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February 24, 2010 |
Canam Group Posts Net Earnings of $20M, or $0.45 per Share, in 2009 |
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(BOUCHERVILLE, QC) – Construction products fabricator Canam Group Inc. (TSX: CAM) reported net earnings of $20.1 million, or $0.45 per share, for the 12-month period ended December 31, 2009, compared with $48.4 million, or $1 per share, in 2008. Consolidated sales were $625.8 million versus $796.1 million a year earlier.
Fourth-quarter net earnings were $5 million, or $0.11 per share, as compared to $13.7 million, or $0.29 per share, for the corresponding 2008 period. Consolidated sales for the quarter fell 35%, from $230.9 million in 2008 to $149.7 million in 2009.
Canam Group president and chief operating officer Marc Dutil attributes the decline in sales to the slowdown in non-residential construction in North America and to lower prices for raw materials. Despite fierce competition and the ensuing pressure on gross margins, Mr. Dutil explains that the company was able to remain profitable during this difficult economic period because of its excellent performance in executing infrastructure and complex large-scale structural steel projects.
Canam Group turned in a gross profit of $121.7 million, and its gross margin was 19.4% against 22.6% at the close of fiscal 2008. EBITDA went from $93.4 million at the end of 2008 to $51.8 million one year later. By the end of 2009, the company’s net debt stood at $0.3 million versus $69.9 million at the close of 2008. Shareholders’ equity was $400.6 million.
As at December 31, 2009, Canam Group’s order backlog totaled $460 million, including $277 million worth of fabricated products, in contrast to $444 million, including $313 million worth of fabricated products, at the same time a year earlier.
In January 2010, Canam Group increased its 37.5% ownership in structural nut and bolt distributor Amcan-Jumax to 50% and acquired the assets of Hong Kong-based InteliBuild Limited, a leading consulting services provider on construction projects that use BIM and 3D digital models.
In a press release issued yesterday, Canam Group announced that it has signed an agreement to purchase an additional 65% membership interest in structural steel fabricator FabSouth for $65 million. Once the transaction is finalized, Canam Group will own 80% of FabSouth, which operates six plants with a total capacity of 122,000 tons in the southeastern United States.
The board of directors approved the payment of a quarterly dividend of $0.04 per common share on March 31, 2010 to shareholders of record on March 17, 2010.
Canam Group is an industrial company operating 18 plants specialized in the design and fabrication of construction products and solutions. The company employs close to 3,000 people in Canada, the United States, Romania and India, and has partnerships with companies in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China.
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Conference call
Canam Group will hold a conference call with financial analysts and media representatives at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, February 24, 2010. A podcast will be available at www.canamgroup.ws and www.cnw.ca. A replay of the conference call will be available until March 12, 2010, by dialing 1-800-408-3053 and entering access code 2184748, followed by the pound key (#). |
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| Source: |
| Jasmin Gosselin |
Vice President, Communications
Canam Group Inc.
450-641-4000
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If you would like your name added to our distribution list for the Annual Report, Quarterly Reports, Annual Information Form and Notice of Annual Meeting or our distribution list for Press Releases, contact us, tel.: 450-641-4000, e-mail.
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