COVINGTON, La., Oct. 23, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pool Corporation (Nasdaq:POOL) today reported results for the third quarter of 2008.
"Our ongoing efforts to improve profitability and control expenses are evident in our results. We are also pleased with our momentum in increasing our market share, as our focus on operating in a disciplined manner and continually providing exceptional value to both our customers and our suppliers has helped counter the effects of the unprecedented external market environment," commented Manuel Perez de la Mesa, President and CEO.
Net sales for the quarter ended September 30, 2008 decreased 6% to $493.5 million, compared to $527.4 million in the third quarter of 2007. Base business sales declined 8% due to the continued drop-off in new pool and irrigation construction activity and unfavorable weather. This reduction was partially offset by sales from acquired businesses and an increase in maintenance, repair and replacement product sales. During the quarter, complementary product sales were down approximately 12% compared to a 5% decrease in the same period in 2007.
Gross profit for the third quarter of 2008 increased $2.0 million, or 1%, to $141.8 million from $139.8 million in the comparable 2007 period. Gross profit as a percentage of net sales (gross margin) improved to 28.7% in the third quarter of 2008 from 26.5% for the third quarter of 2007. The increase in gross margin is attributable to improved pricing management, a favorable shift in sales mix to products in the higher margin maintenance market, an increase in sales of Pool Corporation brands and benefits from inflationary price increases.
Operating expenses increased $2.9 million, or 3%, to $103.2 million in the third quarter of 2008 from $100.3 million in the third quarter of 2007. This increase was due to operating expenses related to acquired businesses. Base business operating expenses decreased 1% quarter over quarter.
Operating income decreased $0.9 million, or 2%, to $38.6 million from $39.5 million. Operating income as a percentage of net sales (operating margin) was up slightly to 7.8% for the current quarter, compared to 7.5% for the third quarter of 2007. Interest expense decreased 28% during the quarter due to a lower weighted average effective interest rate and lower average debt levels compared to the third quarter of 2007. Earnings per share for the third quarter of 2008 increased to $0.45 per diluted share on net income of $22.1 million, compared to $0.43 per diluted share on net income of $21.8 million for the third quarter of 2007.
Net sales for the nine months ended September 30, 2008 decreased 6% to $1,524.7 million, compared to $1,627.6 million in the comparable 2007 period. Base business sales declined 8% for the first nine months of 2008. Year to date, complementary product sales were down approximately 13% due to the decline in new pool and irrigation construction activity. Gross margin increased 120 basis points to 28.9% in the first nine months of 2008 from 27.7% for the same period last year.
Operating income for the first nine months of 2008 decreased 11% to $130.8 million compared to $146.6 million in the same period last year. Operating margin was 8.6% for the first nine months of 2008 compared to 9.0% for the first nine months of 2007. Earnings per share for the first nine months of 2008 decreased to $1.47 per diluted share on net income of $71.8 million, compared to $1.58 per diluted share on net income of $81.0 million in the comparable 2007 period.
"Given the weak external market environment and our prudent credit management practices, we are updating our annual earnings guidance and project fourth quarter earnings per diluted share to be similar to fourth quarter 2007," said Perez de la Mesa.
On the balance sheet, total net receivables decreased 11% compared to September 30, 2007 due to lower sales and focused collection efforts. Inventory levels increased 9% to $345.9 million at September 30, 2008. Excluding acquired inventories of approximately $17.9 million, inventories increased approximately 3% year over year.
Cash provided by operations increased $43.0 million to $76.5 million in the first nine months of 2008 due to the deferral of a $28.0 million third quarter 2008 estimated federal tax payment as allowed by the Internal Revenue Service for taxpayers affected by Hurricane Gustav and favorable impacts from changes in working capital balances that more than offset the reduction in net income. Adjusted EBITDA (as defined in the addendum to this release) was $46.0 million in the third quarter of 2008 compared to $47.0 million in the third quarter of 2007 and $148.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2008 compared to $164.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2007.
Pool Corporation is the largest wholesale distributor of swimming pool and related backyard products. Currently, POOL operates 288 sales centers in North America and Europe, through which it distributes more than 100,000 national brand and private label products to roughly 70,000 wholesale customers. For more information about POOL, please visit www.poolcorp.com.
The Pool Corporation logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=4853
This news release includes "forward-looking" statements that involve risk and uncertainties that are generally identifiable through the use of words such as "believe," "expect," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "project" and similar expressions and include projections of earnings. The forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise such statements to reflect new circumstances or unanticipated events as they occur. Actual results may differ materially due to a variety of factors, including the sensitivity of our business to weather conditions, our ability to maintain favorable relationships with suppliers and manufacturers, competition from other leisure product alternatives and mass merchants, changes in the economy and the housing market and other risks detailed in POOL's 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
POOL CORPORATION Consolidated Statements of Income (Unaudited) (In thousands, except per share data) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, --------------------- ------------------------ 2008 2007 2008 2007 --------- --------- ---------- ---------- Net sales $ 493,530 $ 527,434 $1,524,717 $1,627,612 Cost of sales 351,730 387,631 1,084,811 1,176,402 --------- --------- ---------- ---------- Gross profit 141,800 139,803 439,906 451,210 Percent 28.7% 26.5% 28.9% 27.7% Selling and administrative expenses 103,183 100,298 309,102 304,640 --------- --------- ---------- ---------- Operating income 38,617 39,505 130,804 146,570 Percent 7.8% 7.5% 8.6% 9.0% Interest expense, net 4,589 6,349 14,700 16,765 --------- --------- ---------- ---------- Income before income taxes and equity earnings 34,028 33,156 116,104 129,805 Provision for income taxes 13,675 12,802 45,397 50,118 Equity earnings in unconsolidated investments, net 1,707 1,481 1,044 1,296 --------- --------- ---------- ---------- Net income $ 22,060 $ 21,835 $ 71,751 $ 80,983 ========= ========= ========== ========== Earnings per share: Basic $ 0.46 $ 0.45 $ 1.50 $ 1.64 ========= ========= ========== ========== Diluted $ 0.45 $ 0.43 $ 1.47 $ 1.58 ========= ========= ========== ========== Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 47,824 48,623 47,694 49,372 ========= ========= ========== ========== Diluted 49,060 50,490 48,735 51,347 ========= ========= ========== ========== Cash dividends declared per common share $ 0.13 $ 0.12 $ 0.38 $ 0.345 POOL CORPORATION Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited) (In thousands) Sept. 30, Sept. 30, Change 2008 2007 $ % --------------------------------------------------------------------- Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 25,278 $ 50,265 $(24,987) (50)% Receivables, net 45,426 58,023 (12,597) (22) Receivables pledged under receivables facility 133,501 142,511 (9,010) (6) Product inventories, net 345,944 317,110 28,834 9 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 7,915 9,004 (1,089) (12) Deferred income taxes 9,139 7,652 1,487 19 -------------------------------------------------------------- Total current assets 567,203 584,565 (17,362) (3) Property and equipment, net 32,895 35,518 (2,623) (7) Goodwill 167,376 155,247 12,129 8 Other intangible assets, net 13,519 15,459 (1,940) (13) Equity interest investments 35,592 34,561 1,031 3 Other assets, net 25,299 19,073 6,226 33 -------------------------------------------------------------- Total assets $841,884 $844,423 $ (2,539) (0)% -------------------------------------------------------------- Liabilities and stockholders' equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable $128,329 $127,889 $ 440 0% Accrued and other current liabilities 80,636 53,557 27,079 51 Short-term financing 58,392 110,715 (52,323) (47) Current portion of long-term debt and other long-term liabilities 5,369 3,350 2,019 60 -------------------------------------------------------------- Total current liabilities 272,726 295,511 (22,785) (8) Deferred income taxes 18,608 15,185 3,423 23 Long-term debt 274,100 292,750 (18,650) (6) Other long-term liabilities 6,225 6,152 73 1 -------------------------------------------------------------- Total liabilities 571,659 609,598 (37,939) (6) -------------------------------------------------------------- Total stockholders' equity 270,225 234,825 35,400 15 -------------------------------------------------------------- Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $841,884 $844,423 $ (2,539) (0)% -------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ 1. Total receivables at September 30, 2008 include approximately $4.2 million of acquired receivables, primarily from the acquisition of National Pool Tile (NPT). The allowance for doubtful accounts was $10.6 million at September 30, 2008 and $8.7 million at September 30, 2007, with $0.6 million of the September 30, 2008 balance related to the acquisition of NPT. 2. Total product inventories at September 30, 2008 include approximately $17.9 million of acquired inventories, primarily from the acquisition of NPT. The inventory reserve was $8.7 million at September 30, 2008 and $5.4 million at September 30, 2007, with $1.2 million of the September 30, 2008 balance related to the acquisition of NPT. POOL CORPORATION Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited) (In thousands) Nine Months Ended September 30, 2008 2007 Change -------------------------------------------------------------------- Operating activities Net income $ 71,751 $ 80,983 $ (9,232) Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation 7,182 6,868 314 Amortization 3,196 3,665 (469) Share-based compensation 5,493 5,564 (71) Excess tax benefits from share- based compensation (2,452) (8,345) 5,893 Equity earnings in unconsolidated investments (1,635) (2,087) 452 Other 1,393 3,476 (2,083) Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of effects of acquisitions: Receivables (33,908) (49,373) 15,465 Product inventories 47,545 14,580 32,965 Accounts payable (67,940) (49,743) (18,197) Other current assets and liabilities 45,910 27,927 17,983 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net cash provided by operating activities 76,535 33,515 43,020 Investing activities Acquisition of businesses, net of cash acquired (32,891) (2,087) (30,804) Divestiture of business 1,165 -- 1,165 Purchase of property and equipment, net of sale proceeds (4,999) (9,407) 4,408 Proceeds from sale of investment -- 75 (75) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net cash used in investing activities (36,725) (11,419) (25,306) Financing activities Proceeds from revolving line of credit 276,826 306,771 (29,945) Payments on revolving line of credit (277,751) (299,928) 22,177 Proceeds from asset-backed financing 73,335 87,479 (14,144) Payments on asset-backed financing (83,270) (51,050) (32,220) Proceeds from long-term debt -- 100,000 (100,000) Payments on long-term debt and other long-term liabilities (2,385) (3,320) 935 Payments of capital lease obligations (251) (257) 6 Payments of deferred financing costs (22) (397) 375 Excess tax benefits from share-based compensation 2,452 8,345 (5,893) Proceeds from issuance of common stock under share-based compensation plans 3,736 7,154 (3,418) Payments of cash dividends (18,187) (17,033) (1,154) Purchases of treasury stock (3,244) (128,777) 125,533 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities (28,761) 8,987 (37,748) Effect of exchange rate changes on cash (1,596) 2,448 (4,044) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Change in cash and cash equivalents 9,453 33,531 (24,078) Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 15,825 16,734 (909) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $ 25,278 $ 50,265 $(24,987) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Addendum The following table breaks out our consolidated results into the base business component and the excluded components (sales centers excluded from base business): -------------------------------------------------------------------- (Unaudited) Base Business Excluded (In thousands) Three Months Ended Three Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2008 2007 2008 2007 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net sales $ 467,878 $ 509,766 $25,652 $17,668 Gross profit 133,771 135,580 8,029 4,223 Gross margin 28.6% 26.6% 31.3% 23.9% Selling and administrative expenses 95,024 96,056 8,159 4,242 Expenses as a % of net sales 20.3% 18.8% 31.8% 24.0% Operating income (loss) 38,747 39,524 (130) (19) Operating margin 8.3% 7.8% (0.5)% (0.1)% -------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------ (Unaudited) Total (In thousands) Three Months Ended September 30, 2008 2007 ------------------------------------------ Net sales $ 493,530 $ 527,434 Gross profit 141,800 139,803 Gross margin 28.7% 26.5% Selling and administrative expenses 103,183 100,298 Expenses as a % of net sales 20.9% 19.0% Operating income (loss) 38,617 39,505 Operating margin 7.8% 7.5% ------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------------------------------------- (Unaudited) Base Business Excluded (In thousands) Nine Months Ended Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2008 2007 2008 2007 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net sales $1,456,763 $1,584,377 $67,954 $43,235 Gross profit 418,414 440,338 21,492 10,872 Gross margin 28.7% 27.8% 31.6% 25.1% Selling and administrative expenses 289,165 294,146 19,937 10,494 Expenses as a % of net sales 19.8% 18.6% 29.3% 24.3% Operating income 129,249 146,192 1,555 378 Operating margin 8.9% 9.2% 2.3% 0.9% -------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------ (Unaudited) Total (In thousands) Nine Months Ended September 30, 2008 2007 ------------------------------------------ Net sales $1,524,717 $1,627,612 Gross profit 439,906 451,210 Gross margin 28.9% 27.7% Selling and administrative expenses 309,102 304,640 Expenses as a % of net sales 20.3% 18.7% Operating income 130,804 146,570 Operating margin 8.6% 9.0% ------------------------------------------ We exclude the following sales centers from base business results for a period of 15 months (parenthetical numbers for each category indicate the number of sales centers excluded as of September 30, 2008): o acquired sales centers (10, net of consolidations see table below); o existing sales centers consolidated with acquired sales centers (6); o closed sales centers (3); o consolidated sales centers in cases where we do not expect to maintain the majority of the existing business (1); and o sales centers opened in new markets (0). We generally allocate corporate overhead expenses to excluded sales centers on the basis of their net sales as a percentage of total net sales. After 15 months of operations, we include acquired, consolidated and new market sales centers in the base business calculation including the comparative prior year period. In addition to the 20 sales centers excluded from base business as of September 30, 2008, there were 2 new market sales centers excluded until they became base business sales centers in June 2008. We also divested our pool liner fabrication operation in France as of April 2008, and therefore we have excluded these results from base business for the second and third quarters of 2007. We have excluded the following acquisitions from base business for the periods identified: Net Sales Acquisition Centers Acquired Date Acquired Period Excluded ------------- ------------- --------- ----------------------- National Pool Tile (NPT)(1) March 2008 9 March - September 2008 Canswim Pools March 2008 1 March - September 2008 Tor-Lyn, Limited February 2007 1 February - April 2007 and January - April 2008 The table below summarizes the changes in our sales centers in the first nine months of 2008: December 31, 2007 281 Acquired, net of consolidations(1) 12 Consolidated (1) Closed (1) ---- March 31, 2008 291 New locations 1 Consolidation of acquired locations(1) (2) ---- June 30, 2008 and September 30, 2008 290 ==== (1) We acquired 15 NPT sales centers and have consolidated 6 of these with existing sales centers, including 4 in March 2008 and 2 in the second quarter of 2008. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income or net loss plus interest expense, income taxes, depreciation, amortization and share-based compensation. Adjusted EBITDA is not a measure of cash flow or liquidity as determined by generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). We have included Adjusted EBITDA as a supplemental disclosure because we believe that it is widely used by our investors, industry analysts and others as a useful supplemental liquidity measure in conjunction with cash flows provided by or used in operating activities to help investors understand our ability to provide cash flows to fund growth, service debt and pay dividends as well as compare our cash flow generating capacity from year to year. We believe Adjusted EBITDA should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, operating income, net income or loss, cash flows provided by or used in operating, investing and financing activities or other income statement or cash flow statement line items reported in accordance with GAAP. Other companies may calculate Adjusted EBITDA differently than we do, which may limit its usefulness as a comparative measure. The table below presents a reconciliation of net income to Adjusted EBITDA. -------------------------------------------------------------------- (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended (In thousands) September 30, September 30, 2008 2007 2008 2007 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net income $ 22,060 $ 21,835 $ 71,751 $ 80,983 Add: Interest expense, net 4,589 6,349 14,700 16,765 Provision for income taxes 13,675 12,802 45,397 50,118 Income tax expense on equity earnings 1,086 959 591 791 Share-based compensation 1,224 1,619 5,493 5,564 Depreciation 2,378 2,352 7,182 6,868 Amortization(1) 975 1,114 2,924 3,497 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Adjusted EBITDA $ 45,987 $ 47,030 $ 148,038 $ 164,586 -------------------------------------------------------------------- (1) Excludes amortization included in interest expense, net The table below presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to cash provided by operating activities. Please see page 5 for our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. -------------------------------------------------------------------- (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended (In thousands) September 30, September 30, 2008 2007 2008 2007 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Adjusted EBITDA $ 45,987 $ 47,030 $ 148,038 $ 164,586 Add: Interest expense, net(1) (4,517) (6,291) (14,428) (16,597) Provision for income taxes (13,675) (12,802) (45,397) (50,118) Income tax expense on equity earnings (1,086) (959) (591) (791) Excess tax benefits on share-based compensation (800) (1,946) (2,452) (8,345) Equity earnings in unconsolidated investments (2,793) (2,440) (1,635) (2,087) Other 2,894 2,839 1,393 3,476 Change in operating assets and liabilities 85,687 62,159 (8,393) (56,609) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Net cash provided by operating activities $ 111,697 $ 87,590 $ 76,535 $ 33,515 -------------------------------------------------------------------- (1) Excludes amortization of deferred financing costs of $72 and $58 for the three months ended September 30, 2008 and September 30, 2007, respectively, and $272 and $168 for the nine months ended September 30, 2008 and September 30, 2007, respectively. This non-cash expense is included in interest expense, net on the Consolidated Statements of Income.