Brady Corporation Reports Fiscal 2013 First Quarter Results

Brady Corporation (NYSE: BRC) (“Brady” or “Company”), a world leader in identification solutions, today reported its financial results for the fiscal 2013 first quarter ended October 31, 2012.

Quarter Ended October 31, 2012 Financial Results:

Sales for the fiscal 2013 first quarter ended October 31, 2012, were down 3.4 percent to $337.6 million compared to $349.5 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2012. Organic sales were down 1.9 percent, the impact of foreign currency translation decreased sales by 2.1 percent, and acquisitions, net of divestitures added 0.6 percent. By segment, organic sales decreased 0.7 percent in the Americas, 3.2 percent in EMEA and 2.5 percent in the Asia-Pacific region.

Net income in the fiscal 2013 first quarter was down 16.9 percent to $27.2 million compared to $32.7 million in the same quarter last year. Excluding the losses in the first quarter of fiscal 2013 from the sales of Brady Medical, a medical die-cut business headquartered in Texas, and Varitronics, a business headquartered in Minnesota serving the education market, net income was down 7.1 percent to $30.4 million.

Earnings per diluted Class A Common Share were down 14.5 percent to $0.53 in the first quarter of fiscal 2013 compared to $0.62 in the same quarter last year. Diluted Earnings per Class A Common Share excluding losses on the sales of businesses were down 4.8 percent to $0.59 in the first quarter of fiscal 2013.

Commentary and Guidance:

“I am pleased with our performance in the quarter as our business in the Americas and Asia-Pacific showed improved results over last quarter. In Asia in particular we benefited from several new product wins in the mobile handset and tablet computer space,” said Brady’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Frank M. Jaehnert. “Europe continues to be impacted by a difficult economic environment, and we are shifting resources to higher growth opportunities in Central Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. In addition, we are continuing to prune our portfolio of businesses. As we look to the remainder of fiscal 2013, we believe there is limited likelihood that the macro-economy will provide a tailwind. We therefore will continue on the path to create our own growth story by further investing in geographic expansion; expanding globally in certain focus markets, such as aerospace and mass transit, chemical, oil and gas, and food and beverage processing; new product development; customer conversion; and expansion of our digital capabilities to provide the best overall buying experience for our customers.”

“We anticipate approximately flat organic sales growth for the full fiscal year 2013, with sales growth in the second half of the year driven by our initiatives,” said Brady’s Chief Financial Officer Thomas J. Felmer. “We are reiterating our full-year fiscal 2013 earnings per diluted Class A Common Share guidance of between $2.20 and $2.40, exclusive of after-tax restructuring charges and gains or losses on the sales of any businesses. This guidance is based on exchange rates as of October 31, 2012, and a full-year income tax rate in the mid-to-upper 20 percent range.”

A webcast regarding Brady’s fiscal 2013 first quarter financial results will be available at www.bradycorp.com beginning at 9:30 a.m. Central Time today.

Brady Corporation is an international manufacturer and marketer of complete solutions that identify and protect premises, products and people. Brady’s products help customers increase safety, security, productivity and performance and include high-performance labels and signs, safety devices, printing systems and software, and precision die-cut materials. Founded in 1914, the company has millions of customers in electronics, telecommunications, manufacturing, electrical, construction, education, medical and a variety of other industries. Brady is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and as of July 31, 2012 employed approximately 6,900 people at operations in the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. Brady’s fiscal 2012 sales were approximately $1.32 billion. Brady stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BRC. More information is available on the Internet at www.bradycorp.com.

In this news release, statements that are not reported financial results or other historic information are “forward-looking statements.” These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, the Company’s future financial position, business strategy, targets, projected sales, costs, earnings, capital expenditures, debt levels and cash flows, and plans and objectives of management for future operations. The use of words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “should,” “project” or “plan” or similar terminology are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain and are subject to risks, assumptions, and other factors, some of which are beyond Brady’s control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. For Brady, uncertainties arise from: the length or severity of the current worldwide economic downturn or timing or strength of a subsequent recovery; increased usage of e-commerce allowing for ease of price transparency; future financial performance of major markets Brady serves, which include, without limitation, telecommunications, hard disk drive, manufacturing, electrical, construction, laboratory, education, governmental, public utility, computer, and transportation; future competition; changes in the supply of, or price for, parts and components; increased price pressure from suppliers and customers; Brady’s ability to retain significant contracts and customers; fluctuations in currency rates versus the U.S. dollar; risks associated with international operations; difficulties associated with exports; risks associated with obtaining governmental approvals and maintaining regulatory compliance; Brady’s ability to develop and successfully market new products; difficulties in making and integrating acquisitions; risks associated with newly acquired businesses; risks associated with restructuring plans; environmental, health and safety compliance costs and liabilities; technology changes and potential security violations to the Company’s information technology systems; Brady’s ability to maintain compliance with its debt covenants; increase in our level of debt; potential write-offs of Brady’s substantial intangible assets; unforeseen tax consequences; and numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive, and regulatory nature contained from time to time in Brady’s U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including, but not limited to, those factors listed in the “Risk Factors” section within Item 1A of Part I of Brady’s Form 10-K for the year ended July 31, 2012.

These uncertainties may cause Brady’s actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in its forward-looking statements. Brady does not undertake to update its forward-looking statements except as required by law.