Gerber Scientific reports decline of 15.7% in Q2 revenues
08 Dec '09
5 min read
Mr. Giles added, “We continued to make important progress in the execution of our business strategy by completing the sales of our non-core FOBA and ND Graphics business units, which generated net proceeds of approximately $13.0 million and allowed us to reduce our debt by an additional $9.5 million in the quarter. Year to date, we've reduced outstanding debt by $22.5 million and we also successfully amended our credit agreement in November to further increase our flexibility under the facility. As a result of the increased flexibility, we were able to complete the acquisition of Yunique Solutions Inc. last week, a product lifecycle management (PLM) software solutions developer that expands and advances Gerber's technology platform and capabilities in the fashion industry. Plus, we were able to cease the non-profitable aftermarket operations of a small facility in Poland during the quarter and are continuing to aggressively seek opportunities to lower our cost structure even further.”
Outlook and Guidance
“With the improved quote and order activity during the quarter, we are more optimistic that we are beginning to see a rebound in our markets,” said Mr. Giles. “We've seen several encouraging signs in recent weeks including increased quote and order activity overall for systems and aftermarket products, and especially from China, which is an important growth market for us. Several of our business units have also reported increased attendance and a higher level of interest for our new products at recent trade shows. However, we will remain cautious in the near term, especially due to the seasonality of our business, and will continue to tightly manage expenses and limit R&D to sustaining projects until we are more confident that the recovery is fully underway and sustainable. However, when the economy and our markets rebound, we are confident that we will be able to leverage our improved cost structure to deliver higher earnings.”