NEWS
| For: | From: |
Ladish Co., Inc. | Libby Communications |
| 5481 South Packard Avenue | 1414 East Harbour Towne Circle |
| Cudahy, WI 53110 | Muskegon, MI 49441 |
| Contact: Wayne E. Larsen | Contact: William J. Libby |
| 414-747-2935 | 231-755-4111 |
| 414-747-2890 Fax | 231-755-4144 Fax |
Cudahy, WI—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 | 14,150,903 | ||||||
more
LCI-07-06
NEWS
| (Dollars in thousands) | March 31 2007 | December 31 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.
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LCI-07-06
