Power management company Eaton Corporation plc (ETN) today announced record sales and operating earnings, driven by the acquisition of Cooper Industries. Operating earnings for the third quarter of 2013, excluding charges of $38 million to integrate recent acquisitions, were $536 million, up 48 percent over the third quarter of 2012. Operating earnings per share for the third quarter of 2013 were $1.12, an increase of 5 percent over the third quarter of 2012. This result reflects the shares issued as part of the acquisition of Cooper Industries and the purchase price accounting charges resulting from the transaction. Sales in the third quarter were $5.6 billion, 42 percent above the third quarter of 2012.
Alexander M. Cutler, Eaton chairman and chief executive officer, said, “Our third quarter results were slightly ahead of our second quarter results. We saw little revenue growth from the second quarter while operating earnings per share were higher at $1.12. We had expected that third quarter sales would be approximately $75 million higher than second quarter sales, reflecting the normal seasonal increase from the second to third quarter. Our actual revenue increase from the second to the third quarter was only $5 million, as a result of continued sluggish economic growth around the world. Our third quarter bookings, however, strengthened in our Electrical, Hydraulics, and Aerospace businesses, suggesting that growth is likely to accelerate as we go into 2014.
“Sales in the third quarter grew 42 percent over the third quarter of 2012,” said Cutler. “Growth was comprised of 40 percent from acquisitions and 3 percent from core growth, partially offset by a 1 percent decline from currency.
“Our segment margin in the third quarter of 15.6 percent equaled our second quarter record segment margin, reflecting Cooper integration savings and our continued focus on productivity improvements,” said Cutler. “Our electrical segments posted particularly strong margins, with the Electrical Products segment achieving an operating margin of 17.1 percent and the Electrical Systems and Services segment achieving an operating margin of 14.7 percent.
“Our operating cash flow in the third quarter was a quarterly record $704 million,” said Cutler. “Over the last 12 months, operating cash flow has totaled $2.1 billion. We expect operating cash flow in the fourth quarter to be even stronger than in the third quarter, reflecting the typical seasonal decline in working capital as we go through year end. We repurchased $31 million of debt during the third quarter and plan to repurchase additional debt as opportunities arise.
“Due to the recent softness in the NAFTA Class 8 truck market and continued weakness in the global hydraulics markets, we now believe our overall markets in 2013 are likely to be flat,” said Cutler. “This compares to our expectations at the end of the second quarter that our markets would grow 1 percent. For the fourth quarter, we anticipate our sales are likely to be slightly lower than the third quarter, reflecting normal seasonality. We expect operating earnings per share in the fourth quarter, after excluding an estimated $40 million to integrate our recent acquisitions, to be between $1.00 and $1.10. Based on this fourth quarter guidance, for all of 2013 we are narrowing our range for operating earnings per share from between $4.05 and $4.25 to between $4.05 and $4.15.”
Business Segment Results
Third quarter sales for the Electrical Products segment were $1.8 billion, up 98 percent over 2012, reflecting the impact of the Cooper Industries acquisition. Operating profits in the third quarter were $301 million. Excluding acquisition integration charges of $9 million during the quarter, operating profits were $310 million, up 79 percent over results in 2012.
“Our bookings in the Electrical Products segment increased 7 percent from the combined bookings of Eaton and legacy Cooper in the third quarter a year ago,” said Cutler. “We now believe that our Electrical Products markets in 2013 will grow by 1 percent, 1/2 percent lower than our expectation at the end of the second quarter.
“We are pleased with the 17.1 percent operating margin in Electrical Products,” said Cutler. “This margin represents a significant step up from the strong margins of 16.2 percent we recorded in the second quarter.”
Sales for the Electrical Systems and Services segment were $1.6 billion, an increase of 80 percent over the third quarter of 2012, reflecting the impact of the Cooper Industries acquisition. The segment reported operating profits of $231 million. Excluding acquisition integration costs of $10 million during the quarter, operating profits were $241 million, up 115 percent over results in 2012.
“Combined bookings in the quarter increased 3 percent over the third quarter of 2012,” said Cutler. “For all of 2013, we now believe that the markets in our Electrical Systems and Services segment will grow by 1 1/2 percent, up 1/2 percent from our expectation at the end of the second quarter.”
Hydraulics segment sales were $739 million, down 3 percent from the third quarter of 2012. Operating profits in the third quarter were $89 million. Excluding acquisition integration charges of $8 million during the quarter, operating profits were $97 million, down 1 percent from the third quarter of 2012.
“Global hydraulics markets in the third quarter remained sluggish, particularly in the construction equipment industries in the U.S. and China,” said Cutler. “Our bookings in the third quarter increased 8 percent over the third quarter of 2012, the first time quarterly bookings have increased since the fourth quarter of 2011. For all of 2013, we believe global hydraulics markets will decline 6 percent, 1 percent lower than our expectation at the end of the second quarter.”
Aerospace segment sales were $448 million, up 7 percent over the third quarter of 2012. Operating profits in the third quarter were $64 million, up 31 percent over the third quarter of 2012.
“Our Aerospace segment margins were 14.3 percent, the same as the first quarter and just slightly under second quarter margins,” said Cutler. “Aerospace bookings in the third quarter increased 6 percent over 2012. We continue to believe that our aerospace markets will grow by 3 percent in 2013.”
The Vehicle segment posted sales of $964 million in the third quarter, up 3 percent over the third quarter of 2012. The segment reported operating profits of $161 million, up 12 percent over the third quarter of 2012.
“The strongest markets in our Vehicle segment were the Latin American markets, as well as light vehicle markets in the U.S. and Asia,” said Cutler.
Eaton is a power management company providing energy-efficient solutions that help our customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power. A global technology leader, Eaton acquired Cooper Industries plc in November 2012. The 2012 revenue of the combined companies was $21.8 billion on a pro forma basis. Eaton has approximately 102,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 175 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com.
Notice of conference call: Eaton’s conference call to discuss its third quarter results is available to all interested parties as a live audio webcast today at 10 a.m. United States Eastern time via a link on the center of Eaton’s home page. This news release can be accessed under its headline on the home page. Also available on the website prior to the call will be a presentation on third quarter results, which will be covered during the call.
This news release contains forward-looking statements concerning fourth quarter and full year 2013 operating earnings per share, operating cash flow, sales, and the performance of our worldwide markets. These statements should be used with caution and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside the company’s control. The following factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements: unanticipated changes in the markets for the company’s business segments; unanticipated downturns in business relationships with customers or their purchases from us; competitive pressures on sales and pricing; increases in the cost of material and other production costs, or unexpected costs that cannot be recouped in product pricing; the introduction of competing technologies; unexpected technical or marketing difficulties; unexpected claims, charges, litigation or dispute resolutions; strikes or other labor unrest; the performance of recent acquisitions; unanticipated difficulties integrating acquisitions; new laws and governmental regulations; interest rate changes; stock market and currency fluctuations; and unanticipated deterioration of economic and financial conditions in the United States and around the world. We do not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.