Supplier Delta Apparel, Inc. (PPAI 188431) has announced preliminary results for its 2019 fiscal first quarter that ended December 29, 2018. The Greenville, South Carolina-headquartered supplier anticipates overall net sales for the first quarter of its 2019 fiscal year to come in ahead of expectations at approximately $101 million, or about a 12 percent increase from prior year net sales of $90.3 million. The growth was driven by solid double-digit gains in the company’s Salt Life business, as well as in its digital print business, which successfully completed its first holiday season with consolidated operations including the DTG2Go and SSI Digital Print businesses acquired in the last 10 months.

“We are pleased with our start to the new fiscal year and the broad-based momentum we are seeing across our business segments,” says Robert W. Humphreys, Delta Apparel, Inc.’s chairman and chief executive officer. “We have delivered sequential growth in our Salt Life Group, and our Delta Group continues its strong expansion driven by our DTG2Go digital print business.”

Delta Apparel expects earnings per share for the quarter to be above the prior year period’s reported earnings per share. It also noted that results during the first quarter of fiscal year 2019 were impacted by a discrete expense of $2.5 million associated with the resolution of litigation stemming from The Sports Authority's March 2016 bankruptcy. Delta Apparel anticipates adjusted earnings per share for the quarter to be approximately in line with prior year adjusted results of $0.08 after excluding the financial impact of this expense and the impact of United States tax reform legislation.