Unifi Inc. (UFI) News

GREENSBORO, N.C., April 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Unifi, Inc. (NYSE: UFI) today released preliminary operating results for its third fiscal quarter ended March 28, 2010.

The Company is reporting net sales of $154.7 million for the third quarter of fiscal year 2010, an increase of $35.6 million or 29.9% compared to the prior year quarter and $12.4 million or 8.7% compared to the December 2009 quarter.  Net sales were positively impacted by improved market conditions across all of the Company's key segments, as well as continued growth in Brazil.  

The Company is reporting net income of $0.8 million or $0.01 per share for the third quarter of fiscal year 2010 compared to a net loss of $33.0 million or $0.53 per share for the prior year quarter.  Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Adjusted EBITDA) were $12.7 million for the third quarter, an improvement of $15.0 million compared to the prior year quarter. The substantial year- over-year improvements in quarterly results were the result of:

• Significantly improved retail demand in apparel, furnishings and automotive, as the economic recovery continues;
• Higher utilization levels across the regional supply chain;
• Continued improvement in the Brazilian market; and
• Cost and efficiency improvements realized over the last year.

Compared to the prior year period, net sales for the first nine months of the 2010 fiscal year improved by $26.0 million or 6.3% to $439.8 million.  The Company is reporting net income of $5.2 million or $0.09 per share for the year-to-date period of fiscal year 2010 compared to a net loss of $42.7 million or $0.69 per share for the prior year period, and Adjusted EBITDA increased $27.4 million to $41.1 million.

Ron Smith, Chief Financial Officer for Unifi, said, "Higher utilization rates and overall operational improvements have contributed to increases in gross profit for the first nine months of the fiscal year.  Our share gain efforts, as well as rising raw material costs, squeezed margins somewhat in the quarter, and we expect to regain those margins over the next few months."

Cash-on-hand at the end of March 2010 was $52.5 million, a decrease of $1.9 million from the end of December 2009, as cash generated by operations was reinvested into the working capital required to support the higher volumes that the Company experienced.  Total long-term debt declined $2.2 million from the end of December to $181.2 million.

"We are very pleased to be reporting profitability in each of the first three quarters of the fiscal year, especially in a recovering economic environment," said Bill Jasper, President and CEO of Unifi.  "Our aggressive cost reductions and disciplined task-based improvement process continue to contribute significantly to our improved cost basis and the strength of our balance sheet.  Our domestic business is improving, and Brazil continues to exceed projections.  We will continue to focus on cash generation and deleveraging our balance sheet, while funding targeted growth opportunities in our global businesses."    

The Company will host a conference call beginning at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) today, April 29, 2010, to discuss the preliminary results for the quarter.  The conference call may be accessed by dialing (866) 524-3160 (U.S. & Canada) or (412) 317-6760 (International), and an access code is not required.  A corresponding presentation can be viewed from the website at www.unifi.com.  Following management's comments, there will be an opportunity for questions from the financial community.  A replay will be made available approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call.  The replay can be accessed by dialing (877) 344-7529 (U.S. & Canada) or (412) 317-0088 (International) and entering conference number 439844. This replay line will be kept open for one week.

Unifi, Inc. (NYSE: UFI) is a diversified producer and processor of multi-filament polyester and nylon textured yarns and related raw materials.  The Company adds value to the supply chain and enhances consumer demand for its products through the development and introduction of branded yarns that provide unique performance, comfort and aesthetic advantages.  Key Unifi brands include, but are not limited to: AIO® - all-in-one performance yarns, SORBTEK®, A.M.Y.®, MYNX® UV, REPREVE®, REFLEXX®, MICROVISTA® and SATURA®.  Unifi's yarns and brands are readily found in home furnishings, apparel, legwear, and sewing thread, as well as industrial, automotive, military, and medical applications.  For more information about Unifi, visit www.unifi.com, or to learn more about REPREVE®, visit www.repreve.com.

Financial Statements to Follow

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Included in this presentation are certain non-GAAP financial measures designed to complement the financial information presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America because management believes such measures are useful to investors.

Adjusted EBITDA

Adjusted EBITDA represents net income or loss before income tax expense, interest expense, depreciation and amortization expense and loss or income from discontinued operations, adjusted to exclude equity in earnings and losses of unconsolidated affiliates, write down of long-lived assets and unconsolidated affiliate, non-cash compensation expense net of distributions, gains or losses on sales or disposals of property, plant and equipment, currency and hedging gains and losses, gain on extinguishment of debt, goodwill impairment, restructuring charges, asset consolidation and optimization expense, gain from the sale of nitrogen credits, UCA startup costs, and Kinston shutdown expenses.  We present Adjusted EBITDA as a supplemental measure of our operating performance and ability to service debt. We also present Adjusted EBITDA because we believe such measure is frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties in the evaluation of companies in our industry and in measuring the ability of "high-yield" issuers to meet debt service obligations.

Adjusted EBITDA is an alternative view of performance used by management and we believe that investors' understanding of our performance is enhanced by disclosing this performance measure.  Our management uses Adjusted EBITDA: (i) as a measurement of operating performance because it assists us in comparing our operating performance on a consistent basis as it removes the impact of (a) items directly related to our asset base (primarily depreciation and amortization) and (b) unusual items that we would not expect to occur as a part of our normal business on a regular basis; (ii) for planning purposes, including the preparation of our annual operating budget; (iii) as a valuation measure for evaluating our operating performance and our capacity to incur and service debt, fund capital expenditures and expand our business; and (iv) as one measure in determining the value of other acquisitions and dispositions.  Adjusted EBITDA is also a key performance metric utilized in the determination of variable compensation for our employees pursuant to their compensation arrangements.

We believe that the use of Adjusted EBITDA as an operating performance measure provides investors and analysts with a measure of operating results unaffected by differences in capital structures, capital investment cycles, and ages of related assets, among otherwise comparable companies.  We also believe Adjusted EBITDA is an appropriate supplemental measure of debt service capacity, because cash expenditures on interest are, by definition, available to pay interest, and tax expense is inversely correlated to interest expense because tax expense goes down as deductible interest expense goes up; depreciation and amortization are non-cash charges.  Equity in earnings and losses of unconsolidated affiliates is excluded because such earnings or losses do not reflect our operating performance.  The other items excluded from Adjusted EBITDA are excluded in order to better reflect the performance of our continuing operations.

In evaluating Adjusted EBITDA, you should be aware that in the future we may incur expenses similar to the adjustments in this presentation. Our presentation of Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or non-recurring items. Adjusted EBITDA is not a measurement of our financial performance under GAAP and should not be considered as an alternative to net income, operating income or any other performance measures derived in accordance with GAAP or as an alternative to cash flow from operating activities as a measure of our liquidity.

Our Adjusted EBITDA measure has limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Some of these limitations are:

• it does not reflect our cash expenditures, future requirements for capital expenditures or contractual commitments;

• it does not reflect changes in, or cash requirements for, our working capital needs;

• it does not reflect the significant interest expense or the cash requirements necessary to service interest or principal payments on our debt;

• although depreciation and amortization are non-cash charges, the assets being depreciated and amortized will often have to be replaced in the future, and our Adjusted EBITDA measure does not reflect any cash requirements for such replacements;

• it is not adjusted for all non-cash income or expense items that are reflected in our statements of cash flows;

• it does not reflect the impact of earnings or charges resulting from matters we consider not indicative of our ongoing operations;

• it does not reflect limitations on or costs related to transferring earnings from our subsidiaries to us; and

• other companies in our industry may calculate this measure differently than we do, limiting its usefulness as a comparative measure.

Because of these limitations, Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as a measure of discretionary cash available to us to invest in the growth of our business or as a measure of cash that will be available to us to meet our obligations, including those under the notes. You should compensate for these limitations by relying primarily on our GAAP results and using Adjusted EBITDA only supplementally.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT ON FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements included herein contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws about Unifi, Inc.'s (the "Company") financial condition and results of operations that are based on management's current expectations, estimates and projections about the markets in which the Company operates, as well as management's beliefs and assumptions.  Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," variations of such words and other similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements.  These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, which are difficult to predict.  Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is

expressed or forecasted in, or implied by, such forward-looking statements.  Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect management's judgment only as of the date hereof.  The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly any of these forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.

Factors that may cause actual outcome and results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements include, but are not necessarily limited to, availability, sourcing and pricing of raw materials, the success of our subsidiaries, pressures on sales prices and volumes due to competition and economic conditions, reliance on and financial viability of significant customers, operating performance of joint ventures, alliances and other equity investments, technological advancements, employee relations, changes in construction spending, capital expenditures and long-term investments (including those related to unforeseen acquisition opportunities), continued availability of financial resources through financing arrangements and operations, outcomes of pending or threatened legal proceedings, negotiation of new or modifications of existing contracts for asset management and for property and equipment construction and acquisition, regulations governing tax laws, other governmental and authoritative bodies' policies and legislation, and proceeds received from the sale of assets held for disposal.  In addition to these representative factors, forward-looking statements could be impacted by general domestic and international economic and industry conditions in the markets where the Company competes, such as changes in currency exchange rates, interest and inflation rates, recession and other economic and political factors over which the Company has no control.  Other risks and uncertainties may be described from time to time in the Company's other reports and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Unifi, Inc.