Finning Hosts Investor Day, Provides Outlook

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Dec. 15, 2011) - Finning International Inc. (TSX:FTT) ("Finning") is hosting its annual Investor Day on December 15, 2011 in Toronto. Finning's senior management team will provide an update and outlook on operations. A live and archived webcast with the supporting presentations will be available at www.finning.com.

"We are entering 2012 with a sizeable backlog and a clear growth strategy. The continued strong demand for our products and services gives us confidence in our top-line growth projections through 2014. Particularly in mining, we continue to see solid business opportunities driven by strong commodity prices," said Mike Waites, president and CEO, Finning International. "Going forward, we remain focused on capitalizing on this demand and driving margin expansion. We will continue to invest in our product support capabilities, so we remain well-positioned to deliver superior service to our customers and value for our shareholders."

Business conditions are expected to remain robust in Finning's Canadian and South American operations. The outlook for the UK and Ireland continues to be positive despite economic uncertainty in the European markets. On a consolidated basis, the Company expects:

• revenue growth of approximately 5 percent in 2012 and 10 percent per year in 2013 and 2014, with product support representing a higher percentage of total revenue compared to 2011;
• SG&A as a percentage of revenue to be roughly flat in 2012 relative to 2011, and to decline to the Company's target of approximately 20 percent over the next three years;
• EBIT to grow at a significantly higher rate than revenue as the Company continues to track towards achieving 9 to 10 percent EBIT margin in 2013;
• strong EPS growth in 2012 over 2011, driven by improved gross profit; continued EPS growth in 2013 and 2014 due to higher gross profit and SG&A improvements;
• capital expenditures and rental additions to run at similar levels to 2011; and
• positive and growing free cash flow over the next three years, driven by higher EBITDA, a significant moderation in working capital investment and similar levels of net capital and rental expenditures.

Finning International Inc. (TSX:FTT) is the world's largest Caterpillar equipment dealer delivering unrivalled service to customers since 1933. Finning sells, rents and services equipment and engines to help customers maximize productivity. Headquartered in Vancouver, B.C., the Company operates in western Canada, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay, as well as in Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Forward-Looking Disclaimer

This report contains statements about the Company's business outlook, objectives, plans, strategic priorities and other statements that are not historical facts. A statement we make is forward-looking when it uses what we know and expect today to make a statement about the future. Forward-looking statements may include words such as aim, anticipate, assumption, believe, could, expect, goal, guidance, intend, may, objective, outlook, plan, project, seek, should, strategy, strive, target, and will. Forward-looking statements in this report include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: expectations with respect to the economy and associated impact on the Company's financial results; expected revenue and SG&A levels and EBIT growth; anticipated generation of free cash flow (including projected net capital and rental expenditures), and its expected use; anticipated defined benefit plan contributions; the expected target range of Debt Ratio; the expected quantitative impact on the 2010 consolidated statements of financial position and statements of income and comprehensive income of the Company's transition to IFRS effective January 1, 2010; and the impact on new and revised IFRS that have been issued but are not yet effective. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the 'safe harbour' provisions of applicable Canadian securities laws.

Unless otherwise indicated by us, forward-looking statements in this report describe our expectations at December 15, 2011. Except as may be required by Canadian securities laws, we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Forward-looking statements, by their very nature, are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties and are based on several assumptions which give rise to the possibility that actual results could differ materially from our expectations expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements and that our business outlook, objectives, plans, strategic priorities and other statements that are not historical facts may not be achieved. As a result, we cannot guarantee that any forward-looking statement will materialize. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by our forward-looking statements include: general economic and market conditions; foreign exchange rates; commodity prices; the level of customer confidence and spending, and the demand for, and prices of, our products and services; our dependence on the continued market acceptance of Caterpillar's products and Caterpillar's timely supply of parts and equipment; our ability to continue to improve productivity and operational efficiencies while continuing to maintain customer service; our ability to manage cost pressures as growth in revenues occur; our ability to attract sufficient skilled labour resources to meet growing product support demand; our ability to negotiate and renew collective bargaining agreements with satisfactory terms for our employees and the Company; the intensity of competitive activity; our ability to raise the capital we need to implement our business plan; regulatory initiatives or proceedings, litigation and changes in laws or regulations; stock market volatility; changes in political and economic environments for operations; the integrity, reliability, and availability of information technology and the data processed by that technology; operational benefits from the new ERP system; new or amended IFRS or interpretations that become effective prior to the inclusion of the Company's financial statement of position in its first annual audited IFRS financial statements. Forward-looking statements are provided in this report for the purpose of giving information about management's current expectations and plans and allowing investors and others to get a better understanding of our operating environment. However, readers are cautioned that it may not be appropriate to use such forward-looking statements for any other purpose.

Forward-looking statements made in this report are based on a number of assumptions that we believed were reasonable on the day we made the forward-looking statements. Refer in particular to the Outlook section of the MD&A. Some of the assumptions, risks, and other factors which could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements contained in this report are discussed in the Company's current Annual Information Form (AIF) in Section 4.

We caution readers that the risks described in the AIF are not the only ones that could impact us. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial may also have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations.

Except as otherwise indicated by us, forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any non-recurring or other unusual items or of any dispositions, mergers, acquisitions, other business combinations or other transactions that may be announced or that may occur after the date hereof. The financial impact of these transactions and non-recurring and other unusual items can be complex and depends on the facts particular to each of them. We therefore cannot describe the expected impact in a meaningful way or in the same way we present known risks affecting our business.