Feb. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Packard BioScience Company (Nasdaq: PBSC - news) announced today its results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2000. These results reflect Canberra Industries as discontinued operations in all periods presented. These results do not include any benefit for the reduction in interest expense that will occur upon the disposition of Canberra. The results of the life sciences division we purchased from GSI Lumonics, Inc. (``BioChip Instrument Division'') are included since October 1, 2000, the date of the acquisition.
Adjusted earnings per fully-diluted share before discontinued operations and extraordinary items was $.02 in the fourth quarter of 2000 as compared to $.03 in the prior year period after removing one-time charges from each period. For the year, the Company's adjusted earnings per fully-diluted share decreased from $.01 in 1999 to breakeven in 2000.
Reported revenues increased 7%, or $3.4 million, to $49.9 million for the quarter. Revenues would have increased by 13% in total, or $6.2 million, had exchange rates remained constant for the period. The revenue increase due to instruments and chemicals and supplies was $8.3 million or 23%. This increase was offset by a significant decline in service revenues. This decline was anticipated because the extraordinarily high service revenues booked in the fourth quarter of 1999 were due almost entirely to Y2K expenditures. Of the instrument revenue increase, $2.8 million was attributable to the new BioChip Instrument Division. The largest component of the remaining revenue growth was a 46% increase to $16.9 million due to increased sales of automated liquid handling and sample preparation equipment. Legacy products continued to decline, falling $1.9 million or 14% for the quarter.
Highlights of the Company's fourth quarter include:
* Increased revenues and orders in the month of December. At
December 31, 2000, the Company's backlog exceeded $28 million.
* Orders for over 50 Fusion systems, the Company's newly-introduced
multimode microplate reader.
* Signed a contract for the sale of the Canberra division for
$170 million with a closing expected in the first quarter of 2001.
* Repurchased $9.3 million of our Senior Subordinated Notes resulting in
an extraordinary gain of $0.4 million, net of tax.
* Closed the acquisition of the BioChip Instrument Division and formed
Packard BioChip Technologies, LLC as a vehicle to highlight the
Company's various technologies in the area of biochips. In conjunction
with the acquisition, a $12.1 million pre-tax charge was taken to write
off in-process research and development.
* Adopted a more focused microarray strategy, targeting protein arrays,
where we believe the Company's proprietary technologies give the
Company a stronger competitive position. In conjunction with this, the
Company took a charge of $1.9 million primarily to write off certain
assets that are not essential to this strategy.
* Received a 100-unit order for microarray scanners from a customer in
China reflecting positively on our BioChip Instrument Division
acquisition and our new Hong Kong office.
``We are pleased with our results in the fourth quarter. Orders for Fusion, our new multimode reader, were very significant in light of its recent introduction, and shipments began in full at the beginning of this year. Our new Hong Kong office facilitated a 100-unit order of scanners for our BioChip Instrument Division, the largest order in the history of that business, and we expect that most of those revenues will be realized in the first quarter of this year. Our MultiPROBE product line grew 86% on a constant dollar basis. We are ending 2000 with a pro-forma revenue base of $178.5 million and a belief that we will grow revenues greater than 15% in 2001 given these results and our backlog. We believe the sale of Canberra will allow us to further focus and build on our global presence in the life sciences research industry and to continue our accelerated research and development efforts with a significantly strengthened balance sheet,'' said Emery G. Olcott, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. |
