Lifetime Brands, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2013 Results

Lifetime Brands, Inc. (NasdaqGS: LCUT), a leading global provider of branded kitchenware, tabletop and other products used in the home, today reported its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2013.

• Consolidated net sales for the quarter were $98.7 million, a decrease of $10.3 million, or 9.4%, as compared to $109.0 million for the corresponding period in 2012.
• Net loss for the quarter was $632 thousand, as compared to net income of $1.3 million for the corresponding period in 2012.
• Diluted net income (loss) per common share was $(0.05), as compared to $0.11 for the corresponding period in 2012.

Lifetime’s Board of Directors has authorized a program to repurchase up to $10 million of the Company’s common stock. The repurchase authorization permits the Company to effect the repurchases from time to time through open market purchases and privately negotiated transactions. The timing and amounts of any shares repurchased by the Company will be determined based on its evaluation of market conditions and other relevant factors, and may be modified, extended or terminated at any time. The Company will not repurchase shares of its common stock until after the Company's trading window opens on Monday, May 6, 2013.

Jeffrey Siegel, Lifetime’s Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, remarked,

“Lifetime’s first quarter financial results were in line with our expectations. As I previously have noted, comparing quarterly results with prior periods can be misleading, as our sales in any one period can be heavily influenced by the timing of promotions and the roll-out of new programs.

“Revenues in the first quarter included net sales of $3.4 million attributable to Fred^® & Friends, which we acquired in December 2012.

“Net sales at Creative Tops decreased by $3.8 million, compared to the 2012 period, due to the effects of the weak U.K. economy and the imposition of higher duties on ceramic products by the European Union.

“Our outlook for the year remains unchanged. We continue to foresee 2013 net sales increasing by 4-6%, based on modest improvements in the outlook for the U.S. economy and in the U.K., the roll-out of new programs and promotions and the inclusion of Fred^® & Friends. We expect this growth to occur primarily in the third and fourth quarters.

“The new stock repurchase program affirms our commitment to delivering shareholder value, as well as our continued confidence in Lifetime’s business strategy to generate long-term, profitable growth by developing our brands, delivering innovative new products, investing in our systems and pursuing acquisitions that add new product categories or provide opportunities to expand into new international markets.”

Conference Call

The Company has scheduled a conference call for Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. ET. The dial-in number for the conference call is (877) 703-6110 or (857) 244-7309, passcode #75101690. A replay of the call will also be available through May 5, 2013 and can be accessed by dialing (888) 286-8010 or (617) 801-6888, conference ID #99844424. A live webcast of the conference call will be broadcast in the Investor Relations section of the Company’s web site, www.lifetimebrands.com. For those who cannot listen to the live broadcast, an audio replay of the call will also be available on the site.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This earnings release contains non-GAAP financial measures. For purposes of Regulation G, a non-GAAP financial measure is a numerical measure of a company's historical or future financial performance, financial position or cash flows that excludes amounts, or is subject to adjustments that have the effect of excluding amounts, that are included in the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP in the statements of income, balance sheets, or statements of cash flows of the Company; or includes amounts, or is subject to adjustments that have the effect of including amounts, that are excluded from the most directly comparable measure so calculated and presented. Pursuant to the requirements of Regulation G, the Company has provided reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP measures are provided because management of the Company uses these financial measures in evaluating the Company's on-going financial results and trends. Management uses this non-GAAP information as an indicator of business performance.

Forward-Looking Statements

In this press release, the use of the words “believe,” "could," "expect," "may," "positioned," "project," "projected," "should," "will," "would" or similar expressions is intended to identify forward-looking statements that represent the Company’s current judgment about possible future events. The Company believes these judgments are reasonable, but these statements are not guarantees of any events or financial results, and actual results may differ materially due to a variety of important factors. Such factors might include, among others, the Company’s ability to comply with the requirements of its credit agreements; the availability of funding under such credit agreements; the Company’s ability to maintain adequate liquidity and financing sources and an appropriate level of debt; changes in general economic conditions which could affect customer payment practices or consumer spending; the impact of changes in general economic conditions on the Company’s customers; changes in demand for the Company’s products; shortages of and price volatility for certain commodities; significant changes in the competitive environment and the effect of competition on the Company’s markets, including on the Company’s pricing policies, financing sources and an appropriate level of debt.

Lifetime Brands, Inc.

Lifetime Brands, Inc. is a leading global provider of branded kitchenware, tabletop and other products used in the home. The Company markets its products under such well-known kitchenware brands as Farberware^®, KitchenAid^®, CasaMōda^®, Cuisinart^®, Cuisine de France^®, Fred^®, Guy Fieri^®, Hoffritz^®, Kizmos™, Misto^®, Pedrini^®, Roshco^®, Sabatier^®, Savora™ and Vasconia^®; respected tabletop brands such as Mikasa^®, Pfaltzgraff^®, Creative Tops^®, Gorham^®, International^® Silver, Kirk Stieff^®, Sasaki^®, Towle^® Silversmiths, Tuttle^®, Wallace^®, V&A^® and Royal Botanic Gardens Kew^®; and home solutions brands, including Elements^®, Melannco^®, Kamenstein^® and Design for Living™. The Company also provides exclusive private label products to leading retailers worldwide.

The Company’s corporate website is www.lifetimebrands.com.

Consolidated EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure that the Company defines as net income, adjusted to exclude undistributed equity earnings, income taxes, interest, depreciation and amortization, stock compensation expense and acquisition related expenses, as shown in the table above.