Airgas Reports Fiscal First Quarter Earnings

Airgas, Inc. (NYSE: ARG), the largest U.S. distributor of industrial, medical, and specialty gases, and related supplies, today reported strong performance in sales, operating income, and earnings for its first quarter ended June 30, 2012, despite moderating business trends and the impact of disruption within its helium supply chain during the quarter.

First quarter adjusted earnings per diluted share* were a record $1.13, an increase of 13% from $1.00 in the prior year. Results included SAP implementation costs and depreciation expense of $0.10 and $0.08 per diluted share for the current and prior year quarters, respectively. In addition, lower helium sales volumes driven by the inability of suppliers to meet their helium supply commitments to the Company during the quarter reduced earnings by $0.04 per diluted share, some of which was anticipated.

		First Quarter
		FY2013				FY2012				% Change
Earnings per diluted share (GAAP)		$	1.15			$	0.94			22	%
Restructuring and other special charges			0.05				0.10
Gain on sale of businesses			(0.07	)			-
Costs (benefits) related to unsolicited takeover attempt			-				(0.05	)
Multi-employer pension plan withdrawal charges			-				0.01
Adjusted earnings per diluted share (non-GAAP)		$	1.13			$	1.00			13	%

“Our earnings were strong, notwithstanding the significant incremental challenges we faced in our helium supply chain during the quarter,” said Airgas Chief Executive Officer Peter McCausland. “The slow and steady growth we had been seeing across our customer base through May moderated in June. We are paying close attention to our business trends and tightening controls on our operating expenses. Though we are appropriately cautious about near-term conditions, we remain optimistic about the long-term prospects for the U.S. manufacturing and energy industries and our ability to leverage our unique value proposition and unrivaled platform to drive growth in these and other key customer segments.”

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