Elbit Systems Reports Record Second Quarter 2008 Results

HAIFA, Israel , August 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Elbit Systems Ltd. (the "Company") (NASDAQ: ESLT, TASE: ESLT), the international defense company, today reported its consolidated results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2008 .

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080408/300441)

The Company's backlog of orders as of June 30, 2008 totaled $5,050 million, as compared with $4,922 million as of March 31, 2008 . Approximately 71% of the backlog relates to orders outside of Israel . Approximately 63% of the Company's backlog as of June 30, 2008 , is scheduled to be performed during the second half of 2008 and during 2009.

As previously announced, during the second quarter the Company reported two events that in the aggregate had minimal total net effect on net profit. These were a one-time net after tax expense provision of $10 million, related to a court ruling against a U.S. subsidiary of the Company. The other was a significant contribution to net income, due to a high level of revenues generated from the short-term delivery contract revenues in the quarter.

In comparing financial results of the second quarter 2008 to the second quarter in 2007, the following should be noted. During the second quarter of 2007, the Company completed the acquisition of Tadiran Communications Ltd. Following the acquisition, the Company recorded in the second quarter of 2007 expenses of $27.1 million, comprised of $16.6 million in In-Process Research & Development write-off expenses recorded under operating expenses, and $10.5 million in restructuring expenses recorded under cost of goods sold.

Consolidated revenues for the second quarter of 2008 increased by 39.5% to $653.2 million, from $468.2 million in the second quarter of 2007.

Gross profit for the second quarter of 2008 increased by 55.4% to $197.4 million (30.2% of revenues), as compared with gross profit, excluding expenses related to the Tadiran acquisition, of $127.0 million (27.1% of revenues) in the second quarter of 2007.

Consolidated net income for the second quarter of 2008 increased by 31.3% to $31.2 million (4.8% of revenues), as compared with net income, excluding net expenses related to the Tadiran acquisition, of $23.7 million (5.1% of revenues) in the second quarter of 2007. Diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of 2008 were $0.73, as compared with $0.56, excluding expenses related to the Tadiran acquisition, for the second quarter of 2007.

Operating Cash flow during the first six months of 2008 was $129.8 million.

The President and CEO of Elbit Systems, Joseph Ackerman , commented: "I am pleased to report another quarter of strong growth with record financial results, and very significantly, our backlog grew and crossed the $5 billion milestone. While all parts of the business are performing in accordance with plans, our subsidiaries in particular performed well and were an important factor in our improved margins this quarter."

Mr. Ackerman continued, "Company-wide, we continue to improve with sustained growth on both the top and bottom line, driven both by strong organic growth as well as the contribution through our acquisitions. Our goal of building our business into a world-class and globally diversified defense company is ever more becoming an actuality, and we remain confident of our continued success into the long-term future."

The Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.20 per share for the second quarter of 2008. The dividend's record date is August 26, 2008 , and the dividend will be paid on September 8, 2008 , net of taxes and levies, at the rate of 16.88%.

Conference Call

The Company will also be hosting a conference call on the same day, Tuesday, August 12 , at 9am ET . On the call, management will review and discuss the results and will be available to answer questions.