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[November 2008]
Libbey Reports Preliminary Q3 2008 Results and Revises Full-Year 2008 Guidance
Libbey Inc (Toledo, OH, USA) has announced that it expects its income from operations for the third quarter ended 30 September 2008 to be approximately US$14.6 million on increased sales of approximately 4.5% or US$211.5 million as compared with income from operations of US$14.7 million and sales of US$202.4 million in the prior-year third quarter.
This is expected to result in EBITDA of approximately US$24.5 million for Q3 2008. On 1 August 2008, Libbey had given EBITDA guidance of US$27.0 million to US$29.0 million for the quarter.
John Meier, Chairman and CEO, said the announcement did not indicate a weakening of the company's underlying business or its market position. "Our year-over-year sales growth despite the state of the global economic markets is a strong indication of the health of our business and the strength of our brands. We expect to achieve income from operations of $14.6 million in line with the performance of $14.7 million in the third quarter of 2007, a very solid performance in the face of this difficult economic environment.
“We also experienced an unfavourable swing in non-cash foreign currency translation losses versus the prior-year quarter of approximately $3.0 million, which, along with lower than expected sales as the result of market weakness in September and substantial increases in key costs, are expected to contribute to EBITDA of approximately $24.5 million.
"While visibility has been clouded by the uncertainty of the global economy, we expect fourth-quarter 2008 sales of $210.0 million to $220.0 million and EBITDA of $20.5 million to $23.5 million. The significant recent weaknesses in the Mexican peso, consumer confidence and performance in the foodservice channel are all expected to contribute to these results during the fourth quarter. Based on this forecast for the fourth quarter, we expect full-year 2008 sales of $833.0 million to $843.0 million and EBITDA in the range of $97.0 million to $100.0 million."
ENDS