EARNINGS PER SHARE OF $0.15 COMPARE WITH NET LOSS
OF ($0.20) PER SHARE IN PREVIOUS YEAR
COPPELL, Texas (October 25, 1999) --TST/Impreso, Inc. (Nasdaq National Market: “TSTI”), a leading manufacturer and distributor of paper and film hard copy imaging products for commercial and home office applications, today reported a significant turnaround in earnings for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended August 31, 1999.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 1999, net sales increased 17.5% to $59.6 million, compared with $50.6 million in the previous fiscal year.The Company reported a net profit of $774,352, or $0.15 per share, in the most recent fiscal year, versus a net loss of ($1,084,509), or ($0.20) per share, in FY1998. Gross profits improved 75% to approximately $7.7 million (12.9% of sales) in FY1999, compared with approximately $4.4 million (8.6% of sales) in the prior year.EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) increased to $2.6 million during the most recent fiscal year, versus negative EBITDA of ($428,000) in FY1998.
Net sales for the three months ended August 31, 1999 approximated $16.6 million, compared with net sales of $16.1million in the fourth quarter of the previous fiscal year. Fourth quarter net income improved to $261,000, or $0.05 per share, compared with a net loss of ($92,000), or ($0.02) per share, in the corresponding period of the prior fiscal year.
"I am pleased to report that our Company was profitable during each quarter of its 1999 fiscal year," stated Marshall Sorokwasz, president and chief executive officer of TST/Impreso, Inc.“Earnings improved by more than $1.8 million, or $0.35 per share, during fiscal 1999, as higher sales and gross profit margins on branded paper product lines offset continued weakness in commodity-type product prices. During the past year, a growing number of retailers, office supply dealers, and distributors added IBM branded and new specialty papers to their product lines."
"We expect sales growth to accelerate in the next several months, as we benefit from our new relationship with one of the world’s leading supplier of non-production goods and services, who has accepted the complete line of IBM branded products and should become one of our largest customers in the current fiscal year. As sales of new products introduced during fiscal 1999 gain momentum, we believe that TSTI/Impreso’s ability to consistently deliver quality paper products in a timely fashion, along with its commitment to specialty imaging products and new market opportunities, will allow our Company to prosper in coming years." "Management’s objective is to enhance shareholder value, and our return to profitability should play a keyrole in achieving this objective," continued Sorokwasz."We are optimistic that TST/Impreso’s operating results in the fiscal year 2000 can build upon the turnaround which was achieved in our most recent fiscal year." The Company introduced a number of enhancements to its HotSheet.com® web portal during the fiscal year ended August 31, 1999. HotSheet.com, which can be accessed on the World Wide Web at www.hotsheet.com, is a unique single-page Internet directory which provides categorized links to premier web destinations. In February 1999, an online shopping directory, SHOPsheet.com, was introduced to provide links to the most popular shopping sites, major “online” malls and consumer services websites. SHOPsheet.com can be accessed at www.shopsheet.com. In March 1999, HotSheet.com introduced its HotSheet Super Search meta-search service, which performs simultaneous searches of the Web’s top search engines and presents combined results ranked by relevance. In June 1999, the Company launched a redesign which made HotSheet.com easier to use and incorporated co-branded searches in certain categories. Shortly after the end of its 1999 fiscal year, the Company unveiled its My.HotSheet customized link page, which allows Internet users to create customized pages and categorize links to their favorite web sites. "We continue to believe that HotSheet.com, which records over 2.5 million ‘page views’ by Internet users each month, will evolve into a valuable asset for our shareholders,” noted Sorokwasz.TST/Impreso, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of paper and film products for commercial and home use in domestic and international markets. The Company's product lines consist of continuous computer forms, facsimile paper, cut sheet paper, transparency films, photo paper and other specialty papers for use in copying machines, laser printers, ink jet printers, facsimile machines and overhead projectors. Customers include business forms dealers, wholesale stationers, office products dealers, paper merchants, office supply superstores, wholesale clubs, mass merchandisers, and direct catalog companies. Headquartered in Coppell. Texas (Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex), TST/Impreso operates three manufacturing plants and distributes its products through 47 warehouse locations.
The common stock of TST/Impreso, Inc. is traded on Nasdaq's National Market System under the symbol "TSTI".
For further information, please contact:
Marshall Sorokwasz, President and CEO at (972) 462-0100
orR. Jerry Falkner, Investor Relations at (800) 377-9893 or www.rjfalkner.com
This press release may include statements that constitute “forward-looking” statements, usually containing the words “believe”, “estimate”, “project”, “expect” or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, continued acceptance of the Company’s products in the marketplace, competitive factors, new products and technological changes, paper prices and raw material costs, dependence upon third-party vendors, and other risks detailed in the Company’s periodic report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.
Fiscal Years Ended August 31,
1999 1998
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Net sales $ 59,555,595 $ 50,666,085
Cost of sales 51,894,341 46,290,014
------------ ------------
Gross profit 7,661,254 4,376,071
------------ ------------
Selling, general and admin. expenses* 5,605,959 5,264,735
Interest expense 832,539 558,863
Other income, net (41,971) (44,409)
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Income (loss) before income tax expense 1,264,727 (1,403,118)
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Total income tax expense (benefit) 490,375 (318,609)
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Net income (loss) $ 774,352 $ (1,084,509)
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Net income (loss) per share (basic and diluted) $ 0.15 $ (0.20)
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Weighted average shares outstanding 5,292,780 5,292,780
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*SG&A expenses reflect reclassification of vendor commissions to cost of sales in FY1999.
Three Months Ended August 31,
1999 1998
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Net sales $ 16,589,971 $ 16,115,496
Cost of sales 15,525,614 15,037,731
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Gross profit 1,064,357 1,077,765
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Selling, general and admin. expenses* 390,447 1,148,586
Interest expense 238,237 196,672
Other income, net (29,163) (21,405)
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Income (loss) before income tax expense 464,836 (246,088)
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Total income tax expense (benefit) 203,756 (153,715)
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Net income (loss) $ 261,080 $ (92,373)
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Net income (loss) per share (basic and diluted) $ 0.05 $ (0.02)
============ ============
Weighted average shares outstanding 5,292,780 5,292,780
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*SG&A expenses reflect reclassification of vendor commissions to cost of sales in FY1999.