C&D News

C&D Technologies Announces Third Quarter Results

BLUE BELL, Pa., Dec. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- C&D Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: CHP), a leading North American producer and marketer of electrical power storage and conversion systems used in telecommunications and industrial applications, today announced financial results for the fiscal 2008 third quarter ended October 31, 2007.

Results for the quarter and all comparative financial data included herein reflects the presentation of both the Power Electronics Division ("PED") and Motive Power Division ("Motive") as discontinued operations. With these changes C&D's continuing operations are now solely comprised of results from Standby Power

For the quarter, the Company reported a consolidated net loss of $9.3 million or $0.36 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $17.8 million or $0.70 per diluted share in the prior year's third quarter. Net loss from continuing operations was $7.0 million or $0.27 per diluted share during the quarter, compared to $0.3 million or $0.01 per diluted share in the third quarter of fiscal 2007. Net loss from discontinued operations was $2.3 million or $0.09 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $17.6 million or $0.69 per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2007.

Revenues were $91.3 million, an increase of 29.3% compared to $70.6 million in the prior year's third quarter and up approximately 10% from $82.8 million in our second quarter.

Dr. Jeffrey A. Graves, President and CEO said, "The fiscal third quarter saw the culmination of a number of important strategic actions and milestones. We sold our Power Electronics Division to Murata Manufacturing of Japan, we reached agreement to sell certain assets of the Motive Power Division to Crown Battery which will result in our exit from that business early in our fourth quarter, we made additional progress in our cost-cutting efforts, and most importantly, we completed the restructuring of all material customer contracts to include lead escalation clauses. With continued execution of our cost reduction initiatives, the flow through of our pricing actions, and the recent moderation of lead prices we look forward to returning C&D Technologies to profitability early in the next fiscal year. We are now laser-focused on the growing standby power market, where we have distinct competitive advantages including a strong brand, leading market share, loyal customers, and a reputation for innovation and product quality. We exit the third quarter with an improved balance sheet, strong revenue momentum in all of our key end markets, and significant cost reduction opportunities available to us in the Standby Power business. With these factors now aligned, we are very excited about the year ahead."

With record revenues of $91.3 million in the third quarter, the Standby Power division posted its fourth consecutive sequential revenue increase. In addition, book-to-bill ratios have been greater than 1.0 in 6 of the past 7 quarters, including the quarter just ended, supporting continuing revenue momentum. Revenue growth is being driven by enterprise data center construction, expansion of the cable TV fiber-to-the-home infrastructure, and strength in the utility end markets accompanying renewed investment in the electrical transmission network in North America. While sales to the telecommunications industry have been sluggish for most of this fiscal year, recent FCC regulations mandating eight (8) hours of battery backup time for data carriers are expected to drive incremental demand from telecommunications customers in future quarters

Standby Power's operating loss of $4.4 million was driven by increasing raw material prices, primarily lead, which reached record highs during the quarter, but has since softened significantly, as well as increased general and administrative cost allocations principally resulting from the divestiture of the Power Electronics and Motive Power divisions. In addition, one-time costs including severance and plant closure costs totaled $1.8 million during the quarter. Excluding these one-time costs, the operating loss would have been $2.6 million.

Dr. Graves concluded, "We continue to work hard from both a pricing and cost reduction perspective to accommodate the extreme volatility in lead costs. This quarter, lead costs net of hedging and pricing actions reduced profitability by over $10 million on a pretax basis compared to last year's third quarter. We expect to recover most, if not all of these unrecovered lead costs as our pricing actions catch up to this lead escalation during our fourth quarter and into the first quarter of next fiscal year. In addition, our cost reduction initiatives continue to track on or ahead of our previously communicated targets, even with the sale of our Motive Power unit which was previously included in our cost reduction estimates. We remain on track to deliver over $15 million of savings this year, and an incremental $15 million next year for a total of $30 million on an annualized basis. Importantly, with the completion of our recent divestiture activities, we have identified and taken actions in November to offset the reallocation of SG&A expenses to Standby Power which were potentially stranded following these divestitures, through further organizational changes, headcount eliminations and other incremental cost savings programs over and above our previously announced cost reduction initiative. Taken in total, the combined effects of our pricing actions, our cost reduction initiatives, and the launch of significant new products, which began as we exited the quarter, we look forward to continued improvements in our financial performance in the fourth quarter of this year, and an exciting year of growth and profitability in the new year to come."

Conference call:

C&D management will host a conference call to discuss these financial results on December 7, 2007 at 10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Those parties interested in participating in the conference call via telephone should dial 706-679-4521 and enter conference ID number 26919267. A telephone replay of the conference call will begin immediately following the call and will be available through December 21, 2007 at midnight Eastern Standard Time. To access the rebroadcast, please dial 800-642-1687 (706-645-9291 for international callers) and enter code 26919267. A webcast of the conference call will also be available at http://www.cdtechno.com.

About C&D Technologies:

C&D Technologies, Inc. provides solutions and services for the switchgear and control (utility), telecommunications, and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) as well as emerging markets such as solar power. C&D Technologies engineers, manufactures, sells and services fully integrated reserve power systems for regulating and monitoring power flow and providing backup power in the event of primary power loss until the primary source can be restored. C&D Technologies is headquartered in Blue Bell, PA. For more information about C&D Technologies, visit http://www.cdtechno.com.

Forward-looking Statements:

This press release may contain forward-looking statements (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934), which are based on management's current expectations and are subject to uncertainties and changes in circumstances. Words and expressions reflecting something other than historical fact are intended to identify forward-looking statements, but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. Factors that appear with the forward- looking statements, or in the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings (including without limitation the company's annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2007, or the quarterly and current reports filed on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K thereafter), could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward- looking statements made herein.



                   C&D TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
                    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
                   (Dollars in thousands, except par value)
                                 (UNAUDITED)

                                      Three months ended   Nine months ended
                                          October 31,          October 31,
                                        2007      2006      2007       2006
    NET SALES                          $91,253   $70,589  $251,586   $210,457
    COST OF SALES                       85,403    59,276   222,939    175,670
    GROSS PROFIT                         5,850    11,313    28,647     34,787

    OPERATING EXPENSES:
    Selling, general and
     administrative expenses             8,563     7,187    25,820     23,981
    Research and development expenses    1,725     1,432     4,949      4,883
    Gain on sale of Shanghai, China
     plant                                   -         -   (15,162)         -
    OPERATING (LOSS) INCOME FROM
     CONTINUING OPERATIONS              (4,438)    2,694    13,040      5,923
    Interest expense, net                1,880     2,574     6,190      8,050
    Other (income) expense, net         (1,181)      258    (2,120)       975
    (LOSS) INCOME FROM CONTINUING
     OPERATIONS BEFORE INCOME TAXES
     AND MINORITY INTEREST              (5,137)     (138)    8,970     (3,102)
    Income tax provision (benefit)
     from continuing operations          2,186       163     1,281       (502)
    (LOSS) INCOME FROM CONTINUING
     OPERATIONS BEFORE MINORITY
     INTEREST                           (7,323)     (301)    7,689     (2,600)
    Minority interest                     (330)      (56)    3,672       (371)
    (LOSS) INCOME FROM CONTINUING
     OPERATIONS                         (6,993)     (245)    4,017     (2,229)
    LOSS FROM DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS
     BEFORE INCOME TAXES                (4,167)  (17,158)  (10,564)   (22,707)
    INCOME TAX (BENEFIT) PROVISION
     FROM DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS       (1,862)      412     1,703      3,502
    LOSS FROM DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS   (2,305)  (17,570)  (12,267)   (26,209)
    NET LOSS                           $(9,298) $(17,815)  $(8,250)  $(28,438)
    Income (loss) per share:
    Basic:
    Net (loss) income from continuing
     operations                         $(0.27)   $(0.01)    $0.16     $(0.09)
    Net (loss) income from
     discontinued operations            $(0.09)   $(0.69)   $(0.48)    $(1.02)
    Net (loss) Income                   $(0.36)   $(0.70)   $(0.32)    $(1.11)
    Diluted:
    Net (loss) income from continuing
     operations                         $(0.27)   $(0.01)    $0.16     $(0.09)
    Net (loss) income from
     discontinued operations            $(0.09)   $(0.69)   $(0.48)    $(1.02)
    Net (loss) income                   $(0.36)   $(0.70)   $(0.32)    $(1.11)
    Dividends per share                     $-        $-        $-   $0.01375

    Certain classifications to these statements have been reflected for the
presentation of the Power Electronics Division and Motive Power Division as
discontinued operations as well as the change in method of accounting for
inventories.



                   C&D TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
                         CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
                   (Dollars in thousands, except par value)
                                 (UNAUDITED)

                                                October 31,       January 31,
                                                   2007              2007
    ASSETS
    Current assets:
      Cash and cash equivalents                   $31,631            $5,384
      Accounts receivable, less allowance for
       doubtful accounts of $1,102 and $1,203      67,765            55,397
      Inventories                                  71,452            53,172
      Deferred income taxes                           196               134
      Prepaid taxes                                 1,775             2,634
      Other current assets                          1,103             6,121
      Assets held for sale                          4,198           132,442
        Total current assets                      178,120           255,284

    Property, plant and equipment, net             78,994            80,896
    Deferred income taxes                             642               531
    Intangible and other assets, net               16,320            15,543
    Goodwill                                       59,800            59,733
        TOTAL ASSETS                             $333,876          $411,987

    LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
    Current liabilities:
      Short-term debt                              $5,472            $1,286
      Accounts payable                             52,447            40,282
      Book overdrafts                                  70             2,310
      Accrued liabilities                          17,320            13,708
      Other current liabilities                     8,941            28,983
      Liabilities held for sale                         -            36,532
        Total current liabilities                  84,250           123,101

    Deferred income taxes                          10,387             9,155
    Long-term debt                                124,101           147,925
    Other liabilities                              31,728            28,591
        Total liabilities                         250,466           308,772

    Minority interest                              11,674             7,548

    Stockholders' equity:
        Common stock, $.01 par value, 75,000,000
         shares authorized; 29,081,110 and
         29,040,960 shares issued; 25,666,477
         and 25,649,424 shares outstanding,
         respectively                                 291               290
        Additional paid-in capital                 74,867            74,188
        Treasury stock, at cost, 3,414,633 and
         3,391,536 shares, respectively           (47,244)          (47,110)
        Accumulated other comprehensive loss      (31,783)          (13,952)
        Retained earnings                          75,605            82,251
    Total stockholders' equity                     71,736            95,667
    TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY   $333,876          $411,987

    Certain classifications to these statements have been reflected for the
presentation of the Power Electronics Division and Motive Power Division as
discontinued operations as well as the change in method of accounting for
inventories.



                   C&D TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
                    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
                   (Dollars in thousands, except par value)
                                 (UNAUDITED)

                                                      Nine months ended
                                                          October 31,
                                                   2007              2006
    Cash flows from operating activities:
        Net loss                                  $(8,250)         $(28,438)
        Net loss from discontinued operations     (12,267)          (26,209)
        Net income (loss) from continuing
         operations                                 4,017            (2,229)
      Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss)
       from continuing operations to net cash
       used in continuing operating activities:
      Minority interest                             3,672              (371)
      Share-based compensation                        444               197
      Depreciation and amortization                 8,315             9,023
      Amortization of debt acquisition costs        1,208               889
      Annual retainer to Board of Directors paid
       by the issuance of common stock                236               224
      Deferred income taxes                           628               877
      Gain on disposal of assets                  (15,295)              (29)
      Changes in assets and liabilities:
        Accounts receivable                       (14,127)           (7,563)
        Inventories                               (18,146)              567
        Other current assets                          702              (509)
        Accounts payable                            9,977            (1,966)
        Accrued liabilities                         3,762             2,869
        Income taxes                                1,792              (510)
        Other current liabilities                     864             2,015
        Funds provided to discontinued
         operations                               (22,170)          (21,380)
        Other long-term assets                        232                (5)
        Other long-term liabilities                 4,410              (544)
        Other, net                                 (2,356)              349
      Net cash used in continuing operating
       activities                                 (31,835)          (18,096)
      Net cash (used in) provided by
       discontinued operating activities           (1,249)            4,963
        Net cash used in operating activities     (33,084)          (13,133)

    Cash flows from investing activities:
      Proceeds from the divestiture of
       businesses                                  85,700                 -
      Acquisition of property, plant and
       equipment                                   (7,071)          (15,446)
      Proceeds from disposal of property,
       plant and equipment                          2,248                38
        Net cash provided by (used in)
         continuing investing activities           80,877           (15,408)
        Net cash used in discontinued investing
         activities                                  (298)           (4,091)
        Net cash provided by (used in) investing
         activities                                80,579           (19,499)

    Cash flows from financing activities:
      Repayment of debt, net                      (24,123)                -
      Proceeds from new borrowings                  3,993            18,844
      (Decrease) increase in book overdrafts       (2,241)            3,063
      Financing cost of long term debt               (459)             (701)
      Proceeds from exercise of stock options           -             1,210
      Purchase of treasury stock                     (134)             (122)
      Common stock dividends paid                       -              (352)
        Net cash (used in) provided by
         continuing financing activities          (22,964)           21,942
        Net cash used in discontinued financing
         activities                                (5,212)             (780)
        Net cash (used in) provided by financing
         activities                               (28,176)           21,162
    Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and
     cash equivalents                                 169               316
    Increase (decrease) in cash and cash
     equivalents from continuing operations        26,247           (11,246)
    Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of
     period                                         5,384            17,439
    Cash and cash equivalents, end of period      $31,631            $6,193

Certain classifications to these statements have been reflected for the presentation of the Power Electronics Division and Motive Power Division as discontinued operations as well as the change in method of accounting for inventories.

SOURCE C&D Technologies, Inc.

CONTACT: Ian J. Harvie of C&D, +1-215-619-7835; or Joseph Crivelli of Gregory FCA, for C&D, +1-610-642-8253/

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