A legal settlement connected to a terminated acquisition as well as restructuring costs cut into Banta Corp.'s earnings in the second quarter of 2003 despite increased sales, the company said yesterday.
Banta's sales were up to $337 million in the quarter, compared with $332 million in the same period last year. But net earnings for the quarter were $7.3 million versus $13.4 million in 2002.
Charges affecting Banta's second-quarter performance included a realignment of its consumer catalog and supply-chain management operations and the settlement of a lawsuit stemming from its terminated acquisition of Mentor Media Ltd., the company said.
The settlement, announced July 26, resulted in a one-time charge of $4.6 million. That charge, combined with the restructuring, cost Banta $10.6 million pretax and had an after-tax impact of $6.2 million, the company said.
Banta, Menasha, WI, said it encountered delays in obtaining environmental permits as part of the modernization of its consumer catalog platform. Transfer of existing equipment to facilities in St. Paul, MN, and Minneapolis were delayed, constraining Banta's print capacity, and the company said it expected that its third-quarter 2003 results would be hurt.
