MANCHESTER, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Luxfer Group (NYSE:LXFR),a global materials technology company, today issued its fourth-quarter financial results for 2017 and simultaneously published the audited financial results, on Form 20-F, for the full year 2017 for the periods ending on December 31, 2017. To access a PDF of the completed fourth-quarter 2017 report, click here. The same document and the completed Form 20-F is available at www.luxfer.com.
Business highlights
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Total revenue in Q4 2017 of $116.1M was 21% higher compared to $96.1M
in Q4 2016.
- Elektron Division revenue was up 38%, driven by continued strong sales of our defence and disaster-relief products.
- Gas Cylinders Division revenue was up 6%, driven by exchange rate benefits.
- Q4 2017 Basic EPS was a loss of $0.09 compared to a profit of $0.12 in the prior-year period, predominantly as a result of $16.1m in restructuring and other expenses recognized in the quarter related to ongoing business transformation.
- Q4 2017 adjusted diluted EPS of $0.23 grew 64% compared to $0.14 in the prior-year period, driven by growth and productivity.
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Total Adjusted EBITDA in Q4 2017 of $14.6M was 43% higher compared to
$10.2M reported in Q4 2016.
- Elektron Division’s adjusted EBITDA was 107% higher compared to Q4 2016, driven by volume increase.
- Gas Cylinders Division’s adjusted EBITDA was 41% lower due to productivity challenges at Superform associated with introducing a new alloy. We are deploying additional lean and quality resources to recover.
- At the end of 2017, net debt was $7.0M lower at $100.4M compared to $107.4M at the end of 2016 due to strong cash conversion.
- Full-year 2017 revenue of $441.3M was 6% higher compared to $414.8M in 2016. Full-year adjusted EBITDA in 2017 of $61.8M was 12% higher compared to $55.3M in 2016. Full-year 2017 adjusted diluted EPS was $1.02, an increase on the $0.92 in 2016.
- We significantly bolstered leadership with the hiring of Heather Harding as CFO and Peter Dyke as CHRO on January 1, 2018.
- In December 2017, we successfully exchanged outstanding ADSs for underlying ordinary shares directly traded on the NYSE.
Alok Maskara, Chief Executive Officer of Luxfer, said: “2017 was a transformative year for Luxfer, during which the company met its commitment of a 10% increase in adjusted EBITDA. We saw growth and margin expansion in the Elektron Division, and we are optimistic about achieving a recovery in our Gas Cylinders Division. In 2018 and beyond, the Luxfer transformation plan, initiated in late 2017, is expected to deliver significant value to our shareholders, customers and employees.”
Outlook
We believe that the second-half momentum in our results will continue in 2018.
- In the Gas Cylinders Division, aluminum and SCBA cylinders finished 2017 with positive momentum that is expected to continue in 2018. In addition, we are enhancing the transformation plan at Superform to recover long-term profitability.
- In the Elektron Division, we expect continued growth from high-performance magnesium and zirconium alloys, including our proprietary SoluMag® product. We also expect the transformation plan to deliver additional growth and productivity.
Full-year 2018 adjusted earnings per share is expected to increase by 10%-15% from 2017 due to our transformation plan and from the favorable impact of the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. In addition, we expect to improve our historical cash conversion through disciplined capital allocation and better working capital management.
In 2018, as part of the ongoing transformation plan, we intend to convert from foreign private issuer status to domestic issuer status, which will require us to comply with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission domestic reporting regime from January 1, 2019.
Joe Bonn, the non-executive Chairman of Luxfer, has informed the company of his decision not to stand for re-election to the board at the Annual General Meeting in 2019 and to step down as Chairman by early 2019. We thank Joe for his years of service and are looking forward to his continued leadership until a new Chairperson is appointed. We have started the process of recruiting two new board members and appointing a new Chairperson.
Conference call details
Luxfer has scheduled a conference call at 8:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time on Tuesday, March 20, 2018.
U.S. participants may access the conference call by telephoning 877-341-8545. U.K. participants may call 08000288438. Participants from other countries may call +1-908-982-4601. The participant conference ID code is 7270929.
Please begin the call-in procedure at least 15 minutes before the conference call starts. The call is expected to last about an hour.
Use the following link to access slides related to the conference call:
https://event.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1177968&tp_key=ed46cb0768
A recording of the conference call will be available for replay two hours after the completion of the call and will remain accessible until the next quarterly report is released. To hear the recording, call 800-585-8367 in the U.S., 08009172646 in the U.K. and +1-404-537-3406 in other countries. Enter conference ID code 7270929 when prompted. Slides used in the presentation and a recording of the call will also be available in the investor relations section of the Luxfer website at www.luxfer.com.
About Luxfer Group
Luxfer Group is a global materials technology group focused on sustained value creation using its broad array of technical know-how and proprietary materials technologies. The company specializes in the design and manufacture of high-performance materials, components and high-pressure gas-containment devices for transportation, defense and emergency response, healthcare, and general industrial. Luxfer customers include both end-users of its products and manufacturers that incorporate Luxfer products into finished goods. For more information, visit www.luxfer.com.
Luxfer Group is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and its Ordinary Shares trade under the ticker LXFR.
Contacts
Investor and news agency communications should initially be directed to investor.relations@luxfer.com.
Forward-looking statements
This release contains forward-looking statements.
Examples of such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to:
(i) statements regarding the Group’s results of operations and financial condition; (ii) statements of plans, objectives or goals of the Group or its management, including those related to financing, products or services; (iii) statements of future economic performance; and (iv) statements of assumptions underlying such statements. Words such as “believes,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “forecasts” and “plans” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that the predictions, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved. The Group cautions that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to: (i) future revenues being lower than expected; (ii) increasing competitive pressures in the industry; (iii) general economic conditions or conditions affecting demand for the services offered by us in the markets in which we operate, both domestically and internationally, including as a result of the Brexit referendum, being less favorable than expected; (iv) worldwide economic and business conditions and conditions in the industries in which we operate; (v) fluctuations in the cost of raw materials and utilities; (vi) currency fluctuations and hedging risks; (vii) our ability to protect our intellectual property; and (viii) the significant amount of indebtedness we have incurred and may incur and the obligations to service such indebtedness and to comply with the covenants contained therein. The Group cautions that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. These factors are more fully discussed in the sections “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk factors” in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2017, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on March 19, 2018. When relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to the Group, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and events. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the Group does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any of them, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
