CUDAHY, Wis., April 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Ladish Co., Inc. (www.ladishco.com) (NASDAQ:LDSH) today reported 2007 first quarter sales of $97.7 million in comparison to $95.0 million of sales in the first quarter of 2006. The Company reported net income of $5.8 million, resulting in diluted earnings per share of $0.40 for the first quarter of 2007, versus a net income of $7.6 million or $0.54 per share, in the same period of 2006.
Ladish will host a conference call on Monday, April 23, 2007 at 9:00 a.m. EDT to discuss the first quarter performance for 2007. The telephone number to call to participate in the conference call is (800) 263-8506.
For the Three Months
Ended March 31
(Dollars in thousands, except per share data)
2007 2006
Net sales $97,666 $95,006
Cost of goods 83,976 77,638
Gross profit 13,690 17,368
SG&A 3,942 4,304
Operating income 9,748 13,064
Interest expense & other (606) (793)
Pretax income 9,142 12,271
Income tax provision 3,364 4,540
Minority interest in subsidiary earnings 10 99
Net income $ 5,768 $ 7,632
Basic earnings per share $0.40 $0.54
Basic weighted average shares outstanding 14,497,267 14,015,088
Diluted earnings per share $0.40 $0.54
Diluted weighted average shares outstanding 14,541,415 14,150,903March 31 December 31
(Dollars in thousands) 2007 2006
Cash and cash equivalents $2,613 $3,431
Accounts receivable, net 77,086 69,144
Inventory 107,305 106,736
Net PP&E 115,681 112,096
Other 39,598 37,199
Total assets $342,283 $328,606
Accounts payable $41,328 $32,933
Accrued liabilities 14,395 15,602
Senior bank debt – 2,100
Senior notes 52,000 52,000
Pensions 27,338 35,510
Postretirement benefits 37,385 37,791
Stockholders’ equity 169,837 152,670
Total liabilities & equity $342,283 $328,606
“In the first quarter, we booked over $150 million of new orders as our contract backlog grew to over $550 million. However, first quarter sales levels were less than we had expected for the period. The unplanned equipment downtime we experienced this quarter in our forging operations had the combined effect of limiting incremental sales and earnings by reducing absorption of fixed costs. Higher raw material prices were also dilutive to earnings,” says Kerry L. Woody, Ladish’s President and CEO. “With the equipment up and running, our focus is on returning the Company’s performance to prior levels as we continue to satisfy our customers’ demands.”
Looking forward to the remainder of 2007, Woody remarked, “We remain optimistic about the strength of the markets we serve. Our capacity expansion projects, the new isothermal press in Wisconsin and the recently announced furnace expansion in Oregon, are well underway and will support our growth in 2008 and beyond. As the strength of our industry continues, we are seeking opportunities to capitalize on this upturn to grow our business both internally with capacity expansion and externally through strategic acquisitions in order to better position our company for the future. All of the operating units of Ladish are expected to experience continued growth in business and profitability. While we are enjoying this positive trend, our established cost reduction programs remain focused at sustaining the profitability of the business and improving our cash position while serving our customers.”
Ladish Co., Inc. is a leading producer of highly engineered, technically advanced metal components for the jet engine, aerospace and general industrial markets. Ladish is headquartered in Cudahy, Wisconsin with operations in Wisconsin, Oregon, Connecticut and Poland. Ladish common stock trades on Nasdaq under the symbol LDSH.
This release includes forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in them. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, uncertainties in the company’s major markets, the impact of competition, the effectiveness of operational changes expected to increase efficiency and productivity, worldwide economic and political conditions and the effect of foreign currency fluctuations.
