Black & Decker Corp. / BDK

About Black & Decker Corp.

701 E. Joppa Rd., Towson, Md. 21286
www.bdk.com | 410-716-3900 | Founded: 1910

Industry: Manufacturing | Category: Top Companies Headquartered in Maryland

Black & Decker struggled in 2006, especially in the fourth quarter. Earnings per share were flat for the year, affected by the cooling housing market and rising commodity prices. The good news for the company is that it repurchased nearly $900 million of its shares, accounting for about 15 percent of its market value. The board increased the quarterly dividend to 42 cents in February, the fourth time in four years that the company has made such a move.
Among its new products, Black & Decker rolled out its Alligator Lopper for pruning around the yard and the Black & Decker Autowrench. DeWalt's new lithium-ion line of cordless products includes drill drivers, saws and a rotary hammer. The plan this year is to introduce two new lock lines from its Kwikset brand. The company also intends to roll out more products using the Nano lithium-ion technology.
Black & Decker announced in March 2006 that it had purchased Vector Products, a leading designer and marketer of consumer portable power products, for $160 million in cash. Vector, which produces power inverters, jump-starters, vehicle battery chargers and rechargeable spotlights, had more than $150 million in sales the year before. The hippest addition from the Vector acquisition might be a battery booster that plugs into a car's cigarette lighter to jump-start it instead of using jumper cables.

Chairman and CEO: Nolan D. Archibald

2006 Financial Data

Revenues: $6,447,300,000 | Net Income: $486,100,000
Asssets: $5,247,700,000 | Earnings Per Share: $6.55
Stockholder Equity: $1,163,600,000 | Annual Dividend: $1.52
Total employees: 25,500 | Local employees: None