Littelfuse Reports Third Quarter Results

CHICAGO, October 29, 2009 – Littelfuse, Inc. (NASDAQ:LFUS) today reported sales and earnings for the third quarter of 2009, which were at the high end of guidance issued on September 16, 2009.

Third Quarter Highlights

• Sales for the third quarter of 2009 were $116.4 million, a 15% sequential increase from the second quarter of 2009 and an 18% decline compared to the prior-year quarter.
• Diluted earnings per share for the third quarter of 2009 were $0.37 on a GAAP basis, compared to $0.18 for the third quarter of 2008.
• Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the third quarter of 2009 were $0.33, which excludes a one-time tax benefit and restructuring charges primarily related to the consolidation of facilities in Europe (see Supplemental Information on page 8).
• Capital expenditures for the third quarter of 2009 were $2.0 million, which was down from $4.2 million in the second quarter of 2009 and $7.2 million in the first quarter of 2009.
• Cash provided by operating activities was $5.0 million for the third quarter of 2009, which included a $6.4 million contribution to the company’s U.S. pension fund. Excluding the pension contribution, cash provided by operating activities was $11.4 million for the quarter.
• The company ended the third quarter of 2009 with $57.4 million in cash and $71.5 million of borrowing capacity under its revolving credit facility. At September 26, 2009, the company was in compliance with all debt covenants and expects to remain so for the foreseeable future.
• The book-to-bill ratio for electronics for the third quarter of 2009 was 1.06.

“The strong sequential sales increase in the third quarter was driven by strengthening electronics and automotive demand and higher output at Startco reflecting recent capacity increases,” said Gordon Hunter, Chief Executive Officer. “Improving end markets, automotive incentive programs and low distributor inventories all contributed to the increased demand.”

“With our leaner cost structure and lower breakeven point, the recent ramp-up in sales has resulted in strong margin expansion,” said Phil Franklin, Chief Financial Officer. “We will continue to tightly control costs even as sales improve to more normal levels in future quarters.“

Outlook

• The company is on a 4-4-5 calendar, which means that the first two months of each quarter have four weeks each and the last month has five weeks for a total of 91 days in the quarter. As a result, every seventh year there is an extra week in the fourth quarter. Accordingly, the fourth quarter of 2009 will include14 weeks instead of 13. The company’s fourth quarter ends on January 2, 2010. Because the quarter extends into January, there will also be additional holidays in this quarter compared to prior years’ fourth quarters.
• Sales for the fourth quarter of 2009 are expected to be in the range of $116 to $123 million, which would represent 10% to 16% growth over the fourth quarter of 2008.
• Earnings for the fourth quarter of 2009 are expected to be in the range of $0.33 to $0.46 per diluted share.
• Capital spending for 2009 is now expected to be $17 to $19 million.

“The Littelfuse team has performed extremely well throughout this very challenging year,” said Hunter. “We effectively managed our balance sheet. We executed well on plant moves and lean initiatives. We dramatically reduced operating expenses. And we successfully ramped-up sales and profitability as the global economy recovered. As a result, we will be heading into 2010 with a strong balance sheet, a much-improved cost structure and an enviable market position as the global leader in circuit protection.”

Conference Call Webcast Information
Littelfuse will host a conference call today, Thursday, October 29, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern/10:00 a.m. Central time to discuss the third quarter results. The call will be broadcast live over the Internet and can be accessed through the company’s Web site: www.littelfuse.com. Listeners should go to the Web site at least 15 minutes prior to the call to download and install any necessary audio software. The call will be available for replay through December 31, 2009 and can be accessed through the Web site listed above.

About Littelfuse
As the worldwide leader in circuit protection products and solutions with annual sales of $530.9 million in 2008, the Littelfuse portfolio is backed by industry-leading technical support, design and manufacturing expertise. Littelfuse products are vital components in virtually every product that uses electrical energy, including automobiles, computers, consumer electronics, handheld devices, industrial equipment and telecom/datacom circuits. Littelfuse offers Teccor®, Wickmann® and Pudenz® brand circuit protection products. In addition to its Chicago, Illinois, world headquarters, Littelfuse has sales, distribution, manufacturing and engineering facilities in Brazil, Canada, China, England, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and the U.S.

Q3 2009 Quarterly Report

LFUS-Q3-09Press-Release-Earnings_FINAL.pdf (58,705 bytes)