LCA Vision, Inc.
CINCINNATI--(BW HealthWire)--May 2, 2001--LCA-Vision Inc. (Nasdaq: LCAV) (Nasdaq Europe: LCAV), a leading provider of value-priced laser vision correction services across the U.S., today reported financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2001.
For the first quarter of 2001, the company posted a net profit of $1,299,000, or $0.03 per basic and diluted share, the highest quarterly net profit since LCA-Vision was founded.
For the fourth quarter of 2000, the company posted a net loss of $1,559,000, or a loss of $0.03 per share, while in the year-ago first quarter, LCA-Vision reported net income of $62,000, or $0.00 per basic and diluted share.
Laser vision correction revenues for the first quarter of 2001 rose 56% to $22,445,000, compared with $14,396,000 in the fourth quarter of 2000, and were up 24% compared with $18,151,000 in the first quarter of 2000.
First quarter 2001 average price realization per procedure rose to $897 and the contribution margin increased to 80.0%, compared with an average price realization per procedure of $877 and a contribution margin of 78.6% in the fourth quarter of 2000. Contribution margin is calculated by deducting medical, professional and license fees from laser refractive surgery revenues.
Net cash provided by operations in the first quarter of $2,719,000 exceeded the combined capital expenditures of $727,000 and repurchase of $1,066,000 of common stock. As a result, cash and short-term investments increased to $28,551,000 at March 31, 2001, from $28,318,000 at Dec. 31, 2000.
"Our strong 2001 first quarter results demonstrate the ability of LCA-Vision to meet the company's financial goals by focusing on three key profit drivers: the cost of patient acquisition, average price realization and capacity utilization," said Thomas E. Wilson, chief executive officer of LCA-Vision. "We remain on target to complete in excess of 100,000 procedures in 2001, and to deliver full-year earnings in line with analyst expectations of $0.10 to $0.16 per share. New center openings in the second half of this year will build the foundation for continued gains in market share and profitability in 2002 and beyond."
In December 2000, the board of directors authorized a repurchase of an additional five million shares of common stock. Of that authorization, the company has repurchased 504,687 shares at an average price of $2.60 through April 30, 2001.
LCA-Vision has scheduled an investor conference call regarding this announcement to be held today, beginning at 10 a.m. Eastern Time. Individual investors are invited to listen to the conference call over the Internet, by going to the "Investors" section of the company's Website at www.LasikPlus.com. A replay will begin shortly after the call has ended and will be available for 30 days.
LCA-Vision owns and operates 33 LasikPlus value-priced laser vision correction facilities in the U.S., plus one center in Canada and a joint venture in Europe.
For additional information, visit the company's Website at www.LasikPlus.com.