STATESVILLE, N.C., Sept. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Kewaunee Scientific Corporation (NASDAQ:KEQU) today announced results for its first quarter ended July 31, 2024.
Fiscal Year 2025 First Quarter Results:
Sales during the first quarter of fiscal year 2025 were $48,393,000, a decrease of 2.9% compared to sales of $49,839,000 from the prior year's first quarter. Pre-tax earnings for the quarter were $2,430,000 compared to $3,412,000 for the prior year quarter, a decrease of 28.8%. Net earnings were $2,193,000 compared to net earnings of $2,474,000 for the prior year quarter. EBITDA1 for the quarter was $3,325,000 compared to $4,305,000 for the prior year quarter. Diluted earnings per share was $0.74 compared to diluted earnings per share of $0.86 in the prior year quarter.
The Company's order backlog was $159.4 million on July 31, 2024, as compared to $140.8 million on July 31, 2023, and $155.6 million on April 30, 2024.
Domestic Segment - Domestic sales for the quarter were $35,523,000, an increase of 0.3% from sales of $35,420,000 in the prior year quarter. Domestic segment net earnings was $2,871,000 compared to $2,711,000 in the prior year quarter. Domestic segment EBITDA was $4,738,000 compared to $4,578,000 for the prior year quarter. Domestic segment volumes were similar to the prior year quarter with demand remaining stable across all end-markets.
International Segment - International sales for the quarter were $12,870,000, a decrease of 10.7% from sales of $14,419,000 in the prior year quarter. International segment net earnings was $463,000 compared to $469,000 in the prior year quarter. International segment EBITDA was $696,000 compared to $670,000 for the prior year quarter. The decline in sales is attributable to customer construction site delays in India which pushed out the timing of deliveries.
Corporate Segment – Corporate segment pre-tax net loss was $1,992,000 for the quarter, as compared to a pre-tax net loss of $1,004,000 in the prior year quarter. Corporate segment EBITDA for the quarter was ($2,109,000) compared to corporate segment EBITDA of ($943,000) for the prior year quarter. The change in EBITDA was driven by an increase in professional service fees during the quarter that are unrelated to the core business and the net change in Corporate cost allocation methodology across our business segments.
Total cash on hand on July 31, 2024 was $25,186,000, as compared to $25,938,000 on April 30, 2024. Working capital was $56,012,000, as compared to $49,291,000 at the end of the first quarter last year and $56,037,000 on April 30, 2024.
The Company had short-term debt of $3,627,000 as of July 31, 2024, as compared to $3,099,000 on April 30, 2024. Long-term debt was $28,293,000 on July 31, 2024, as compared to $28,479,000 on April 30, 2024. The building lease from the Company's December 2021 sale-leaseback transaction accounts for $27,958,000 of the long-term debt on July 31, 2024 and $28,133,000 of the long-term debt on April 30, 2024. Long-term debt, net of the sale-leaseback transaction, was $335,000 on July 31, 2024 as compared to $346,000 on April 30, 2024. The Company's debt-to-equity ratio on July 31, 2024 was 0.68-to-1, as compared to 0.70-to-1 on April 30, 2024. The Company's debt-to-equity ratio, net of the sale-leaseback transaction, on July 31, 2024 was 0.19-to-1, as compared to 0.20-to-1 on April 30, 2024.
"Our financial performance for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025 was solid," said Thomas D. Hull III, Kewaunee's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Domestic segment operating performance was improved when compared to last year's first quarter as our manufacturing loadings remain at a consistent level. Site delays in India on multiple projects impacted our ability to ship products and deliver services leading to a slightly down quarter when compared to the prior year first quarter."
"Looking ahead, our backlog remains strong and quoting for new projects remains high, providing a line of sight to another strong year for the Company."
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1 EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure. See the table below for a reconciliation of EBITDA and segment EBITDA to net earnings (loss), the most directly comparable GAAP measure.
EBITDA, Segment EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Segment EBITDA Reconciliation
Quarter Ended July 31, 2023
Domestic
International
Corporate
Consolidated
Net Earnings (Loss)
$ 2,711
$ 469
$ (706)
$ 2,474
Add/(Less):
Interest Expense
380
36
14
430
Interest Income
—
(213)
(1)
(214)
Income Taxes
913
282
(298)
897
Depreciation and Amortization
574
96
48
718
EBITDA
$ 4,578
$ 670
$ (943)
$ 4,305
Quarter Ended July 31, 2024
Domestic
International
Corporate
Consolidated
Net Earnings (Loss)
$ 2,871
$ 463
$ (1,141)
$ 2,193
Add/(Less):
Interest Expense
441
21
10
472
Interest Income
