L.B. Foster pany(FSTR) - 2024 Q3 - Quarterly Results

Financial Performance - Third quarter net sales were $137.5 million, down $7.9 million or 5.4% year over year[6] - Net income for the third quarter was $35.9 million, an increase of $35.4 million year over year, primarily due to a $30.0 million tax valuation allowance adjustment[8] - Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter was $12.3 million, up 16.4% from the prior year[10] - Gross profit for Q3 2024 was $18.5 million, an increase of $1.2 million, with gross profit margins rising 340 basis points to 23.2%[14] - Segment operating income for Q3 2024 was $4.9 million, a $1.1 million increase compared to the prior year quarter, driven by improved gross profit[15] - Net sales for Q3 2024 were $58.0 million, a decrease of $0.5 million or 0.9% from Q3 2023, with an adjusted organic sales decline of 1.9%[17] - For the first nine months of 2024, net sales were $402.6 million, down $6.3 million or 1.5% from the prior year period[22] - Gross profit for the first nine months of 2024 was $89.4 million, a $6.1 million increase year-over-year, with gross profit margins increasing by 180 basis points to 22.2%[22] - Total net sales for the three months ended September 30, 2024, were $145,345, an increase of 5.4% compared to $137,466 for the same period in 2023[39] - The company reported a total adjusted sales change of $(9,856) million, representing a 6.7% decline from 2023 to 2024[48] Cash Flow and Operations - Cash provided by operations totaled $24.7 million, an increase of $6.1 million compared to the prior year quarter[12] - Cash used by operating activities in the nine months ended September 30, 2024 totaled $1.7 million, an increased use of $17.0 million compared to the prior year[29] - The company expects to generate approximately $30 million to $35 million in free cash flow in the second half of the year[3] - Cash and cash equivalents increased to $3,135 as of September 30, 2024, compared to $2,560 at the end of December 31, 2023[41] - Total current assets rose to $173,454 as of September 30, 2024, up from $167,355 at the end of December 31, 2023[41] Debt and Leverage - The Gross Leverage Ratio improved to 1.9x, a decrease of 0.8x during the quarter[12] - Long-term debt increased to $68,377 as of September 30, 2024, compared to $55,171 at the end of December 31, 2023[41] - The company reported a net debt of $65,242, calculated as total debt of $71,377 minus cash and cash equivalents[44] - Total debt as of September 30, 2024, was $68,544 million, down from $71,689 million a year earlier[48] - Net debt decreased to $65,409 million as of September 30, 2024, compared to $68,720 million in the same period of 2023[48] Orders and Backlog - New orders for the third quarter totaled $96.0 million, a decrease of $4.3 million or 4.3% from the prior year[11] - Backlog decreased to $209.0 million, down $34.2 million or 14.1% year over year[11] - Orders increased by $2.9 million year-over-year, with a backlog of $88.7 million, down $5.0 million from the prior year quarter[16] - New orders for Q3 2024 totaled $43.3 million, down $7.1 million from the prior year quarter, reflecting a decline in the Protective Coatings business[20] - New orders for the first nine months of 2024 totaled $399.4 million, a decrease of $24.2 million or 5.7% from the prior year period[28] Strategic Focus and Market Outlook - The company anticipates continued focus on strategic growth initiatives and market expansion in the upcoming quarters[40] - Capital spending as a percentage of sales is projected to be between 2.0% and 2.5% for 2024[4] - The company made adjustments to exclude non-routine costs, which are considered useful for evaluating ongoing operations[42] Profitability Metrics - Gross margin improved to 23.8%, the highest level in over ten years, reflecting a 490 basis point increase from the previous year[7] - Gross profit for Q3 2024 was $14.3 million, a $4.1 million increase, with gross profit margins increasing 720 basis points to 24.6%[18] - The gross profit margin for 2024 is reported at 23.8%, an increase from 18.9% in 2023[49] - The adjusted gross profit margin for 2023 was 21.2%, while the margin for 2024 is projected to be 22.3%[50] Income and Earnings - Operating income for the three months ended September 30, 2024, increased to $1,617 from $7,323 in the same period of 2023[39] - Net income attributable to L.B. Foster Company for the three months ended September 30, 2024, was $515, a significant decrease from $35,905 in the prior year[39] - The net income for the three months ended September 30, 2024, was $35,898 million, a significant increase from $447 million in the same period of 2023[47] - Organic sales growth for the three months ended September 30, 2024, showed a decline of 5.9% compared to the same period in 2023, with net sales reported at $137,466 million[48]