Friday, July 09, 2004

Merrill Corporation Announces Financing Transaction, Strong May Financial Results
Merrill Corporation announces the appointment of Credit Suisse First Boston and Bank of America as lead arrangers of a $200 million credit facility.

St. Paul, Minn. - Merrill Corporation (www.merrillcorp.com), a global, diversified communications and document services provider, today announced the appointment of Credit Suisse First Boston and Bank of America as lead arrangers of a $200 million credit facility. The facility will be comprised of a $50 million revolving credit facility and $150 million term loan facilities. The proceeds will be used to refinance existing debt and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

In separate news, Merrill announced a continuation of the strong financial results recorded in its first fiscal quarter, ended April 30, 2004. During May 2004, revenues of $65.6 million represented a 12 percent increase over $58.7 million in May 2003. May 2004 EBITDA of $11.4 million increased by 81 percent over $6.3 million in May 2003.

EBITDA is a non-GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) financial measure that is commonly used in the industry to assist investors in the understanding of operating results. Also, certain covenants of the Corporation’s debt agreements are based on calculations of EBITDA. As such, EBITDA is of great interest to the Corporation’s lenders and investors as a key performance measure. The following table reconciles May EBITDA to GAAP net income:

About Merrill Corporation 
Merrill Corporation (www.merrillcorp.com) is a diversified communications and document services company applying advanced information systems and intranet/Internet technology to provide a wide range of services to its financial, legal and corporate clients. Merrill’s services integrate traditional composition, imaging and printing services with online document management, distribution and collaborative solutions. This integrated approach helps streamline the preparation and distribution of business-to-business communication materials. Merrill Corporation serves its domestic clients through 45 offices in 33 cities throughout the United States. Its international clients are served through the client service centers in London, Paris and Frankfurt, as well as a joint venture with Quebecor World in Canada and other affiliate relationships in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Australia.

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Forward-Looking Statements 
Merrill Corporation cautions investors that certain statements contained in this press release that state management’s intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future are forward-looking statements. Management wishes to caution the reader these forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are only estimates or predictions. Actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the competitive environment in our business, demand for our product and service offerings, projections of future sales, changes in technology, our ability to retain employees and other risks. Forward-looking statements can be identified through the use of words such as “may,” “will,” “intend,” “plan,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “believe,” “estimate,” “contemplate,” “potential,” “continue,” “possible” and “proposed.”

The information contained in our news releases speaks only as of the date of such releases and we are under no obligation to update or remove such information other than as required by applicable law or regulation.