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Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Reports 2008 Results and Files Annual Report on Form 10-K

  //house-home.news-articles.net/content/2009/02/2 .. esults-and-files-annual-report-on-form-10-k.html
  Published in House and Home on Tuesday, February 24th 2009 at 14:54 GMT, Last Modified on 2009-02-24 14:57:07 by Market Wire

SOUTHPORT, Conn.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) today filed its 2008 Annual Report on Form 10-K, which has been posted and is available on the SEC website at [ www.sec.gov ] and the Ruger website at [ www.ruger.com/corporate/ ]. The financial statements included in the 2008 Annual Report on Form 10-K are attached to this press release. However, investors are urged to read the complete Form 10-K to ensure that they have adequate information to make informed investment judgments.

In 2008, the Company reported net sales of $181.4 million and earnings per share of $0.43, compared to net sales of $156.5 million and earnings per share of $0.46 in 2007. A detailed analysis of the operations and results of both periods is included in the MD&A section of the Form 10-K.

Chief Executive Officer Michael O. Fifer made the following comments related to the 2008 results:

• Our firearm sales grew from $144 million in 2007 to $174 million in 2008 on the strength of new product shipments and overall robust firearms demand, particularly in the fourth quarter.
• Firearm orders received grew from $156 million in 2007 to $234 million in 2008. The order backlog at December 31, 2008 was $48 million, up from $18 million at December 31, 2007. Nonetheless, shipments in 2009 will be limited to units produced in 2009 as finished goods inventory was depleted during the fourth quarter of 2008.
• Firearms unit production increased 29% in 2008 compared to 2007. We expect production capacity to improve in 2009, although at a more modest pace than in 2008, as we continue to work on the transition from large-scale batch production to lean manufacturing, with an emphasis on setting up manufacturing cells that facilitate single-piece flow production and inventory pull systems.
• At December 31, 2008, our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totaled $28.2 million. Our pre-LIFO working capital of $90.6 million, less the LIFO reserve of $44.3 million, resulted in working capital of $46.3 million and a current ratio of 2.6 to 1.
• In 2008, the Company repurchased 1,535,000 shares of its common stock, representing 7.5% of the outstanding shares, in the open market at an average price of $6.57 per share. All of these purchases were made with cash held by the Company and no debt was incurred. Currently, a stock repurchase program of up to $4.7 million remains authorized by the Board of Directors, and the Company intends to file a plan under Rule 10b5-1 on March 9, 2009 covering the period through April 24, 2009. This plan may result in the repurchase of shares of common stock during that period.
• In December 2008, the Company renewed its unsecured $25 million revolving line of credit with a bank. This facility is renewable annually and now terminates on December 13, 2009. On December 31, 2008, the Company had a $1 million outstanding balance on the credit facility.

About Sturm, Ruger

Sturm, Ruger was founded in 1949 and is one of the nation's leading manufacturers of high-quality firearms for the commercial sporting market. Sturm, Ruger is headquartered in Southport, CT, with plants located in Newport, NH and Prescott, AZ.

The Company may, from time to time, make forward-looking statements and projections concerning future expectations. Such statements are based on current expectations and are subject to certain qualifying risks and uncertainties, such as market demand, sales levels of firearms, anticipated castings sales and earnings, the need for external financing for operations or capital expenditures, the results of pending litigation against the Company including lawsuits filed by mayors, attorneys general and other governmental entities and membership organizations, the impact of future firearms control and environmental legislation, and accounting estimates, any one or more of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected.Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made.The Company undertakes no obligation to publish revised forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date such forward-looking statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of subsequent unanticipated events.