Lindsay Corporation Reports Fiscal 2009 Fourth Quarter, Full-Year Results

• Press Release
• Source: Lindsay Corporation
• On 8:00 am EDT, Wednesday October 21, 2009

OMAHA, Neb.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lindsay Corporation (NYSE: LNN - News), a leading provider of irrigation systems and infrastructure products, today announced results for its fourth quarter and full fiscal year ended August 31, 2009.

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Symbol	Price	Change
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Fourth Quarter Results

Fourth quarter fiscal 2009 total revenues of $73.4 million decreased 50 percent from $147.2 million in the same prior year period. Net earnings were $2.1 million or $0.17 per diluted share compared with $11.3 million or $0.90 per diluted share, in the prior fiscal year’s fourth quarter.

Total irrigation equipment revenues decreased 53 percent to $54.8 million from $115.2 million in the prior fiscal year’s fourth quarter. Domestic irrigation revenues decreased 59 percent, while international irrigation revenues decreased 41 percent as compared to the same prior year period. Infrastructure revenues were $18.6 million compared with $32.0 million in the prior year period, a decrease of 42 percent.

Gross margin was 24.0 percent compared to 25.4 percent a year ago due primarily to unfavorable infrastructure product mix. Operating expenses decreased $3.9 million to $14.1 million compared to the fourth quarter of the prior fiscal year primarily due to lower personnel related costs and were 19.2 percent of sales in 2009 compared with 12.2 percent of sales in the prior year period. Operating income of $3.5 million decreased $15.9 million compared to the prior year period.

Lindsay’s backlog of unshipped orders at August 31, 2009 was $43.6 million compared with $40.2 million at May 31, 2009 and $92.3 million at August 31, 2008. The current backlog includes approximately $19.0 million of quick move barrier for the previously disclosed road project in Mexico City. During the fourth quarter, the initial deposit was received for the Mexico City road project and work started on the project.

Full-Year Results

Total revenues for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2009 were $336.2 million, a 29 percent decrease from $475.1 million for the prior year. Total irrigation equipment revenues of $255.5 million declined 32 percent from a year ago. Domestic irrigation revenues decreased 34%, while international irrigation revenues decreased 28% compared to the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008. Infrastructure revenues declined 19 percent to $80.7 million compared to fiscal 2008.

Gross margin was 24.0 percent compared to 26.1 percent for the year ended August 31, 2008 due to decreased volume and changes in product mix. Manufacturing efficiency decreased on irrigation products during fiscal 2009 resulting from significantly reduced factory volume. Gross margin on infrastructure products decreased as a result of unfavorable product mix, manufacturing variances on lower volume, and higher steel costs. The Company’s operating expenses of $58.2 million for fiscal 2009 decreased $3.4 million as compared to fiscal 2008. The decrease in operating expenses for fiscal 2009 was primarily attributable to lower personnel related costs.

The Company’s operating income for the fiscal year was $22.4 million compared to $62.2 million during the prior year period. Net earnings were $13.8 million or $1.11 per diluted share, as compared to $39.4 million, or $3.20 per diluted share for the prior year period.

On July 20, 2009, Lindsay announced that it had increased its regular quarterly cash dividend by 7 percent to $0.08 per share from $0.075 per share. The new annual indicated rate is $0.32 per share, an increase from the previous annual indicated rate of $0.30 per share.

Outlook

Rick Parod, president and chief executive officer, commented, “Farmers continued to remain cautious throughout the year about making investments in capital goods. Updated USDA estimates predict net farm income for 2009 well below last year’s record and 15% below the ten year average. In the US, demand for road infrastructure products was positively impacted by stimulus funds; however, it may now be tempered by uncertainty surrounding federal highway funding. We continue to control expenditures, and our focus on cash flow has resulted in cash and cash equivalents increasing $35.2 million to $85.9 million at year end compared with the end of fiscal 2008. During the year, we also reduced our long-term debt by $6.2 million.”

Parod added, “As world population continues to grow, expanded food production, efficient water use, and improvements in transportation infrastructure remain very positive long-term growth drivers for our business segments.”

Fourth-Quarter Conference Call

Lindsay’s fiscal 2009 fourth quarter investor conference call is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time today. Interested investors may participate in the call by dialing (888) 748-0479 domestically, or (706) 758-9823 internationally, and referring to conference ID # 33174497. Additionally, the conference call will be simulcast live on the Internet, and can be accessed via the investor relations section of the Company's Web site, www.lindsay.com. The Company will have a slide presentation available to augment management's formal presentation, which will also be accessible via the Company's Web site.

About the Company

Lindsay manufactures and markets irrigation equipment primarily used in agricultural markets which increase or stabilize crop production while conserving water, energy, and labor. The Company also manufactures and markets infrastructure and road safety products through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Barrier Systems Inc. and Snoline S.P.A. At August 31, 2009, Lindsay had approximately 12.4 million shares outstanding, which are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LNN.

For more information regarding Lindsay Corporation, see Lindsay's Web site at www.lindsay.com. For more information on the Company's infrastructure products, visit www.barriersystemsinc.com and www.snoline.com.

Concerning Forward-looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties and which reflect management’s current beliefs and estimates of future economic circumstances, industry conditions, company performance and financial results. You can find a discussion of many of these risks and uncertainties in the annual, quarterly and current reports that we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements include information concerning possible or assumed future results of operations of the company and those statements preceded by, followed by or including the words “anticipate,” “estimate,” “believe,” “intend,” "expectation," "outlook," "could," "may," "should," “will,” or similar expressions. For these statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking information contained in this press release.

Lindsay Corporation
Dave Downing, 402-827-6235
CFO and President – International Division
or
Halliburton Investor Relations
Jeff Elliott or Geralyn DeBusk, 972-458-8000