Author: Exco HO

TORONTO, Jan. 11, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX-XTC) today announced that it will report its financial results for the first quarter ended December 31, 2018 after the close of business on Wednesday, January 30, 2019.

The Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders of Exco Technologies Limited will also take place on January 30, 2019 at 4:30 p.m. (Toronto time) at Magna Golf Club, at 14780 Leslie Street, Aurora, Ontario. Management will discuss year-end and first quarter results and will also take questions from the public at that time.

To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com, or https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/qpti4r9y a few minutes before the event.  The conference call can be accessed by dialling toll free at (866) 572-8261 or internationally at (703) 736-7448.  The conference ID is 1999558.  Questions can be submitted via the Q&A box on the webcast console or via the conference call. 

For those unable to participate on January 30, 2019, an archived version will be available until February 8, 2019 on the Exco website or by dialling toll free at (855) 859-2056 or internationally at (404) 537-3406.  The conference ID is 1999558.

About Exco Technologies Limited:

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 18 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,757 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.

• Sales of $139.5 million for the quarter; up 6% from prior year
• Record Q4 EPS of $0.27 compared to $0.18 prior year
• EBITDA of $20.1 million in the quarter and $76.6 million for year
• Continued progress with ALC turnaround efforts
• $7.0 million returned to shareholders via share repurchases and dividends
• Balance sheet and liquidity remain very strong

TORONTO, Nov. 26, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX-XTC) today announced results for its fourth quarter and year ended September 30, 2018. In addition, the Company announced the quarterly dividend of $0.085 per common share which will be paid on December 28, 2018 to shareholders of record on December 13, 2018.   The dividend is an “eligible dividend” in accordance with the Income Tax Act of Canada. 

“Exco ended fiscal 2018 on a strong note with record fourth quarter earnings,” said Brian Robbins, CEO of Exco. “We expect the forward momentum we demonstrated throughout the past year will continue in fiscal 2019, propelling our earnings to record levels in the year ahead,” added Robbins.

In the fourth quarter, consolidated sales were $139.5 million – an increase of $8.1 million or 6% from the prior year. Foreign exchange rate movements contributed $4.3 million of the sales increase. 

The Automotive Solutions segment experienced a 2% increase in sales to $89.0 million compared to the fourth quarter of 2017. The increase was mainly driven by higher revenues at ALC assisted by temporary price increases on its main program. Polydesign also recorded higher sales driven mainly by new program launches in Morocco, where quoting activity remains extremely robust. In North America, overall vehicle production volumes were relatively flat during the quarter compared to a year ago, however the mix shift towards trucks/ SUV’s and away from passenger cars continued. These trends helped Polytech and Neocon generate higher revenues year over year although hampered the results of AFX. Sales were also impacted by the timing of program launches at the segment’s various businesses, and a focus on higher margin activities. Foreign exchange rate movements contributed $2.9 million to the segment’s sales gain.

The Casting and Extrusion segment’s revenues rose 14% over last year, to $50.5 million in the quarter. This increase was widespread with all three of the segment’s businesses contributing. Factors behind the increase include a rebound in demand for capital equipment within the Castool group together with price increases and strong demand for the group’s other innovative product offerings as well as continued seasoning of Castool’s operations in Thailand. Revenue generated by the Extrusion group were higher due to continued strong market conditions coupled with price increases (including the pass-through of US steel tariffs) and, management believes, market share gains. Large mould group sales were higher as the division continued to execute on its strong backlog while quoting activity for new programs remains robust. Foreign exchange rate movements contributed $1.4 million of sales.

The Company’s fourth quarter consolidated net income increased to $11.6 million or earnings of $0.27 per share compared to $7.5 million or earnings of $0.18 per share in the same quarter last year – an EPS increase of 50%. The effective income tax rate was 18.7% in the current quarter compared to 27.4% in the same quarter last year. The effective tax rate in the current period was improved by a reduction to the corporate income tax rate in the US and a greater proportion of earnings generated in lower tax rate jurisdictions.

Fourth quarter pretax earnings in the Automotive Solutions segment totalled $12.8 million, an increase of $3.9 million or 44% over the same quarter last year. This improvement was driven mostly by the segment’s European operations where temporary price increases and various operating efficiency measures enabled ALC to record a profit this quarter compared to a loss the prior year period. The higher income occurred despite a $1.6 million ($0.04 per share) bad debt expense at ALC associated with a customer dispute upon program conclusion. ALC’s results clearly demonstrate progress with efforts to turnaround that business units’ performance. These efforts continue with an objective of further reducing ALC’s footprint in Bulgaria and achieving a permanent price increase from ALC’s main program customer. Also in the quarter, profitability was boosted in the segment’s North American operations by $1.8 million due to the sale of a building. This gain offsets a drag on earnings from the lower sales volumes and underlying margin weakness. Margin rate reduction was caused by reduced absorption of factory overhead expenses, unfavorable product mix shifts and isolated supplier challenges with a new program launch that led to incremental costs.

Pretax earnings in the Casting and Extrusion segment improved by $0.6 million or 23% over the same quarter last year, to $3.4 million. The earnings improvement was mainly driven by contributions from the Castool and Extrusion groups which benefited from higher revenues and, in the case of Castool, margin expansion. These increases more than offset weaker results from the Large Mould group associated primarily with losses on a few near-complete programs for which production costs exceeded prior estimates due in part to increased outsourcing requirements. This occurred, in part, as internal capacity was limited by operating inefficiencies that persisted through the quarter. Program volumes and quoting activity however remain very healthy and after implementing various measures to resolve the group’s challenges, management firmly believes the Large Mould group’s performance is at an inflection point with stronger results expected ahead.

The Corporate segment in the fourth quarter recorded expenses of $1.8 million compared to $0.9 million last year with the higher amount mainly due to incentive compensation expense which was temporarily decreased in 2017. As a result of the forgoing, consolidated EBITDA in the quarter increased to $20.1 million (14.4% of sales) compared to $15.8 million (12.0% of sales) last year.

Exco generated free cash flow of $3.5 million during the quarter, after $1.8 million in net capital expenditures and $11.2 million in working capital investment, much of which is expected to reverse in the coming quarters. This cash flow and a modest increase in net debt funded the Company’s quarterly dividend payment and $3.4 million in share repurchases during the quarter. For the year, Exco generated free cash flow of $27.4 million and ended with $2.7 million in net debt and $56.9 million in available liquidity, continuing its practice of maintaining a very strong balance sheet and liquidity position.

For further information and prior year comparison please refer to the Company’s Fourth Quarter Condensed Financial Statements in the Investor Relations section posted at www.excocorp.com.  Alternatively, please refer to www.sedar.com.

__________________________

1 Non-IFRS Measures: In this News Release, reference may be made to EBITDA, EBITDA Margin, adjusted EPS and free cash flow which are not measures of financial performance under International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). Exco calculates EBITDA as earnings before other income/expense, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and EBITDA Margin as EBITDA divided by sales. Exco calculates adjusted EPS as earnings before other income/expense and calculates free cash flow as cash provided by operating activities less interest paid less investment in fixed assets net of proceeds of disposal. EBITDA, EBITDA Margin, adjusted EPS and free cash flow are used by management, from time to time, to facilitate period-to-period operating comparisons and we believe some investors and analysts use these measures as well when evaluating Exco’s financial performance. These measures, as calculated by Exco, do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers.

Quarterly Conference Call:
To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com or https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/8arrahrh a few minutes before the event.  Real Player is required for access.  For those unable to participate on November 27, 2018, an archived version will be available on the Exco website.

Source:           Exco Technologies Limited (TSX-XTC)
Contact:          Darren Kirk, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Telephone:     (905) 477-3065 Ext. 7233
Website:         https://www.excocorp.com

About Exco Technologies Limited:

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 18 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,757 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.

Notice To Reader: Forward Looking Statements

Information in this document relating to projected growth and financial performance of the Company’s business units, contribution of our start-up business units, contribution of awarded programs yet to be launched, margin performance, financial performance of acquisitions and operating efficiencies are forward-looking statements.

This press release may contain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. We use words such as “anticipate”, “plan”, “may”, “will”, “should”, “expect”, “believe”, “estimate” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking information and statements especially with respect to growth and financial performance of the Company’s business units, contribution of our start-up business units, contribution of awarded programs yet to be launched, margin performance, financial performance of acquisitions and operating efficiencies are forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements throughout this document and are also cautioned that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. These forward-looking statements are based on our plans, intentions or expectations which are based on, among other things, assumptions about the number of automobiles produced in North America and Europe, production mix between passenger cars and trucks, the number of extrusion dies required in North America and South America, the rate of economic growth in North America, Europe and emerging market countries, investment by OEMs in drivetrain architecture and other initiatives intended to reduce fuel consumption and/or the weight of automobiles, raw material prices, economic conditions, currency fluctuations, trade restrictions, our ability to close or otherwise dispose of unprofitable operations in a timely manner, our ability to integrate acquisitions and the rate at which our operations in Brazil, Bulgaria and Mexico achieve sustained profitability. These forward-looking statements include known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors which may cause actual results or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied. The Company will update its disclosure upon publication of each fiscal quarter’s financial results and otherwise disclaims any obligations to update publicly or otherwise revise any such factors or any of the forward-looking information or statements contained herein to reflect subsequent information, events or developments, changes in risk factors or otherwise. For a more extensive discussion of Exco’s risks and uncertainties see the ‘Risks and Uncertainties’ section in our latest Annual Report, Annual Information Form (“AIF”) and other reports and securities filings made by the Company. This information is available at www.sedar.com or www.excocorp.com. 

TORONTO, Oct. 22, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX – XTC) today announced that it will report its financial results for the fourth quarter ended September 30, 2018 after the close of business on Monday, November 26, 2018.

A conference call to discuss those results will be held on Tuesday, November 27, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern time) which can be accessed by dialling toll free at (866) 572-8261 or internationally at (703) 736-7448.  The conference ID is 2598376.

To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com, or https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/8arrahrh a few minutes before the event.

For those unable to participate on November 27, 2018, an archived version will be available on the Exco website.  Also, a replay will be available until December 5, 2018 by dialling toll free at (855) 859-2056 or internationally at (404) 537-3406.

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 18 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,757 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.

TORONTO, Oct. 22, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX – XTC) today announced that it will report its financial results for the fourth quarter ended September 30, 2018 after the close of business on Monday, November 26, 2018.

A conference call to discuss those results will be held on Tuesday, November 27, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern time) which can be accessed by dialling toll free at (866) 572-8261 or internationally at (703) 736-7448.  The conference ID is 2598376.

To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com, or https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/8arrahrh a few minutes before the event. 

For those unable to participate on November 27, 2018, an archived version will be available on the Exco website.  Also, a replay will be available until December 5, 2018 by dialling toll free at (855) 859-2056 or internationally at (404) 537-3406.

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 18 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,757 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.

Source:                            Exco Technologies Limited (TSX-XTC)
Contact:                           Darren Kirk, Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer
Telephone:                       (905) 477-3065, Ext 7233
Website:                           https://www.excocorp.com

• Sales of $152.8 million and EBITDA of $20.1 million
• EPS of $0.27 in the quarter versus $0.26 prior year period
• Continued sequential improvement in quarterly results
• Free cash flowⁱ of $18.6 million eliminates net debt position
• Quarterly dividend of $0.085 declared

TORONTO, Aug. 01, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX:XTC) today announced results for its third fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2018. In addition, the Company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.085 per common share which will be paid on September 28, 2018 to shareholders of record on September 19, 2018.   The dividend is an “eligible dividend” in accordance with the Income Tax Act of Canada.

“Exco generated solid results this quarter,” said Brian Robbins, President and CEO of Exco. “We are pleased to return to year over year earnings growth and expect this momentum to persist through the final quarter of our fiscal year,” added Robbins.

Consolidated sales for the third quarter ended June 30, 2018 were $152.8 million compared to $145.9 million in the same quarter last year – an increase of $6.8 million or 5%. Year-to-date sales were $436.0 million compared to $452.8 million – a decrease of $16.8 million or 4%. Exchange rates reduced revenues by $1.4 million over the quarter and $3.1 million year-to-date, reflecting the net impact of a lower US dollar and higher Euro relative to the Canadian dollar.

Consolidated net income for the third quarter was $11.2 million or basic earnings of $0.27 per share compared to $10.9 million or $0.26 per share in the same quarter last year – an increase in net income of 3%. Year-to-date, consolidated net income was $30.7 million or $0.73 per basic share compared to $35.0 million or $0.82 per basic share last year – a decrease in net income of 12%. The effective consolidated income tax rate was 23% in the current quarter compared to 28% in the same quarter last year with the improvement due to a reduction to the corporate income tax rate in the US and shift in profitability towards lower tax-rate jurisdictions.

During the quarter, management continued to direct significant efforts towards improving the operating and financial performance of ALC’s operations in Bulgaria where falling unemployment rates, rising wages and fixed-price program pricing have hurt results. After a comprehensive review, management has determined the best course of action at ALC at this time is to shrink rather than grow its operations. In this regard, some programs at ALC have already been wound down while others are being fully or partially shifted to Polydesign in Morocco. These efforts – together with benefits from ongoing customer pricing discussions – are expected to provide ALC with much improved prospects for a return to sustained profitability. More generally, management remains focused on exiting or repricing business with inadequate profitability in both of its business segments. While this initiative may dampen future sales, it is expected to have a positive impact on profitability and margins.

The Automotive Solutions segment reported sales of $99.9 million in the third quarter – an increase of $0.5 million or essentially flat compared to the same quarter last year although foreign exchange movements decreased segment sales by $0.4 million in the quarter. Sales were lower at the Company’s North American based operations by 15% during the quarter due to modestly lower overall vehicle production volumes including an ongoing weakness in demand for passenger cars, a focus on higher margin business, the timing of product launches, adverse foreign currency movements, and isolated pricing pressures. Reduced demand for certain accessory products continued to negatively affect sales modestly during the quarter although the pipeline for new order activity for both new and existing products remains robust. Sales were higher at the segment’s European operations (ALC and Polydesign) by 24% during the quarter due to a temporary pricing adjustment received on a key program, favorable foreign exchange rate movements and net new program launches – predominately at Polydesign where quoting activity for new business remains extremely strong.

The Casting and Extrusion segment reported sales of $52.8 million for the third quarter – an increase of $6.4 million or 14% from the same quarter last year despite $1.0 million of adverse foreign exchange rate movements. Within the segment, sales were higher in each of the Extrusion, Large Mould and Castool groups. Factors behind these increases include higher volumes in the Large Mould group as activity has picked up following recent program awards, market share gains associated with the continued seasoning of Extrusion group greenfield plants and enhanced quality initiatives, a rebound in capital equipment sales at the Castool group, selective price increases and generally firm overall market conditions. These factors were partially offset by adverse foreign exchange rate movements as well as continuing pockets of competitive pressures. New order activity remained relatively robust throughout the quarter across most of the segment’s businesses.

The Automotive Solutions segment reported pretax profit of $11.4 million in the third quarter – a decrease of $1.2 million or 10% compared to the same quarter last year. In North America, pretax profits were lower due to lost contribution from lower sales as well as a net reduction in segment margins. Pre-tax profit margins were lower at Polytech, Neocon and AFX by 180 basis points on a combined basis during the quarter arising from reduced overhead absorption, unfavorable product mix variance, adverse foreign exchange rate movements as well as isolated competitive pricing pressures and isolated raw material cost inflation. The combined pressure from these factors continued to recede from the prior sequential quarters through the implementation of various initiatives. In Europe, temporary pricing improvements helped ALC essentially achieve breakeven profitability compared to a loss of $1.3 million ($0.03 per share) the prior year period and a loss of $2.0 million ($0.05 per share) in the second quarter of fiscal 2018. Profitability and margins also improved at Polydesign which benefited from stronger revenues and reduced operational disruption following a period of exceptional sales growth through most of fiscal 2017.

The Casting and Extrusion segment reported pretax profit of $5.2 million in the third quarter – an increase of $0.4 million or 8% from the same quarter last year. Most of the profitability improvement during the quarter was driven by the Castool group, which benefited from selective price increases, efficiency initiatives and a favorable product mix shift. Profitability within the Extrusion group was stable year over year notwithstanding higher revenue due to ongoing operational investments to harmonize manufacturing processes among the group’s various plants in support of further efficiency improvement. As well, raw material cost inflation has become increasingly pronounced in recent months. While a good portion of these higher costs (including recently introduced steel tariffs in the US) are being passed on through effective price increases within the Extrusion group, the net effect is a modest drag on profitability and pretax profit margin. The Large Mould group realized mostly stable profitability year over year despite higher revenues associated with the ramp up of activity related to recent program awards. Efficiency benefits from its prior capex project at the group’s plant in Newmarket, Ontario continue to be harnessed and similar equipment is now operational at the group’s two other plants. Management notes that margin compression has occurred within the Large Mold group due to higher input costs and unfavorable product mix associated with customer timing requirements.

Operating cash flow before net change in non-cash working capital totaled $16.9 million in the current quarter while proceeds from working capital reductions provided an additional $6.3 million of cash. The resulting $23.2 million in cash provided by operating activities funded $4.4 million in net capital investments and $0.2 million in net interest payments, producing free cash flow of $18.6 million in the quarter. Included in the net capital investments is $0.5 million related to the construction of a new extrusion die manufacturing facility in Mexico which is expected to be operational in early calendar 2019.  Additional uses of cash included funding the company’s quarterly dividend payment ($3.6 million), opportunistic repurchase of share capital ($1.1 million) and a reduction of debt ($10.8 million). As a result of the strong free cash flow during the quarter, Exco’s balance sheet improved to a net cash position of $1.5 million as at June 30, 2018, with $38.7 million of cash exceeding $37.2 million of debt.

For further information and prior year comparison, please refer to the Company’s Second Quarter Financial Statements in the Investor Relations section posted at www.excocorp.com.  Alternatively, please refer to www.sedar.com.

Quarterly Conference Call – August 2, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time):

To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com, or https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/gtzjx66o a few minutes before the event.  The conference call can be accessed by dialing toll free at (866) 572-8261 or internationally at (703) 736-7448.  The conference ID is 6875219.  Questions can be submitted via the Q&A box on the webcast console or via the conference call. 

For those unable to participate on August 2, 2018, an archived version will be available on the Exco website.

About Exco Technologies Limited:

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 17 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,755 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.

Notice To Reader:  Forward Looking Statements

Information in this document relating to projected growth and financial performance of the Company’s business units, contribution of our start-up business units, contribution of awarded programs yet to be launched, margin performance, financial performance of acquisitions and operating efficiencies are forward-looking statements.

This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. We use words such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “expect”, “believe”, “estimates” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking information and statements especially with respect to growth and financial performance of the Company’s business units, contribution of our start-up business units, contribution of awarded programs yet to be launched, margin performance, financial performance of acquisitions and operating efficiencies are forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements throughout this document and are also cautioned that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. These forward-looking statements are based on our plans, intentions or expectations which are based on, among other things, assumptions about the number of automobiles produced in North America and Europe, the number of extrusion dies required in North America and South America, the rate of economic growth in North America, Europe and emerging market countries, investment by OEMs in drivetrain architecture and other initiatives intended to reduce fuel consumption and/or the weight of automobiles, raw material prices, economic conditions, currency fluctuations, trade restrictions and tariffs, our ability to close or otherwise dispose of unprofitable operations in a timely manner, our ability to integrate acquisitions and the rate at which our operations in Brazil and Bulgaria achieve sustained profitability. These forward-looking statements include known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors which may cause actual results or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied.  The Company will update its disclosure upon publication of each fiscal quarter’s financial results and otherwise disclaims any obligations to update publicly or otherwise revise any such factors or any of the forward-looking information or statements contained herein to reflect subsequent information, events or developments, changes in risk factors or otherwise.  For a more extensive discussion of Exco’s risks and uncertainties see the ‘Risks and Uncertainties’ section in our 2017 Annual Report, our 2017 Annual Information Form (“AIF”) and other reports and securities filings made by the Company.  This information is available at www.sedar.com.

i Non-IFRS Measures:  In this News Release, reference is made to EBITDA and free cash flow which are not measures of financial performance under International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). Exco calculates EBITDA as earnings before other income/expense, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Exco calculates free cash flow as cash provided by operating activities less interest paid less investment in fixed assets net of proceeds of disposal. Some of these terms are used by management, from time to time, to facilitate period-to-period operating comparisons and we believe some investors and analysts use these measures as well when evaluating Exco’s financial performance. These measures, as calculated by Exco, do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. 

• Sales of $152.8 million and EBITDA of $20.1 million
• EPS of $0.27 in the quarter versus $0.26 prior year period
• Continued sequential improvement in quarterly results
• Free cash flowⁱ of $18.6 million eliminates net debt position
• Quarterly dividend of $0.085 declared

TORONTO, Aug. 01, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX:XTC) today announced results for its third fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2018. In addition, the Company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.085 per common share which will be paid on September 28, 2018 to shareholders of record on September 19, 2018.   The dividend is an “eligible dividend” in accordance with the Income Tax Act of Canada.

“Exco generated solid results this quarter,” said Brian Robbins, President and CEO of Exco. “We are pleased to return to year over year earnings growth and expect this momentum to persist through the final quarter of our fiscal year,” added Robbins.

Consolidated sales for the third quarter ended June 30, 2018 were $152.8 million compared to $145.9 million in the same quarter last year – an increase of $6.8 million or 5%. Year-to-date sales were $436.0 million compared to $452.8 million – a decrease of $16.8 million or 4%. Exchange rates reduced revenues by $1.4 million over the quarter and $3.1 million year-to-date, reflecting the net impact of a lower US dollar and higher Euro relative to the Canadian dollar.

Consolidated net income for the third quarter was $11.2 million or basic earnings of $0.27 per share compared to $10.9 million or $0.26 per share in the same quarter last year – an increase in net income of 3%. Year-to-date, consolidated net income was $30.7 million or $0.73 per basic share compared to $35.0 million or $0.82 per basic share last year – a decrease in net income of 12%. The effective consolidated income tax rate was 23% in the current quarter compared to 28% in the same quarter last year with the improvement due to a reduction to the corporate income tax rate in the US and shift in profitability towards lower tax-rate jurisdictions.

During the quarter, management continued to direct significant efforts towards improving the operating and financial performance of ALC’s operations in Bulgaria where falling unemployment rates, rising wages and fixed-price program pricing have hurt results. After a comprehensive review, management has determined the best course of action at ALC at this time is to shrink rather than grow its operations. In this regard, some programs at ALC have already been wound down while others are being fully or partially shifted to Polydesign in Morocco. These efforts – together with benefits from ongoing customer pricing discussions – are expected to provide ALC with much improved prospects for a return to sustained profitability. More generally, management remains focused on exiting or repricing business with inadequate profitability in both of its business segments. While this initiative may dampen future sales, it is expected to have a positive impact on profitability and margins.

The Automotive Solutions segment reported sales of $99.9 million in the third quarter – an increase of $0.5 million or essentially flat compared to the same quarter last year although foreign exchange movements decreased segment sales by $0.4 million in the quarter. Sales were lower at the Company’s North American based operations by 15% during the quarter due to modestly lower overall vehicle production volumes including an ongoing weakness in demand for passenger cars, a focus on higher margin business, the timing of product launches, adverse foreign currency movements, and isolated pricing pressures. Reduced demand for certain accessory products continued to negatively affect sales modestly during the quarter although the pipeline for new order activity for both new and existing products remains robust. Sales were higher at the segment’s European operations (ALC and Polydesign) by 24% during the quarter due to a temporary pricing adjustment received on a key program, favorable foreign exchange rate movements and net new program launches – predominately at Polydesign where quoting activity for new business remains extremely strong.

The Casting and Extrusion segment reported sales of $52.8 million for the third quarter – an increase of $6.4 million or 14% from the same quarter last year despite $1.0 million of adverse foreign exchange rate movements. Within the segment, sales were higher in each of the Extrusion, Large Mould and Castool groups. Factors behind these increases include higher volumes in the Large Mould group as activity has picked up following recent program awards, market share gains associated with the continued seasoning of Extrusion group greenfield plants and enhanced quality initiatives, a rebound in capital equipment sales at the Castool group, selective price increases and generally firm overall market conditions. These factors were partially offset by adverse foreign exchange rate movements as well as continuing pockets of competitive pressures. New order activity remained relatively robust throughout the quarter across most of the segment’s businesses.

The Automotive Solutions segment reported pretax profit of $11.4 million in the third quarter – a decrease of $1.2 million or 10% compared to the same quarter last year. In North America, pretax profits were lower due to lost contribution from lower sales as well as a net reduction in segment margins. Pre-tax profit margins were lower at Polytech, Neocon and AFX by 180 basis points on a combined basis during the quarter arising from reduced overhead absorption, unfavorable product mix variance, adverse foreign exchange rate movements as well as isolated competitive pricing pressures and isolated raw material cost inflation. The combined pressure from these factors continued to recede from the prior sequential quarters through the implementation of various initiatives. In Europe, temporary pricing improvements helped ALC essentially achieve breakeven profitability compared to a loss of $1.3 million ($0.03 per share) the prior year period and a loss of $2.0 million ($0.05 per share) in the second quarter of fiscal 2018. Profitability and margins also improved at Polydesign which benefited from stronger revenues and reduced operational disruption following a period of exceptional sales growth through most of fiscal 2017.

The Casting and Extrusion segment reported pretax profit of $5.2 million in the third quarter – an increase of $0.4 million or 8% from the same quarter last year. Most of the profitability improvement during the quarter was driven by the Castool group, which benefited from selective price increases, efficiency initiatives and a favorable product mix shift. Profitability within the Extrusion group was stable year over year notwithstanding higher revenue due to ongoing operational investments to harmonize manufacturing processes among the group’s various plants in support of further efficiency improvement. As well, raw material cost inflation has become increasingly pronounced in recent months. While a good portion of these higher costs (including recently introduced steel tariffs in the US) are being passed on through effective price increases within the Extrusion group, the net effect is a modest drag on profitability and pretax profit margin. The Large Mould group realized mostly stable profitability year over year despite higher revenues associated with the ramp up of activity related to recent program awards. Efficiency benefits from its prior capex project at the group’s plant in Newmarket, Ontario continue to be harnessed and similar equipment is now operational at the group’s two other plants. Management notes that margin compression has occurred within the Large Mold group due to higher input costs and unfavorable product mix associated with customer timing requirements.

Operating cash flow before net change in non-cash working capital totaled $16.9 million in the current quarter while proceeds from working capital reductions provided an additional $6.3 million of cash. The resulting $23.2 million in cash provided by operating activities funded $4.4 million in net capital investments and $0.2 million in net interest payments, producing free cash flow of $18.6 million in the quarter. Included in the net capital investments is $0.5 million related to the construction of a new extrusion die manufacturing facility in Mexico which is expected to be operational in early calendar 2019.  Additional uses of cash included funding the company’s quarterly dividend payment ($3.6 million), opportunistic repurchase of share capital ($1.1 million) and a reduction of debt ($10.8 million). As a result of the strong free cash flow during the quarter, Exco’s balance sheet improved to a net cash position of $1.5 million as at June 30, 2018, with $38.7 million of cash exceeding $37.2 million of debt.

For further information and prior year comparison, please refer to the Company’s Second Quarter Financial Statements in the Investor Relations section posted at www.excocorp.com.  Alternatively, please refer to www.sedar.com.

Quarterly Conference Call – August 2, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time):

To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com, or https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/gtzjx66o a few minutes before the event.  The conference call can be accessed by dialing toll free at (866) 572-8261 or internationally at (703) 736-7448.  The conference ID is 6875219.  Questions can be submitted via the Q&A box on the webcast console or via the conference call. 

For those unable to participate on August 2, 2018, an archived version will be available on the Exco website.

About Exco Technologies Limited:

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 17 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,755 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.

Notice To Reader:  Forward Looking Statements

Information in this document relating to projected growth and financial performance of the Company’s business units, contribution of our start-up business units, contribution of awarded programs yet to be launched, margin performance, financial performance of acquisitions and operating efficiencies are forward-looking statements.

This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. We use words such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “expect”, “believe”, “estimates” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking information and statements especially with respect to growth and financial performance of the Company’s business units, contribution of our start-up business units, contribution of awarded programs yet to be launched, margin performance, financial performance of acquisitions and operating efficiencies are forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements throughout this document and are also cautioned that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. These forward-looking statements are based on our plans, intentions or expectations which are based on, among other things, assumptions about the number of automobiles produced in North America and Europe, the number of extrusion dies required in North America and South America, the rate of economic growth in North America, Europe and emerging market countries, investment by OEMs in drivetrain architecture and other initiatives intended to reduce fuel consumption and/or the weight of automobiles, raw material prices, economic conditions, currency fluctuations, trade restrictions and tariffs, our ability to close or otherwise dispose of unprofitable operations in a timely manner, our ability to integrate acquisitions and the rate at which our operations in Brazil and Bulgaria achieve sustained profitability. These forward-looking statements include known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors which may cause actual results or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied.  The Company will update its disclosure upon publication of each fiscal quarter’s financial results and otherwise disclaims any obligations to update publicly or otherwise revise any such factors or any of the forward-looking information or statements contained herein to reflect subsequent information, events or developments, changes in risk factors or otherwise.  For a more extensive discussion of Exco’s risks and uncertainties see the ‘Risks and Uncertainties’ section in our 2017 Annual Report, our 2017 Annual Information Form (“AIF”) and other reports and securities filings made by the Company.  This information is available at www.sedar.com.

i Non-IFRS Measures:  In this News Release, reference is made to EBITDA and free cash flow which are not measures of financial performance under International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). Exco calculates EBITDA as earnings before other income/expense, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Exco calculates free cash flow as cash provided by operating activities less interest paid less investment in fixed assets net of proceeds of disposal. Some of these terms are used by management, from time to time, to facilitate period-to-period operating comparisons and we believe some investors and analysts use these measures as well when evaluating Exco’s financial performance. These measures, as calculated by Exco, do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. 

TORONTO, July 17, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Exco Technologies Limited (TSX:XTC) issues a correction to the news release published on July 16, 2018.  The earlier news release had an incorrect headline indicating the announcement of second quarter results on August 1, 2018, however, the accurate news release should reflect the announcement of third quarter results on August 1, 2018.  The corrected news release follows in its entirety.

Exco Technologies Limited (TSX – XTC) today announced that it will report its financial results for the third quarter ended June 30, 2018 after the close of business on Wednesday, August 1, 2018.

A conference call to discuss those results will be held on Thursday, August 2, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern time) which can be accessed by dialling toll free at (866) 572-8261 or internationally at (703) 736-7448.  The conference ID is 6875219.

To access the live audio webcast, please log on to www.excocorp.com, or  https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/gtzjx66o a few minutes before the event. 

Questions can be submitted via the conference call. 

For those unable to participate on August 2, 2018, an archived version will be available on the Exco website.

Exco Technologies Limited is a global supplier of innovative technologies servicing the die-cast, extrusion and automotive industries.  Through our 17 strategic locations in 8 countries, we employ 6,755 people and service a diverse and broad customer base.