Solar in Canada

[Ed Monton]

5N Plus Inc. increases Q2 profit to $1.21-million


2008-01-08 19:06 ET - News Release

Mr. Jacques L'Ecuyer reports

5N PLUS INC. REPORTS RECORD SALES AND EARNINGS FOR THE SECOND QUARTER OF 2008

5N Plus Inc. has released financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2008 ended Nov. 30, 2007. Net earnings for the second quarter of 2008 reached a record level of $1,219,548 (four cents per share), which represents a 40.6-per-cent increase over net earnings of $867,255 (three cents per share) for the second quarter of the previous fiscal year. Sales for the quarter also reached a record level of $6,795,743, up by 39.0 per cent compared with sales of $4,889,938 for the second quarter of the previous fiscal year. EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) increased by 49.2 per cent for the second quarter of fiscal 2008 to a record level of $2,318,111, up from $1,553,343 during the second quarter of the previous fiscal year.

For the six-month period ended Nov. 30, 2007, net earnings increased by 49.3 per cent to $2,318,804 (eight cents per share) and sales by 34.7 per cent to $13,190,216. This compares with earnings of $1,553,581 (five cents per share) and sales of $9,793,091 for the same period of the previous fiscal year. EBITDA also increased by a similar amount, 49.7 per cent, up from $2,946,905 during the six-month period ended Nov. 30, 2006, to $4,411,869 during the six-month period ended Nov. 30, 2007.

"We are very pleased to report our second quarter results to our shareholders, our employees and other stakeholders as we take on the challenges of a publicly traded company and the associated opportunities," commented Jacques L'Ecuyer, president and chief executive officer. He added: "These results reflect our increasing penetration of the solar cell market where we expect growing demand for our products. We are making significant investments to address this forecasted growth in demand, which include our new Eisenhuttenstadt plant in Germany and additions to our Montreal facility aimed at increasing capacity and improving efficiency. Our recent successful initial public offering, which yielded net proceeds of approximately $31.5-million, will enable us to pursue our investment program as planned."

Mr. L'Ecuyer concluded: "We are also pleased to welcome to our board of directors two new independent members, namely Mr. Jean-Marie Bourassa, CA (managing partner of Bourassa Boyer Inc.), who will chair our audit committee, and Mr. Pierre Shoiry (chief executive officer of Genivar (TSX: GNV-U)). Both will bring valuable experience and knowledge that will strengthen our largely independent board of directors chaired by Mr. Dennis Wood."

Webcast information

The company will host a conference call at 10 a.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2008, with financial analysts to discuss the second quarter financial results. All interested parties are invited to participate to the live broadcast on the company's website. A replay of the webcast and a recording of the Q&A will be available until Jan. 23, 2008.