OM Group Increases Outlook for 2006 Second Quarter EPS
PR Newswire - July 24, 2006 07:19
--2006 Second Quarter Conference Call & Webcast Scheduled for August 4th--
CLEVELAND, July 24, 2006 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- OM Group, Inc. (NYSE: OMG) today announced that it now expects diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2006 to be approximately $1.80, up significantly from its previous projected earnings of $0.99 - $1.09 per diluted share.
The primary factors driving the company's marked improvement in its second quarter results include: the well- documented rise in base metal prices, particularly nickel; a lower than anticipated effective income tax rate for the quarter due to a higher proportion of the company's income earned in low tax jurisdictions and favorable foreign currency impacts; and higher sale volumes in the company's Specialties Group.
The company also noted that the current and previous earnings expectations included the sale of OM Group's investment in Weda Bay Minerals, Inc., which resulted in cash proceeds and a gain of $12.2 million, or $0.41 per share.
OM Group plans to release its financial results for the second quarter of 2006 and its expectations for the third quarter before the market opens on August 4, 2006. The company plans to discuss these results on a conference call and live audio broadcast at 10:00 a.m. (ET) on August 4, 2006. Investors may access the live audio broadcast by logging on to
http://www.omgi.com/investorrelations/webcasts.htm.
A copy of management's presentation materials will be available on the company's Web site at the time of the call. The company recommends visiting its Web site at least 15 minutes prior to the webcast to download and install any necessary software. Also, a webcast audio replay will be available on the "Investor Audio Archive" page of the company's Web site, approximately three hours after the call.
ABOUT OM GROUP, INC.
OM Group is a leading, vertically integrated international producer and marketer of value-added, metal-based specialty chemicals and related materials. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, OM Group operates manufacturing facilities in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. For more information, visit the company's Web site at
http://www.omgi.com.