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ESCO Announces First Quarter Results.

Article Excerpt
ESCO Technologies Inc. today announced its results for the fiscal 2005 first quarter ended December 31, 2004.

Net earnings for the fiscal 2005 first quarter were $10.5 million, or $0.80 per share compared to net earnings of $6.2 million, or $0.46 per share in the first quarter of fiscal 2004. The prior year's first quarter results included a net loss from discontinued operations of ($0.4) million, or ($0.04) per share, and the after-tax charges related to the exit and shut down of the Puerto Rican facility of ($0.5) million, or ($0.04) per share. Excluding these items, prior year first quarter "Operational" earnings as defined in earlier releases were $7.1 million, or $0.54 per share.

A reconciliation of the prior year first quarter GAAP reported earnings to "Operational" earnings is included in the Exhibits attached to this release. The Company believes that the presentation of fiscal 2004 "Operational" earnings provides meaningful additional insight into the Company's performance.

Sales

Fiscal 2005 first quarter consolidated sales of $104.4 million were $8.0 million, or 8 percent higher than 2004 first quarter sales of $96.4 million. Favorable foreign currency values resulted in approximately $1.5 million of the sales increase realized in the 2005 first quarter as compared to the prior year period.

On a segment basis for the first quarter of fiscal 2005, Communications sales increased 7 percent; Filtration / Fluid Flow ("Filtration") sales increased 10 percent; and Test sales increased 7 percent as compared to the prior year period.

Communications segment sales increased in the first quarter as a result of higher shipments of Comtrak's SecurVision(R) video security products, which generated $7.1 million in sales during the first quarter of 2005 versus $0.5 million of sales in the 2004 first quarter. The significant increase in sales of these products was the result of additional deliveries which had been delayed by the customer who had requested a modification of the operating system to provide enhanced "virus" protection.

Also within the Communications segment, sales of DCSI's Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) equipment to electric utility customers were $26.4 million in the 2005 first quarter compared to $31 million in the prior year first quarter. Sales to PPL Electric Utilities Corporation (PPL) decreased approximately $11.5 million in the current year's first quarter compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2004 due to the planned completion of the PPL contract. Sales to PPL were $1.0 million and $12.5 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2005 and 2004, respectively. DCSI's sales to electric utility cooperative customers (COOP) and customers other than PPL increased 37 percent during the 2005 first quarter to $25.4 million, from $18.5 million in the prior year first quarter.

Filtration segment sales increased in the first quarter of fiscal 2005 primarily as a result of higher sales of commercial...