Robbins & Myers Announces Second Quarter 2011 Results and Agreement to Sell Its Romaco Businesses

DAYTON, Ohio, March 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Robbins & Myers, Inc. (NYSE: RBN) today reported diluted net earnings per share (DEPS) of $0.32 for its fiscal second quarter ended February 28, 2011, compared with $0.13 in the prior year second quarter.  Adjusting for one-time charges relating to the acquisition of T-3 Energy Services, Inc. (T-3) on January 10, 2011, the Company earned $0.62 per share, which included approximately $0.06 of certain income tax and operating benefits which are not expected to recur.

Consolidated sales were $215 million in the second quarter of 2011 as compared with $130 million in the second quarter of 2010.  Excluding T-3, sales grew 38%.  Each of Robbins & Myers' business platforms achieved strong year-over-year growth.  The Company reported second quarter 2011 orders of $230 million, or $184 million excluding T-3, 18% higher than the comparable prior year period.

Second quarter 2011 earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) were $18 million, significantly higher than the $7 million reported in the second quarter of 2010.  Excluding one-time charges relating to the acquisition of T-3, the Company had adjusted EBIT of $36 million.  Adjusted EBIT margins were 16.6%, more than triple the prior year margins, as a result of improved profitability in all business platforms, especially within the Fluid Management Group.  The Company reported adjusted EBITDA of $42 million in the second quarter of 2011, compared with $11 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010.

"We are rapidly integrating T-3 into our Fluid Management Group and have secured most of the expected $9 million of annualized synergies," said Peter C. Wallace, President and Chief Executive Officer of Robbins & Myers, Inc.  "Other potential benefits from the acquisition have surfaced, such as new sales opportunities with key account relationships, opportunities to leverage regional strengths and capabilities, and savings through low-cost sourcing.  All of this is occurring against a backdrop of strong order levels at T-3, which continues to benefit from increased North American oil & gas maintenance and repair activity as well as higher spending related to shale projects.  Our legacy energy business is also benefitting from high levels of customer demand, tempered somewhat by capacity constraints for one product line, for which we expect additional capacity to begin coming on line at the end of the third quarter."

Robbins & Myers reported that it used $10 million of cash for operating activities in the second quarter of fiscal 2011 as compared with generating $18 million in the prior year same quarter.  The decrease is attributable to payments related to the T-3 acquisition, higher pension payments, and working capital increases to support enterprise growth.  The Company ended the recent quarter with $51 million of cash and $2 million of debt.

Agreement to Sell Romaco Businesses

Robbins & Myers also reported it has entered into an agreement to sell its Romaco businesses to a group of funds led by Deutsche Beteiligungs AG (DBAG), a Frankfurt, Germany-based private equity investment firm.  Total consideration of euro 65 million (approximately $92 million) includes euro 61 million of cash and euro 4 million of assumed liabilities and is subject to post-closing adjustments.  The transaction is expected to close in the third fiscal quarter following German regulatory approval.

"The sale of the Romaco businesses represents another milestone in our strategic transformation," said Mr. Wallace.  "This transaction and the January acquisition of T-3 are significant strides in focusing the Company on core competencies and application know-how to better serve customers in niche markets.  We have a solid foundation for future growth and further investment."

After the close of the sale of the Romaco businesses to DBAG, the Company expects to record a net gain of approximately euro 29 million (approximately $41 million) and reflect Romaco as a discontinued operation in its third quarter consolidated financial statements.

Mr. Wallace commented, "Over the past few years, Romaco simplified its business model, expanded its capabilities, grew sales in developing regions and improved its profit profile.  It is well-positioned for continued success and should benefit from DBAG's experience working with European engineering companies."

Updated Guidance

Based on recent financial performance, and anticipating the sale of the Romaco businesses, Robbins & Myers revised its fiscal 2011 adjusted DEPS forecast from $1.85-$2.05 to $1.95-$2.15 and expects to earn $0.45-$0.55 in its third quarter of 2011.  The Company's forecasts exclude restructuring costs, one-time costs associated with the T-3 acquisition, gains resulting from the sale of the Romaco businesses, and income from discontinued operations.

Second Quarter Results by Segment

All comparisons are made against the comparable year-ago quarterly period unless otherwise stated.

The Company's Fluid Management segment reported orders of $143 million or $97 million excluding T-3, up 21%, due primarily to strength in energy markets.  Sales were $135 million in the second quarter or $99 million excluding T-3, an increase of 48%.  Adjusted EBIT was $38 million or 28.4% of sales, an increase of 800 basis points.  Ending backlog of $131 million includes $65 million from T-3 and compares with $47 million at the end of the prior year for the legacy Fluid Management Group.

The Process Solutions segment reported orders of $52 million, an increase of 16% due to improving demand for capital goods in certain regional chemical markets.  Sales of $49 million were 23% higher, and the business reported $0.5 million of EBIT in the second quarter of 2011 as compared with a $2.5 million loss.  Backlog expanded for the sixth consecutive quarter, ending the quarter at $90 million.

The Romaco segment had orders of $35 million, an increase of 14%.  Backlog was $57 million at the end of second quarter of 2011, up $13 million.  Sales increased 35% to $31 million, and EBIT improved $1.8 million to $2.1 million.

Conference Call to Be Held Today, March 31 at 10:00 AM (Eastern)

A conference call to discuss second quarter 2011 financial results is scheduled for 10:00 AM Eastern on Thursday, March 31, 2011.  The call can be accessed at www.robn.com or by dialing 800-510-9661 (US/Canada) or +1-617-614-3452, using conference ID #51808049. Replays of the call can be accessed by dialing 888-286-8010 (US/Canada) or +1-617-801-6888, both using replay ID #10969887.

About Robbins & Myers

Robbins & Myers, Inc. is a leading supplier of engineered equipment and systems for critical applications in global energy, industrial, chemical and pharmaceutical markets.

In this release the Company refers to EBIT, adjusted EBIT, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted DEPS, all non-GAAP measures.  The Company uses these measures to evaluate its performance and believes these measures are helpful to investors in assessing its performance.  A reconciliation of EBIT to net income is included in our Condensed Consolidated Income Statement, and other reconciliations are included in this press release.  EBIT, adjusted EBIT, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted DEPS are not a measure of cash available for use by the Company.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements set forth in this press release that are not historical facts, including statements regarding future financial performance, future market demand, future benefits to shareholders, future economic and industry conditions, and the proposed sale of the Romaco businesses (including its benefits, effects and timing), are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws.  These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control, which could cause actual benefits, results, effects and timing to differ materially from the results predicted or implied by the statements.  These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: whether or when the sale of the Romaco businesses will occur (including receipt of regulatory approval); costs and difficulties related to integration of T-3; the inability to or delay in obtaining cost savings and synergies from the T-3 merger; inability to retain key personnel; changes in the demand for or price of oil and/or natural gas; a significant decline in capital expenditures within the markets served by the Company; the ability to realize the benefits of restructuring programs; increases in competition; changes in the availability and cost of raw materials; foreign exchange rate fluctuations as well as economic or political instability in international markets and performance in hyperinflationary environments, such as Venezuela; work stoppages related to union negotiations; customer order cancellations; the possibility of product liability lawsuits that could harm our businesses; events or circumstances which result in an impairment of, or valuation against, assets; the potential impact of U.S. and foreign legislation, government regulations, and other governmental action, including those relating to export and import of products and materials, and changes in the interpretation and application of such laws and regulations; the outcome of audit, compliance, administrative or investigatory reviews; proposed changes in U.S. tax law which could impact our future tax expense and cash flow; decline in the market value of our pension plan investment portfolios; and other important risk factors discussed more fully in the Company's reports on Form 10-K for the year ended August 31, 2010; its recent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K; and other reports filed from time to time with the SEC.  Robbins & Myers does not undertake any obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason.

SOURCE Robbins & Myers, Inc.