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Rothmans 1st-quarter earnings rise on higher prices 

Rothmans Inc. (Toronto:ROC.TO) said late on Monday its earnings rose in the first quarter due mainly to higher selling prices introduced since the first quarter of last year

Rothmans, whose subsidiary Rothmans Benson & Hedges is Canada's No. 2 cigarette maker, said earnings for the period ended June 30 were C$22.6 million ($14.4 million), or 68 Canadian cents a share, up from earnings of C$15.2 million, or 46 Canadian cents, for the same period a year ago. Last year's results were hit by a special charge.

Analysts polled by the Multex research firm expected a profit of 60 Canadian cents per share.

Revenues were C$146.5 million, an increase of 9.4 percent from C$133.9 million the previous year.

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Rothmans Inc. Announces First Quarter Conference Call And Webcast 

Rothmans Inc. invites analysts and portfolio managers to participate in a conference call with management to discuss the results of the first quarter ended June 30, 2002. The results will be announced on July 29, 2002. Shareholders and media are also invited to listen to the call by telephone or by webcast through the company's investor website, www.rothmansinc.ca.

Conference Call:

Date: Tuesday, July 30, 2002

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Has Rothmans stellar rally lost its fire? 

Investing in recession-safe bad habit stocks has paid handsomely over the past two years, but Rothmans Inc.'s glow is starting to fade as analysts suggest the glory days are over for the seller of one-fifth of Canadian cigarettes.

Toronto-based cancer-stick maker Rothmans has seen its stock rise 164% since March, 2000, and over the past 12 months has left investors breathless with a 48% gain -- compared to a 6% slump in the Toronto Stock Exchange 300 composite index.

But the party is coming to an end, as the company grapples with fewer smokers, less room to cut costs, and sketchy growth prospects, Peter Rozenberg, a UBS Warburg analyst, said in a report yesterday. He downgraded the stock to a "hold" from a "buy" and dropped his estimate for fiscal 2003 profit by 6% to $2.65 a share.

The UBS move follows downgrades to "hold" by TD Newcrest in April, and by First Associates Investments in December. That leaves Merrill Lynch as one of the few bulls left.

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Rothmans reports record earnings, eyes buys 

Canadian cigarette maker Rothmans Inc. (Toronto:ROC.TO) said on Friday it was looking for acquisitions in Europe and North America after a break-up fee from a failed takeover bid lifted fourth-quarter profits to record levels.

Rothmans, whose subsidiary Rothmans Benson & Hedges is Canada's No. 2 cigarette maker, said late on Thursday that earnings for the quarter ended March 31 were C$27.6 million ($18 million), or 82 Canadian cents a share, up 65 percent from C$16.7 million, or 50 Canadian cents a share, for the same period a year ago.

The 2002 quarter included earnings of C$11.8 million, or 30 Canadian cents a share, as a break-up fee from Rothmans' failed bid for Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co.

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Rothmans shops again for acquisitions 

Toronto-based cigarette maker Rothmans Inc. is back on the hunt for acquisitions in North America and western Europe, six months after it was outbid by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. in its attempted buyout of Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co. Inc.

John Barnett, the company's chief executive officer, said in a conference call with analysts and investors that any acquisition must have "acceptable legal and litigation risks".

Analysts said that the alternative to an acquisition would be handing cash back to shareholders. "The Canadian market is continuing to shrink and if they can't put their capital to work somewhere else, the company will continue to shrink as well," said William Chisholm, an analyst with Dundee Securities Corp.

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Rothmans Inc. Reports Record Earnings For Fiscal 2002 

"Rothmans performed extremely well in fiscal 2002, " said John Barnett, President and Chief Executive Officer of Rothmans Inc. "The company continues to provide solid value for shareholders through increased earnings and a high dividend yield."

Fiscal 2002

For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2002, Rothmans increased earnings, excluding a merger break fee, by 14% to $81.2 million or $2.46 per share, compared with $71.5 million or $2.16 per share, for the previous year. A merger termination fee contributed additional earnings of $12.4 million or $0.31 per share.

Sales at 60%-owned Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc., net of excise duty and taxes, were $562.5 million, up from $538.2 million in the same period last year. Higher sales revenues reflected the continued impact of prices increases. By year-end, RBH slightly increased its composite market share to 21.6% from 21.3%.

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Rothmans Inc. Announces Conference Call And Webcast 

Rothmans Inc. invites analysts and portfolio managers to participate in a conference call with management to discuss the results of the fourth quarter and year ended March 31, 2002. The results will be announced before the market opens on May 24, 2002. Shareholders and media are also invited to listen to the call by telephone or by webcast through the company's investor website, www.rothmansinc.ca.

Date: Friday, May 24, 2002

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Rothmans Looks for Acquisitions  

Canadian tobacco firm Rothmans Inc., which lost a bidding war to R.J. Reynolds late last year when it attempted to acquire Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co., said that it will target assets in Western Europe and North America in the next 12 months, according to a Reuters report.

"Our eyes are open and our hands are on our wallets," CEO John Barnett said during a conference call for analysts about acquisition plans.

Analysts said an acquisition would not offer Rothmans, whose subsidiary Rothmans, Benson & Hedges is Canada's No. 2 cigarette maker, operational synergies because the company has no plants outside of Canada. Rothmans' primary reason to buy is to increase shareholder value, they added.

Barnett said consolidation in the global tobacco market would create acquisition opportunities.

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Rothmans gets cash for failed acquisition 

Rothmans Inc. may have lost round one in its bid to buy Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co., but it cleaned up in round two: It was paid $11.5-million (U.S.) in termination fees.

That sum was enough, Rothmans said in releasing third-quarter financial results, to raise profit by 1 cent (Canadian) a share in the third quarter and another 30 cents in the fourth quarter after the cost of the bid is deducted.

Rothmans' share price rose by 30 cents on the Toronto Stock Exchange yesterday to close at $31.80.

"We were very disappointed" when Rothmans lost Santa Fe in December to a competing bid by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc., said John Barnett, president and chief executive officer of the Toronto-based company. But that did not discourage him from pursuing further acquisitions.

"We have a pro-active program" to make another acquisition, he said in a conference call with analysts yesterday following the release of the company results.

He added that the company was aggressively looking for a North American tobacco company that will take Rothmans into the international market.

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Rothmans profits rise, says to look for buys 

Rothmans Inc. (Toronto:ROC.TO), trumped in last year's bidding war for a small U.S. tobacco firm, said on Friday it is still in the market, and is targeting deals in Western Europe and North America within the next 12 months.

``Our eyes are open and our hands are on our wallets,'' Chief Executive John Barnett told a conference call for analysts, asked about the firm's acquisition plans.

Rothmans said third-quarter profits rose 30 percent because of cost reductions and higher prices. But sales volumes fell again, suffering from those same higher prices and from a growing anti-smoking movement.

Rothmans said it earned C$24.6 million ($15.5 million), or 74 Canadian cents a share, in the quarter ended Dec. 31, up from a profit of C$18.9 million, or 57 Canadian cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.

Sales were C$150.7 million, up from C$135.5 million in the third quarter of the previous fiscal year.

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• Rothmans earns dlrs 24.6 million in fiscal Q3 

Cigarette maker Rothmans Inc., whose main operating subsidiary is being investigated by the Canadian police, earned sharply higher profits in its fiscal third quarter as the cigarette maker increased revenue and lowered its costs. . .

Rothmans also noted that the police are reviewing the business records of its 60 percent owned operating subsidiary Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. related to tobacco smuggling in the early 1990s.

The police are examining RBH's books from 1989-1996, a period of high tobacco taxes, rising Canadian exports to the United States and smuggling of cigarettes back into Canada from the U.S.

"During this period, exports of tobacco products by all three major Canadian tobacco manufacturers increased significantly," Rothmans said. "Smuggling of tobacco products into Canada also occurred during this time. These products included products manufactured by RBH."

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Rothmans says will hunt for buys in next 12 months 

Canadian cigarette maker Rothmans Inc. (Toronto:ROC.TO) said on Friday it will look for acquisitions in the next 12 months in North America and Europe.

``Our eyes are open and our hands are on our wallets,'' Chief Executive John Barnett told a conference call for analysts.

Experts say Rothmans needs to acquisitions to increase its sales, which have averaged 1 percent increases over the past four years. Late last year, Rothmans lost a bid to buy privately owned Santa Fe Natural Tobacco to giant R.J. Reynolds (NYSE:RJR).

Rothmans, whose subsidiary Rothmans Benson & Hedges is Canada's No. 2 cigarette maker, said on Friday its third-quarter profits rose sharply because of cost reductions and higher cigarette prices, despite declining volumes.

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Rothmans 3rd-quarter profit rises on costs, prices 

TORONTO, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Canadian cigarette maker Rothmans Inc. said on Friday its third-quarter profits rose sharply because of cost reductions and higher cigarette prices despite declining volumes.

Rothmans, whose subsidiary Rothmans Benson & Hedges is Canada's No. 2 cigarette maker, said it earned C$24.6 million, or 74 Canadian cents a share, in the quarter ended Dec. 31. That was better than a profit of C$18.9 million, or 57 Canadian cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.

Sales were C$150.7 million, up from C$135.5 million during the third quarter of the previous fiscal year.

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Rothmans Inc. Reports Increased Earnings In Third Quarter And Increase In Annual Dividend To $1.50 Per Share 

Rothmans Inc. today reported increased earnings for the third quarter of Fiscal 2002, which ended December 31, 2001. Earnings increased to $24.6 million, or $0.74 per share on a fully diluted basis, from $18.9 million or $0.57 in the same period of last year.

For the latest quarter, Rothmans reported sales, net of excise duty and taxes, of $148.6 million up 10% from $134.8 million for the same quarter of Fiscal 2001. Higher cash balances, partially offset by lower interest rates, generated investment income of $1.5 million in the third quarter compared with $629,000 a year earlier.

Sales revenues rose in the third quarter at the Company's 60%-owned operating subsidiary Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. from a year ago as selling price increases more than offset industry volume declines. RBH's composite market share was 22.2% for the third quarter, essentially even with a year earlier and higher than the 21.5% share recorded in the second quarter.

``The third quarter demonstrated that RBH's focus on the fundamentals of the business - increasing revenues and reducing costs - is continuing to deliver value for Rothmans' shareholders,'' said John Barnett, President and CEO of Rothmans Inc.

Rothmans Inc. earnings for the first nine months of Fiscal 2002 were $63.8 million or $1.92 per share, on a fully diluted basis, compared with $54.8 million or $1.65 for the same period of Fiscal 2001.

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A Mayor-Elect With Money Tells Friends to Ante Up / His Smoke Signals From Canada  

When John Barnett, chief executive of the Canadian company Rothmans, made a friendly deal in late September to buy the Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, he started smoking Santa Fe's additive-free brand, Natural American Spirit, forsaking Rothmans's own Benson & Hedges. . .

Rothmans, one-tenth the size of Reynolds, could sweeten its offer, but that was considered unlikely. In a brief telephone interview last Thursday, Mr. Barnett all but announced that the bidding was over. He said he was smoking Benson & Hedges again.   

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