Johns Manville Reports Record First Quarter Results /

Establishes Positive Momentum for 1999 DENVER (PROTEXT) - Johns Manville Corporation (NYSE: JM) today reported record results for the first quarter of 1999. Net income was $37.7 million, or 23 cents per diluted share, a 45 percent increase compared with underlying net income of $26 million, or 16 cents per share, in the first quarter of 1998. This increase is primarily due to accretion from recent acquisitions, continued sold-out conditions and price recovery in building insulation, improved performance in roofing and mats and fibers product lines, and productivity gains across the business. The effective tax rate in the first quarter of 1999 was 35 percent compared with an effective rate of approximately 26 percent in the year- ago period. Income from operations increased 44 percent to $65 million in the first quarter of 1999 compared with $45.1 million in the same period last year. Net sales increased 27 percent in the first quarter of 1999 to $495.8 million, compared with $389.3 million in the first quarter of 1998, setting a new quarterly sales record. Acquisitions contributed approximately $67 million to the sales increase in the first quarter, with the balance attributable to continued strong demand for building insulation, roofing and mats and fibers product lines. "I am very pleased with our first quarter results and believe this performance establishes positive momentum for the remainder of 1999," said Jerry Henry, Chairman and CEO. "Building insulation had an exceptional quarter and we are judiciously adding capacity to meet continued strong demand in this business. In Roofing, despite continued pricing pressures in roofing insulation products, we generated sales increases as the roofing season kicked in towards the end of the quarter. And, in Engineered Products, our spunbond acquisition is performing better than anticipated and our North American fiber glass mats and fibers business is operating at capacity. These factors, along with a continued focus on productivity improvements across the business, helped make this a record first quarter for Johns Manville. "The outlook for the remainder of 1999 is positive, with continued strength anticipated across most of the business," added Mr. Henry. "The filtration and European mats and fibers businesses are starting to show improvement, and we are cautiously optimistic that they will continue on this positive track as we move forward." Segment Review Insulation The Insulation segment, which includes building, commercial/industrial and OEM insulations, reported net sales of $193 million in the first quarter, up 17 percent compared with $164.4 million in the first quarter of 1998. This increase was primarily driven by strong volumes and a significantly improved pricing environment in building insulation, volume gains in pipe, air handling and OEM insulations, as well as significant sales increases from the company's ComfortTherm(TM) residential retail insulation product, due to a recent advertising campaign and strong sales force performance. Income from operations in Insulation more than doubled in the first quarter to $39.1 million, from $18.5 million in the comparable period last year. This increase is primarily due to strength in building insulation pricing, and productivity improvements across the segment. To continue to satisfy robust demand, Johns Manville has increased its low-cost, high-quality production of building insulation. The company expanded production at its McPherson, Kansas plant. The expansion, which involved adding a second building insulation module to an existing line, was completed in the first quarter, ahead of schedule and within budget. In addition, on March 31, 1999, Johns Manville announced that it will increase its fiber glass insulation production and enhance its insulation products line with the expansion of its plant in Winder, Georgia. The new production line, which is expected to become operational in July 2000, will allow the company to increase production capacity and will strengthen JM's position as a leader in building and commercial/industrial insulation markets. Roofing Systems The Roofing Systems segment reported higher sales in the first quarter of 1999, up 16 percent to $121.8 million, from $105.4 million in first quarter last year. Sales gains in roofing have been fueled predominantly by significant volume increases and by acquisitions completed over the last two years. In addition, roofing season activity, which typically begins in mid- March, was stronger than last year's first quarter due to more favorable weather conditions. Income from operations in this segment increased eight percent in the first quarter of 1999 to $4.7 million from $4.4 million in the comparable period of 1998, despite continued pricing pressures in polyisocyanurate foam roofing insulation. This situation is expected to improve with announced price increases in "polyiso" and other Roofing Systems product lines scheduled for the second quarter of 1999. Engineered Products The Engineered Products segment, which includes mats and fibers, glass fabrics and air filtration products, reported net sales of $190.5 million in the first quarter of 1999, a 51 percent increase compared with $125.9 million in the first quarter of 1998. This increase was largely fueled by acquisition- related gains from the Hoechst spunbond acquisition, completed on January 1, 1999. In addition, JM's North American fiber glass mats and fibers business is operating at capacity with particular strength in roofing mat and gypsum fiber, which added to sales growth. Income from operations for the quarter in the Engineered Products Group was $21.2 million, down five percent from $22.3 million in the same period last year. Despite significant earnings contribution from the spunbond acquisition and improved domestic mats and fibers performance, this decline is the result of continued weakness in JM's filtration and European businesses, due to soft economic markets in Europe and Asia in the first quarter. In addition, Engineered Products' results were adversely affected in the first quarter by a scheduled furnace rebuild and one-time costs associated with the spunbond acquisition. The furnace rebuild was completed successfully in the quarter and is now fully operational, allowing the company to meet strong demand in its North American mats and fibers product lines. "We are very pleased with the performance of our spunbond acquisition; it has exceeded our expectations in the first quarter," said Mr. Henry. "We closed the acquisition at the start of the quarter and the increase in our Engineered Products sales clearly illustrates its impact on the business." Johns Manville (NYSE: JM) is a leading manufacturer and marketer of premium-quality building products. The 141-year-old Denver-based company had sales of $1.8 billion in 1998. Johns Manville employs approximately 9,200 people and operates 54 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and China. Additional information can be found at www.jm.com. This news release contains "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws with respect to the company's financial results and its future operations and, as such, concern matters that are not historical facts. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in such statements. Important factors that could cause such differences are discussed in the company's periodic reports on Forms 10-Q and 10-K that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and are incorporated herein by reference. JOHNS MANVILLE CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF INCOME (Thousands of dollars except per share amounts) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended March 1, 1999 1998 Net Sales $495,758 389,336 Cost of Sales 359,929 293,588 Selling, General and Administrative 53,751 42,900 Research, Development and Engineering 9,714 7,615 Other Income (Expense), net (7,357) (103) Income from Operations 65,007 45,130 Interest Income 628 1,865 Interest Expense 7,644 12,058 Income before Income Taxes and Cumulative Effect of Accounting Change 57,991 34,937 Income Tax Expense 20,297 8,907 Income before Cumulative Effect of Accounting Change 37,694 26,030 Cumulative Effect of a Change in Accounting for Furnace Rebuilds, net of tax 27,409 Net Income $ 37,694 $53,439 Three Months Ended March 31, EARNINGS PER COMMON SHARE 1999 1998 Basic: Income before Cumulative Effect of Accounting Change $.24 $.16 Cumulative Effect of a Change in Accounting for Furnace Rebuilds, net of tax .17 Net Income $.24 $.33 Diluted: Income before Cumulative Effect of Accounting Change $.23 $.16 Cumulative Effect of a Change in Accounting for Furnace Rebuilds, net of tax .17 Net Income $.23 $.33 JOHNS MANVILLE CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BUSINESS SEGMENTS (Thousands of dollars) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended March 31, NET SALES 1999 1998 Insulation $192,982 $164,379 Roofing Systems 121,838 105,423 Engineered Products 190,548 125,852 Eliminations (9,610) (6,318) $495,758 $389,336 INCOME FROM OPERATIONS Insulation $ 39,105 $ 18,509 Roofing Systems 4,706 4,367 Engineered Products 21,196 22,254 $ 65,007 $ 45,130 (Millions of dollars) March 31, December 31, OTHER INFORMATION: 1999 1998 Cash and Marketable Securities $ 39.9 $ 16.5 Total Debt 571.9 591.9 Three Months Ended March 31, 1999 1998 Depreciation and Amortization $ 28.4 $ 23.3 Capital Expenditures (excluding acquisitions) 31.3 22.4 JOHNS MANVILLE CORPORATION Notes to Condensed Consolidated Statement of Income (Unaudited) (a) The Company's effective tax rates were approximately 35 percent and 26 percent in 1999 and 1998, respectively. These are lower than statutory rates primarily due to tax deductions the Company receives when the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust (the "Trust") pay claimants or makes distributions to a specific settlement fund from dividends paid on, or proceeds received from disposition of, Company stock held by the Trust. The Company benefited from such distribution to the settlement fund of dividends paid during both years and stock sale proceeds during 1998. (b) Effective January 1, 1998, the Company changed its method of accounting for glass furnace rebuild costs to the capitalization method from the allowance method. The cumulative effect of this change in accounting principle increased 1998 net income by $27.4 million, net of taxes of $17.9 million. Refer to the Company's 1998 Annual Report for additional information relative to its accounting policies, operations and financial position. ots Original Text Service: Johns Manville Corporation Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: Investors: John Cummings, 303-978-4914, or Media: Tom Rafferty, 303-978-2038, both of Johns Manville Corporation Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/527775.html or fax, 800- 758-5804, ext. 527775 Web site: http://www.jm.com Subscribers please note that material bearing the slug "PROTEXT" is not part of CTK's news service and is not to be published under the "CTK" slug. Protext is a commercial service providing distribution of press releases from clients, who are identified in the text of Protext reports and who bear full responsibility for their contents. PROTEXT