Published:
Perceptron Announces Fourth Quarter and Twelve-Month Results for Fiscal Year 2006

Perceptron, Inc. (NASDAQ: PRCP) today
announced net sales of $57.9 million and net income of $3.2 million, or
$0.35 per diluted share, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2006, compared
with net sales of $54.9 million and net income of $3.3 million, or $0.35
per diluted share, for the same period one year ago. For the fourth
quarter ended June 30, 2006, the Company reported net sales of $14.5
million and a net loss of $272,000, or $(0.03) per diluted share, compared
with net sales of $15.0 million and net income of $106,000, or $0.01 per
diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2005. Fiscal 2006 results
included net non-cash stock-based compensation expense of $114,000, or
$0.01 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter and $537,000, or $0.06 per
diluted share, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2006 related to the
adoption in fiscal 2006 of a new accounting pronouncement, Statement of
Financial Accounting Standard 123 (revised), (SFAS 123R).
Fiscal 2006 results also included an income tax expense in the fourth
quarter of fiscal 2006 of approximately $166,000 related to a tax audit of
prior years in the Company's German operations, as well as other expense in
the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006 primarily due to recognition of a
$311,000 foreign currency translation adjustment related to closing
Perceptron Canada, Inc. The Canadian subsidiary has been largely inactive
since the sale of the Company's Forest Products Business Unit in March
2002.
The full year sales improvement was primarily due to higher sales in North
America of $37.4 million, up $4.3 million compared to fiscal 2005. The
gross profit margin was 47.2% of sales in both fiscal 2006 and 2005. The
gross profit margin was 43.2% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006 compared
with 39.3% for the same period one year ago. The improvement this quarter
compared with one year ago primarily reflected lower inventory adjustments
and manufacturing and installation costs and the recognition of a higher
level of deferred revenues related to customer buy-offs on completed system
installations with nominal associated cost.
Selling, general and administrative expense was $15.2 million in fiscal
2006, compared to $14.0 million in fiscal 2005. The increase was primarily
due to higher costs for salary and benefit increases, personnel additions,
non-cash stock compensation expense, accrued profit sharing, and travel
that were partially offset by lower legal expenses. Selling, general and
administrative expense in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006 was $4.4
million compared to $4.0 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2005 as
higher costs primarily for accrued profit sharing, personnel additions,
non-cash stock compensation expense, advertising, and travel were partially
offset by lower legal expenses and audit fees. Engineering, research and
development expenses of $7.8 million in fiscal 2006 were approximately
$522,000 higher than fiscal 2005 primarily due to salary and benefit
increases, stock compensation expense, and accrued profit sharing that were
partially offset by lower costs for contract services and engineering
material.
The increase in interest income for the fourth quarter and full year of
fiscal 2006 compared with fiscal 2005 reflected higher average cash
balances on-hand and higher interest rates.
The Company had total new order bookings of $58.7 million during fiscal
2006 compared with $53.9 million in fiscal 2005. Total new order bookings
during the fourth quarter were $16.3 million compared with $14.1 million
for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2005. The fourth quarter included
approximately $10.0 million of new orders in Europe compared with $10.7
million for the first nine months of fiscal 2006 when the slow rate of new
orders reflected the relative weakness of the European economy. The rate
of new orders for both years reflected strong demand for the Company's
products and services that facilitate its customers' goals to improve
quality and reduce cost. The Company's backlog rose to $18.8 million as of
June 30, 2006 compared with $18.0 million as of June 30, 2005.
The Company made important new investments in fiscal 2006, largely in
personnel, for the development and sale of new products and for new
geographic growth opportunities particularly in Europe and Asia. The
Company began to realize sales related to certain of these investments in
the second half of fiscal 2006 and the Company expects continued sales
growth from these investments in fiscal 2007. The Company has determined
that Asia continues to represent an important opportunity for sales growth,
and as a result the Company expects to add additional resources to this
region during fiscal 2007. As a result of these investments, the Company
expects both revenues and net income levels for fiscal 2007 to be higher
than those of fiscal 2006, though the magnitude of the increase is
difficult to project at this time.
Alfred A. Pease, chairman, president and chief executive officer,
commented, "Operating results for the fourth quarter were better than we
expected when we began the quarter, primarily due to a higher level of
sales. The sales improvement was due to changes in the timing of customer
delivery schedules and the availability of customer personnel and
facilities to complete installations that enabled the Company to report a
higher level of sales related to recognizing deferred sales for customer
buy-offs.
"Because of the unexpected strength of sales in the fourth quarter of
fiscal 2006, and because of some delays in shipments expected to be made
during the first quarter of fiscal 2007, we expect first quarter sales to
be lower than those of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006, with succeeding
quarters to improve."
Mr. Pease continued, "During the fourth quarter, the Company repurchased
108,400 shares of its stock at a cost of $877,382. In July, the Company
completed its fiscal 2006 repurchase program of $5.0 million that was
authorized in September 2005 by the Company's Board of Directors. We are
also pleased to announce that our Board of Directors has approved a new
program to purchase up to $3.0 million of the Company's common stock
through August 2007. This action taken by the Board of Directors reflects
continued confidence in the Company, its markets and its products.
We are excited about all of our new investments and the long term returns
we expect they will bring our Company and its shareholders. Our balance
sheet remains strong. We had $25.2 million of cash, no debt and
shareholders' equity was $54.2 million, or $6.01 per diluted share, as of
June 30, 2006."
Perceptron, Inc. will hold a conference call/webcast chaired by Alfred A.
Pease, President & CEO today at 10:00 a.m. (EDT). Investors can access the
call at http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.asp?id=35076 or by dialing 877
258-8842 (domestic callers) or 973 582-2839 (international callers). If
you are unable to participate during the live webcast, the call will be
digitally rebroadcast for seven days, beginning at 1:00 p.m. today and
running until 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, August 24, 2006. You can access the
rebroadcast by dialing 877 519-4471 (domestic callers) or 973 341-3080
(international callers) and entering the passcode 7701030. A replay of the
call will also be available in the "Company-News" section of the Company's
website at www.perceptron.com for approximately one year following the
call.
About Perceptron
Perceptron produces information-based process improvement solutions for
industry as well as technology components for non-contact measurement and
inspection applications. Automotive and manufacturing companies throughout
the world rely on Perceptron's process management solutions to help them
improve quality, shorten product launch times and reduce overall
manufacturing costs. Headquartered in Plymouth, Michigan, Perceptron has
approximately 240 employees worldwide, with operations in the United
States, Germany, France, Spain, Brazil, Japan, and Singapore. For more
information, please visit www.perceptron.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
Certain statements in this press release may be "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
including the Company's expectation as to fiscal 2007 and future revenue,
expenses, new order bookings, and net income levels, trends affecting its
future revenue levels, and the timing of revenue and net income increases
from new products which the Company has recently released or has not yet
released and from the Company's plans to make important new investments,
largely for personnel, for newly introduced products and geographic growth
opportunities in the U.S., Europe, Eastern Europe, and Asia. The Company
assumes no obligation for updating any such forward-looking statements to
reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors
affecting such forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ
materially from those in the forward-looking statements due to a number of
uncertainties in addition to those set forth in the press release,
including, but not limited to, the dependence of the Company's revenue on a
number of sizable orders from a small number of customers concentrated in
the Automotive industry, particularly in the United States and Europe, the
dependence of the Company's net income levels on increasing revenues,
continued pricing pressures from the Company's customers, the timing of
orders and shipments which can cause the Company to experience significant
fluctuations in its quarterly and annual revenue, order bookings, backlog
and operating results, timely receipt of required supplies and components
which could result in delays in anticipated shipments, continued access to
third party components for our ScanWorks systems, the ability of the
Company to successfully compete with alternative and similar technologies,
the timing, number and continuation of the Automotive industry's retooling
programs, including the risk that the Company's customers postpone new
tooling programs as a result of economic conditions or otherwise, the
ability of the Company to develop and introduce new products, the ability
of the Company to expand into new markets in Eastern Europe and Asia, the
ability of the Company to attract and retain key personnel, especially
technical personnel, the quality and cost of competitive products already
in existence or developed in the future, rapid or unexpected technological
changes, the ability of the Company to identify and satisfy demand for the
Company's Value Added Services, the ability of the Company to identify
business opportunities that fit the Company's strategic plans, the ability
to implement identified business opportunities on terms acceptable to the
Company and the effect of economic conditions, particularly economic
conditions in the domestic and worldwide Automotive industry, which has
from time to time been subject to cyclical downturns due to the level of
demand for, or supply of, the products produced by companies in this
industry. The ability of the Company to develop and introduce new
products, especially in markets outside of automotive, is subject to a
number of uncertainties, including general product demand and market
acceptance risks, the ability of the Company to resolve technical issues
inherent in the development of new products and technologies, the ability
of the Company to identify and satisfy market needs, the ability of the
Company to identify satisfactory distribution networks, the ability of the
Company to develop internally or identify externally high quality cost
effective manufacturing capabilities for the products, general product
development and commercialization difficulties, and the level of interest
existing and potential new customers may have in new products and
technologies generally. The ability of the Company to expand into new
geographic markets is subject to a number of uncertainties, including the
timing of customer acceptance of the Company's products and technologies,
the impact of changes in local economic conditions, the ability of the
Company to attract the appropriate personnel to effectively represent,
install and service the Company's products in the market and uncertainties
inherent in doing business in foreign markets, especially those that are
less well developed than the Company's traditional markets, such as the
impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, foreign
government controls, policies and laws affecting foreign trade and
investment, differences in the level of protection available for the
Company's intellectual property and differences in language and local
business and social customs. The ability of the Company to identify and
satisfy demand for the Company's Value Added Services is subject to a
number of uncertainties including that these services represent
discretionary spending by customers and so tend to decline during economic
downturns even if product sales do not decline. The Company's expectations
regarding future bookings and revenues are projections developed by the
Company based upon information from a number of sources, including, but not
limited to, customer data and discussions. These projections are subject
to change based upon a wide variety of factors, a number of which are
discussed above. Certain of these new orders have been delayed in the past
and could be delayed in the future. Because the Company's products are
typically integrated into larger systems or lines, the timing of new orders
is dependent on the timing of completion of the overall system or line. In
addition, because the Company's products have shorter lead times than other
components and are required later in the process, orders for the Company's
products tend to be given later in the integration process. A significant
portion of the Company's projected revenues and net income depends upon the
Company's ability to successfully develop and introduce new products and
expand into new geographic markets. Because a significant portion of the
Company's revenues are denominated in foreign currencies and are translated
for financial reporting purposes into U.S. Dollars, the level of the
Company's reported net sales, operating profits and net income are affected
by changes in currency exchange rates, principally between U.S. Dollars and
Euros. Currency exchange rates are subject to significant fluctuations,
due to a number of factors beyond the control of the Company, including
general economic conditions in the United States and other countries.
Because the Company's expectations regarding future revenues, order
bookings, backlog and operating results are based upon assumptions as to
the levels of such currency exchange rates, actual results could differ
materially from the Company's expectations.
PERCEPTRON, INC.
SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)
(Unaudited)
Condensed Income Statements Three Months Ended Twelve Months Ended
June 30, June 30,
2006 2005 2006 2005
-------- -------- -------- --------
Net Sales $ 14,480 $ 14,957 $ 57,875 $ 54,892
Cost of Sales 8,223 9,076 30,588 28,985
-------- -------- -------- --------
Gross Profit 6,257 5,881 27,287 25,907
Selling, General and Administrative
Expense 4,361 4,008 15,155 13,970
Engineering, Research and
Development Expense 2,022 1,941 7,764 7,242
-------- -------- -------- --------
Operating Income (Loss) (126) (68) 4,368 4,695
Interest Income, net 265 136 722 492
Foreign Currency and Other Income
(Expense) (287) (69) (163) (1)
-------- -------- -------- --------
Income (Loss) Before Income Taxes (148) (1) 4,927 5,186
Income Tax Expense (Benefit) 124 (107) 1,688 1,904
-------- -------- -------- --------
Net Income (Loss) $ (272) $ 106 $ 3,239 $ 3,282
======== ======== ======== ========
Earnings (Loss) Per Share
Basic ($ 0.03) $ 0.01 $ 0.38 $ 0.37
Diluted ($ 0.03) $ 0.01 $ 0.35 $ 0.35
Weighted Average Common Shares
Outstanding
Basic 8,375 8,810 8,582 8,766
Diluted 9,017 9,458 9,200 9,437
Condensed Balance Sheets June 30, June 30,
2006 2005
------------ ------------
Cash and Cash Equivalents $ 25,188 $ 20,374
Receivables, net 17,194 22,305
Inventories, net 6,433 5,884
Other Current Assets 2,002 1,935
Property and Equipment, net 7,408 7,687
Other Non-Current Assets, net 4,170 5,205
------------ ------------
Total Assets $ 62,395 $ 63,390
============ ============
Current Liabilities $ 8,165 $ 9,398
Shareholders' Equity 54,230 53,992
------------ ------------
Total Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity $ 62,395 $ 63,390
============ ============
Copyright © 2008, MarketWire
Copyright © 2008, NewsBlaze,
Daily News
Tags: ,Manufacturing and Production:ForestandPaperProducts, ManufacturingandProduction:MachineryandTools, ManufacturingandProduction:MiningandMetals, Automotive:Motorcycles, Automotive:Otherpassengervehicles, Automotive:Cars, Automotive:PartsandAccessories, Automotive:RepairandRestoration, Automotive:Trucks, ,NASDAQ01,NASDAQ01,MI,PLYMOUTH, MI
_ _Is your favorite bookmark site missing?
Ask for it.