QUEBEC CITY – EXFO Inc. ended fiscal 2015 on high note with net earnings of $5.3 million well above the $783,000 recorded in the previous year.
The Canadian test and measurement maker said adjusted EBITDA for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2015 amounted to $13.8 million, or 6.2% of sales, compared to $14.4 million, or 6.2% of sales, in 2014.
Sales dropped 3.8% to $222.1 million due to the currency impact. Sales in the Americas (-1.9%) and Asia-Pacific (+0.8%) regions were relatively stable year-over-year, while sales in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) decreased 10.5%. EXFO's largest customer accounted for 7.1% of sales in fiscal 2015, while the company's top-three customers represented 14.4%. In comparison, EXFO's largest customer accounted for 6.1% of sales in 2014, while the company's top-three customers represented 11.6%.
In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015, net earnings of $2.3 million were more than double $563,000 posted in the fourth quarter of 2014. Net earnings in the fourth quarter of 2015 included $1.3 million in after-tax restructuring charges, $0.3 million in after-tax amortization of intangible assets, $0.1 million in stock-based compensation costs and a foreign exchange gain of $2.4 million.
Sales for the three month period reached $56.6 million, down from $59.7 million year-over-year, and bookings attained were $54.9 million compared to $57.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2014. The company's book-to-bill ratio was 0.97.
"While financial results for fiscal 2015 are below my expectations mainly due to adverse conditions and the strength of the US dollar against a basket of currencies, I am nonetheless quite pleased with the important internal transformations implemented during 2015 that will strongly contribute to value creation in 2016 and beyond," said chairman, president and CEO Germain Lamonde, in the news release. "Combined with an ongoing tight focus on operating expenses, we are targeting more than 40% growth in adjusted EBITDA to reach US$20 million in 2016, which should be achieved at a revenue level of about US$230 million."
