Joe Kelley
Analyst · Sidoti & Company. Please proceed with your question
Thank you, Jugal, and welcome to everyone joining us on the call today. During my comments, I will cover third quarter 2018 financial highlights, review profitability by segment, provide brief comments on the balance sheet, cash flow, and modeling assumptions, and finally cover the earnings outlook for 2018. Following my remarks, we will open the line for questions. I am pleased to report strong third quarter 2018 financial results, which represents the seventh consecutive quarter with a year-over-year growth in both value-added sales and adjusted operating profit. Third quarter 2018 value-added sales, which exclude the impact of pass-through metal cost were $181.9 million, up 6% versus the prior year third quarter. The increase was driven by strengthening commercial execution and greater end market demand. New product sales in the quarter totaled $26.7 million or 15% of value-added sales. This quarter, we saw a sales growth in six of our top seven markets, particularly in energy and defense. Growth was due to a combination of new business wins and stronger overall demand, which more than offset a 9% decline in our largest end market of consumer electronics. We experienced lower sales volumes as key portions of this market rebalanced inventory levels. Gross profit was $64.9 million in the third quarter, an increase of 17% from $55.4 million in the prior year third quarter. Expressed as a percentage of value-added sales, gross margin improved to 36% led by performance improvements, favorable product mix, and leveraging the overall sales volume growth. This is the highest reported gross margin percentage since the company began reporting value-added sales over five years ago. Selling, general, and administrative expense totaled $38.9 million or 21% of value-added sales, comparable with the prior-year ratio. We continue to make strategic investments in commercial resources to drive the long-term strategy and deliver sustainable profitable growth. Operating profit totaled $18.7 million in the third quarter of 2018, up 40% compared to the prior year third quarter adjusted operating profit of $13.4 million. As a percentage of value-added sales, operating profit margin in the third quarter of 2018 was 10%. Again, the highest ever reported quarterly operating profit margin percentage of value-added sales. Commercial and operational initiatives combined with sales volume growth have delivered consistent quarterly improvement and profitability over the past seven quarters and double-digit operating profit margins for all three business segments for the first time ever. Shifting to income taxes. We recorded a tax benefit of $2.7 million in the third quarter of 2018, due to discrete tax benefits related to planning strategies and the new tax reform legislation. Excluding these discrete items, our effective tax rate was 19% for the quarter, slightly higher than our guidance based on the mix of earnings. Adjusted net income for the third quarter of 2018 totaled $14 million or $0.68 per diluted share, up 36% from an adjusted $0.50 per share recorded in the third quarter of 2017. Our differentiated product portfolio, strengthening end market conditions, and focused execution on commercial and operational initiatives continue to fuel record level financial performance. Now, let me review 2018 third quarter performance by business segments. Starting first with performance alloys and composites. Value-added sales were $104.9 million, up 16% versus the third quarter of 2017. This represents the fourth consecutive quarter with at least 15% year-over-year value-added sales growth. The increase in value-added sales is due to a combination of commercial execution and improved demand, particularly in the defense and energy markets. New business wins in drilling applications for both ToughMet and copper beryllium products, plus high purity beryllium sales into defense applications led the growth. Operating profit in the third quarter of 2018 totaled $16.7 million or approximately 16% of value-added sales. Both all-time records for this segment. After delivering on our PAC recovery plan, ahead of schedule, we continue to drive commercial and operational improvements to position us to deliver sustained double-digit profitability in this segment. Looking at the advanced materials business segment, value-added sales in the third quarter 2018 were $55.3 million, compared to third quarter 2017 value-added sales of $60.4 million. Software demand in the consumer electronics end market and timing related to the customer requalification process associated with the move of the Heraeus high-performance target materials business to a new state-of-the-art target manufacturing facility in Alzenau, Germany contributed to the year-over-year decline. Operating profit for third quarter 2018 totaled $6.9 million or 12.5% of value-added sales, compared to adjusted operating profit of $9.8 million in the prior year quarter. Sequentially, this business segments operating profit improved 23% and return to double-digit profit margins. As referenced during the second quarter conference call, we continue to ramp up the new factory in Alzenau, Germany and work through customer qualifications. Long-term, we remain committed to achieving the historical 15% profit margins for this segment. Turning finally now to the precision coating segment. Third quarter value-added sales were $23 million, up 5%, compared to 21.9 million in the third quarter of 2017, due primarily to an increase in large area coatings products sold into the medical end market. Operating profit for the precision coatings segment totaled $3.5 million in the third quarter of 2018, compared to 2 million in the third quarter of 2017. Favorable product mix and sales growth were the primary factors driving the improvement. As a percentage of value-added sales, operating profit margin was 15% for the quarter, the highest level in 2.5 years. As we have previously stated, our objective was to deliver double-digit profitability for this segment during the full-year 2018. With year-to-date profitability of 13%, we are well-positioned to accomplish our objectives. Moving now to the balance sheet and cash flow. Operating cash flow year-to-date improved of $15 million in 2018, compared to the prior year, due to stronger earnings and improved working capital efficiency. Based on our liquidity position and tax reform legislation, we made an incremental $21 million pension contribution to fund our domestic defined benefit plan. This incremental contribution will further strengthen the funded status of the plan, which was approximately 80% funded at the end of last year. Even with this additional pension contribution, we ended the third quarter of 2018 with a net cash position of $50 million, almost 30% higher than our net cash position at the end of the second quarter. We continue to maintain a very strong balance sheet and have significant available liquidity to support capital allocation priorities mentioned in earlier calls, including organic growth opportunities, further inorganic growth opportunities, and consistently return capital to shareholders. For financial modelling purposes in 2018, capital spending should run approximately 30 million. Mine development investments should be approximately 6 million. Annual depreciation and amortization should run approximately 35 million, due to below average mine amortization as we optimize the integrated beryllium inventory supply chain. The tax rate on adjusted for discrete items should range from 18% to 20%. And finally, now to earnings outlook for 2018. We have now delivered seven consecutive quarters of year-over-year topline and profit growth driven by commercial and operational performance improvements, including new product sales growth, favorable product mix, manufacturing efficiencies, and an improved cost structure. Based on our current order activity, performance improvement initiatives and our view on end market demand for the remainder of 2018, we are raising our full-year 2018 earnings guidance for the second time this year to $2.20 to $2.30 per share. The midpoint of this range represents a 31% improvement over 2017 adjusted earnings. And would have the fourth quarter earnings be the eighth consecutive quarter of delivering year-over-year profit growth. This concludes our prepared remarks. We will now open the line for questions.