Ply Gem Holdings, a Cary company that filed plans to go public last year, reported lower sales in the second quarter as demand for the company's building products continued to be hurt by softness in the housing market.

The company's second-quarter sales totaled 294.5, 2.4 percent lower than the same period a year ago; quarterly earnings were $28.5 million, down from $30.3 million from a year ago.

Ply Gem sells vinyl siding and other products for home exteriors. The company's financial performance is closely tied to housing starts, which have remained at low levels since the homebuyer tax credits expired last year.

"Given that market conditions for 2011 are expected to remain challenging, Ply Gem will continue to focus on maintaining a lean overall cost structure while maximizing cash flow and striving to outperform the marketplace in all business units, which will ensure that Ply Gem emerges stronger as the housing market recovers," said Gary Robinette, the company's CEO, in a release.
 

Ply Gem Holdings, a Cary company that filed plans to go public in June, reported increasing sales and profitability today.
 

Ply Gem has $932.6 million in publicly traded debt, and the company has filed quarterly reports and other documents with the SEC since 2004.

The company's second quarter sales totaled $301.7 million, 16 percent higher than the same period a year ago; earnings were $30.3 million, up 38 percent.

Ply Gem sells vinyl siding and other products for home exteriors. In a statement, CEO Gary Robinette noted that the housing market in the first half of the year was helped by the federal home buyer tax credits, which expired April 30.

"Not surprisingly, there have been signs of weakness in the later part of the second quarter as the tax credit program expired and the exact health of the U.S. housing market is a concern for the second half of 2010," Robinette said.

"As such, Ply Gem will continue its focus on maintaining a lean overall cost structure while maximizing cash flow and striving to outperform the marketplace in all business units, which will ensure that Ply Gem emerges stronger as the housing market recovers.”

Ply Gem's Securities and Exchange Commission filing said the company is seeking to raise as much as $300 million through an initial public offering.

If successful, Ply Gem's IPO would be the largest for a Triangle company since Talecris Biotherapeutics went public last fall.