News

Bel Reports 2009 First Quarter Results

May 03, 2009 by Jeff Shepard

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFA) announced preliminary and unaudited financial results for the first quarter of 2009. Net sales for the three months ended March 31, 2009 decreased to $43,871,000 compared to $60,869,000 for the first quarter of 2008. Net earnings for the first quarter of 2009 were $816,000. This compares to net earnings for the first quarter of 2008 of $2,167,000.

Income from operations for the first quarter of 2009 was affected by a gain of $4.6 million ($2.9 million or $0.25 per share after tax) on the sale of a building in Jersey City, New Jersey in 2007, which had been deferred until certain environmental and other regulations were resolved during this year’s first quarter, and by additional restructuring charges of $0.4 million ($0.3 million or $0.02 per share after tax) related to last year’s termination of manufacturing operations at the Company’s dc-dc manufacturing facility in Massachusetts.

Net income per diluted Class A common share was $0.06 for the first quarter of 2009, compared to diluted Class A common share earnings of $0.17 for the first quarter of 2008. Net income per diluted Class B common share was $0.07 for the first quarter of 2009, compared to diluted Class B common share earnings of $0.19 for last year’s first quarter.

"During the first quarter we continued to closely manage costs to reflect the reduced pace of activity in our markets, and moved forward on programs launched last year to consolidate our manufacturing facilities in southeast China and relocate our relatively labor intensive operations to lower labor cost areas in that country. The business generated more than $15,000,000 in cash during the period despite the decrease in revenue. Visibility into our customers’ near-term requirements for our products is limited, but we remain focused on providing the highest quality products and service while continuing to refine our operations and protect our strong financial position in anticipation of improved business conditions in the future," said Daniel Bernstein, Bel’s president.

At March 31, 2009, Bel reported working capital of approximately $163,000,000, including cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments and marketable securities of approximately $106,388,000, a current ratio of 8.4, total long-term obligations of $10,213,000, and shareholders’ equity of $216,367,000. At December 31, 2008, cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments and marketable securities were approximately $92,700,000, working capital was approximately $164,000,000, the current ratio was 6.5, total long-term obligations were $14,377,000, and shareholders’ equity was $217,773,000. Bel repurchased 6,070 Class A common shares during the first quarter.