Aearo Discloses Results of Operations
INDIANAPOLIS, January 9, 2004 - Aearo Corporation, one of the world's leading
designers, manufacturers and marketers of a broad range of personal protective
products, today announced that net sales in the year ended September 30, 2003
increased 10.3% to $316.4 million from $286.9 million in the year ended
September 30, 2002. The increase in net sales was primarily driven by organic
growth in the Safety Products segment, the impact of foreign currency
translation and acquisitions, partially offset by declines in the Safety
Prescription Eyewear and Specialty Composites segments.
EBITDA, defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization,
and other non-cash charges, increased 11.3% to $54.0 million in the year ended
September 30, 2003 from $48.5 million in the year ended September 30, 2002. The
increase in EBITDA was primarily driven by organic growth in the Safety Products
segment, an improvement in gross margins as a result of ongoing productivity,
acquisitions and the impact of foreign currency translations. Gross Profit as a
percentage of net sales in the year ended September 30, 2003 improved to 48.2%
as compared to 47.6% in the year ended September 30, 2002.
The Company uses EBITDA, as defined above, a non-GAAP financial measure, as a
management tool to measure and monitor financial performance and as part of the
calculation of Company performance as stated in senior bank facility covenants.
While the Company believes EBITDA is a useful indicator of its ability to
service debt, EBITDA should not be considered as a substitute for net income
(loss) determined in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in
the United States of America as an indicator of operating performance, or as an
alternative to cash flow as a measure of liquidity. Investors should be aware
that EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by
other companies and comparisons could be misleading unless all companies and
analysts calculate this measure in the same fashion.
The Company believes that the most directly comparable financial measure to
EBITDA in accordance with GAAP is income before provision for income taxes. The
following table provides a reconciliation of EBITDA to income before provision
for income taxes for the years ending September 30, 2003 and 2002, respectively:
Year Ended
September 30,
--------------------------------
2003 2002
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EBITDA $ 48,500 $ 54,008
Depreciation 10,958 11,102
Amortization of intangibles 6,293 267
Other non-cash charges 90 (107)
Interest 20,055 19,587
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Income before provision for income taxes $ 11,104 $ 23,159
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Other non-cash charges are defined as extraordinary gains or losses, or gains or
losses from sales of assets other than in the ordinary course of business.
Headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., Aearo Company (www.aearo.com) is a leading
manufacturer and supplier of personal protective equipment and energy-absorbing
products, including head and hearing protection devices, prescription and
non-prescription eyewear, and eye/face protection devices for use in a wide
variety of industrial and household applications.
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