NEWARK, NY -- IEC Electronics reported fiscal third-quarter net income jumped 69% year-over-year on a 4% increase in sales.

For the period ended June 29, the EMS company reported revenue of $36 million and net income of $2.2 million.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 39% to $4.84 million.

It's a measure of the contract electronics manufacturer's recent success that the company was disappointed by the results. Chairman and CEO W. Barry Gilbert said, "The quarter was not what we envisioned in either sales growth or debt reduction. We experienced some softness in our industrial and medical sectors, and at the present time those sectors appear to be back on track. With respect to our debt we believe our debt can be reduced to approximately $26 million by the conclusion of our fiscal year at the end of September.

"For the second quarter in a row we have achieved financial results well above our historic metrics, specifically gross margins of 20.6% and operating margin of 9.8%. During the third quarter, cost containment and product mix were important drivers of our higher margins. The gross and operating margin results were some of the best in the company's history, and particularly strong for our industry.

"All of our businesses are now competing for new business opportunities that were unavailable to us several years ago. They will continue to grow at very respectable rates, broadly speaking between 9 and 14%."