Koppers Holdings Inc. (KOP), a maker of carbon compounds and treated wood products, Wednesday lowered its 2008 annual profit guidance for growth in Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EPS, hurt by changes in end-market demand and certain product pricing.
The company lowered its guidance for adjusted EPS growth to a range of 25% to 29% from earlier provided guidance ranging from 37% to 41%.
Koppers now expects adjusted EBITDA growth in the range of 6% to 8%. Adjusted EBITDA growth was expected in the range of 14% to 17% earlier.
The company currently expects unadjusted fourth-quarter operating income of $0 - 2 million and a net loss from continuing operations of $12 to $14 million for the fourth quarter.
The company expects fourth-quarter net income in the range of $72 million to $74, including the gain on the sale of Monessen. An approximate incremental charge of $17 million negatively impacted fourth-quarter results.
On average, five analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial currently expect fourth-quarter earnings of $0.16 per share. Analysts estimate typically exclude special items such as one-time charges or expenses.
The company said volatility in product pricing was related primarily to the products that are impacted by petroleum prices, including carbon black feedstocks and phthalic anhydride. Out of the incremental charges of $17 million incurred during the fourth quarter, $12 million of charges are related to inventory write-downs to net realizable value and incremental LIFO charges.
Walter W. Turner, President and Chief Executive Officer, Koppers, said, "We expect that the current volatility will continue in 2009 but that these markets will eventually return to more normalized levels. In the interim, we have implemented various initiatives across the company to reduce costs, optimize operational efficiencies and further improve on our current strong balance sheet. We will continue to monitor our operations to further optimize both profitability and cash flows as market conditions evolve due to the economic downturn. "
KOP closed Wednesday's regular trading session at $18.01, up $1.26 or 7.52% on a volume of 378k shares and in the after hours trading, KOP is trading at $17.00, down $1.01 or 5.61%
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