Richardson Fiscal Q4 Sales Drop 11%, Profits Shrink

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Richardson Electronics, Ltd. (NASDAQ: RELL) today reported sales and earnings for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended June 1, 2013. The Company also announced that its Board of Directors declared a $0.06 per share quarterly cash dividend.

Fiscal 2013 Results

Net sales for fiscal 2013 were $141.1 million, a 10.6% decrease compared to net sales of $157.8 million in the prior year. Gross margin was down slightly at 29.5% during fiscal 2013, compared to 29.6% during fiscal 2012. Operating expenses were $41.5 million, compared to $40.6 million during fiscal 2012. Operating income for fiscal 2013 was breakeven, compared to operating income for fiscal 2012 of $6.3 million. The operating income for fiscal 2013 included $1.2 million of employee-related termination costs and $1.0 million of unabsorbed labor and overhead costs.

Net income for fiscal 2013 was $1.2 million, or $0.08 per diluted common share, compared to net income for fiscal 2012 of $8.5 million or $0.50 per diluted common share. Net income for fiscal years 2013 and 2012 includes income from discontinued operations of $0.8 million and $0.5 million, respectively.

Q4 Results

Net sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 were $35.2 million, down 9.5% from net sales of $38.9 million during the fourth quarter of last year. Gross profit for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 was 29.1% or $10.2 million, compared to 28.5% or $11.1 million during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012. Operating expenses for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 were $11.8 million, compared to $10.4 million during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012. Fourth quarter fiscal 2013 operating expenses included approximately $0.9 million of employee-related termination costs.

Operating loss for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 was $1.6 million, compared to operating income of $0.7 million during last year’s fourth quarter. Loss from continuing operations was $1.4 million, compared to income from continuing operations of $3.7 million or $0.22 per share last year.

“Unfortunately we did not see the global economic recovery we had expected in fiscal 2013, which resulted in lower-than-anticipated demand for replacement tubes particularly in the semiconductor wafer fabrication, textile, and wood drying markets. In addition, we experienced a drop in demand for medical monitors due to uncertainties surrounding healthcare reform, which had a negative impact on capital spending by our customers. As a result, we did not achieve our operating margin goal of 5%. Throughout the year we took steps to reduce our costs, and we continue to evaluate our resources to ensure maximum efficiency without putting the Company at risk of losing talented people or missing key opportunities for growth,” said Edward J. Richardson, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President.