Water and office refreshment supplies retailer Crystal Rock Holdings Inc. managed to book a 49 percent increase in its third-quarter profits, despite sales being mostly flat, it reported.
The Watertown company said profits for the quarter ended July 31 were $884,000, up from $595,000 during the same quarter last year.
Sales were $18.4 million, down six-tenths of a percentage point from the same quarter a year ago.
Peter Baker, president and CEO, said in a statement that a reduction in operating expenses helped drive the bottom line growth.
General expenses for the quarter were down $220,000, or 2.8 percent. Advertising costs were also cut by $132,000, or 39 percent.
The company also had no derivative losses, compared to a $4.1 million loss in the third quarter of 2012, and lower interest expense.
Balancing that off in the recent quarter was a higher income tax expense.
