• Seasonally Light Quarter Swings to Profit on Strong Shipments, Steady Margins
  
• Board Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.02 per Share, payable July 12, 2024 to Shareholders of Record as of June 21, 2024
• Company Completes First Round of Open Market Share Repurchases Totaling $1.5 million; Current Authorization Includes Additional $3.5 Million for Future Repurchases
  

TORRANCE, Calif., June 07, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  Virco Mfg. Corporation (NASDAQ: VIRC), the leading manufacturer and supplier of movable furniture and equipment for educational environments in the United States, announced shipments for the First Quarter ended April 30, 2024, grew 33.7% compared to the same quarter in the prior year, generating net income of $2.1 million vs. a loss of $1.4 million in the same seasonally light quarter of the prior year.

The Company’s Board also declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share, payable on July 12, 2024 to shareholders of record as of June 21, 2024.

In addition, the Company reported that it has completed its first round of open market share repurchases totaling $1.5 million.

A large individual order related to disaster relief and recovery contributed materially to the strong First Quarter results. This project is now partially complete. Virco’s annual cycle typically peaks in summer, when schools are out of session and therefore able to receive furniture deliveries without interrupting student instruction. Management anticipates that after this large project is completed, the Company’s delivery cycle will revert to its normal seasonal pattern.

As previously reported, Virco’s domestic U.S. operations, including vertically integrated sales, manufacturing, logistics, and field service continued to deliver efficient performance in the midst of a challenging economic environment. Shipments for the Company’s First Quarter ended April 30, 2024, totaled $46.7 million vs. $34.9 million in the same quarter of the prior year. Gross margin improved to 43.5% from 37.8%, primarily due to the efficiencies of higher factory output and stable raw material costs and supplies. Gross profit for the Quarter was $20.3 million vs. $13.2 million the prior year, an increase of 54.1%.

Selling, General and Administrative expense increased to $17.4 million from $14.5 million but decreased as a percent of sales to 37.2% from 41.5% in the prior year. Interest expense totaled $0.2 million compared to $0.7 million in the prior year, as the Company utilized substantially less working capital under its seasonal credit facility. Borrowings under that facility continue to be restrained as the Company is able to fund its growth largely on the strength of improving cash flows and income.

Pre-tax Income for the First Quarter totaled $2.9 million compared to a loss of $1.9 million in the same quarter of the prior year. After provision for income tax expense of $0.7 million vs. a tax benefit of $0.4 million, net income in the First Quarter ended April 30, 2024 was $2.1 million compared to a loss of $1.4 million last year.

Virco’s balance sheet reflects the strength of recent operating results. Current Liabilities declined 37.4% from $66.5 million to $41.7 million. Long term liabilities declined 41.3% from $32.7 million to $19.2 million. Total Stockholder’s Equity increased 37.3% from $66.7 million at the end of last year’s First Quarter to $91.6 million in the current year. Inventories continued to rebalance toward pre-pandemic norms, declining 16.7% to $71.3 million from $85.6 million. Borrowings under the Company's seasonal revolver for working capital dropped from $30.1 million at the end of last year's First Quarter to $2.7 million this year. Management points to its strong balance sheet as the foundation for high-quality customer service as well as appropriate shareholder returns including quarterly dividends and share repurchases.

As of May 31, 2024, "Shipments plus Backlog,” – a non-GAAP metric used by Management for early-season planning—stood at approximately $167 million vs. $168 million on the same date last year. However, the previously-mentioned disaster-recovery project is only partially complete and therefore only partially reflected in the current "Shipments plus Backlog" figure. Overall order intake, including the initial portion of this one large order, is up approximately 7% compared to the same period last year. When combined with unusually high shipments, the rate of order intake and net reduction in unshipped backlog resulted in a modest decline in "Shipments plus Backlog". However as the balance of this single large order moves through the conversion cycle, Management anticipates modest YOY improvement in "Shipments plus Backlog".

It is for these reasons of timing that Management cautions investors against using "Shipments plus Backlog" for forecasting or modeling purposes. Management uses the number for internal planning only and offers it to readers as a general approximation of business trends as viewed at mid-year.

Commenting on the Company’s First Quarter, Virco Chairman and CEO Robert A. Virtue said: “Our large disaster recovery order allowed our factories to run at high volume while simultaneously generating strong shipments, a pattern that we rarely see during our normal annual cycle. While this exact pattern may not repeat itself in the future, it is reflective of the kinds of large opportunities supported by the flexibility of our U.S. factories and the underlying strength of our balance sheet. In the past we’ve described two competitive “moats” around our core market of school furniture and equipment. These are 1) extreme seasonality; and 2) the price/cube threshold, which makes bulky school furniture more costly to import. We may be seeing the development of a third moat—financial strength— that allows us to take advantage of seasonal, complex, logistically intensive opportunities that may be increasingly difficult for import-based models to finance. We are also actively evaluating potential acquisitions that would expand and strengthen our current capabilities. These including major equipment purchases, as well as bolt-on acquisitions of smaller companies or suppliers who might appreciate and contribute to our strong operating culture.

“We’re looking forward to another busy and productive summer delivery season, to the continuing recovery of America’s public and private schools, and to seeing Virco’s shareholders at our Annual Meeting in Torrance, California, on June 18th.”

Contact:
Virco Mfg. Corporation
(310) 533-0474
Robert A. Virtue, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Doug Virtue, President
Robert Dose, Chief Financial Officer

Non-GAAP Financial Information

This press release includes a statement of shipments plus unshipped backlog as of May 31, 2024 compared to the same date in the prior fiscal year. Shipments represent the dollar amount of net sales actually shipped during the period presented. Unshipped backlog represents the dollar amount of net sales that we expect to recognize in the future from sales orders that have been received from customers in the ordinary course of business. The Company considers shipments plus unshipped backlog a relevant and preferred supplemental measure for production and delivery planning. However, such measure has inherent limitations, is not required to be uniformly applied or audited and other companies may use methodologies to calculate similar measures that are not comparable. In addition, backlog estimates are subject to change as a result of delay, suspension, termination or an increase or reduction in scope of projects by customers. Readers should be aware of these limitations and should be cautious as to their use of such measure.

Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: our future financial results and growth in our business; business strategies; market demand and product development; estimates of unshipped backlog; order rates and trends in seasonality; product relevance; economic conditions and patterns; the educational furniture industry generally, including the domestic market for classroom furniture; cost control initiatives; absorption rates; and supply chain challenges. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and beliefs about future events or circumstances, and you should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors, many of which are out of our control and difficult to forecast. These factors may cause actual results to differ materially from those that are anticipated. Such factors include, but are not limited to: uncertainties surrounding the ongoing and long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic; changes in general economic conditions including raw material, energy and freight costs; state and municipal bond funding; state, local, and municipal tax receipts; order rates; the seasonality of our markets; the markets for school and office furniture generally, the specific markets and customers with which we conduct our principal business; the impact of cost-saving initiatives on our business; the competitive landscape, including responses of our competitors and customers to changes in our prices; demographics; and the terms and conditions of available funding sources. See our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 31, 2024, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and other reports and material that we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a further description of these and other risks and uncertainties applicable to our business. We assume no, and hereby disclaim any, obligation to update any of our forward-looking statements. We nonetheless reserve the right to make such updates from time to time by press release, periodic reports, or other methods of public disclosure without the need for specific reference to this press release. No such update shall be deemed to indicate that other statements which are not addressed by such an update remain correct or create an obligation to provide any other updates.