TOR Minerals International Inc. (TORM)

[MWM]

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TOR Minerals International, Inc. On Tuesday May 4, 2010, 4:00 pm EDT

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, May 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- TOR Minerals International, Inc. (Nasdaq:TORM - News), producer of synthetic titanium dioxide and color pigments, specialty aluminas, and other high performance mineral fillers, today announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010. The Company reported net income available to common shareholders of $569,000, or $0.26 per diluted share, on net sales of $6,856,000. This compares with a net loss available to common shareholders of ($284,000), or ($0.15) per share, on net sales of $5,703,000 for the quarter ended March 31, 2009.

Net sales increased 20.2 percent during the first quarter of 2010 over the first quarter of 2009. During the first quarter of 2010, sales of HITOX® increased 49.4 percent to $2.9 million as end market demand in paint and plastic markets continued to improve. Sales of specialty alumina products decreased 5.2 percent during the first quarter of 2010 as increasing demand for new and existing specialty alumina products in North America and Europe was offset by a shift in the order pattern of a significant U.S. customer.

During the first quarter of 2010, operating profit increased to $744,000, or 10.8 percent of sales, compared to an operating loss of ($249,000) reported during the first quarter of 2009. First quarter 2010 operating profit also increased sequentially from the operating profit of $302,000, or 4.7 percent of sales, reported during the fourth quarter of 2009. Year-over-year and sequential improvements in profitability resulted from increased sales levels, increased plant utilization, and greater operational efficiencies.

Commenting on the results, Dr. Olaf Karasch, Chief Executive Officer said, "First quarter's operating margin was the highest in over six years. The noteworthy improvement in profitability is a result of the hard work we have done in the past two years to improve efficiencies and remove costs from our business. The improvement also reflects the powerful leverage in our business, as a large portion of each incremental sales dollar makes a significant contribution to our bottom line."

The Company said that during the past five months it has secured significant orders for specialty alumina products and expects to have growth in alumina sales beginning in the second quarter. Dr. Karasch said, "Growth in our specialty alumina business should further diversify the Company's customer and product concentration in this category." In addition, the Company said that its Ti02 pigment business is expected to benefit from a continuing recovery in the paint and plastics end markets, as well as what presently appears to be a favorable pricing environment.