Consolidated Sales of $163.8 million compared to $155.7 million the prior year quarter; Net Income of $8.1 million represents a 29% increase over prior year quarter; EPS of $0.21 compared to $0.16 prior year quarter: EBITDA of $21.2 million compared to $17.8 million the prior year quarter Quarterly dividend of $0.105 per common share to be paid June 28, 2024 TORONTO, May 01, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Exco Technologies Limited (TSX-XTC) today announced results for its second quarter of fiscal 2024 ended March 31, 2024. In addition, Exco announced a quarterly dividend of $0.105 per common share which will be paid on June 28, 2024 to shareholders of record on June 14, 2024. The dividend is an "eligible dividend" in accordance with the Income Tax Act of Canada.   Three Months Ended March 31 Six Months Ended March 31 (in $ thousands except per share amounts)           2024 2023   2024 2023   Sales $163,825 $155,507   $320,535 $294,600   Net income for the period $8,066 $6,288   $13,708 $10,811   Earnings per share:Basic and Diluted – Reported $0.21 $0.16   $0.35 $0.28   EBITDA $21,223   $17,841   $39,284   $33,022     "Exco's second quarter results demonstrate solid progress executing upon our various growth initiatives," said Darren Kirk, Exco's President and CEO. "Despite challenging global macro conditions, we remain confident our results will see continued gains through the quarters ahead." Consolidated sales for the second quarter ended March 31, 2024 were $163.8 million compared to $155.5 million in the same quarter last year – an increase of $8.3 million, or 5%. The Automotive Solutions segment reported sales of $85.8 million in the second quarter – an increase of $2.7 million, or 3% from the prior year quarter. Foreign exchange rate changes increased segment sales minimally in the quarter ($0.2 million). The sales increase was driven by the ramp up of newer programs, stable vehicle production volumes, select pricing actions to compensate for inflationary pressures as well as favorable vehicle mix. Blended vehicle production volumes in North America and Europe were essentially unchanged from the prior year quarter, indicating continued gains in content per vehicle. Looking forward, industry growth may be tempered by elevated interest rates, relatively high vehicle average transaction prices, rising dealer inventory levels, and softening global economic conditions. Nonetheless, vehicle sales remain encouraging (particularly in North America), dealer inventory levels remain well below pre-COVID-19 levels and OEM incentives are rising. Exco's sales volumes will benefit from recent and future program launches that are expected to provide ongoing growth in our content per vehicle. Quoting activity also remains encouraging and we believe there is ample opportunity to achieve our targeted growth objectives. The Casting and Extrusion segment reported sales of $78.0 million for the second quarter – an increase of $5.6 million or 8%, from the same period last year. Foreign exchange rate movements were negligible in the quarter. Demand for our extrusion tooling recovered from weaker conditions in the prior sequential quarter in both ...