Revenue Up 72.5 Percent; Net Income Up More Than Six-Fold
SANTA ANA, Calif., May 12, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (Nasdaq:FSYS) today announced record results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2008, supported by strong demand for its systems and components that enable internal combustion engines to operate on gaseous fuels.
Revenue for the first quarter jumped to a record $94.6 million from $54.8 million a year earlier. Operating income for the same period climbed to $13.4 million from $3.8 million in the 2007 first quarter. Net income for the same period of 2008 climbed sharply to $6.2 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, from $1.0 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, a year ago.
Other expense of $1.1 million for the 2008 first quarter consisted primarily of an unrealized foreign exchange loss on an intercompany loan compared with a $200,000 unrealized foreign exchange loss in the same period of the prior year, largely related to the same intercompany loan. Income tax expense, which primarily consists of foreign taxes, was $5.5 million during the first quarter 2008 compared with $1.9 million for the same period in 2007.
"Results for the 2008 first quarter reflect a $38.3 million, or 118 percent, increase in revenue contributions derived from the company's transportation business, and a 6.6 percent increase in revenues derived from our industrial business, representing additional contributions of $1.5 million, on a year-over-year basis," said Mariano Costamagna, chief executive officer.
He noted that the company's transportation business for the first quarter of 2008 benefited from a more than 50 percent increase in unit volume output from the previous quarter derived from its delayed original equipment manufacturing conversion operation -- enabling vehicles to operate on compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). Costamagna added that aftermarket conversions of internal combustion engines to gaseous fuel operation still represent the largest percentage of business in the industry today, with automotive original equipment factory conversions relatively low in output volume. "The utilization of our capabilities by automobile manufacturers on a delayed basis provides economies of scale, technological advantages and benefits to consumers who desire original equipment warranty protection," Costamagna said.
He highlighted the company's recent announcement regarding the expansion of its Italian delayed automotive original equipment manufacturing operation in Livorno, Italy. This facility, combined with the company's current operation in Cherasco, Italy, will enable Fuel Systems Solutions to more than double its 2007 delayed original equipment output. The new facility in Livorno serves original equipment automobile manufacturers such as Hyundai-Kia and Great Wall, while the operation in Cherasco supports automobile companies such as Chevrolet, Subaru and Citroen.
Company Outlook
Based on its current assessment of near-term market trends, the company is increasing its full year 2008 consolidated revenue guidance to $320 million and maintaining its gross profit margin of approximately 24 percent and operating margin of approximately nine percent.
Teleconference and Webcast
The company will hold an investor conference call tomorrow, Tuesday, May 13, 2008, at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time to discuss the company's financial results and operations for the first quarter of 2008. The call will be open to all interested investors, either through a live audio Web broadcast via the Internet at http://fuelsystemssolutions.com or live by calling (877) 440-5804 (domestic) or (719) 325-4879 (international) with call ID number 7504293. For those who are not available to listen to the live broadcast, the call will be archived for two weeks on Fuel Systems Solutions' Web site. A telephone playback of the conference call will also be available from 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time Tuesday, May 13 through 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, May 27 by calling (888) 203-1112 (domestic) or (719) 457-0820 (international) and using access code: 7504293.
Fuel Systems Solutions is a holding company with two direct wholly owned subsidiaries, IMPCO Technologies and BRC Gas Equipment. Additional information is available at www.fuelsystemssolutions.com. IMPCO designs, manufactures, markets and supplies advanced products and systems to enable internal combustion engines to run on clean burning gaseous fuels such as natural gas, propane and biogas. IMPCO is a leader in the heavy duty, industrial, power generation and stationary engines sectors. Headquartered in Santa Ana, California, IMPCO has offices throughout Asia, Europe, Australia and North America. Additional information is available at www.impcotechnologies.com. BRC, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, produces a complete range of systems for converting vehicles to gaseous fuel to meet market requirements.
