create slick, glue-like layers called biofilms to protect themselvesthink of the plaque on your teeth or the slime on a river rockand these mechanisms could be adapted to create things like waterproof coatings or plastic-like materials.

Currently, we make about 300 million tons of plastic every year, and the vast majority of it is not recycled. Plastics dont really break down in the environment, and researchers are looking for ways to tackle the growing problem of plastic waste. Materials made by cells are much more likely to be biodegradable, Joshi says.

Biology is very good at converting stuff that was useful in one form into another form and reusing all the same raw materials to make something else, Joshi says. Anything that you make from a living system is likely going to be more degradable than plastic.

Joshi and his colleagues are already working on several new materials in their lab, including plastic-like substances created by bacteria.

Learning from nature has been one part of doing this research, saysAvinash Manjula Basavanna, a postdoctoral researcher who has been focusing on creating bioplastics. But this is one step ahead of typical biomimicry. We are engineering biology to customize materials to whatever we want.

The group is alsotweaking a biofilmcreated by E. coli bacteria to have different properties. The bacteria could be used to create a protective layer in the gut of someone with Crohns disease or colitis, guiding healing of lesions and inflamed areas.

In the next 10 years, we will talk about using microbes for producing materials for different applications beyond what we can even imagine right now, says Anna Duraj-Thatte, a postdoctoral researcher in the lab. This is just the beginning.

For media inquiries, please contactmedia@northeastern.edu.

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Could future homes be built with... - ScienceBlog.com

Precast construction refers to dividing the building intocomponents, which are manufactured in a precast concrete plant, and transportedby special transportation equipment to the construction site for installation.Use of precast construction reduces the amount of waste generated as comparedto conventional construction methods and provides a safe working platform forworkers. Precast construction market has high growth prospects owing toincreasing investment in the construction industry in the developing countries.Further, increasing demand for relocatable modular buildings expected to drivethe demand for precast construction over the forecasted period.

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Our Analystis tracking high growth study with detailed statistical and in-depth analysisof market trends & dynamics that provide a complete overview of theindustry. We follow an extensive research methodology coupled with criticalinsights related industry factors and market forces to generate the best valuefor our clients. We Provides reliable primary and secondary data sources, ouranalysts and consultants derive informative and usable data suited for ourclients business needs. The research study enable clients to meet varied marketobjectives a from global footprint expansion to supply chain optimization andfrom competitor profiling to M&As.

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Precast Construction Market to Observe Strong Growth to Generate Massive Revenue in Coming Years - Oxfordshire Army Cadet Force

BidaskClub downgraded shares of Cavco Industries (NASDAQ:CVCO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Friday, January 31st, BidAskClub reports.

CVCO stock opened at $229.60 on Friday. Cavco Industries has a 52 week low of $112.00 and a 52 week high of $235.00. The companys 50-day simple moving average is $207.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $194.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 3.10. The company has a market capitalization of $2.11 billion, a PE ratio of 26.01 and a beta of 1.52.

Cavco Industries (NASDAQ:CVCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.24. Cavco Industries had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 14.60%. The business had revenue of $273.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $262.34 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. Cavco Industriess revenue was up 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CVCO. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cavco Industries in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cavco Industries by 25.0% in the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 310 shares of the construction companys stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Cavco Industries in the third quarter worth about $96,000. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cavco Industries by 13.4% in the second quarter. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 719 shares of the construction companys stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Cavco Industries in the third quarter worth about $192,000. 92.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cavco Industries Company Profile

Cavco Industries, Inc designs, produces, and retails manufactured homes primarily in the United States. It operates in two segments, Factory-Built Housing and Financial Services. The company markets its manufactured homes under the Cavco Homes, Fleetwood Homes, Palm Harbor Homes, Fairmont Homes, Friendship Homes, Chariot Eagle, and Lexington Home brands.

Featured Article: Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)

Receive News & Ratings for Cavco Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Cavco Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.

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Cavco Industries (NASDAQ:CVCO) Stock Rating Lowered by BidaskClub - Riverton Roll

PARADISE, Calif. -The Building Resiliency Center has officially opened to the public with more space and Butte County staff is in to assist those rebuilding in the unincorporated areas of the County.

On Tuesday, Feb. 4, the town will hold a community meeting for those looking into manufactured homes.

Community Information Meeting: Tues. Feb. 4th, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.Paradise Alliance Church - 6491 Clark Rd

Paradise Town Council Meeting: Tues. Feb. 11th 6 p.m.Paradise Town Hall - 5555 Skyway

PID Regular Meeting: Wed. Feb. 19th, 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.PID Boardroom - 6332 Clark Rd

Fridays for Lunch Free Lunch: Fridays, Noon to 1:30 pmParadise Lutheran Church - 780 Luther Dr. Paradise, Ca

Paradise Community Dinner: Thursdays 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.Paradise Alliance Church: 6491 Clark Rd

Another Business Back On The Ridge: Mid Valley Title & Escrow Co. is back in Paradise with a reopening on Thursday, Jan. 30 at 5:30 p.m. They are located at 6848 Skyway, Suite D, in the Holiday Plaza.

Feb. 4 Community Information Meeting: At the Paradise Alliance Church, the meeting will be diving into manufactured housing and what that permit-approval process will entail. Staff from the Building Resilience Center will break down the process of getting rebuilding plans through the approval process and give an update on private-road tree removal.

Private Road Hazardous Tree Removal: The Town of Paradise and Butte County have been notified that many private roads in the Camp Fire area are eligible for public assistance funding to remove Hazard Trees through the State Hazard Tree Removal Program. Most of the roads in the Town of Paradise are eligible and about half of the roads in the County area are eligible. The Town of Paradise is working with Cal OES and FEMA to understand which parcels are eligible, and this information on the parcel-level will be available on the Property Tree Removal Map found here by the end of January.

Staff in the Hazard Tree Removal Center will gladly accept Right-of-Entry forms for the Government Program or Inspection Access Forms for the Private Program; however, staff will not be able to provide information regarding what private roads are eligible. We encourage property owners to continue checking the Private Property Tree Removal Map on ButteCountyRecovers.org which will be updated when we have further information about private roads.

Rebuilding Advocates at BRC: Advocates are available to residents of the Town of Paradise and Butte County to help navigate the process of rebuilding and be on hand to help guide people through the rebuilding process. They can also help guide residents through the financial resources available to make rebuilding more affordable such as help people apply for loans and connect with contractors. Call 530-872-6291 ext. 130 to schedule an appointment.

Hazardous Tree Removal Ordinance: A Town and County ordinance has passed requiring the removal of hazard trees damaged by the Camp Fire from private property that may fall into public roadways. Property owners may enter the Government Tree Program to have the trees removed by the State at no out-of-pocket cost. Enrollment in the Government Tree Program requires a Right-of Entry form. Property owners may also identify and remove hazard trees themselves but must submit an inspection form so an inspector may verify the removal of the hazard trees from the property. Property owners may also call the Tree ROE Center directly at (530) 552-3030 or submit Tree ROEs by email at TreeROE@buttecounty.net. The Tree ROE is available for download online at http://www.ButteCountyRecovers.org/treeremoval. ROE forms may also be picked up at the Tree ROE Centers when they open. Three Tree ROE Centers open at the Butte County Library, Paradise Branch Community Room: 5922 Clark Road, Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm.

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Paradise Rebuilding and Recovery: Manufactured homes community meeting - Action News Now

Q3 2020 Skyline Champion Corp Earnings Call

ELKHART Feb 4, 2020 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of Skyline Champion Corp earnings conference call or presentation Wednesday, January 29, 2020 at 1:00:00pm GMT

TEXT version of Transcript

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Corporate Participants

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* Laurie M. Hough

Skyline Champion Corporation - Executive VP, CFO & Treasurer

* Mark J. Yost

Skyline Champion Corporation - President, CEO & Director

* Sarah Janowicz

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Conference Call Participants

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* Daniel Joseph Moore

CJS Securities, Inc. - Director of Research

* Gregory William Palm

Craig-Hallum Capital Group LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst

* Matthew Adrien Bouley

Barclays Bank PLC, Research Division - VP

* Michael Glaser Dahl

RBC Capital Markets, Research Division - MD of U.S. Homebuilders & Building Products

* Philip H. Ng

Jefferies LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst & Equity Analyst

* Rohit Seth

SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc., Research Division - Associate

================================================================================

Presentation

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Operator [1]

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Good morning. Welcome to Skyline Champion Corporation's Third Quarter Fiscal Year 2020 Earnings Call. The company issued an earnings press release yesterday after close. I would now like to introduce your host for today's call, Sarah Janowicz, the Company's Director of Investor Relations and External Reporting. Sarah, you may begin.

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Story continues

Sarah Janowicz, [2]

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Good morning, and thank you for participating in our earnings call to discuss our third quarter results. Joining me on today's call is Mark Yost, President and CEO; and Laurie Hough, EVP and CFO.

I would like to remind everyone that yesterday's press release and statements made during this call include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations and projections. Such risks and uncertainties include the factors set forth in our earnings release and in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Additionally, during today's call, we will discuss non-GAAP measures, which we believe can be useful in evaluating our performance. A reconciliation of these measures can be found in the earnings release. I would now like to turn the call over to Mark.

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Mark J. Yost, Skyline Champion Corporation - President, CEO & Director [3]

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Sarah, thank you. Good morning, everyone. I'm pleased to report strong gross margin and operating income improvements this quarter compared to the same period a year ago. As we look at industry demand trends, we have seen HUD industry shipments rebound favorably over the last few months and anticipate that trend will continue throughout the calendar year.

With revenue down 3.5% to $342 million this quarter, we were able to deliver strong operating leverage with a year-over-year increase of nearly 50% in operating income. Adjusted EBITDA grew by 13% year-over-year reaching $29.7 million for the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin in the quarter was 8.7%, a 130 basis point improvement compared to a year ago. We saw strong gross profit improvement across all of our reporting segments, driven by merger synergies, standardization and operational improvements as we saw material inflation start to rise during the quarter. I'm particularly proud of the fact that we were able to deliver these results without the benefit of top line growth in the quarter.

During the quarter, we saw our Canadian and Star Fleet revenues down due to economic and housing conditions in Western Canada, along with softer RV market in the U.S. We anticipate that those markets will remain soft in the short term. In the U.S., we experienced marginal unit volume increases with a shift to single section product, resulting in lower average selling prices during the quarter.

Focusing on the market, there are ample opportunities for continued growth, driven by favorable demographic and economic factors. HUD industry volume for the 3 months ended November increased by approximately 6.7% year-over-year with strong growth in the South Central region of the country, offset by declines in California and parts of the Midwest. We are seeing strong demand for affordable housing and expect HUD industry's year-over-year volumes to continue at this mid- single-digit growth rate for the remainder of the calendar year with California rebounding towards the end of our fourth fiscal quarter and the Midwest expected to return late spring after the customer consolidation is finalized. The broader housing market is also showing signs of strong growth, especially at the affordable missing middle price point. This will translate into higher levels of demand for the industry later in the year due to the lag between single-family starts and HUD shipments. Additionally, we believe that manufactured and modular homes will play an increasingly significant role in filling the gap for new single-family homes at more affordable price points compared to other housing options. We are seeing evidence of this increasing role from recent events on the financing, regulatory and builder fronts. On the financing front, while we are still waiting for the GSEs to roll out their secondary market for Chattel loans outlined in their duty to serve, we are encouraged by the private placements that occurred late in 2019. Financing terms are starting to become more competitive as a result, which should translate into demand later this year. Zoning changes are additionally starting to happen throughout the country to help solve the housing shortage. We are seeing increased demand for alternative dwelling units, or ADUs, in states like California, which have lifted zoning restrictions to address the need for affordable living spaces in urban areas. The feedback from customers for our ADUs from the International Builders' Show in Las Vegas last week was very positive. The product provides a simple solution for affordable housing in those markets. Additionally, in Las Vegas at the International Builders' Show, we showcased our Genesis home series, an affordable housing solution for builder developers. The feedback from builders on the quality and features of those homes at that price point exceeded our expectations. They were surprised at the speed to market and labor solutions that these products provide. One supplementary benefit was that these products have lower financing costs due to the support from the GSEs. In addition to the interest we received at the IBS show, we have started to experience traction in this past quarter with a handful of models ordered for delivery to subdivisions. We are very excited about the long-term potential of this new class of homes.

I will now turn the call over to Laurie to discuss our quarterly financials in more detail.

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Laurie M. Hough, Skyline Champion Corporation - Executive VP, CFO & Treasurer [4]

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Thanks, Mark. Net sales decreased to $342 million in the current quarter from $355 million in the year ago quarter. We saw revenue declines of $4.7 million in the U.S. factory-built housing segment, as well as declines in our Canadian factory-built housing segment and transportation business revenue of $7.7 million. The number of homes sold in the U.S. increased slightly versus the same quarter last year while the decline in the U.S. factory-built revenue was driven by a reduction in average selling price per U.S. home sold of 2% to $60,600.

The decline in average selling price was due to a shift in product mix as we sold a larger percentage of single section homes this third quarter versus the December quarter last year.

Canadian revenue decreased by 16% to $23 million, with corresponding decreases in the number of homes sold in the quarter. The number of Canadian units sold decreased to 276 homes compared to 329 homes in the prior year period.

Average home selling prices were stable at $82,600. We expect similar Canadian year-over-year volume shortfalls for the remainder of the fiscal 2020 compared to the same period in fiscal 2019, consistent with the broader housing market in Western Canada. Consolidated gross profit increased to $69 million, up 6% versus the prior year quarter. Our U.S. housing segment gross margins were 20.1% of segment net sales, up from 18.5% last year. Sequentially, from the September 2019 quarter, U.S. factory-built housing segment gross margins were down 80 basis points from 20.9%, driven by the impact of normal seasonal shutdowns as many of our facilities reduced or ceased production during the holiday season.

SG&A in the third quarter decreased to $45 million versus $49 million in the same period last year. The decrease was primarily due to a reduction in noncash equity-based compensation expense and integration costs.

Net income for the third quarter was $17 million or $0.30 per share compared to net income of $10.5 million or earnings per share of $0.19 during the same period in the prior year, driven by an increase in profitability from higher operating income, a reduction in equity compensation and other expenses and lower net interest expense.

On an adjusted basis, we generated $0.32 of net income per diluted share compared to $0.27 in the year ago quarter. The company's effective tax rate for the 3 months ended December 28, 2019, was 27% versus an effective tax rate of 29.7% for the fiscal 2019 third quarter. The change in the effective rate was primarily due to higher nondeductible share-based compensation expense incurred in the prior year.

Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $29.7 million, an increase of 13% over the same period a year ago. The adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 130 basis points to 8.7%, largely due to continued margin capture from synergies related to last year's combination reaching their run rate levels earlier this fiscal year and execution and identified operational improvements.

At the end of December, our consolidated backlog was $133 million compared to backlog last December of $181 million. Although backlog varies significantly by plant, our average U.S. plant backlog stood at 5 weeks of production at the end of the quarter. Backlog remains within our optimal range of 4 to 6 weeks, which allows us to effectively schedule production and manage the supply chain with our vendors. We believe backlogs have returned to more normal levels compared to the elevated levels experienced over the last year. We are focused on continuing to execute on our operational improvements and product rationalization initiatives, while bringing more value to our customers by continuing to elevate opportunities to refine and strengthen our costing and pricing strategies on our products, as well as prioritizing efforts on operational improvements and efficiencies, leveraging our knowledgeable and capable team members. We feel that these self-help initiatives will allow us to achieve a 10% adjusted EBITDA margin target at our current volume levels. We are on track to achieve this target in the next 18 to 24 months.

As of December 28, 2019, we had $171 million of cash and cash equivalents. Cash generated from operations during the third quarter of fiscal 2020 decreased slightly to $21 million compared to $23 million in the same period last year as cash flow generated by increased profitability was offset by cash utilization for working capital purposes. During the quarter, we used excess cash to pay down $5 million of our revolving credit facility. As a result, the company had $44 million of unused borrowing capacity under our $100 million revolving credit facility as of December 28, 2019.

We have a strong cash position with added liquidity from our credit facility that provides ample flexibility to invest in our core business and our strategic initiatives. We continue to be focused on identifying areas to utilize our strong free cash flow and opportunistic growth, which could include potential acquisitions or further organic capacity expansions. I'll now turn it back to Mark for some closing remarks.

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Mark J. Yost, Skyline Champion Corporation - President, CEO & Director [5]

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Laurie, thank you. As you can see from our results, we continue to achieve solid financial and operational performance. We are pleased with our continued track record of progress as we continue to achieve incremental improvements along our path to reaching our medium and long-term goals. We are encouraged by the feedback from our retail and community partners on the product and services we're providing them as well as the future opportunities to expand our off-site construction model offerings with an evolving customer channel like builder developers. As we look forward, we expect our markets to remain healthy, driven by the increased demand across the country for affordable housing. Our optimism is supported by the improvements that we've seen in the financing environment and the attention by regulators to suggest changes that are -- ultimately benefit our end customer. With favorable long-term demand fundamentals, we continue to invest and evaluate opportunities to position Skyline Champion as a sustainable solution for the future of our customers and their families. And with that, operator, you may now open the lines for Q&A.

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Questions and Answers

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Operator [1]

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(Operator Instructions) Our first question is from Daniel Moore with CJS Securities.

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Daniel Joseph Moore, CJS Securities, Inc. - Director of Research [2]

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Starting with, I guess, backlog's obviously now back down to, as you described, a more normalized level of 5 weeks. You certainly laid out a scenario where shipments likely start to increase. So just maybe talk about underlying demand trends, traffic at the dealer level, expectations for backlog as we look into fiscal Q4. Do you expect that to stay flat for the next quarter or 2? Start to build again? How should we kind of think about all that over the next, say, 90 to 180 days?

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Mark J. Yost, Skyline Champion Corporation - President, CEO & Director [3]

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Very good. Thanks, Dan. I think we see good traffic at the dealership level. Overall, the industry and activity across the board, it's very good, very healthy. So I think everything is very positive. We've seen strong growth as we mentioned in South Central Atlantic region recently. The past few months is -- 77% of the increase in the industry has been in that kind of Alabama through the Carolinas, Mississippi type region. So we've seen that rebound first, which was hardest hit last year by the weather. So we're seeing other markets start to kind of come back right now across the board, which is very good. Backlog should build into the first -- or into the fourth quarter -- end of the fourth quarter here, and then continue into, obviously, the June time period. So very confident in that. We have a normal seasonal backlog dip normally, especially with our Northeastern footprint. So this is very normal. Our backlogs actually were very good for this point in time of the year.

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Daniel Joseph Moore, CJS Securities, Inc. - Director of Research [4]

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Very helpful. And then just in terms of mix and modest decline in ASPs, do you expect that to continue as far as the U.S. product is concerned in Q4? And any -- obviously, you can't necessarily predict the impact of raw materials going out further, but what are your thoughts for trends as we get into fiscal '21?

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Mark J. Yost, Skyline Champion Corporation - President, CEO & Director [5]

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No, I would expect multi wides to pick up as we go through the season kind of into the June time period. Most of the dealers, as we talked about on the last earnings -- probably last 2 earnings calls, dealers have low inventory levels and I think this quarter particularly what they focused on is they had their sites ready for Single Wides. So they were able to take that product quickly because it's easier to set up a Single Wide product in the field for some of the community customers and some of the retails because of the -- there's less site work involved in setting those up. So during the winter period, keeping inventories lean, they probably tend towards those products first. But I think as the fall happens and things warm up, you'll see a more -- a larger trend to multi wides as the season picks up throughout the year. So you'll see a general uptick, a gradual uptick, as the year goes on in ASPs into the June, July, August time period.

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Daniel Joseph Moore, CJS Securities, Inc. - Director of Research [6]

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Perfect. Lastly for me. A subject I know you don't mind talking about, maybe just elaborate on Genesis and the builder developer channel. You mentioned a couple of specific orders that you've seen. Any more specific tangible evidence of progress and detail that you can provide for us would be helpful.

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Mark J. Yost, Skyline Champion Corporation - President, CEO & Director [7]

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Yes. Thanks, Dan. I think Genesis was well received at the International Builders' Show this past week. We've seen a tremendous amount of inquiry and activity from that. As we've mentioned earlier, we have seen a handful of orders start to be produced for subdivision to get in the ground with subdivisions. So they're actually in production now, being produced. So that's very encouraging that those are -- those levels of activity have happened. We've already produced MH Advantage in the field, but this is kind of a main forage in going into subdivision builder developer channel and it's actually starting. So we're encouraged by that.

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Operator [8]

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Our next question is from Rohit Seth with SunTrust.

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Edited Transcript of SKY earnings conference call or presentation 29-Jan-20 1:00pm GMT - Yahoo Finance

The key to fixing the homeless crisis in places like New York Cityisfewer regulations andless money unceremoniouslyflung at the issue, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson said Tuesday.

Appearing on Fox & Friends with host Ainsley Earhardt and New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) Chairwoman Lynne Patton,Carson said in order to solve the issue of homelessness, policymakers must first askwhy homelessness is a problem in the United States in the first place.

HOMEOWNERS GIVEN $20G BILL TO CLEAN UP FORMER CALIFORNIA HOMELESS CAMP

You know, you look at Japan, you look at Tokyo they havevirtually no homelessness there, and what is the difference? he asked. They dont have stacks and stacks of regulations that keep you from being able to use technology.

We have some very innovative people in our country who have come up with modular homes, tremendous advances in manufactured housing, tiny homes there are a whole host of things that could be used, he added.

Patton reported that her officials had recorded more than78,000 homeless New Yorkers including 20,000 homeless children during the annual Point In Time count,ahomeless assessment report done yearly across the United States.

New York is trying our best to put them into shelters to give them the services they deserve and this administration is investing record funding to do that, she told Earhardt.

Homelessness is not a Republican or Democrat problem, Pattonwrote on her Instagram account yesterday. Its a human problem.

Carson admitted that millennials and recentcollegegraduatesearning starting salaries of $50,000 a year cannot afford to live in large cities like New York. He said that a strong back and a willingness to work are not necessarily going to be enough to pull people out of poverty anymore andargued that we need to retool people now while the economy is doing well.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP

The other thing we have to remember is, its not just a matter of throwing money at this and more and more vouchers and more and more services. Its also a matter of getting people out of the system, giving them the tools, helping to retool them so they can function in a more sophisticated society that we have now, the secretary explained.

They say, Repair the roof while the sun is shining and not when its raining.'

Excerpt from:
HUD Secretary Ben Carson on NYC's homeless crisis: More regulations are not the answer - Home - WSFX

The Internal Revenue Service has confirmed Jan. 27 as the first day the tax agency will accept and begin processing 2019 tax returns.

The deadline to file tax returns for 2019 and pay any owed taxes is April 15, which this year falls on a Wednesday.

Taxpayers may prepare returns through the IRS Free File program or tax software companies and tax professionals before the start date, but processing returns will begin after IRS systems open later in January.

Officer Sterling Hall of the Pendleton Police Department is among the recent graduates of Basic Police Class 394. Hall, who graduated from Hermiston High School in 2014 and previously served on the reserve officer corps with the Hermiston Police Department, attended the 16-week course through the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training. The class concluded with a graduation ceremony Jan. 17 at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem. For more about the training, visit http://www.oregon.gov/dpsst.

An upcoming Museum After Hours program at Fort Walla Walla Museum will feature Mike Denny, an author, conservationist and past president of the Blue Mountain Audubon Society.

The program is Thursday, Jan. 30 at 4 p.m. in the museums Grand Hall, 755 Myra Road, Walla Walla. There is no admission charge.

Denny has also been involved with the Secret Life of the Forest series on the Blue Mountains, which aired on Blue Mountain Television in 2019. He will speak about the early naturalists and collectors who explored and documented the Walla Walla region in the 19th century, including Lewis and Clark, Thomas Nuttall, John Kirk Townsend, David Douglas, John C. Fremont, Charles E. Bendire, and Dr. Lee Raymond Dice.

The museums regular hours are daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free to members and kids under 6, $4 for children ages 6-12, $8 for seniors/students and $9 for general admission. For more information, call 509-525-7703 or visit http://www.fwwm.org.

Governor Kate Brown signed House Bill 2896 into law last week, authorizing loans to nonprofits to create programs to help people be able to afford to replace their outdated manufactured homes with something much more energy efficient.

The law, which was sponsored by Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, and supported by Umatilla Electric Cooperative, passed in the 2019 session.

Keeping Oregonians in affordable homes is crucial to ensure our communities continue to thrive, Smith said in a news release. The funding options created by this bill will enable more low and moderate-income families to replace their housing without taking on considerable debt. Keeping people in their homes while building a better supply of affordable, efficient homes is a win-win!

UEC general manager Robert Echenrode also called the bill a big win for rural Oregon.

The menu at the Harkenrider Senior Activity Center for Thursday is chicken enchiladas, Spanish rice, salad and birthday cake. Friday is clam chowder, coleslaw, garlic bread and dessert. Monday is pizza, green salad, fruit and dessert. Tuesday is tuna noodle casserole, peas, carrot salad and dessert. Next Wednesday is BBQ beef sandwich, potato salad, fruit and dessert.

See the article here:
By the way: Tax season starts this month - Hermiston Herald

Nurse practitioner Kelly Patterson, APRN, recently joined Baptist Health Medical Group Cardiothoracic Surgery. She has more than 10 years of experience providing nursing care to patients in western Kentucky. A board-certified nurse practitioner, Patterson earned a bachelor's degree in nursing from Murray State University and a master's degree in the Family Nurse Practitioner program at Union University, in Jackson, Tennessee.

Amy Futrell has joined FNB Bank as the market president for Murray-Calloway County. She brings over 30 years of banking experience having served in various roles including mortgage loan originator, vice president, special assets and vice president, retail sales. Futrell is a graduate of Murray State University with a bachelor's degree in business with an area in finance.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Kentucky has announced the appointment of the Honorable Alan C. Stout as the Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge for the district effective. He succeeds Judge Thomas H. Fulton, who had served in that role since December 31, 2012. Chief Judge Stout has served as a United States Bankruptcy Judge in the district since October 25, 2011. He will continue to hold court in Louisville and Paducah.

WPSD Local 6 has announced one promotion and one new employee on its staff.

Elizabeth Neelley was recently promoted to local sales manager. She has extensive experience serving the region as a local account executive for 14 years. Prior to joining WPSD, Neelley worked in the editorial and publicity department of Broadman and Holman Publishing in Nashville, the publishing division of Lifeway Corporation. A Paducah native, she is a graduate of Samford University with a BA in journalism and mass communications.

LouAnn Simpson joins WPSD as traffic manager. She has 38 years of experience in broadcasting, including positions in accounts receivable, national sales, and traffic management.

Zachary VanVactor has been promoted to member (partner) in the law firm, Stites & Harbison, PLLC. He is part of the firm's business litigation service group, Louisville and Jeffersonville, Indiana offices. VanVactor regularly works at both the trial and appellate level in state and federal courts around the country. His practice focuses on business litigation, class action and multidistrict litigation, financial services litigation, pharmaceutical and medical device litigation, intellectual property litigation and professional liability defense. He is a native of Possum Trot in Marshall County. Prior to joining Stites & Harbison, he served for two years as a law clerk for the Honorable Thomas B. Russell, U.S. District Judge, in Paducah.

Flagship Communities, which operates 44 housing communities in four states including Kentucky, has acquired its second residential manufactured housing community in Paducah, Southwood Pointe. With the addition, Flagship now owns over 225 lots in the Paducah market. Southwood Pointe is located at 749 Bleich Road, Paducah.

Daniel Richardson, Eddyville, has moved his real estate license to Lake Homes Realty. With the brokerage, Richardson will specialize in lake homes and land on and around Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley.

Dr. Pat Withrow has been named one of three new board members for the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. He is director of outreach and physician advisor at Baptist Health Paducah. A retired cardiologist, he previously served as a vice president and chief medical officer of the hospital, as well as director of the Heart Center. Withrow's recent advocacy work to promote a cigarette tax increase and a tobacco-free schools law follows a long history of health promotion efforts in the commonwealth. His "Wizard of Health" presentations for elementary students focus on healthy eating, exercise and refraining from smoking. He has toured more than 10 counties in western Kentucky presenting the program "The Adolescent Brain and Substance Abuse" to middle and high school students.

Originally posted here:
People and Business | Local News - Paducah Sun