Park Electrochemical to pursue sale of printed-circuit materials unit

Park Electrochemical Corp. has gone beyond an "evaluation" of its printed-circuit materials business and is pursuing a sale, the company's chief executive said Monday.

Speaking in a conference call after Park released fourth quarter earnings, CEO Brian Shore said the company's Manhattan investment bank, Greenhill & Co., was "in a process regarding the sale of the business."

In January, Park had announced it was conducting a "strategic evaluation" of the printed-circuit unit.

Shares of Park climbed 4.5 percent Monday to close at $18.39.  The stock has gained about 24 percent in the past 12 months.

The Melville maker of composite materials for aerospace markets and printed circuit materials for telecommunications and internet infrastructure reported net sales of $27.8 million for the quarter ended Feb. 26.

That compared to net sales of $27.6 million in the previous year's period.

In the 2018 quarter, the printed-circuit business accounted for sales of $17.9 million, or 64 percent of total sales, chief financial officer P. Matthew Farabaugh said in the conference call.

The printed-circuit business has generated most of the company's sales, but it faces stiff competition from rivals in the Far East.

In the conference call, Shore said the transition by telecommunications companies to next-generation, higher speed 5G technology will benefit the printed-circuit business.

The aerospace business accounted for $9.9 million, or 36 percent, of sales, Farabaugh said.

Overall fourth-quarter net income of $18 million, or 88 cents per diluted share, was bolstered by a $17.8 million one-time benefit related to the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in December.

That compares to net income of $2.5 million, or 12 cents per diluted share, for the previous year's quarter.

Shore said revenue booked in nine of the 13 weeks so far in the first fiscal quarter indicated that the aerospace business will be little changed from the fourth quarter, while the printed-circuit business "should be up considerably." 

As of Feb. 26, Park had 426 employees, with 370 working in manufacturing and 56 in executive, sales and marketing, research and development and general administrative roles, according to a government filing.