SANTA CLARA, Calif., Sept. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Coherent, Inc.
(Nasdaq: COHR), a leading supplier of lasers and electro-optics for
commercial and scientific applications, announced an adjusted EBITDA target
of 19-23% of sales exiting fiscal year 2010.
The Company intends to achieve the target through a variety of
activities including material cost reductions, expanded use of contract
manufacturers, SG&A leverage, the introduction of more flexible and
cost-effective platform designs and continued yield and reliability
improvements. Implementation of these changes is staged in such a way as to
minimize any impact on customers' supply chains.
"For the past several years, we have focused our energies on expanding
gross margins. While we believe there are further opportunities to increase
gross margins, we are broadening our efforts to incorporate SG&A leverage
into the next round of financial performance improvements," said John
Ambroseo, Coherent's President and Chief Executive Officer. "The completion
of this program will enable us to deliver higher returns to our
shareholders. Just as importantly, many of the changes will enhance the
value we deliver to our customers including faster time to market,
industry-leading product reliability and performance and platforms that can
evolve with the customers' applications," Ambroseo added.
The Company also announced that it is reviewing several options to
deploy its cash to continue to grow sustainable shareholder value. Among
the choices under consideration are accretive acquisitions and a share
repurchase program, the timing of the latter being dependent in part upon
the Company being current in its Securities and Exchange Commission
reporting obligations. There can be no assurance that the Company will
engage in such accretive acquisitions or a share repurchase program.
The Company's statement regarding its adjusted EBITDA percentage target
is a non-GAAP financial measure. The most comparable GAAP measurement is
net income, which is not currently accessible on a forward-looking basis.
Adjusted EBITDA reflects earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation,
amortization, stock compensation expenses and other non-operating income
and expense items. These items, which are required to determine GAAP net
income, are subject to significant change by the end of fiscal 2010, given
the impact of potential acquisitions, tax rate changes and other
operational factors which will heavily impact these items and are also
impacted by the Company's historical stock option investigation and the
effect of any compensation charges arising from future equity grants.
About Coherent
Founded in 1966, Coherent, Inc. is a Standard & Poor's SmallCap 600
company and a world leader in providing photonics based solutions to the
commercial and scientific research markets. For more information about
Coherent, visit the Company's Web site at http://www.coherent.com/ for
product and financial updates.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, as defined
under the Federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements include
the statements in this press release that relate to adjusted EBITDA
percentage targets and the actions to be taken to achieve such adjusted
EBITDA percentage targets, the delivery of higher returns to shareholders,
opportunities to improve gross margins, engaging in accretive acquisitions,
the enactment of a share repurchase program and the enhancement of the
value delivered to customers. These forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and
assumptions that could cause our actual results to differ materially and
adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. Factors
that could cause actual results to differ materially include risks and
uncertainties, including but not limited to risks associated with quarterly
and annual fluctuations in our net sales and operating results, our
exposure to risks associated with worldwide economic slowdowns, our ability
to increase our sales volumes and decrease our costs, the impact that our
operations and potential acquisitions will have on interest, taxes,
depreciation and amortization measurements, changes to the Company's tax
rate as a result of government action and other risks identified in the
Company's SEC filings. Readers are encouraged to refer to the risk
disclosures described in the Company's Registration Statement on Form S-3
(as amended and filed with the SEC on October 4, 2006) and the reports on
Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, as applicable and as filed from time-to-time by
the Company. Actual results, events and performance may differ materially
from those presented herein. Readers are cautioned not to place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the
date hereof. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements as a result of events or circumstances after the
date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
SOURCE Coherent, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.coherent.com
CONTACT:
Leen Simonet, +1-408-764-4161, for Coherent,
Inc.
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