PolyOne Announces Third Quarter 2008 Results

- Third quarter sales increase 10.6 percent, earnings decline from special charges and slightly lower operating income.




CLEVELAND, Nov. 5  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PolyOne Corporation (NYSE: POL), a premier global provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions, today reported fiscal third quarter 2008 revenues of $735.1 million, a 10.6 percent increase compared with revenues of $664.8 million in the third quarter of 2007.

PolyOne reported a net loss of $5.6 million or $0.06 per share in the third quarter of 2008 compared with net income of $2.3 million or $0.02 per diluted share in the third quarter of 2007. Included in the results for the third quarter of 2008 and 2007 are special items resulting in charges of $0.19 and $0.12, respectively (see Attachment 1).

On a comparable basis, before special items, PolyOne reported $0.13 per share in the third quarter of 2008, compared with $0.14 per share in the third quarter of last year.

"We're pleased that the third quarter impact of Hurricane Ike was not as significant as we initially anticipated, and that, for the quarter, we are able to report slightly better than expected earnings per share before special items," said Stephen D. Newlin, chairman, president and chief executive officer.  Newlin added, "While our SunBelt joint venture had no choice but to close down temporarily, our other facilities in the area did an exceptional job at managing through power and supply interruptions to meet customer needs and exceed our post-hurricane expectations for the quarter.  This is a direct result of the tireless efforts of our employees who helped positively manage our impacted operations."

"Our International Color and Engineered Materials segment reported an operating income decline versus the third quarter of 2007, and on a sequential basis versus the second quarter of 2008.  This confirms the concerns we have communicated in our outlook updates that the economic slowdown already present in the U.S. is taking hold in Europe and Asia," Newlin continued.  "We continue to focus on our transformation strategy; however, we are not going to ignore the prevailing market dynamics.  We recognize that now is a time to be prudent with cash, control spending, preserve our liquidity and protect ourselves from potential customer solvency issues."

Commenting on the Company's financial position, senior vice president and chief financial officer, Robert M. Patterson said, "As of September 30, 2008 we had $37 million of cash, plus borrowing availability of $133 million under our accounts receivable securitization facility, for total liquidity of $170 million.  During the third quarter, we paid down $8 million of debt and repurchased one million of the Company's outstanding common shares."

Outlook

"While our results for the third quarter were modestly better than anticipated, our fourth quarter earnings may fall short of our previous expectations," said Newlin.  "Accordingly, it may be a challenge to deliver full-year earnings per share before special items within the range of guidance we provided in September."

Newlin cited several factors contributing to this assessment. "First, we are lowering our earnings expectations as a result of latent supply and pricing uncertainties associated with the Gulf storms.  That being said, we are more concerned about the recent deterioration in the global economy.  We expect further pressure on our international results; first as it becomes increasingly clear that European and Asian demand is slowing, and second due to the continued weakening of the Euro relative to the U.S. Dollar. Additionally, the U.S. economy is under tremendous strain on the heels of the global financial crisis, creating significant uncertainty over the next few quarters for our customers.  Specifically, such key PolyOne end markets as housing, construction, automotive and electronics face particularly troubling business conditions which we expect may reverberate throughout other markets as the global economic slowdown gains momentum."

In reaction to the uncertainties described above, PolyOne is taking actions to reduce spending and preserve liquidity.  Patterson stated, "We began the year expecting to spend between $55 and $60 million for capital expenditures and this did not contemplate the incremental $6 to $7 million we will incur this year as a result of manufacturing realignment actions announced in July.  Without limiting spending related to the realignment we are now forecasting to spend less than $55 million for the year."

Patterson further added, "The fourth quarter is typically our strongest cash flow quarter and we expect that to be the case this year.  Given our concerns about the economy, we will be prioritizing free cash flow use first for required short term debt repayment and second to ensure we have adequate liquidity to fund seasonal working capital requirements.  We will then consider additional capital expenditures beyond maintenance levels prior to furthering our overall capital structure objectives."

Third Quarter 2008 Earnings Release and Conference Call

PolyOne will host a conference call at 9 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday, November 5, 2008. The conference dial-in number is 866-543-6403 (domestic) or 617-213-8896 (international), pass code 55915037, conference topic: third quarter 2008 PolyOne earnings conference call. The replay number is 888-286- 8010 (domestic) or 617-801-6888 (international). The pass code for the replay is 19198595. The call will be broadcast live and then be available via replay until November 13, 2008, on the Company's Web site at http://www.polyone.com/.

About PolyOne

PolyOne Corporation, with annual revenues of more than $2.7 billion, is a premier provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions. Headquartered outside of Cleveland, Ohio USA, PolyOne has operations around the world. For additional information on PolyOne, visit our Web site at http://www.polyone.com/.

Forward-looking Statements

In this press release, statements that are not reported financial results or other historical information are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  Forward- looking statements give current expectations or forecasts of future events and are not guarantees of future performance.  They are based on management's expectations that involve a number of business risks and uncertainties, any of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements.  They use words such as "will," "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other words and terms of similar meaning in connection with any discussion of future operating or financial performance and/or sales.  Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those implied by these forward- looking statements include, but are not limited to: disruptions, uncertainty or volatility in the credit markets that could adversely impact the availability of credit already arranged and the availability and cost of credit in the future; the continued degradation in the North American residential construction market; the financial condition of our customers, including the ability of customers (especially those that may be highly leveraged and those with inadequate liquidity) to maintain their credit availability; the effect on foreign operations of currency fluctuations, tariffs, and other political, economic and regulatory risks; changes in polymer consumption growth rates in the markets where PolyOne conducts business; changes in global industry capacity or in the rate at which anticipated changes in industry capacity come online; fluctuations in raw material prices, quality and supply and in energy prices and supply; production outages or material costs associated with scheduled or unscheduled maintenance programs; unanticipated developments that could occur with respect to contingencies such as litigation and environmental matters; an inability to achieve or delays in achieving or achievement of less than the anticipated financial benefit from initiatives related to cost reductions and employee productivity goals; an inability to raise or sustain prices for products or services; an inability to maintain appropriate relations with unions and employees; and other factors affecting our business beyond our control, including, without limitation, changes in the general economy, changes in interest rates and changes in the rate of inflation.  The above list of factors is not exhaustive.

We undertake no obligation to publicly update forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.  You are advised to consult any further disclosures we make on related subjects in our reports on Form 10-Q, 8-K and 10-K that we provide to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

                               Attachment 1
                         Supplemental Information

          Summary of Consolidated Operating Results (Unaudited)
                            Third Quarter 2008
                   (In millions, except per share data)

                                    3Q08            3Q07           2Q08

  Operating results:
    Sales                          $735.1          $664.8        $748.1

    Operating income (loss)           1.3           (23.6)         24.0

    Net income (loss)                (5.6)            2.3           8.8

  Earnings per common share:
    Basic and diluted earnings
     per share                     $(0.06)          $0.02         $0.09

  Total diluted per share impact
   of special items after tax (1): $(0.19)         $(0.12)       $(0.03)




(1) Special items is a non-GAAP financial measure. Special items includes charges related to specific strategic initiatives such as: the consolidation of operations; restructuring activities, including employee separation costs resulting from personnel reduction programs, plant closure and phaseout costs; executive separation agreements; asset impairments; environmental remediation costs for facilities no longer owned or closed in prior years; gains and losses on the divestiture of joint ventures and equity investments; and adjustments to reflect a tax benefit on domestic losses. Following is a list of special items.

  Special items (in millions,
   except per share data)           3Q08            3Q07           2Q08

  Employee separation and plant
   phaseout costs (a)              $(11.6)          $(1.5)        $(1.5)
  Write-down of certain assets of
   and investment in equity
   affiliate (b)                     (4.7)           (1.6)            -
  Impairment of intangibles and
   other investments (c)   .            -            (2.5)            -
  Environmental remediation
   costs (d)                        (10.4)          (30.0)         (2.3)
  Reimbursement to Goodrich Corp.
   of environmental costs related
   to Calvert City (e)                  -           (15.6)            -
  Settlement of legal issues and
   related reserves       .             -            (2.4)            -
    Impact on operating income      (26.7)          (53.6)         (3.8)

  Deferred note issuance cost
   write-off                            -            (1.6)            -
  Premium on early extinguishment
   of debt                              -            (7.5)            -
    Impact on income before
     income taxes                   (26.7)          (62.7)         (3.8)

  Income tax benefit on above items   9.0            21.7           1.3
  Reversal of deferred tax liability
   associated with sale of equity
   affiliate                            -            31.5             -
  Adjustment to foreign income tax
   contingency and related interest     -            (1.0)            -
    Impact on net income           $(17.7)         $(10.5)        $(2.5)

    Per diluted share impact       $(0.19)         $(0.12)       $(0.03)


  a. Severance, employee outplacement, external outplacement consulting,
     lease termination, facility closing costs, accelerated depreciation and
     the write-down of the carrying value of plant and equipment resulting
     from restructuring initiatives and executive separation agreements.
  b. Non-cash write-down of certain inventory, receivables, and intangible
     assets of, and an impairment of our investment in our equity affiliate
     in Colombia.
  c. Impairment of the carrying value of certain intangibles and other
     investments.
  d. Environmental remediation costs for facilities either no longer owned
     or closed in prior years.
  e. Remediation costs and certain legal costs related to the Calvert City,
     Kentucky facility.



                               Attachment 2

                   PolyOne Corporation and Subsidiaries
            Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited)
                   (In millions, except per share data)

                            Three Months Ended         Nine Months Ended
                               September 30,             September 30,
                            2008         2007         2008         2007
  Sales                   $ 735.1      $ 664.8    $ 2,196.9    $ 2,011.4

  Cost of sales             669.9        634.8      1,958.3      1,814.8
  Gross margin               65.2         30.0        238.6        196.6
  Selling and administrative 69.7         65.3        217.6        197.9
  Income from equity
   affiliates and minority
   interest                   5.8         11.7         24.4         16.6
  Operating income (loss)     1.3        (23.6)        45.4         15.3
  Interest expense          (10.5)       (11.9)       (30.4)       (43.2)
  Interest income             0.8          1.6          2.5          3.4
  Premium on early
   extinguishment of
   long-term debt               -         (7.5)           -        (12.8)
  Other expense, net            -         (1.8)        (2.7)        (4.5)
  Income (loss) before
   income taxes              (8.4)       (43.2)        14.8        (41.8)
  Income tax benefit
   (expense)                  2.8         45.5         (5.1)        46.1
  Net income (loss)         $(5.6)        $2.3         $9.7        $ 4.3

  Basic and diluted
   earnings (loss) per
   common share            $(0.06)       $0.02        $0.10        $0.05

  Weighted average shares
   used to compute
   earnings per share:
    Basic                    92.9         92.8         92.9         92.7
    Diluted                  92.9         93.3         93.5         93.1

  Dividends declared
   per share of common stock   $-           $-           $-           $-

  Equity earnings (loss)
   recorded by PolyOne:
    SunBelt                 $10.2        $12.6        $26.8        $30.6
    OxyVinyls                   -            -            -          0.9
    Impairment of investment
     in OxyVinyls               -            -            -        (15.9)
    Other equity affiliates   0.3          0.7          2.3          2.8
  Write-down of certain
   assets of and investment
   in Geon/Polimeros Andinos (4.7)        (1.6)        (4.7)        (1.6)
  Minority interest             -            -            -         (0.2)
  Income from equity
   affiliates and minority
   interest                  $5.8        $11.7        $24.4        $16.6



                               Attachment 3

                   PolyOne Corporation and Subsidiaries
            Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)
                              (In millions)

                                                 September 30,  December 31,
                                                     2008           2007
  Assets
  Current assets:
    Cash and cash equivalents                        $37.0          $79.4
    Accounts receivable, net                         392.4          340.8
    Inventories                                      273.1          223.4
    Deferred income tax assets                        21.9           20.4
    Other current assets                              19.7           19.8
      Total current assets                           744.1          683.8
  Property, net                                      444.5          449.7
  Investment in equity affiliates                     25.8           19.9
  Goodwill                                           332.8          288.8
  Other intangible assets, net                        70.4            6.7
  Deferred income tax assets                          75.0           69.9
  Other non-current assets                            67.1           64.2
      Total assets                                $1,759.7       $1,583.0

  Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
  Current liabilities:
    Short-term bank debt                             $77.3           $6.1
    Accounts payable                                 290.7          250.5
    Accrued expenses                                 112.7           94.4
    Current portion of long-term debt                  2.9           22.6
      Total current liabilities                      483.6          373.6
  Long-term debt                                     388.0          308.0
  Post-retirement benefits other than pensions        87.7           81.6
  Pension benefits                                    62.6           82.6
  Other non-current liabilities                       91.3           87.8
      Total liabilities                            1,113.2          933.6
  Shareholders' equity                               646.5          649.4
      Total liabilities and shareholders' equity  $1,759.7       $1,583.0



                               Attachment 4

                   PolyOne Corporation and Subsidiaries
            Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)
                              (In millions)

                            Three Months Ended        Nine Months Ended
                               September 30,             September 30,
                           2008          2007         2008         2007
  Operating Activities
   Net income (loss)      $(5.6)         $2.3         $9.7         $4.3
   Adjustments to
    reconcile net income
    to net cash provided
    by operating activities:
     Depreciation and
      amortization         20.1          14.1         51.8         42.7
     Charges for
      environmental
      remediation          10.4          45.6         14.3         47.5
     Cash payments for
      environmental
      remediation          (3.1)         (1.7)        (7.9)        (4.6)
     Deferred income
      tax benefit          (5.5)        (46.8)        (5.1)       (52.2)
     Premium on early
      extinguishment of
      long term debt          -           7.5            -         12.8
     Stock compensation
      expense               0.7           1.0          2.2          3.6
     Asset impairment
      charge                  -           2.5            -          2.5
     Companies carried at
      equity and minority
      interest:
       Impairment of
        certain assets of
        and investment in
        equity affiliates   4.7           1.6          4.7         17.5
       Income from equity
        affiliates and
        minority interest (10.5)        (13.3)       (29.1)       (34.1)
       Dividends and
        distributions
        received           12.5          14.4         20.8         24.2
   Contributions to
    pensions and other
    post-retirement plans  (5.5)        (10.5)       (25.5)       (24.2)
   Change in assets and
    liabilities:
     Accounts receivable    8.0          18.8        (69.1)       (52.0)
     Inventories           (1.5)          8.0        (34.8)        (9.0)
     Accounts payable     (42.2)        (11.1)        36.1         68.7
     Increase (decrease)
      in sale of accounts
      receivable           12.0         (89.2)        25.8            -
     Accrued expenses
      and other            22.8          (0.4)        23.1         (4.3)
  Net cash provided (used)
   by operating activities 17.3         (57.2)        17.0         43.4

  Investing Activities
   Capital expenditures    (9.7)        (14.8)       (29.6)       (36.7)
   Business acquisitions,
    net of cash received   (0.2)        (11.0)      (150.2)       (11.0)
   Investment in affiliated
    company                (1.1)            -         (1.1)           -
   Proceeds from sale of
    equity affiliate          -         260.5            -        260.5
   Proceeds from sale of
    assets                    -             -            -          5.2
  Net cash (used) provided
   by investing
   activities             (11.0)        234.7       (180.9)       218.0

  Financing Activities
   Change in short-term
    debt                   (9.2)        (17.7)        73.4         (0.2)
   Issuance of long-term
    debt, net of debt
    issuance cost             -             -         77.8            -
   Repayment of long-term
    debt                  (10.8)       (142.0)       (22.2)      (263.4)
   Purchase of common
    stock for treasury     (8.0)            -         (8.0)           -
   Premium on early
    extinguishment of
    long-term debt            -          (7.5)           -        (12.8)
   Proceeds from exercise
    of stock options        1.1           0.2          1.1          0.9
  Net cash (used) provided
   by financing
   activities             (26.9)       (167.0)       122.1       (275.5)

  Effect of exchange rate
   changes on cash         (2.2)          1.7         (0.6)         4.1
  Increase (decrease) in
   cash and cash
   equivalents            (22.8)         12.2        (42.4)       (10.0)
  Cash and cash
   equivalents at
   beginning of period     59.8          44.0         79.4         66.2
  Cash and cash
   equivalents at end
   of period              $37.0         $56.2        $37.0        $56.2



                               Attachment 5

           Business Segment and Platform Operations (Unaudited)
                              (In millions)



Operating income at the segment level does not include: corporate general and administration costs that are not allocated to segments; intersegment sales and profit eliminations; charges related to specific initiatives, such as the consolidation of operations; restructuring activities, including employee separation costs resulting from personnel reduction programs, plant closure and phaseout costs; executive separation agreements; share-based compensation costs; asset impairments; environmental remediation costs for facilities no longer owned or closed in prior years; gains and losses on the divestiture of joint ventures and equity investments; and certain other items that are not included in the measure of segment profit and loss that is reported to and reviewed by the chief operating decision maker. These costs are included in Corporate and eliminations.

                                 3Q08     2Q08     1Q08     4Q07     3Q07

  Sales:
    International Color and
     Engineered Materials      $ 153.7  $ 172.1  $ 165.2  $ 146.9  $ 147.4
    Specialty Engineered
     Materials                    66.1     67.3     64.5     28.7     31.8
    Specialty Color, Additives
     and Inks                     60.1     60.8     58.4     53.0     58.7
       Specialty Platform        279.9    300.2    288.1    228.6    237.9
    Performance Products and
     Solutions                   274.4    273.7    259.3    246.1    274.5

    PolyOne Distribution         214.7    208.2    201.1    184.0    185.8
    Corporate and eliminations   (33.9)   (34.0)   (34.8)   (27.4)   (33.4)
       Sales                   $ 735.1  $ 748.1  $ 713.7  $ 631.3   $664.8

  Gross margin:
    International Color and
     Engineered Materials        $23.3    $30.7    $28.8    $23.0    $23.9
    Specialty Engineered
     Materials                    13.3     12.5     11.6      2.9      3.4
    Specialty Color, Additives
     and Inks                     13.4     12.4     11.2      9.5     11.2
       Specialty Platform         50.0     55.6     51.6     35.4     38.5
    Performance Products and
     Solutions                    17.1     19.0     21.0     15.6     23.9
    PolyOne Distribution          22.2     18.1     17.2     15.4     14.8
    Corporate and eliminations   (24.1)    (4.2)    (4.9)    (2.0)   (47.2)
       Gross margin              $65.2    $88.5    $84.9    $64.4    $30.0

  Operating income (loss):
    International Color and
     Engineered Materials         $4.6    $10.4     $7.8     $4.8     $6.5
     Specialty Engineered
      Materials                    5.0      3.2      2.9     (1.0)       -

     Specialty Color, Additives
      and Inks                     4.7      3.5      2.8      1.3      3.2
       Specialty Platform         14.3     17.1     13.5      5.1      9.7
     Performance Products and
      Solutions                    5.3      5.3      8.3      4.3     12.6
     PolyOne Distribution          9.4      7.0      5.5      5.7      5.3
     Resin and Intermediates       9.6      8.7      5.9      7.3     11.2
     Corporate and eliminations  (37.3)   (14.1)   (13.1)    (3.8)   (62.4)
       Operating income (loss)    $1.3    $24.0    $20.1    $18.6   $(23.6)




Specialty Platform consists of our three specialty businesses: International Color and Engineered Materials; Specialty Engineered Materials; and Specialty Color, Additives and Inks.

                               Attachment 6

        Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures (Unaudited)
                   (In millions, except per share data)



Senior management uses operating income before the effect of special items to assess performance and allocate resources because senior management believes that this measure is useful in understanding current profitability levels and that current levels may serve as a base for future performance. In addition, operating income before the effect of special items is a component of various PolyOne annual and long-term employee incentive plans and is used in debt covenant computations.

Below is a reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP. See Attachment 1 for a list of special items.

                                        3Q08         3Q07          2Q08

  Operating income before
   special items                       $28.0        $30.0         $27.8
  Special items in operating income    (26.7)       (53.6)         (3.8)
    Operating income (loss)             $1.3       $(23.6)        $24.0

  Income per share before impact of
   special items                       $0.13        $0.14         $0.12
  Per share impact of special items,
   after tax                           (0.19)       (0.12)        (0.03)
    Diluted earnings (loss) per
     common share                     $(0.06)       $0.02         $0.09


                              Three Months Ended        Nine Months Ended
                                 September 30,            September 30,
  Reconciliation to Condensed
   Consolidated Statement
   of Cash Flows               2008         2007         2008         2007

  Net cash (used) provided by
   operating activities       $17.3       $(57.2)       $17.0        $43.4
  Net cash (used) provided by
   investing activities       (11.0)       234.7       (180.9)       218.0
  Decrease (increase) in sale
   of accounts receivable     (12.0)        89.2        (25.8)           -
  Free cash flow              $(5.7)      $266.7     $ (189.7)      $261.4


DATASOURCE: PolyOne Corporation



CONTACT:  Robert M. Patterson, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial

Officer, PolyOne Corporation, [phone]



Web site:  http://www.polyone.com/ 

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