Exhibit 99.1
Rogers Corporation Reports Record First Quarter Sales and Earnings;
``Sales up 88%, Earnings per share doubled''
ROGERS, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 21, 2004--Rogers Corporation
(NYSE:ROG) announced today that diluted earnings per share for the first quarter
of 2004 were a record $0.72, up 100% compared to the $0.36 earned in the first
quarter of 2003. Net income increased to $12.2 million, more than double last
year's first quarter earnings of $5.7 million.
Net sales in the first quarter were $97.7 million, up 88% compared to the
$51.9 million sold in the first quarter of 2003. The Durel acquisition which
occurred in the fourth quarter of 2003, added $18.2 million to revenues this
quarter. All three of Rogers' business segments experienced double-digit sales
growth this quarter as compared to the first quarter of 2003.
Sales of Printed Circuit Materials for the quarter again set a new sales
record totaling $45.1 million, up over 86% from the first quarter of 2003. The
flexible circuit material portion of this segment's sales increased dramatically
over the same quarter last year, as the growing popularity of feature rich as
well as clamshell style cell phones both require more flexible interconnects.
The cellular 3G base station and satellite television markets continue to drive
high frequency circuit material sales, which also increased significantly
compared to last year's first quarter.
High Performance Foam revenues were a record $22.1 million for the quarter,
up 28% from the first quarter of last year. This period marked all-time
quarterly sales records for both the PORON(R) urethane and BISCO(R) silicone
foam product lines. Higher revenues resulted from increasing industrial,
consumer and automotive applications, helped further by an improved economy in
the US, as well as continued growth in Asia.
Sales of Polymer Materials and Components totaled $30.5 million for the
quarter. This quarter's sales include Durel Division sales, formerly a 50-50
joint venture with 3M. Other than Durel, which experienced about a 12% sales
decline year-over-year, each of the other businesses in this segment saw some
growth. The decrease in Durel revenue was due to some handset design programs
reaching end of life, however increasing automotive business helped offset these
declines. The first flexible electroluminescent lamp products shipped late this
quarter for a smart phone application.
Rogers' three 50% owned joint ventures had sales this quarter of $18.1
million compared to $13.2 million in the first quarter of 2003. Both Rogers
Chang Chun Technologies (RCCT), a flexible circuit materials joint venture, and
Rogers Inoac Corporation (RIC), which produces PORON(R) urethane foams, had
strong year-over-year sales increases primarily driven by new business and
improved market penetration.
The Company continues to make progress in raising its gross margin, which
was 34.2% in the first quarter, up from 31.8% in last year's first quarter. This
improvement is the result of better operating efficiencies from implementing Six
Sigma projects and greater operating leverage from the higher revenues.
Mitigating the margin improvement were expenses for growth-related hiring in
Europe and China, as well as transition costs associated with moving the
polyolefin business to Illinois, and relocating the elastomeric components
business to China.
Rogers' balance sheet remains in excellent condition and the Company
remains debt free with a cash and short-term investment balance of about $36
million. Net cash flow was positive despite capital expenditures of $6.6 million
and acquisition costs of $3.5 million.
As Rogers' business in Asia, currently 41% of sales, continues to expand,
the Company made the decision to place key personnel there to manage operations
and support its rapidly growing customer base. This includes, as announced last
week, Rogers appointment of Michael L. Cooper as Vice President for Asia to
oversee all manufacturing and staff operations in the region. In addition to the
two factories the Company currently has in Suzhou, it is in the process of
building a third facility to be completed this year, to produce PORON urethane
foams. Also, design has begun for a high frequency circuit materials
manufacturing plant that should come on-line in 2005.
Robert D. Wachob, President and CEO commented, "I am very pleased with our
record results this quarter. We remain agile and on track to take advantage of
the emerging opportunities both geographically and in our top growth markets,
namely wireless infrastructure, cellular handsets, satellite television,
computers, and transportation. Despite the upcoming quarter having 13-weeks
versus 14-weeks in the first quarter, we again expect strong sales in the second
quarter. Compared with previous years, we expect only a minor seasonal effect
and are estimating a record second quarter with net sales of $90 to $98 million,
and earnings per diluted share of $0.66 to $0.73. This represents an increase
over last year's second quarter of approximately 84% to 99% and 106% to 128% for
sales and earnings respectively."
Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this news release that are not strictly historical may be
deemed to be "forward-looking" statements which should be considered as subject
to the many uncertainties that exist in the Company's operations and
environment. These uncertainties, which include economic conditions, market
demand and pricing, competitive and cost factors, rapid technological change,
new product introductions, legal proceedings, and the like, are incorporated by
reference in the Rogers Corporation 2003 Form 10-K filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Such factors could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in the forward-looking statements.
Additional Information and April 22nd Conference Call
For more information, please contact the Company directly, visit Roger's
website on the Internet, or send a message by email.
Website Address: http://www.rogerscorporation.com
Financial News Contact: James M. Rutledge, Vice President Finance and
Chief Financial Officer,
Phone: 860-774-9605, FAX: 860-779-5585
Editorial Contact: Edward J. Joyce, Manager of Investor and Public
Relations,
Phone: 860-774-5705, FAX: 860-779-5509,
email: edward.joyce@rogerscorporation.com
A conference call to discuss first quarter results will be held on
Thursday, April 22nd at 9:00AM (Eastern Time).
Rogers participants in the conference call will be:
Robert D. Wachob, President and CEO
James M. Rutledge, Vice President Finance and CFO
Robert M. Soffer, Vice President and Secretary
Paul B. Middleton, Corporate Controller
A Q&A session will immediately follow management's comments.
To participate in the conference call, please call: 1-800-574-8929
toll-free in the United States and 1-706-634-1907 internationally. There is no
passcode for the live teleconference. For playback access, please call:
1-800-642-1687 in the United States and 1-706-645-9291 internationally through
11:59PM, Thursday April 29th. The pass code for the audio replay is 6624676.
The call will also be webcast live in a listen only mode. The webcast may
be accessed through links available on the Rogers Corporation website at
www.rogerscorporation.com. Replay of the archived webcast will be available on
the Rogers website beginning two hours following the webcast.
(Financial Statements Follow)
Consolidated Statements of Income
Quarters Ended
Apr 4, Mar 30,
(IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT PER SHARE AMOUNTS) 2004 2003
- ------------------------------------------ ------------ -----------
Net Sales $97,670 $51,878
Costs and Expenses:
Cost of Sales 64,285 35,390
Selling and Administrative 14,895 9,701
Research and Development 4,641 2,838
------------ -----------
Total Costs and Expenses (Including
Depreciation and Amortization of: 2004 -
$4,658; 2003 - $3,392) 83,821 47,929
------------ -----------
Operating Income 13,849 3,949
Other Income less Other Charges 2,381 3,628
Interest Income/ (Expense), Net 78 75
------------ -----------
Income Before Taxes 16,308 7,652
Income Taxes 4,077 1,913
------------ -----------
Net Income $12,231 $5,739
------------ -----------
Net Income Per Share:
Basic $0.76 $0.37
------------ -----------
Diluted $0.72 $0.36
------------ -----------
Shares Used in Computing:
Basic 16,177 15,572
------------ -----------
Diluted 16,973 16,038
------------ -----------
Consolidated Balance Sheets
Apr 4, Dec 28,
(IN THOUSANDS) 2004 2003
- --------------------------------------------- ---------- -----------
Assets
Current Assets:
Cash and Cash Equivalents $33,237 $31,476
Short-term Investments 3,005 3,005
Accounts Receivable, Net 58,723 52,981
Accounts Receivable - Joint Ventures 2,196 3,178
Note Receivable, Current 2,100 2,100
Inventories 32,219 27,501
Other Current Assets 6,595 6,856
---------- -----------
Total Current Assets 138,075 127,097
---------- -----------
Notes Receivable, Long-term 7,800 7,800
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net 132,589 131,157
Investment in Unconsolidated Joint Ventures 9,321 10,741
Pension Asset 6,886 6,886
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets, Net 25,857 25,121
Other Assets 7,111 5,638
---------- -----------
Total Assets $327,639 $314,440
---------- -----------
Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
Current Liabilities:
Accounts Payable $19,561 $20,442
Accrued Employee Benefits and Compensation 11,732 13,359
Other Current Liabilities 19,981 16,222
---------- -----------
Total Current Liabilities 51,274 50,023
---------- -----------
Noncurrent Deferred Income Taxes 10,281 14,058
Noncurrent Pension Liability 14,916 14,909
Noncurrent Retiree Health Care & Life
Insurance Benefits 6,198 6,198
Other Long-term Liabilities 2,484 2,383
Shareholders' Equity 242,486 226,869
---------- -----------
Total Liabilities and Shareholders'
Equity $327,639 $314,440
---------- -----------
These statements are subject to year-end audit.
CONTACT: Rogers Corporation
Financial News Contact:
James M. Rutledge, 860-774-9605
or
Editorial Contact:
Edward J. Joyce, 860-774-5705
edward.joyce@rogerscorporation.com
www.rogerscorporation.com