TOR Minerals Announces Fourth Quarter and Year End 2010 Financial Results

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, Feb. 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- TOR Minerals International (Nasdaq: TORM), producer of synthetic titanium dioxide and color pigments, specialty aluminas, and other high performance mineral fillers, today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010.

Highlights for the fourth quarter and 2010 included:

• 2010 record net income: $2.3 million versus 2009 net loss: ($0.2) million
• 2010 EPS: $0.83 versus 2009 net loss per share: ($0.10)
• 2010 revenue increased 28% year over year to $31.0 million
• 4Q10 EPS: $0.35 versus 4Q09 EPS: $0.08
• 4Q10 revenue increased 36% year over year to $8.7 million

For the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2010, the Company reported net income available to common shareholders of $1,006,000, or $0.35 per diluted share, on net sales of $8,689,000.  This compares with a net income available to common shareholders of $143,000, or $0.08 per share, on net sales of $6,395,000 for the quarter ended December 31, 2009.  

Net sales for the year ended December 31, 2010, were $31,016,000 compared to $24,193,000 during the year ended December 31, 2009.  The net income available to common shareholders was $2,318,000, or $0.83 per diluted share, for the year ended December 31, 2010 compared to a net loss of $196,000, or ($0.10) per diluted share, for year ended December 31, 2009.

Net sales increased 36 percent during the fourth quarter of 2010 due to strong increases in all product categories.  During the fourth quarter, sales of titanium dioxide (TiO2) pigments, which include HITOX® and TIOPREM® products, increased 39 percent to $3.4 million benefiting from both increased prices and volumes.  Sales of specialty alumina, which includes ALUPREM®, HALTEX® and OPTILOAD® product groups, grew 33 percent during the fourth quarter of 2010 due to increased demand for existing and new products in Europe and North America.  Commenting on sales trends, Dr. Olaf Karasch, Chief Executive Officer, said, "Clearly our TiO2 pigment business is benefiting from an economic recovery in the paint and plastics markets.  In addition, the tight global supply of titanium dioxide gives us pricing power and is driving new and existing customers to use more of our specialty pigments in their formulation.   At the same time, our business is benefiting from increasing acceptance of new products, specifically TIOPREM and OPTILOAD. Combined with other specialty alumina products, newly introduced products accounted for more than 30 percent of growth during fourth quarter."  

During the fourth quarter of 2010, operating income increased to $1,091,000, or 12.6% of sales, compared to operating income of $302,000, or 4.7% of sales, reported during the fourth quarter of 2009.  For the year ended December 31, 2010, the Company reported record operating income of $2,803,000.  Year-over-year and sequential improvements in profitability resulted from increased sales levels and greater operational efficiencies, which were partially offset by increases in raw materials and energy costs. Dr. Karasch said, "Fourth quarter and annual improvements in profitability illustrated the leverage in our business model, as approximately thirty five cents of each incremental sales dollar fell to the bottom line during these periods."    

The Company said that sales momentum accelerated during the first six weeks of 2011 and that if this trend continues, it expects to see year-over-year improvement in financial results during the first quarter of 2011.  "As a result of the hard work done to lower our cost structure, improve efficiencies, and diversify our customer, end market, and geographic mix, 2010 net income was the highest in the Company's history.  Looking forward, with continued acceptance of our new products, favorable market conditions, and a lower, more efficient cost structure, we are in a great position to deliver above market growth in revenue and earnings," Dr. Karasch concluded.  

TOR Minerals will host a conference call at 4:00 p.m. Central Time on February 23, 2011 to further discuss fourth quarter results. The call will be simultaneously Webcast, and can be accessed via the News section on the Company's website at www.torminerals.com.  Interested parties may also access the conference call via telephone by dialing 877-407-8033.

Headquartered in Corpus Christi, Texas, TOR Minerals International is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty mineral and pigment products for high performance applications with manufacturing and regional offices located in the United States, Netherlands and Malaysia.

This statement provides forward-looking information as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and, therefore, is subject to certain risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that the actual results, business conditions, business developments, losses and contingencies and local and foreign factors will not differ materially from those suggested in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including market conditions, general economic conditions, including the present slow down in U.S. construction and the risks of a general business slow down or recession, the increasing cost of energy, raw materials and labor, competition, the receptivity of the markets for our anticipated new products, advances in technology, changes in foreign currency rates, freight price increase, commodity price increases, delays in delivery of required equipment and other factors.

SOURCE TOR Minerals International