Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2012 Financial Results

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., March 8, 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select: SWHC), a leader in firearm manufacturing and design, today announced financial results for its fiscal 2012 third quarter ending January 31, 2012.

Third Quarter Fiscal 2012 Financial Highlights

• Net sales from continuing operations for the third quarter of $98.1 million were up 23.8% from the third quarter last year.  The increase was driven by strong sales of M&P™ handguns, M&P™ sporting rifles, and all Smith & Wesson personal protection and concealed carry pistols.  
• Gross profit for the third quarter was $30.0 million, or 30.6% of net sales, compared with gross profit of $19.4 million, or 24.5% of net sales, for the same period last year.  The improvement in gross profit was driven by increased sales volume and increased overhead absorption due to higher production levels; as well as cost-reduction initiatives across the organization, including the completion of the consolidation of the Thompson/Center Arms business to Springfield, Massachusetts, which concluded in November 2011. In addition, the same period last year included costs associated with the company's strategic price repositioning activities. That strategic repositioning also resulted in lower ongoing promotion costs.
• Operating expense for the third quarter totaled $19.7 million, or 20.1% of net sales, compared with operating expense of $21.3 million, or 26.9% of net sales, for the third quarter last year.  The decrease in operating expense reflected cost-reduction initiatives across the organization as well as reduced legal fees related to the company's ongoing DOJ and SEC investigations.
• Net income from continuing operations for the third quarter was $5.4 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, compared with a net loss from continuing operations of $2.7 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, for the third quarter last year. Net income from continuing operations for the third quarter resulted from increased sales volumes and corresponding gross profit as well as reduced operating expenses.
• Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDAS from continuing operations for the third quarter increased to $14.8 million compared with $4.6 million for the same period last year.
• At January 31, 2012, firearm backlog was $198.5 million, an increase of $124.7 million, or 168.9%, compared with the end of the third quarter last year, and an increase of $48.6 million, or 32.0%, from the most recent sequential quarter.  
• Operating cash flow of $8.5 million and net capital spending of $3.5 million resulted in free cash flow of $5.0 million from continuing operations.
• Debt was reduced by $30.0 million through the repayment of outstanding convertible notes.

James Debney, Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "Our third quarter results demonstrated the positive impact of our concentrated, strategic focus on firearms.  We delivered sales growth across our M&P™ handgun and M&P™ modern sporting rifle categories as well as our personal protection and concealed carry pistols, while achieving a number of key accomplishments.  We continued to work on expanding our firearm manufacturing capacity to meet increased demand, an objective we plan to continue in the coming months as we address our robust backlog.  During the quarter, we successfully completed our Thompson/Center Arms consolidation, an action designed to improve efficiencies and enhance gross margins.  On the new product front, at the SHOT Show in January we launched two extensions to our M&P™ modern sporting rifles as well as our new Thomson/Center Arms Dimension™ hunting rifle. We also commenced the manufacturing of a brand new handgun that we have designed for the personal protection market.  We look forward to launching this exciting new product at the upcoming NRA show in April.  Lastly, during the quarter, we successfully sold our foundry business in New Hampshire, and we continued to work with our advisor on divesting our perimeter security business."  

Jeffrey D. Buchanan, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, said, "Our cost reduction initiatives yielded clear results in the third quarter.  Operating expenses were 20.1% of net sales, compared with 26.9% for the third quarter last year.  We are also pleased to report that we paid down $30.0 million in convertible debt during the quarter without accessing our line of credit, which substantially reduced our overall debt and further strengthened our balance sheet.  As of January 31, 2012, we had $25.7 million in cash on hand, no borrowings under our $60.0 million credit facility, and working capital of $92.4 million."

Financial Outlook for Continuing Operations

The company is raising its anticipated net sales outlook from continuing operations for fiscal 2012 to between $395.0 million and $400.0 million, which would represent year-over-year growth from continuing operations of more than 15%, up from the prior outlook of 13% to 15% growth. The company anticipates total gross profit margin for fiscal 2012 to approach 30% and operating expense to be approximately 21% of net sales.  The tax rate is expected to be approximately 41%.

The company expects net sales from continuing operations for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012 to be between $113.0 million and $118.0 million.  Gross profit margin for the fourth quarter is anticipated to be between 32.0% and 33.0%.  Fourth quarter operating expense is expected to be approximately $22.0 million, and the tax rate is expected to be approximately 41%.

Conference Call and Webcast

The company will host a conference call and webcast today, March 8, 2012, to discuss its third quarter fiscal 2012 financial and operational results. Speakers on the conference call will include James Debney, President and CEO, and Jeffrey D. Buchanan, Executive Vice President and CFO. The conference call may include forward-looking statements. The conference call and webcast will begin at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (2:00 p.m. Pacific Time). Those interested in listening to the call via telephone may call directly at 857-350-1594 and reference conference code 86489727. No RSVP is necessary.  The conference call audio webcast can also be accessed live and for replay on the company's website at www.smith-wesson.com, under the Investor Relations section. The company will maintain an audio replay of this conference call on its website for a period of time after the call. No other audio replay will be available.  

Reconciliation of U.S. GAAP to Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDAS

In this press release, a non-GAAP financial measure known as "Adjusted EBITDAS" is presented.  From time-to-time, the company considers and uses Adjusted EBITDAS as a supplemental measure of operating performance in order to provide the reader with an improved understanding of underlying performance trends. Adjusted EBITDAS excludes the effects of interest expense, income taxes, depreciation of tangible fixed assets, amortization of intangible assets, stock-based employee compensation expense, impairment charge to goodwill and indefinite lived long-lived intangible assets related to the acquisition of Smith & Wesson Security Solutions™ (SWSS), DOJ and SEC investigation costs, and certain other transactions.  See the attached "Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income/(Loss) to Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDAS" for a detailed explanation of the amounts excluded and included from net income to arrive at Adjusted EBITDAS for the three-month and nine month periods ended January 31, 2011 and January 31, 2012.  Adjusted or non-GAAP financial measures provide investors and the company with supplemental measures of operating performance and trends that facilitate comparisons between periods before, during, and after certain items that would not otherwise be apparent on a GAAP basis. Adjusted financial measures are not, and should not be viewed as, a substitute for GAAP results. The company's definition of these adjusted financial measures may differ from similarly named measures used by others.

About Smith & Wesson

Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select: SWHC) is a U.S.-based leader in firearm manufacturing and design, delivering a broad portfolio of quality firearms, related products, and training to the global military, law enforcement, and consumer markets. The company's brands include Smith & Wesson®, M&P™ and Thompson/Center Arms. Smith & Wesson facilities are located in Massachusetts and Maine. For more information on Smith & Wesson, call (800) 331-0852 or log on to www.smith-wesson.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements contained in this press release may be deemed to be forward-looking statements under federal securities laws, and we intend that such forward-looking statements be subject to the safe-harbor created thereby.  Such forward-looking statements include the success of our plan to continue to work on expanding our firearm manufacturing capacity; the success of our Thompson/Center Arms consolidation in improving our efficiencies and enhancing gross margins; the success of our new products, including a new handgun that we expect to launch in April 2012; the outcome of the divestiture of our perimeter security business; our outlook for net sales from continuing operations and net sales growth from continuing operations for fiscal 2012; our outlook for total gross profit margin, operating expenses, and our tax rate for fiscal 2012; our outlook for net sales from continuing operations, gross profit margin, operating expenses; and our tax rate for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012.  We caution that these statements are qualified by important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected by such forward-looking statements.  Such factors include the demand for our products; the costs and ultimate conclusion of certain legal matters, including the DOJ and SEC matters; the state of the U.S. economy; general economic conditions, and consumer spending patterns; the potential for increased gun control; speculation surrounding fears of terrorism and crime; our growth opportunities; our anticipated growth; our ability to increase demand for our products in various markets, including consumer, law enforcement, and military channels, domestically and internationally; the position of our hunting products in the consumer discretionary marketplace and distribution channel; our penetration rates in new and existing markets; our strategies; our ability to introduce new products; the success of new products; our ability to expand our markets; the potential for cancellation of orders from our backlog; the success of the divestiture of our security solutions business and its effects on our core firearm business; and other risks detailed from time to time in our reports filed with the SEC, including our Form 10-K Report for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2011.

Contacts:
Liz Sharp, VP Investor Relations
Smith & Wesson Holding Corp.
(413) 747-3304
[email protected]

SOURCE Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation