Ever wonder who puts the tips on the ends of shoelaces? I'll admit it's a bizarre thing to think about, but someone is responsible for it and hopefully makes a living at it.
In the same vein is Paxar (NYSE:PXR), the company that helps retailers such as Kohl's (NYSE:KSS) and apparel companies such as adidas and Polo Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) with all manners of tagging, labeling, and managing the flow of their products with its systems.
For the quarter, Paxar's results were not terribly impressive -- sales and earnings were essentially flat with last year. However, the company's balance sheet is still solid, and last year's results were very strong after backing out restructuring charges.
Part of the company's pain this quarter stems from a long-term trend that Paxar has been living with. As customers continue to move their sourcing and operations to lower-cost locations, Paxar needs to do the same. That means less of a presence in North America and Europe and more of one in Asia. This will continue to affect earnings this year as some operations in the U.K. are closed down. The positive about all of these changes and moves -- despite the initial pain -- is how the company now has operations literally around the globe and offers its customers a great deal of flexibility as their sourcing of products evolves.
Paxar is not exhibiting tremendous growth, but the company has evolved to match the world it lives in. More importantly, the shares are priced as though Paxar doesn't have much of an opportunity for growth. Given the company's geographic flexibility and technological prowess, growth at some point seems likely, even if it's not obvious today. For investors who want a solid business at a reasonable price along with an opportunity for future growth, Paxar is worth checking out.
Nathan Parmelee has no financial interest in any of the companies mentioned. The Motley Fool has an ironclad disclosure policy.
