Electrical and electronic components specialist Stoneridge, Inc. has announced a fourth quarter net loss of $114.9 million, or $5.07 per share on sales of $163.4 million.
The net loss includes the recognition of a previously announced, non-cash goodwill impairment charge, which was recorded in the quarter ended December 31.
Net sales increased $12.2 million, or 8%, to $163.4 million, compared with $151.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2003. The increase in sales was primarily due to stronger performance in the commercial vehicle business and to a much lesser extent favourable currency exchange rates, which more than offset the decline in traditional domestic North American light vehicle production.
The fourth-quarter net loss includes a pre-tax, non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $183.5 million ($119.8 million after tax benefits of $63.7 million). Excluding the charge, net income for the fourth quarter would have been $4.8 million, or $0.21 per share, compared with net income of $5.1 million, or $0.22 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2003.
“In view of the difficult operating environment facing North American automotive suppliers, we are pleased with our fourth-quarter performance,” said president and chief executive officer Gerald Pisani.
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By GlobalDataFor the year ended December 31, Stoneridge reported a net loss of $92.5 million, or $4.09 per share, including the goodwill impairment charge.
Excluding the charge, net income would have been $27.2 million, or $1.19 per share, for the year, compared with $21.4 million, or $0.94 per share, for 2003.
Net sales were $681.8 million, an increase of 12 %, compared with $606.7 million in 2003. The increase was primarily due to stronger performance in the commercial vehicle business.
“Intense competition, higher commodity prices, and customer pricing pressures are among the most significant challenges facing Stoneridge,” Pisani said.
“The company will continue to focus its efforts on improving operational efficiencies and investing in new products to meet the expectations of our customers. We are cautiously optimistic that the restructuring and focused sales and marketing efforts are gaining traction.
“Because of the high automotive inventories carried by our North American customers, we remain cautious about the near-term business environment for this sector,” Pisani added. “We expect commercial vehicle production to remain at present levels and automotive production to be lower in the first quarter.”
Based on the current industry outlook, Stoneridge anticipates first- quarter 2005 net income to be in the range of $0.12 to $0.20 per share, and full-year 2005 net income to be in the range of $0.95 to $1.05 per share.