Key Technology Announces Fiscal 2012 First Quarter Results |
Key Technology, Inc.
150 Avery St.
Walla Walla, WA, 99362
USA
 
Press release date: January 26, 2012
JANUARY 26, 2012 - Key Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: KTEC) announced today sales and operating results for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 ended December 31, 2011.
Net sales for the three-month period ended December 31, 2011 totaled $26.0 million, compared to $28.1 million recorded in the same quarter last year. The Company reported a net loss for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 of $243,000, or $0.05 per diluted share, compared to net earnings of $604,000, or $0.11 per diluted share, for the same period a year ago.
Gross profit for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 was $8.6 million compared to $9.3 million in the corresponding period last year. As a percentage of net sales, gross profit for the more recent quarter was 33.0% compared to 33.1% in the first quarter of fiscal 2011.
David Camp, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "The first quarter revenues and margins were consistent with management's expectations. We had previously stated that a substantial amount of the year-end backlog would not ship until after the first quarter of fiscal 2012."
Operating expenses for the quarter ended December 31, 2011 were $8.8 million, or 33.8% of sales, compared to $8.4 million, or 30.0% of sales in the same quarter last year.
Camp further commented, "Operating expense in the first quarter of fiscal 2012 increased slightly, as compared to the prior year's first fiscal quarter, due to increased spending on research and development. As previously discussed, we have added valuable technical and project management talent to Key to support new product developments."
Orders received during the first quarter of fiscal 2012 were $26.6 million, compared to $24.8 million in the same period last year. The Company's backlog at December 31, 2011 was $37.0 million, compared to a backlog of $31.6 million at December 31, 2010.
Camp continued, "A significant portion of the backlog at the end of the first fiscal quarter will not ship until after the second quarter of fiscal 2012; however, management currently anticipates that net sales in the second fiscal quarter of 2012 will be modestly higher than net sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2012. Also, we anticipate that gross margins in the second quarter of fiscal 2012 may be lower than gross margins in the first quarter of fiscal 2012 due to the anticipated comparative product mix."
Camp concluded, "In addition to the 7% increase in orders in the first quarter of fiscal 2012 over the comparable period a year ago, we are pleased to announce that in January we received an order from a significant new international customer committing to a multi-million dollar purchase of our recently released Veo(TM) system. We continue to believe that investing in new product developments and strategic initiatives, such as Veo, Horizon(TM) and Integrated Solutions, will be a significant driver for future revenue growth."
Conference Call
The Company's conference call related to the fiscal 2012 first quarter results can be heard live on the Internet at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time on Thursday, January 26, 2012. To access the audio webcast, go to http://www.key.net/investors/investor-events/default.html at least fifteen minutes prior to the call to download and install any necessary audio software.
About Key Technology
Key Technology, Inc., headquartered in Walla Walla, Washington, is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of process automation systems for the food processing, industrial and pharmaceutical markets. The Company's products integrate electro-optical inspection and sorting, specialized conveying and product preparation equipment, which allow processors to improve quality, increase yield and reduce cost. Key has manufacturing facilities in Washington, Oregon, and the Netherlands, and worldwide sales and service coverage.
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