Garmin Reports Second Quarter 2011 Results with Continued Strong Cash Flow Generation

SCHAFFHAUSEN, Switzerland–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Garmin Ltd. (Nasdaq: GRMN) today announced second quarter results for the period ended June 25, 2011.

Second Quarter 2011 Financial highlights:

• Total revenue of $674 million, down 8% from $729 million in second quarter 2010 with four segments posting growth:
  • Automotive/Mobile segment revenue decreased 19% to $363 million
  • Outdoor segment revenue increased 1% to $81 million
  • Fitness segment revenue increased 25% to $78 million
  • Aviation segment revenue increased 13% to $73 million
  • Marine segment revenue increased 6% to $79 million
• Geographically, both Europe and Asia contributed growth in second quarter 2011:
  • North America revenue was $358 million compared to $455 million, down 21%
  • Europe revenue was $253 million compared to $226 million, up 12%
  • Asia revenue was $63 million compared to $48 million, up 31%
• Units shipped decreased 6% year-over-year to 3.8 million units
• Gross margin improved sequentially and decreased year-over-year to 48% in the current quarter compared to 47% in first quarter 2011 and 54% in second quarter 2010
• Operating margin declined on a year-over-year basis to 20% compared to 28% in second quarter 2010 but improved sequentially from 15% in first quarter of 2011
• Diluted earnings per share (EPS) decreased 16% to $0.56 from $0.67 in second quarter 2010; pro forma diluted EPS decreased 26% to $0.63 from $0.85 in the same quarter in 2010. (Pro forma EPS excludes the impact of foreign currency transaction gain or loss.)
• Free cash flow generation of $196 million in second quarter 2011

Year-to-Date 2011 Financial highlights:

• Total revenue of $1.18 billion, up 2% from $1.16 billion year-to-date 2010
  • Automotive/Mobile segment revenue decreased 6% to $627 million
  • Outdoor segment revenue increased 6% to $147 million
  • Fitness segment revenue increased 27% to $134 million
  • Aviation segment revenue increased 9% to $142 million
  • Marine segment revenue increased 13% to $130 million
• Europe and Asia contributed revenue growth while North America declined:
  • North America revenue was $638 million compared to $709 million, down 10%
  • Europe revenue was $424 million compared to $360 million, up 18%
  • Asia revenue was $120 million compared to $91 million, up 32%
• Units shipped increased 2% year-over-year to 6.3 million units
• Gross margin decreased to 47% in 2011 compared to 54% in 2010
• Operating margin decreased on a year-over-year basis to 17% compared to 25% in 2010
• Diluted EPS increased 22% to $1.05 from $0.86 in year-to-date 2010; pro forma diluted EPS decreased 14% to $1.06 from $1.23 in year-to-date 2010 (Pro forma EPS excludes the impact of foreign currency transaction gain or loss.)
• Free cash flow generation of $397 million year-to-date

Note: In accordance with GAAP, the Company is deferring significant revenue and the related costs associated with high margin sales of certain products bundled with content and services over their economic lives. In the second quarter of 2011, the Company deferred, net of amortization of previous deferrals, $62 million of revenue, $11 million of costs, and approximately $0.23 of diluted EPS, net of taxes, into future years. This compares to second quarter of 2010 net deferrals of $23 million of revenue, $4 million of costs, and approximately $0.08 of diluted EPS, net of taxes. A table outlining the impact of this net deferral in both 2011 and 2010 is included for reference. Results have not been adjusted unless specifically stated as such.

Business highlights:

• Sold 3.8 million units in the second quarter of 2011, with unit growth in both Europe and Asia.
• Maintained strong PND market share position in North America and grew market share across Europe.
• Delivered our new fitness device – the Forerunner® 610 fitness watch which has been met with strong demand and exceptional reviews.
• Received shareholder approval for payment of a quarterly dividend with the first installment paid on June 30.
• Acquired Navigon® AG, a privately held PND and OEM solution provider based in Hamburg Germany.
• Acquired Tri-Tronics® Inc., a leading provider of electronic dog training equipment.

Executive overview from Dr. Min Kao, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer:

“In the second quarter, revenue was slightly ahead of our expectations and we delivered strong free cash flow generation but margins fell short driven by increased deferral of high margin revenues associated with bundled product offerings and increased operating costs due to bad debt and legal expenses,” said Dr. Min Kao, chairman and chief executive officer of Garmin Ltd. “Based on our results in the first half of 2011, we expect to exceed our full year guidance for revenues with $2.5 to $2.6 billion of revenues including contributions from both Navigon and Tri-Tronics. Due primarily to the acceleration of net deferred revenues associated with our bundled product offerings, we now expect our EPS to be in the range of $2.00 – $2.15 per share. Although this falls short of prior expectations, we have improving confidence in the long-term trajectory of both our revenues and earnings with approximately $1.00 of deferred EPS on the balance sheet currently.

The automotive/mobile segment posted a 19% revenue decline in the second quarter as OEM growth was offset by significant volume declines in the North American PND market and product mix shifting toward bundled offerings increasing our deferred revenues for this region. Our average selling price (ASP) in the quarter increased 1%, when adjusting for net deferred revenue. While the reported operating margin for the segment remains low at 7%, we note that profitability of the segment is approximately 18% when adjusted for net deferred revenue and costs associated with bundled products. In addition, the operating margin was negatively impacted by one-time bad debt and legal costs in the quarter of approximately $8 million.

In addition, we have now completed the acquisition of Navigon AG. This acquisition is attractive to Garmin for three primary reasons. First, Navigon is a contender in the OEM space with a growing customer list. Secondly, their PND market share in Europe is expected to strengthen our position in that geography. Finally, they offer compelling mobile applications that have been well received. We look forward to integrating our respective strengths to build an even stronger global presence.

The outdoor segment posted revenue growth of 1% in the second quarter ahead of the launch of a refreshed product line-up in the third quarter including updates to the eTrex®, Rino® and Astro®. We expect these products to drive improved growth in the third quarter. Also, we have now completed our acquisition of Tri-Tronics, a leading provider of electronic dog training equipment. This acquisition allows us to further our product offerings to dog owners and more quickly innovate for this growing market.

The fitness segment posted revenue growth of 25% with strong results from our high-end Forerunner 610 and Edge® 800. Our products are doing well across the value spectrum and around the globe. We believe this category remains underpenetrated, offering numerous opportunities for long-term growth. We remain focused on innovation, in both form factor and function that will allow us to maintain our position at the top of the GPS-enabled fitness market.

The marine segment posted revenue growth of 6% with our new series of echo™ fishfinders doing well in the market. These products have a lower margin profile than our chartplotters and networked solutions, which has put some pressure on the operating profit of the segment. We expect the margins to improve as product mix normalizes throughout the remainder of the year.

The aviation segment posted revenue growth of 13% as the retrofit market improved year-over-year with the launch of our GTN™ 650 and 750 panel mount avionics. As we have said for a number of quarters, the aviation industry and OEM production, in particular, remains relatively flat and we expect recovery to lag that of the overall economy. Nevertheless, our strategic growth initiatives continue and our certifications into new cockpits remain on-target which will contribute to accelerating growth in future years.”

Financial overview from Kevin Rauckman, Chief Financial Officer:

“Revenue growth in four of our five segments illustrates the ongoing diversification of our business model,” said Kevin Rauckman, Chief Financial Officer of Garmin Ltd. “We now have five distinct segments, each contributing to the earnings and strong free cash flow generation of the organization.

Gross margin for the overall business in the second quarter decreased year-over-year to 48%. In 2010, we benefited from the refinement of our warranty estimate which contributed 290 basis points to gross margin across the segments. Deferred gross profit of $51 million compared to $19 million in the year-ago quarter, associated with product mix shifting toward bundled products, was also a primary driver with a negative impact of 200 basis points year-over-year.

Operating margin was 20% in the quarter. Total operating expenses increased by $1 million on a year-over-year basis. Advertising and research and development expenses decreased by $8 and $3 million, respectively. Other selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $12 million, or 16%, driven primarily by bad debt expense, legal costs and product support costs. Approximately $8 million of these expenses are one-time in nature.

We generated $196 million of free cash flow in the second quarter of 2011. We had a cash and marketable securities balance of almost $2.5 billion at the end of the quarter, of which approximately $155 million was used to pay the June 30 dividend installment of $0.80 per share.”

2011 Full-Year Guidance

We now expect revenue in 2011 between $2.5 and $2.6 billion with the improvement driven primarily by the acquisitions of Navigon and Tri-Tronics. While slightly increasing our revenue range, we are reducing our EPS range due to the accelerating deferral of high margin revenues and associated costs. These factors and an anticipated effective tax rate of approximately 12% result in a forecasted 2011 EPS of $2.00 – $2.15.

Non-GAAP Measures

Pro Forma net income (earnings) per share

Management believes that net income per share before the impact of foreign currency translation gain or loss and other one-time items is an important measure. The majority of the Company’s consolidated foreign currency gain or loss results from transactions involving the Euro, the British Pound Sterling and the Taiwan Dollar and from the exchange rate impact of the significant cash and marketable securities, receivables and payables held in U.S. dollars at the end of each reporting period by the Company’s various non U.S. subsidiaries. Such gain or loss is required under GAAP because the functional currency of the subsidiaries differs from the currency in which various assets and liabilities are held. However, there is minimal cash impact from such foreign currency gain or loss. Accordingly, earnings per share before the impact of foreign currency translation gain or loss allow an assessment of the Company’s operating performance before the non-cash impact of the position of the U.S. Dollar versus other currencies, which permits a consistent comparison of results between periods.

The following table contains a reconciliation of GAAP net income per share to pro forma net income per share.

Free cash flow

Management believes that free cash flow is an important financial measure because it represents the amount of cash provided by operations that is available for investing and defines it as operating cash flow less capital expenditures for property and equipment.

The following table contains a reconciliation of GAAP net cash provided by operating activities to free cash flow.

Net deferred revenues and costs

The following table illustrates the net effect of deferred revenues and costs associated with certain products bundled with content and services. These revenues and costs are being amortized over the estimated economic lives of the products. Additional details are available in the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 25, 2011 that will be filed by Garmin with the Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission file number 0-31983) today.

Earnings Call Information

The information for Garmin Ltd.’s earnings call is as follows:

An archive of the live webcast will be available until September 6, 2011 on the Garmin website at http://www.garmin.com. To access the replay, click on the Investor Relations link and click over to the Events Calendar page.

This release includes projections and other forward-looking statements regarding Garmin Ltd. and its business. Any statements regarding the company’s estimated earnings and revenue for fiscal 2011, the Company’s expected segment revenue growth rate, margins, new products to be introduced in 2011 and the company’s plans and objectives are forward-looking statements. The forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this release may not occur and actual results could differ materially as a result of risk factors affecting Garmin, including, but not limited to, the risk factors that are described in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 25, 2010 filed by Garmin with the Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission file number 0-31983). A copy of Garmin’s 2010 Form 10-K can be downloaded from

http://www.garmin.com/aboutGarmin/invRelations/finReports.html.

The global leader in satellite navigation, Garmin Ltd. and its subsidiaries have designed, manufactured, marketed and sold navigation, communication and information devices and applications since 1989 – most of which are enabled by GPS technology. Garmin’s products serve automotive, mobile, wireless, outdoor recreation, fitness, marine, aviation, and OEM applications. Garmin Ltd. is incorporated in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, and its principal subsidiaries are located in the United States, Taiwan and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit Garmin’s virtual newsroom at www.garmin.com/newsroom or contact the Media Relations department at 913-397-8200.

Garmin, Forerunner, eTrex, Rino, Astro and Edge are registered trademarks, and GTN is a trademark of Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries. All other brands, product names, company names, trademarks and service marks are the properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.