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Sypris Solutions, Inc. (SYPR)

Q2 2014 Earnings Call· Tue, Aug 5, 2014

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Transcript

Operator

Operator

Good day, everyone, and welcome to the Sypris Solutions, Inc. Conference Call. Today's call is being recorded. At this time, for opening remarks, I would like to turn the call over to the President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Jeffrey Gill. Please go ahead, sir.

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Thank you, Danna, and good morning, everyone. Tony Allen and I would like to welcome you to this call, the purpose of which is to review the trends reflected in the company's financial results for the second quarter of 2014. For those of you who have access to our PowerPoint presentation this morning, please advance to Slide 2 now. We always begin these calls with a note that some of what we might discuss here today may include projections and other forward-looking statements. No assurance can be given that these projections and statements will be achieved, and actual results could differ materially from those projected as a result of several factors. These factors are included in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. And in compliance with Regulation G, you can access our website, sypris.com, to review the definitions of any non-GAAP financial measures that may be discussed during this call. With these qualifications in mind, we'd now like to proceed with the business discussion. Please advance to Slide 3. I will lead you through the first half of our presentation this morning, starting with an overview of the highlights for the quarter to be followed by a brief discussion of each of our 2 business segments. Tony will then provide you with a more detailed review of our financial results for the quarter. Now let's begin with the overview on Slide 4. I'm pleased to report that the company posted another positive quarter with revenue, gross profit, gross margin and earnings per share, all rising on a year-over-year basis. Consolidated sales increased 13% to $93.1 million, up from $82.2 million for the second quarter of 2013. Gross profit rose 30% to $11 million, up from $8.3 million for the prior year period, while our gross margin increased…

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Thanks, Jeff, and good morning, everyone. I'd like to take you through the highlights of our financial results for the second quarter of 2014. And I will begin with our consolidated results and ask you to advance to Slide 10. Q2 consolidated revenue totaled $93.1 million, up $10.9 million, or 13.3%, as compared to the prior year. While both segments report increased revenues year-over-year, our Industrial Group led the way with a $9.3 million improvement. This increase in revenue primarily reflects increased customer demand across all markets led by higher commercial vehicle volumes. Our A&D segment also increased nearly $1.7 million year-over-year to $9.4 million for the quarter. Gross profit increased 30% to $10.8 million in the quarter from $8.3 million in the prior year period. We achieved a gross margin of 11.6%, driven by the performance of our Industrial Group, reflecting favorable product mix and greater operating efficiencies. Earnings per diluted share came in at $0.02 per share versus a loss of $0.08 per share in the second quarter of 2013. Our bottom line improvement was driven by revenue growth, favorable mix and operating efficiencies for the Industrial Group and provides a solid foundation for the year, given our current view of the market for the balance of 2014. Let me move on to our sequential consolidated second quarter results and ask you to please advance to Slide #11. Consolidated revenues increased 10.5% sequentially from the first quarter, rising to $93.1 million, while the Industrial Group was up 10.4% and A&D was up 11.9%. Our consolidated gross profit of $10.8 million for the quarter was up approximately $300,000, or 2.5%, sequentially from Q1 attributable to the Industrial Group. However, gross margin declined 90 basis points to 11.6% from 12.5% in Q1. In the first quarter, we reported a favorable…

Operator

Operator

[Operator Instructions] And we'll go first to Alan Weber with Robotti & Company. Alan W. Weber - Robotti & Company, Incorporated: First question was, you kind of alluded to the higher SG&A in the second quarter. And I guess, there's like little less than $2 million higher than last year. Could you just talk about what occurred there?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Yes, we've referenced in the text, Alan, some legal and professional expenses that were incurred this year above the prior year levels. Alan W. Weber - Robotti & Company, Incorporated: Okay. And then -- I guess I missed that. Then when you talked about the Industrial, you talked about quotation of $140 million to $150 million per year. Can you just explain what you actually mean by that in terms of, do you expect -- I mean, are these contracts that are close to winning? What does that actually mean in kind of the timing?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Sure. Alan, this is Jeff. The $140 million to $150 million would be the basket of active quotation activity that we have going on with -- in the marketplace. And within that basket, you can have a range of -- status on those bids range from pending contract to negotiation to quoting. And I'd say, there's a good -- pretty good mix all through there. We mentioned today that we have been notified of award of a number of different contracts. That would be contracts that are also included in that basket, and they would be scheduled to launch in the first half of 2015. Alan W. Weber - Robotti & Company, Incorporated: Okay, and if you -- did you quantify the revenue potential from the contracts you've won?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

No, we did not. Alan W. Weber - Robotti & Company, Incorporated: Okay, and you don't want to.

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Not at this time. Alan W. Weber - Robotti & Company, Incorporated: Okay. That's fine. And I guess, my last question was on the A&D side, you talked about some revenue potential like that. Do you have kind of internally a target of when you expect or hope the A&D should be above breakeven?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Certainly, by the time we're in 2015.

Operator

Operator

And we'll take our next question from Brad Mas with Needham & Company. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: This is Brad filling in for Jim. Just first, back on A&D, wondering, with the backlog and visibility you guys have, how we should think about second half? Or we should assume that it looks kind of similar to the first half?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

It does look similar. We do see sequential growth in Q2 -- or, excuse me, from Q2 to Q3 and from Q3 to Q4 at this point. Some of that, Brad, is in our existing backlog. Some of it is business that we are pursuing, that we have -- we believe have a real opportunity to book in turn and convert to revenue this year. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: Okay. And then, with the Singapore contract, is that expected to be meaningful in the second half?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Not meaningful in the second half. The more significant piece of that will be recognized in 2015. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: Okay. And then, on the Industrial side, wondering if there's any reason to not think that the strength that you're seeing in oil and gas will continue in 2015.

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

No. Brad, this is Jeff. Every indication we're seeing now is that we expect the growth to continue. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: Okay. And then, with the forecast you provided for the Class 8, does that tie in to what you're hearing from your large customers?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Yes.

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Yes. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: Okay. And then, on a couple of quick, consolidated questions. I mean, R&D obviously, $10,000, that's related to, say, for -- I assume, with the customer funding. Are you seeing -- is there any update you could provide on SIOMETRICS customer funding?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

At this point, we are in discussions with some -- for some potential customer funding on that. Nothing has been locked down. We are looking at investment in that as we move through the second half. Some of that will be internal. And if the right opportunities fall into place, we'll also have customer funding for a portion of that. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: Okay. And then any color on -- I mean, so obviously, R&D is going to be up in Q3. Any color that you could provide on SG&A next quarter?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Sequentially, I think we'll see SG&A decline from Q2. Q2 should be the peak for this year. Brad Mas - Needham & Company, LLC, Research Division: Okay. And then last one, just tax rate going forward. I mean, it was bit high this quarter. Is there any color you could provide there?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Yes, it's -- when we referenced the mix of foreign and domestic earnings, the issue that we run into is -- because we're in Mexico and in the U.S. and we accrue taxes based upon the effective tax rate assumed for each jurisdiction, that sometimes our effective tax rate on a consolidated basis can swing considerably. So one of the ways you might look at that is to look at it more in an aggregate dollar number as opposed to a percentage. And as -- if you look from Q1 to Q2 for 2014, you'll see a relatively constant number for our tax provision. And I think that's what I would look at going forward.

Operator

Operator

[Operator Instructions] We'll go next to Justyn Putnam with Talanta Investment Group.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

First question I have is maybe a follow-up on the A&D segment. Obviously, you've experienced some pretty good growth here recently. You've got some interesting projects in the pipeline. But I want to talk a little bit about the existing business in that segment. I mean, obviously, there's some existing business that's pretty unprofitable, and I was curious to hear your thoughts and maybe you goals as you think about getting that -- those businesses to profitability. And are there metrics or goals, that if you don't meet, that maybe you'll look to get rid of some of this unprofitable business at some point in the future?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Justyn, this is Jeff. Good set of questions. We expect our Aerospace & Defense business to continue to improve sequentially as we move through 2014 and into 2015. And as we mentioned a moment ago, we expect to get back to the breakeven level during 2015, and preferably earlier in 2015 rather than later. The issues that we're having currently with regard to the profitability of this segment are less to do with unprofitable programs than they are just simply in volume and scale. And if we were to track back in time to 2013 with the sequestration efforts and those things, we were surprised by the fact that we had some customers insource some long-standing commercial satellite programs that had been meaningful contributors to the profitability of this business. And the work was insourced because the customers were looking to fill their plants, and it wasn't performance-based. It wasn't a competitive loss. It was simply a need to have absorption in their own plants and so that had been a surprise to us. We hadn't expected that going into '13. And so since that point, our team has been working to rebuild the base, if you will. And they've been making good progress. It's just taken some time, but we expect this business to be back in the black as we go, certainly, through '15. I don't know if that's so.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

Well, yes, I guess. But if it is a volume story in that business, then as it stand now, what is your breakeven level from a revenue standpoint?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Well, it'll depend upon mix, certainly. But I would say, by the time we get to the fourth quarter of this year, we'll be much closer. And certainly by all outlooks that we have today, by the time we get in the first half of next year, that we should be getting very, very close.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

Okay. Well, I guess where I was going with that is if you don't meet your revenue top line volume growth goals, is there opportunity to maybe lower your cost structure by getting rid of some of these more unprofitable businesses...

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Yes.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

And still be able to -- is there opportunity in that frame?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

No, I guess what I was trying to convey is that the programs we have are good. So we're not dealing with poor programs. We just need more scale. And when you ask about the kind of revenue breakeven line and we hedge by saying that depends on mix. For example, if we have more product sales, if we have more cyber-related sales compared to EMS sales, well, then the breakeven point is far lower than if you have a higher mix of EMS sales. So the guys are working hard to bring these new products to market. We're starting to get traction. The reviews have been quite favorable. And so with any luck, we'll have a mix going forward that will be attractive for the business.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

Okay, just to clarify, mid-2015 is when you expect to be profitable in that business?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Yes.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

Okay. And also, just to clarify, is that on an operating income basis or gross margin basis?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Operating.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

Okay, okay, good. And then, Tony, I guess I have a quick question for you on the onetime expenses in the quarter, your legal and professional fees. Can you quantify that? Is that the majority of the increase that we saw in the quarter?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

It is, sequentially. If you look year-over-year, there's some other items in there, but certainly on a sequential basis, that's the primary cause.

Justyn R. Putnam - Talanta Investment Group, LLC

Analyst

Okay. And then, Jeff, back to you real quick. On the Dana contract negotiation, is there any update on that or any progress on that?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Not at this point, Justyn. We expect these discussions to go on for some time. And certainly, as we make progress to that, we'll let everyone know.

Operator

Operator

And we'll take our next question from Tristan Thomas with Sidoti & Company. Tristan Thomas - Sidoti & Company, LLC: Just 2 quick questions. Could you talk a little bit to the product mix shift Industrial from Q1 to Q2?

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Sure. In the Industrial Group in Q1, when we had the uptick in margins, a lot of that was driven by the -- our ag and off-highway business and the oil and gas market. And even within those 2 segments, we had a couple of programs that were more profitable that we shipped. And those segments -- those markets performed well in the second quarter, just not as well as they did in Q1. Tristan Thomas - Sidoti & Company, LLC: Okay. So Q2 is a much more normalized kind of expectation.

Anthony C. Allen

Management

Yes. Tristan Thomas - Sidoti & Company, LLC: Okay. And then, just one final question. I believe you mentioned housing. What are you really seeing on your end from some of your customers regarding expectations moving forward in the housing market?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

In the housing market? Tristan Thomas - Sidoti & Company, LLC: Yes.

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

By all accounts, we expect to see kind of a steady growth in the Class 4 through 7 trucks, which are the medium-duty trucks that typically service construction industry. And so both from our customers and from the independent research, it looks like we'll have nice growth this year, and they're forecasting similar type growth for '15 and '16.

Operator

Operator

And we'll take our next question from Alan Weber with Robotti & Company. Alan W. Weber - Robotti & Company, Incorporated: Just a follow-up. When you talk about -- as you look out, increased revenues from new programs from both businesses, can you talk about how -- what investments are there -- is there additional capital expenditures requirement or will mostly just be kind of working capital related to fund the programs?

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

Alan, I think you can expect that the primary investment will be working capital. Certainly, in the Aerospace & Defense side, we have ample capacity to handle the incremental growth. And in the Industrial side, there may be increments of capital required for specific requirements, but nothing of a major nature.

Operator

Operator

And gentlemen, we have no further questions at this time.

Jeffrey T. Gill

Management

All right. Well, thank you, Danna, and thank you, everyone. Tony and I would like to thank you for joining us on this call. We certainly welcome your continued interest and, of course, your questions about our business. Thank you, and have a great day.

Operator

Operator

Thank you. And that does conclude today's conference. Thank you for your participation.