Added ZOLL at 24.05. They have a device that my medical people are raving about.
Achieves Record Q3 Revenue and Earnings
Chelmsford, Mass. July 26, 2007 – ZOLL Medical Corporation (NasdaqGS: ZOLL), a manufacturer of resuscitation devices and software solutions, today announced revenues of $76,929,000 for the third quarter of fiscal 2007, an increase of 20% compared to revenues of $64,267,000 in the third quarter of last year. Net income for the quarter increased 70% to $4,313,000, compared to $2,530,000 in the prior-year quarter. Diluted earnings per share increased 62% to $0.21 compared to $0.13 in the prior-year quarter. Share and per share data reflect a 2-for-1 stock split which became effective on February 20, 2007. Ending backlog was approximately $9.8 million.
Third quarter sales to the North American market increased 18% to $57.7 million, compared to $48.7 million for the comparable prior-year quarter. Sales to the North American hospital market, which includes military sales, decreased 6% to $19.5 million, compared to $20.7 million in the third quarter of last year. Excluding military sales, North American hospital sales increased 27% from $14.0 million to $17.8 million. Military sales were $1.7 million compared to $6.7 million in the prior year period. Sales to the North American pre-hospital market increased 43% to $32.9 million, compared to $23.0 million in the same period last year. International sales increased 23% to $19.2 million, compared to $15.6 million for the comparable prior-year quarter. Total AutoPulse® shipments increased 38% to approximately $3.7 million, compared to $2.7 million in the third quarter of the prior year.
Richard A. Packer, President and Chief Executive Officer of ZOLL, observed, “We are extremely pleased with our strong performance in the third quarter, achieving new highs at ZOLL for both revenues and profits. While U.S military sales were soft, presumably due to current military funding challenges, we more than made up for this deficit in other areas. Excluding this impact, all major elements of our business achieved robust growth during Q3. We are especially pleased to see continued growth in our International business coming off a very strong Q2. We continue to grow across the globe, with particular strength in professional defibrillators sold in emerging markets and AED growth in Europe. ”
Mr. Packer commented, “North American hospital sales rebounded this quarter as we achieved better sales force focus on our existing pipeline of business. Although it is still early in the product’s release, we believe customer response to the new R Series™ has been strong. Our “Simple, Smart and Ready” positioning is resonating with customers. With new leadership now on board with our hospital sales team, we look forward to the opportunity to push forward in the hospital market.”
“Business in the North American pre-hospital market was particularly strong,” Mr. Packer continued, “with increased sales of defibrillators, public access AEDs, data management products and AutoPulse. The strength of our product portfolio is allowing us to attract many new customers. To help continue this momentum, during the quarter we completed two key initiatives in our data management business. First, we launched RescueNet CommCAD, an incident-based CAD (computer-aided dispatch) product capable of meeting the needs of the emergency operations of fire departments and larger EMS agencies. Second, we purchased BIO-Key International, Inc.’s fire records management software (FRMS) business for $7 million in cash. The product, re-branded as RescueNet FireRMS, is a market-leading, National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)-compliant, FRMS designed to handle the reporting and records management requirements within fire departments. Taken together, these two products will allow us to get greater leverage in fire departments by combining leading data management solutions and our cutting edge medical equipment.”
With respect to the AutoPulse, Mr. Packer noted, “Sales of the AutoPulse continue to be strong as shipments increased 38% from the prior-year quarter. Growth was driven by increased penetration in the North American EMS market, and some progress in the hospital market. The world is starting to more fully appreciate the need to improve blood flow in cardiac arrest patients and the place automated technology will have in increasing survival rates. We expect the strong growth of the AutoPulse to continue.”
Mr. Packer concluded, “Overall, the third quarter was another step forward to delivering our plan as outlined at the beginning of the year. While we are seeing a measurable benefit from the inability of our largest competitor to ship product into the U.S. market, the effect is still modest, as expected. We believe our results reflect the core strength of our Company and the new products that have recently come to market. Through nine months, we have exceeded our plan and expect to complete the year ahead of our original plan. Furthermore, we expect to be able to continue our growth for a considerable period into the future.”
ZOLL will host a conference call on Thursday, July 26, 2007 at 10:30 a.m. EDT to discuss its third quarter financial results. This conference call will be accessible on the Company’s home page atwww.zoll.com. Recorded replays of the financial results conference call will be available on the web page beginning later that day. |
