PRT Growing Services Ltd. Reports Improved Results for 2011
(firmenpresse) - VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/21/12 -- PRT Growing Services Ltd. (TSX: PRT) today released its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2011.
Year's Highlights
(For the year ended December 31, 2011, as reported under IFRS)
Forest seedlings generally take from six months to a year or more to grow, with most being grown and harvested within the calendar year. PRT's quarterly results generally reflect only a portion of the revenue that accrues over the full crop cycle, and, accordingly, the results are best considered in an annual context. Excerpts from the Company's financial report are included as part of this release.
PRT reported operating earnings of $5,419,000 and total comprehensive income of $2,409,000 ($0.25 per share) for the year ended December 31, 2011, compared with $2,198,000 and a loss of $573,000 ($0.06 per share), respectively for 2010. The improved performance reflects a 41% increase in seedling order volume over 2010, mainly attributable to improving forest seedling markets. Forestry markets benefited from growth in Chinese lumber exports and stabilization of the US housing market. However, lower average pricing, particularly for new seedling products, partially moderated revenue growth in 2011.
Operating margins improved by 7.9 percentage points due to improved scale economies with increased volumes, nursery cost containment, and continuous improvement efforts. In addition, margins benefited from operating leverage, as certain elements of operating costs remain fixed despite volume increases.
For the three months ended December 31, 2011, PRT reported operating earnings of $2,190,000, total comprehensive income of $1,611,000 ($0.16 per share) and EBITDA of $2,452,000. Aggregate results were in line with management's expectations given the seasonal nature of PRT's business.
President and CEO Rob Miller remarked, "We are pleased with our 2011 results, and with the improvements that are starting to show in our business. Over the past three years we have implemented several strategies to adapt to the forest industry and economic downtown, and our results for the year demonstrate that they are working. Over this period we focused on highly reliable contract delivery, customer service, and product innovations to meet changing customer needs. At the same time we kept our house in order by carefully managing capacity and costs, and emphasizing continuous improvement throughout our organization. This positioned us well for the improving markets we experienced in 2011.
"While US housing market remains challenged, certain customers have made significant headway in developing new markets in Asia, and this has brought an increase in harvesting activity to meet their needs. We have remained ready to respond to the resulting increase in silviculture work, and to achieve margin improvements from the increased volume and improved capacity utilization.
"While the future pace of the US housing market recovery is uncertain, midterm recovery prospects remain promising, and this will have further positive long-term effects on our business. Despite this prospect, we continue to believe it is prudent to diversify our business further to generate additional growth and stability. In addition to geographic expansion within forest seedling markets, we are actively investigating other opportunities to expand our product line by growing plants for other industries. These present unique opportunities to expand and diversify our markets while levering off our core expertise in seedling propagation. Going forward, we will continue to focus on improving our key operational capabilities, managing our balance sheet, and developing new markets."
Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)
PRT has commenced reporting under IFRS in 2011. Subject to certain transitional elections disclosed in the financial statements, PRT has consistently applied the same accounting policies under IFRS in its opening IFRS balance sheet at January 1, 2010 and throughout all periods presented, as if these accounting policies under IFRS had always been in effect.
Management's discussion and analysis for PRT and the information circular are available at .
About PRT Growing Services Ltd.
PRT Growing Services Ltd. (the Company) was formed on October 1, 2011 from the conversion of PRT Forest Regeneration Income Fund to a corporate structure. The Company is the largest producer of container-grown forest seedlings in North America, with 13 nursery locations that produced more than 180 million seedlings in 2011. Shares of the Corporation are listed for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol PRT.
Conference Call and Taped Replay
The Company will host a conference call to further discuss the matters contained in this press release. The call will take place on Thursday, March 22, 2011, at 11:00 am PDT, 2:00 pm EDT. To participate in this conference call, please call 1-877-407-8031 or 201-689-8031.
Persons unable to participate in the conference call may listen to a recorded version by dialing 1-877-660-6853, account #286, conference ID#389368. This option is available through March 29, 2012. A recorded webcast of the call may also be accessed from the Corporation's website, at .
The Company's next earnings conference call is expected to take place on Thursday, May 10, 2012, after the release of the Corporation's first-quarter 2012 earnings information.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, expectations for order volumes, pricing, operating costs and other expenditures; the outlook for energy prices; plans and opportunities for capital spending; and other statements contained in this discussion that are not historical fact. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, agricultural risks and crop yield; future commodity prices; exchange rate risks; customer credit risks and customer insolvency; liquidity risk; the outlook for the forest industry; the impact of corporate conversion on reporting earnings and taxation; the impact of changes in financial reporting to IFRS; and other risks identified from time to time in the Fund's annual report and information return, prospectus, and other filing documents that are available in electronic form at or by contacting the Corporation directly.
Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, and the Corporation assumes no obligation to update such information to reflect later events or developments, except as required by law.
Excerpts from the Fund's annual financial report:
Contacts:
PRT Growing Services Ltd.
Tony Pollard
VP Finance/CFO
(866) 553-8733 ext. 229
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Datum: 21.03.2012 - 20:30 Uhr
Sprache: Deutsch
News-ID 1095319
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Forestry
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