Alcon Reports Strong Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2002 Results

Alcon Inc. a publié le communiqué de presse suivant (disponible en
anglais seulement):


Alcon Reports Strong Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2002 Results

* Fourth Quarter Global Sales Increased 11.7%
* Fourth Quarter Net Earnings Rose 49.1%

HUNENBERG, Switzerland, February 19, 2003, Alcon, Inc. (NYSE: ACL)
reported global sales of USD 749.2 million for the fourth quarter of
2002, an increase of 11.7 percent over sales in the fourth quarter of
2001, or 11.1 percent excluding the impact of foreign exchange
fluctuations. Net earnings for the fourth quarter of 2002 increased
49.1 percent to USD 85.0 million, or USD 0.26 per share on a diluted
basis, compared to USD 57.0 million, or USD 0.19 per share, for the
fourth quarter of 2001.
Adjusting net earnings in 2001 to eliminate the effect of goodwill
amortization and adjusting both years for certain non-recurring
charges, Alcon's pro-forma net earnings would have increased 39.1
percent. Alcon's pro-forma net earnings for the fourth quarter of
2002 would have been USD 101.7 million, or USD 0.33 per share.
Pro-forma net earnings for the fourth quarter of 2001 would have been
USD 73.1 million or USD 0.24 per share. For a more detailed
explanation of the adjustments and non-recurring items, see the
"Impact of Change in Accounting Standard and Non-Recurring Charges"
section of this press release.
For the full year 2002, Alcon reported global sales of USD 3,009.1
million, an increase of 9.5 percent over sales of USD 2,747.7 million
for the full year 2001, or 10.0 percent excluding the impact of
foreign exchange fluctuations. Net earnings for the full year 2002
increased 47.9 percent to USD 466.9 million, or USD 1.53 per share on
a diluted basis, compared to USD 315.6 million, or USD 1.05 per
share, for the full year 2001.
Adjusting net earnings in 2001 for the impact of goodwill
amortization and adjusting both years for certain non-recurring
charges, Alcon's pro-forma net earnings would have increased 35.0
percent for 2002. Alcon's pro-forma net earnings would have been USD
488.7 million for the full year 2002, or USD 1.62 per share on a
diluted basis. Pro-forma net earnings would have been USD 361.9
million for the full year 2001, or USD 1.21 per share. For a more
detailed explanation of the adjustments and non-recurring items, see
the "Impact of Change in Accounting Standard and Non-Recurring
Charges" section of this press release.
Gross profit for the fourth quarter of 2002 was USD 515.9 million, or
68.9 percent of sales, compared to USD 471.8 million, or 70.4 percent
of sales, in the prior year period. For the full year 2002, gross
profit was USD 2,116.4 million, or 70.3 percent of sales, compared to
USD 1,949.4 million, or 70.9 percent of sales for the full year 2001.
Inventory and equipment write-offs associated with the SKBM®
microkeratome recall had an adverse impact on gross profit margins in
the full year and fourth quarter of 2002. Please see the "Impact of
Change in Accounting Standard and Non-Recurring Charges" section of
this press release for further discussion of this factor. Other
factors negatively affecting gross profit margin for the full year
2002 included foreign exchange fluctuations, product mix within
business segments and the one-time charge related to changes made to
a deferred compensation plan.
Selling, General and Administrative expenses were USD 276.9 million,
or 37.0 percent of sales, for the fourth quarter of 2002, compared to
USD 238.6 million, or 35.6 percent of sales, for the fourth quarter
of 2001. The main factors that caused SG&A as a percent of sales to
rise in the fourth quarter of 2002 were customer refunds and other
costs associated with the SKBM® microkeratome recall, the continued
expansion of the U.S. pharmaceutical sales force and payments for the
termination of certain agreements related to surgical products. For
the full year 2002, SG&A expenses were USD 1,014.7 million, or 33.7
percent of sales, versus USD 953.7 million, or 34.7 percent of sales,
for 2001. The reduction of SG&A as a percent of sales for the full
year 2002 would have been greater except for the aforementioned
fourth quarter factors and a one-time charge related to changes made
to a deferred compensation plan.
Research and development expenses were USD 96.1 million in the fourth
quarter of 2002, a 19.1 percent increase over USD 80.7 million for
the fourth quarter of 2001. For the full year 2002, R&D expenses were
USD 323.5 million, an 11.6 percent increase over USD 289.8 million
for the full year 2001. R&D expenses increased as a result of higher
costs and funding of ongoing and new research projects and clinical
studies, especially those in the area of age-related macular
degeneration.
Alcon's effective tax rate was 23.7 percent in the fourth quarter of
2002, compared to 38.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2001. For the
full year 2002, the effective tax rate was 31.1 percent, compared to
38.6 percent in 2001. The decline in the effective tax rate for the
fourth quarter of 2002 compared to the fourth quarter of 2001
reflects the required adjustment to fourth quarter tax expense to
bring the prior estimate of full year tax expense into line with full
year actual income tax expense. The decline in the full year
effective tax rate was attributable mainly to the accounting change
eliminating goodwill amortization in 2002, a more favorable mix of
income earned in the company's various taxing jurisdictions and
settlements of several tax audits.
Tim Sear, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Alcon,
commented, "We are pleased to report strong fourth quarter and full
year results that exceeded both top and bottom line consensus
expectations. Our solid performance across our three business
segments reflects our ability to capitalize on our leadership
position in ophthalmology to expand sales and introduce new products.
We set challenging objectives for ourselves when we initiated our
IPO, and the combined efforts of all our people around the world have
allowed us to exceed them and bring value to our shareholders."
Mr. Sear continued, "We stand at a point in time where our pipeline
of new products has rarely been richer, and we look forward to the
success of several of these products in 2003 and many more in the
years to come. During the fourth quarter of 2002 we again expanded
our pharmaceutical sales force to support the continued growth of
Travatan® and in preparation for the launch of three new
pharmaceutical products in 2003."
For the full year 2003, the company expects sales to range between
USD 3,270 and USD 3,300 million and diluted earnings per share to
range between USD 1.82 and USD 1.85.
Alcon's board of directors will submit to shareholders at the
company's Annual General Meeting, to be held on May 20, 2003 at the
Congress Center Metalli Zug, Parkhotel Zug, Zug, Switzerland, a
proposal to pay a dividend equal to 0.45 Swiss francs per share. This
dividend, if approved by shareholders, is expected to be paid on June
4, 2003. At the US$ / Swiss franc exchange rate in effect on February
18, 2003, this would represent a dividend payout ratio of
approximately 22 percent of 2002 consolidated net earnings.


The full text of this release is available at www.ir.nestle.com and
at www.alconinc.com


For information, contact:
Doug MacHatton (Investor Relations)
800-400-8599
News media and other inquiries: Mary Dulle (Public Relations)
817-551-8058