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DT Industries Expects 2nd-Qtr EPS of 10 Cents-12 Cents

14 January 1999

DT Industries Expects 2nd-Qtr EPS of 10 Cents-12 Cents

    SPRINGFIELD, Mo., Jan. 14 -- DT Industries, Inc.
, today announced that it expects to report second-quarter
earnings of 10 cents to 12 cents per diluted share.  Order activity continued
to be soft and below expectations during the quarter and continuing cost
overruns at some divisions adversely affected margin performance.  Net sales
are expected to be about $110 million, with orders approximating $95 million.
That compares with diluted EPS of 66 cents and net sales of $132.4 million a
year earlier.
    DT Industries expects to report actual results for the second quarter
ended December 27, 1998, during the second week in February.
    "Revenues in the quarter were less than expectations as we continued to be
affected by delays in orders from several significant Automation Group
customers," said Stephen J. Gore, president and chief executive officer.
"Additionally, some projects in the September backlog experienced unexpected
delays during the quarter affecting second quarter revenue recognition.  We
believe these delays are primarily the result of customer product development
issues that they feel will be resolved in the near future.
    "We also have experienced considerable -- and unacceptable -- cost
overruns and revenue shortfalls in the Plastics division of our Packaging
Group," Gore said.  "We have restructured the management team to accelerate
implementation of project management procedures we believe are necessary to
turn this operation around."  Gore noted that the Plastics division, since
being acquired by DT Industries in 1993, has nearly doubled in size with a
growing complexity in the type of equipment it delivers.
    Gross margins in the quarter were also adversely affected by cost overruns
at certain Automation Group facilities as well as lower manufacturing
efficiencies resulting from the decreased level of manufacturing activity.
    "At the facilities where cost overruns have occurred, we are thoroughly
analyzing the circumstances and are implementing appropriate action plans to
correct deficiencies," Gore said.  "These issues have our highest attention.
Corporate and group level personnel have been directly assigned to assist in
this process.  As we have demonstrated in the past, we aggressively address
these issues and take what we believe are the appropriate actions.
    "We are disappointed in our second quarter results," Gore said.  "We
remain cautiously optimistic that strong order prospects in the coming months,
as well as operational changes, will lead to improved operating results in
future quarters.  It is difficult, however, to project the timing of the
release of specific major projects."
    DT Industries, Inc. is a leading designer, manufacturer and integrator of
automated production systems used to assemble, test or package industrial and
consumer products.  The company also produces precision metal components,
tools and dies for a broad range of industrial applications.
    Certain statements included herein that are not historical, particularly
statements about the company's expectations or beliefs, are forward-looking
statements.  The company's actual results for current or future periods could
differ materially from the expected results because of a variety of factors,
including economic downturns in industries served, delays or cancellations of
customer orders, delays in shipping dates of products, cost overruns on
certain projects, currency exchange fluctuations and other factors described
in the company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.