JERSEY CITY, N.J. -- Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ: BELFB) this week announced preliminary unaudited financial results for the first quarter of 2010. Net sales for the three months ended March 31, 2010, Bel's seasonally weakest quarter of the year, increased 28% to $56,149,000 compared to $43,871,000 for the first quarter of 2009.
This year's first quarter net sales included $9,883,000 from Cinch Connectors, which was acquired by Bel on January 29, 2010. Excluding these Cinch Connector sales, net sales increased 5.5% for this year's first quarter versus prior year and decreased 5% versus the fourth quarter of 2009.
Daniel Bernstein, Bel's President and CEO, said, "The integration of Cinch Connectors is proceeding smoothly, and we are pleased by the high quality of the people, products, customers and facilities this transaction brings to Bel. The addition of Cinch's well-established lines of connectors and cable products and extensive customer base helps to diversify our product offerings and provides Bel with immediate access to large and growing aerospace and military markets. The Cinch acquisition has strengthened Bel's position as a one-stop supplier of high-performance computing, telecom and data products."
Net earnings for the first quarter of 2010 were $32,000, which included severance costs of $575,000 ($503,000 after tax), and acquisition-related costs and inventory-related purchase accounting adjustments of $1,078,000 ($668,000 after tax). Net earnings for the first quarter of 2009 were $816,000, which included a gain of $4,665,000 ($2,892,000 after tax) on the sale of a building, and restructuring and severance costs of $641,000 ($459,000 after tax).
Adjusted for the severance costs, acquisition-related costs and inventory-related purchase accounting adjustments, non-GAAP net income for the first quarter of 2010 increased to $1,203,000. This compares to a non-GAAP net loss for the first quarter of 2009 of $1,617,000, which were adjusted for restructuring and severance costs and gains on sale of property, plant and equipment. A reconciliation of non-GAAP to GAAP financial measures is provided in the table attached to this press release.
Net earnings per diluted Class A common share for the first quarter of 2010 were $0.00, compared to net earnings per diluted Class A common share of $0.06 for the first quarter of 2009. Adjusted for severance costs, acquisition-related costs and inventory-related purchase accounting adjustments, non-GAAP net earnings per diluted Class A common share were $0.09 for this year's first quarter, compared to a non-GAAP net loss per Class A common share of $0.14 for the first quarter of 2009, which were adjusted for restructuring and severance costs and gains on sale of property, plant and equipment.
Net earnings per diluted Class B common share were $0.00 for the first quarter of 2010, compared to net earnings per diluted Class B common share of $0.07 for the first quarter of 2009. Adjusted for severance costs, acquisition-related costs and inventory-related purchase accounting adjustments, non-GAAP net earnings per diluted Class B common share were $0.11 for the first quarter of 2010, compared to a non-GAAP net loss per Class B common share of $0.14 for the first quarter of 2009, which were adjusted for restructuring and severance costs and gains on sale of property, plant and equipment.
Including a loss from operations of $321,000 at Cinch Connectors, the loss from operations for this year's first quarter was $66,000, compared to income from operations of $2,259,000 for the first quarter of 2009. Adjusted for severance costs, acquisition-related costs and inventory-related purchase accounting adjustments, non-GAAP income from operations for the first quarter of 2010 increased to $1,587,000, compared to a non-GAAP loss from operations of $1,765,000 for the first quarter of 2009, which were adjusted for restructuring and severance costs and gains on sale of property, plant and equipment. Since its acquisition on January 29, 2010, Cinch Connectors has contributed $788,000 in non-GAAP income from operations during the first quarter of 2010.
At March 31, 2010, Bel reported working capital of approximately $138,300,000, including cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments and marketable securities of approximately $79,900,000, a current ratio of 5.2, total long-term obligations of $9,260,000, and stockholders' equity of $208,121,000. In comparison, at December 31, 2009, Bel reported working capital of approximately $167,900,000, including cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments and marketable securities of approximately $124,233,000, a current ratio of 7.0, total long-term obligations of $9,017,000, and stockholders' equity of $208,932,000.
Bel President - CEO Bernstein concludes, "As evidenced by our strong backlog, business conditions in our markets continue to improve. The many steps we took during the past few quarters to streamline our operations and reduce costs are now working to improve profitability and set the stage for better performance going forward. During the quarter we hired approximately 1,400 new workers at our China facilities toward our goal of 2,800 new hires. Our operating results in the first quarter are especially noteworthy in view of the inexperience of these new workers, whose efficiency can be expected to increase as they gain experience on the job in coming months."
Bel (www.belfuse.com) and its divisions are primarily engaged in the design, manufacture, and sale of products used in networking, telecommunications, high-speed data transmission, commercial aerospace, military, transportation, and consumer electronics.
Products include magnetics (discrete components, power transformers and MagJack connectors with integrated magnetics), modules (DC/DC converters, integrated analog front-end modules, custom designs), circuit protection (miniature, micro and surface mount fuses) and interconnect devices (micro, circular and filtered D-Sub connectors, passive jacks, plugs and high-speed cable assemblies). The company operates facilities around the world.
