Velan Inc. Reports Its Year-End and Fourth Quarter 2015/16 Financial Results

MONTREAL, QUEBEC–(Marketwired – May 19, 2016) – Velan Inc. (TSX:VLN) (the “Company”), a world-leading manufacturer of industrial valves, announced today its financial results for its fiscal year and fourth quarter ended February 29, 2016.

Highlights

• Sales of US$108.2 million for the quarter
• Adjusted net earnings¹ of US$4.2 million for the quarter
• Order backlog of US$331.2 million at the end of the fiscal year
• Net order bookings of US$86.7 million for the quarter
• Net cash¹ of US$82.0 million at the end of the fiscal year
• Returned US$2.0 million to shareholders in the quarter and US$9.5 million in the fiscal year by way of dividends and share repurchases

Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2016 (unless otherwise noted, all amounts are in U.S. dollars and all comparisons are to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015):

• Net loss² amounted to $7.8 million or $0.35 per share in the quarter compared to net earnings² of $4.7 million or $0.22 per share last year. The net loss² for the current quarter was significantly impacted by an $11.5 million non-cash goodwill impairment charge related to its wholly-owned Italian subsidiary, Velan ABV S.p.A. (“ABV”). Excluding this charge, as well as the after-tax impact of the restructuring costs incurred during the quarter, the Company’s adjusted net earnings¹ would have been $4.2 million or $0.20 per share this quarter compared to $4.7 million or $0.22 per share last year. The $0.5 million decrease in adjusted net earnings¹ is primarily attributable to the lower sales volume in the quarter.

• Net new orders received (“bookings”) amounted to $86.7 million, a decrease of $14.4 million or 14.2% compared to last year. The continued weakness in the price of oil has had a negative impact on the Company’s order intake in some of its important markets, namely in the oil and gas industry and the energy sector.
• Sales amounted to $108.2 million, a decrease of $6.3 million or 5.5% compared to last year. Sales were negatively impacted by the decrease in bookings over the last year, particularly in the Company’s Italian subsidiary. Furthermore, the stronger U.S. dollar, particularly against the euro, caused the sales from the Company’s European subsidiaries to be reported as lower U.S. dollar amounts in the current quarter.
• Gross profit percentage improved by 60 basis points from 25.4% to 26.0%. Despite the lower sales volume, the increase in the gross profit percentage was primarily attributable to the labour savings stemming from the restructuring initiatives implemented in the second half of the current fiscal year.
• Foreign currency impacts:
  • Based on average exchange rates, the euro weakened 7.1% against the U.S. dollar when compared to the same period last year. This weakening resulted in the Company’s net profits, bookings, sales, and backlog from its European subsidiaries being reported as lower U.S. dollar amounts in the current quarter.
  • Based on average exchange rates, the Canadian dollar weakened 13.5% against the U.S. dollar when compared to the same period last year. This weakening resulted in the Company’s Canadian dollar expenses being reported as lower U.S. dollar amounts in the current quarter.
  • The unfavourable impact of the euro decrease was generally offset by the favourable impact of the Canadian dollar decrease on the Company’s adjusted net earnings¹ for the current quarter.

Year Ended Fiscal 2016 (unless otherwise noted, all amounts are in U.S. dollars and all comparisons are to the prior fiscal year)

• Net earnings² amounted to $3.6 million or $0.17 per share compared to $18.6 million or $0.85 per share last year. Net earnings² for the current year were significantly impacted by an $11.5 million non-cash goodwill impairment charge related to ABV. Excluding this charge, as well as the after-tax impact of the restructuring costs incurred during the year, the Company’s adjusted net earnings¹ would have been $17.3 million or $0.79 per share this year compared to $18.6 million or $0.85 per share last year. The $1.3 million decrease in adjusted net earnings¹ is primarily attributable to a lower gross profit percentage partially offset by decreased administration and net finance costs.
• Bookings amounted to $329.5 million, a decrease of $141.9 million or 30.1% compared to last year. Excluding the effect of an order cancellation of $23.6 million in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, bookings would have decreased by $118.3 million or 25.1% in the year. This decrease is mainly attributable to an economic downturn in some of the Company’s important markets, particularly the oil and gas industry and energy sector.
• Sales amounted to $426.9 million, a decrease of $28.8 million or 6.3% from the prior year. Sales were negatively impacted by the decrease in bookings, a production slowdown caused by labour unrest and a lockout at the Company’s Canadian facilities during the first half of the current fiscal year, and a stronger U.S. dollar, particularly against the euro.
• As a result of sales outpacing bookings in the year, the Company ended the year with a backlog of $331.2 million, a decrease of $106.6 million or 24.3% since the beginning of the current fiscal year. In addition to lower bookings, the backlog was negatively impacted by the weakening of the euro against the U.S. dollar over the course of the year.
• Gross profit percentage decreased by 160 basis points from 26.0% to 24.4%. This decrease is mainly attributable to an increase in material costs as a percentage of sales and unfavourable inventory movements and provisions which were partially offset by decreased labour costs resulting from the restructuring initiatives undertaken in the year.

• Administration costs amounted to $78.0 million, a decrease of $10.4 million or 11.8%. This decrease is primarily attributable to a decrease in compensation-related costs, which was mainly due to the restructuring initiatives mentioned above, and favourable currency swings resulting from a stronger U.S. dollar, particularly against the euro and Canadian dollar.
• The Company generated net cash¹ from operations of $28.9 million. This source of net cash¹ is primarily attributable to positive cash net earnings² and favourable working capital movements, particularly a decrease in inventories. As a result, the Company ended the year with net cash¹ of $82.0 million, an increase of $6.4 million or 8.5% since the beginning of the current fiscal year.
• Foreign currency impacts:
  • Based on average exchange rates, the euro weakened 14.9% against the U.S. dollar when compared to the same period last year. This weakening resulted in the Company’s net profits from its European subsidiaries being reported as lower U.S. dollar amounts in the current fiscal year.
  • Based on average exchange rates, the Canadian dollar weakened 13.8% against the U.S. dollar when compared to the same period last year. This weakening resulted in the Company’s Canadian dollar expenses being reported as lower U.S. dollar amounts in the current fiscal year.
  • The unfavourable impact of the euro decrease was generally offset by the favourable impact of the Canadian dollar decrease on the Company’s net earnings².

John Ball, CFO of Velan Inc., said, “Fiscal 2016 was a year of challenges as our end user markets grappled with the impact of low oil prices. It provided the impetus for Velan to push for cost savings and efficiencies, and we will continue our efforts to rationalize operations in Fiscal 2017. We ended the year with a strong and healthy balance sheet, with cash generated from operations of US$28.9 million and ending net cash¹ balance of US$82.0 million. In addition, because of the challenges our Italian subsidiary has been facing this year in the upstream oil and gas market, we have written off the last of the goodwill remaining from our acquisition of that company in fiscal 2012.”

Yves Leduc, President of Velan Inc., said, “We were successful in limiting the impact of the severe drop in bookings by responding quickly and decisively. Going forward, confronted with a challenging market environment, our priority is to control expenses and grow margins through operational improvements. Meanwhile, we have defined a path for growth and business improvement, and we have begun mobilizing our entire organization towards our new Velocity 2020 vision. As a goal, our strategy is to come out stronger than ever once the sector recovers.”

Tom Velan, CEO of Velan Inc., said, “This was a year of turbulence and transition for our company. We are grateful for the dedication and resilience of our employees under challenging circumstances.”

Dividend

The Board of Directors declared an eligible quarterly dividend of CA$0.10 per share, payable on June 30, 2016, to all shareholders of record as at June 15, 2016.

Conference call

Financial analysts, shareholders, and other interested individuals are invited to attend the fourth quarter conference call to be held on Thursday, May 19, 2016, at 4:30 p.m. (EST). The toll free call-in number is 1-888-273-1350, access code 21811460. A recording of this conference call will be available for seven days at 1-416-626-4100 or 1-800-558-5253, access code 21811460.

About Velan

Founded in Montreal in 1950, Velan Inc. (www.velan.com) is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of industrial valves, with sales of US$426.9 million in its last reported fiscal year. The Company has manufacturing plants in 10 countries. Velan Inc. is a public company with its shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol VLN.

Safe harbour statement

This news release may include forward-looking statements, which generally contain words like “should”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “plan”, “may”, “will”, “expect”, “intend”, “continue” or “estimate” or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar expressions, all of which are subject to risks and uncertainties, which are disclosed in the Company’s filings with the appropriate securities commissions. While these statements are based on management’s assumptions regarding historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors that it believes are reasonable and appropriate in the circumstances, no forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may differ materially from those expressed herein. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained herein whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by the applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Non-IFRS measures

In this press release, the Company presented measures of performance and financial condition that are not defined under International Financial Reporting Standards (“non-IFRS measures”) and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. These measures are used by management in assessing the operating results and financial condition of the Company. In addition, they provide readers of the Company’s consolidated financial statements with enhanced understanding of its results and financial condition, and increase transparency and clarity into the operating results of its core business.

The term “adjusted net earnings” is defined as net income or loss attributable to Subordinate and Multiple Voting Shares plus goodwill impairment loss, plus restructuring costs less the income tax effect of the restructuring costs. Refer to the “Reconciliations of Non-IFRS Measures” section in the Company’s Management Discussion and Analysis included in its Annual Report for the fiscal year ended February 29, 2016 for a detailed calculation of this measure.

The term “net cash” is defined as cash and cash equivalents plus short-term investments less bank indebtedness, short-term bank loans, and current portion of long-term bank borrowings. Refer to the “Reconciliations of Non-IFRS Measures” section in the Company’s Management Discussion and Analysis included in its Annual Report for the fiscal year ended February 29, 2016 for a detailed calculation of this measure.