UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15 (d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report: August 12, 2003

QUIXOTE CORPORATION
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Commission file number 0-7903

DELAWARE		36-267537
(State or other jurisdiction of		(I.R.S. Employer
incorporation or organization)		Identification No.)


ONE EAST WACKER DRIVE, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS		60601
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number including area code: (312) 467-6755

Item 5. Others Events and Regulation FD Disclosure.

On August 12, 2003, the Registrant discussed its financial results for the quarter and year ended June 30, 2003 during a conference call. Management also disclosed certain estimates about fiscal year 2004, which may be considered important to certain stockholders. Specifically, management estimates for fiscal 2004 consolidated gross profit margins in the range of 38% to 40%, selling and administrative expenses in the range of 23% to 25% of sales and an effective income tax rate of 36%. In addition, management has budgeted fiscal 2004 capital expenditures at $5 million, amortization and depreciation expense to be in the range of $5.5 million and interest expense to be less than $2 million.

The conference call was recorded and is available for replay through Tuesday August 19, 2003. To access the replay, please call 706-645-9291 and enter passcode 2168838; the recorded web cast will also be available at www.quixotecorp.com.

Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this report and made during the conference call. For those statements, the Registrant claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Item 7. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

The following Exhibit is included herein:

99 Press Release issued by Quixote Corporation, dated August 12, 2003

Item 9. Regulation FD Disclosure.

Attached hereto as Exhibit 99, and incorporated by reference herein, is a press release issued by Quixote Corporation announcing its fourth quarter and year-end fiscal 2003 financial results. This information is furnished under Item 12 of Form 8-K, “Results of Operations and Financial Condition”, in accordance with interim filing guidance by SEC Release No. 33-8216.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

		QUIXOTE CORPORATION

DATE:	August 12, 2003	/s/ Daniel P. Gorey

		DANIEL P. GOREY
		Vice President, Chief Financial
		Officer and Treasurer
		(Chief Financial & Accounting
		Officer)

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibits:

99		Press Release issued by Quixote Corporation dated August 12, 2003

Exhibit 99

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FOR:	QUIXOTE CORPORATION
CONTACT:		Daniel P. Gorey	Investor Relations:
		Chief Financial Officer	Christine Mohrmann/Lindsay Hatton
		Joan R. Riley	Financial Dynamics
		Director of Investor Relations	(212) 850-5600
		(312) 467-6755

QUIXOTE CORPORATION REPORTS FISCAL 2003 FOURTH QUARTER AND

YEAR-END RESULTS

• Record fourth quarter sales of $38.8 million, a 42% increase from last year

• Fourth quarter EPS of $0.56, exceeding Company’s expectations

• International sales for the quarter increased 43% to $3.4 million

• Record fiscal 2003 cash flow from operations of $16 million

• First quarter earnings guidance: $0.24 to $0.27 per diluted share

CHICAGO, IL, August 12, 2003 — Quixote Corporation (Nasdaq: QUIX) today reported results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2003.

Net sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2003 increased 42% to $38,838,000, compared with $27,415,000 for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002. The acquisition of U.S. Traffic Corporation in May 2003 contributed net sales of $6 million for the fourth quarter and was not part of prior year results. Operating profit increased 22% to $7,175,000, compared with $5,877,000 for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002. Net earnings for the fourth quarter were $4,583,000, or $0.56 per diluted share, compared with $4,379,000, or $0.54 per diluted share, for the same period last year. Net earnings for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002 included a gain of $735,000, or $0.09 per diluted share, from discontinued operations.

Net sales for the full fiscal year of 2003 increased 27% to $114,310,000, compared with $89,694,000 for fiscal 2002. Operating profit increased 60% to $15,154,000, compared with $9,489,000 for fiscal 2002. Net earnings were $9,472,000, or $1.17 per diluted share, compared with $6,824,000, or $0.84 per diluted share, for the same period last year. Net earnings for fiscal 2002 included gains from discontinued operations of $927,000, or $0.11 per diluted share.

Leslie J. Jezuit, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are extremely pleased to report that our fourth quarter results were above expectations, contributing to a very strong overall performance in fiscal 2003.

—more—

Our record fourth quarter sales were driven by strong top-line growth in both our Protect and Direct Group and our Inform Group. In the fourth quarter, Protect and Direct Group sales increased 12% as a result of particularly strong sales of our truck-mounted attenuator products. Inform Group sales increased 44% organically as a result of top-line improvements throughout most of the group, in addition to an incremental revenue contribution of $6.0 million from U.S. Traffic Corporation, a company acquired during the quarter. International sales continued to be an important contributor to growth as our products gain acceptance in the European and Asian markets. International sales grew 43% in the fourth quarter to $3.4 million.”

Mr. Jezuit continued, “Throughout the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2003, we continued to strengthen and position our Company for future growth and profitability. We are particularly pleased to have generated operating cash flow of $16 million for the year, a record level for Quixote. We have entered fiscal 2004 in a position of strength, with a strong balance sheet and a record backlog of $28 million, which includes $15 million in backlog from the U.S. Traffic acquisition. That acquisition, our largest to date, will allow us to use our new product synergies in the traffic control area to expand our customer base into the important municipal and county markets, while simultaneously leveraging our existing weather forecasting, sensing and display technologies.”

Mr. Jezuit concluded, “Despite our strong fourth quarter performance, we continue to operate in an environment with many challenges, including state funding uncertainties and the tenuous condition of the overall economy. In addition, the expiration of the current federal highway funding bill in late September makes the near- and medium-term funding levels difficult to forecast. Therefore, we continue to have a cautious outlook and expect earnings for the first quarter to be in the range of $0.24 to $0.27 per diluted share.”

Quixote Corporation will be hosting a telephone conference call at 10 a.m. EST today, August 12, 2003, to further discuss its quarterly results and corporate developments. This conference call will be broadcast simultaneously over the Internet at www.quixotecorp.com and may be accessed and listened to by clicking the icon on the Company’s homepage.

Quixote Corporation, (www.quixotecorp.com), through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Quixote

Transportation Safety, Inc., is the world’s leading manufacturer of energy-absorbing highway crash cushions, electronic wireless measuring and sensing devices, weather forecasting stations, computerized highway advisory radio transmitting systems, intelligent intersection control systems, mobile and permanent variable electronic message signs, flexible post delineators and other highway safety products.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this news release are forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements set forth above involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any such statement, including the risks and

uncertainties discussed in the Company’s Form 10-Q for its third quarter ended March 31, 2003,, under the caption “Forward-Looking Statements” in Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, which discussion is incorporated herein by this reference. Other factors may be described from time to time in the Company’s public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, news releases and other communications. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The Company does not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

(2 Tables to Follow)

Quixote Corporation
Earnings Summary

	Three Months Ended						Year ended
	June 30,						June 30,
	2003			2002			2003			2002
Net sales	$	38,838,000		$	27,415,000		$	114,310,000		$	89,694,000
Cost of sales	23,106,000			13,743,000			68,070,000			53,762,000
Gross profit	15,732,000			13,672,000			46,240,000			35,932,000
Operating expenses:
Selling & administrative	7,744,000			6,888,000			28,730,000			23,975,000
Research & development	813,000			907,000			2,356,000			2,468,000
	8,557,000			7,795,000			31,086,000			26,443,000

Operating profit	7,175,000			5,877,000			15,154,000			9,489,000
Other income (expense)
Interest income	38,000			51,000			104,000			78,000
Interest expense	(269,000		)	(235,000		)	(906,000		)	(1,184,000		)
Other										830,000
	(231,000		)	(184,000		)	(802,000		)	(276,000		)

Earnings before income taxes	6,944,000			5,693,000			14,352,000			9,213,000
Provision for income taxes	2,361,000			2,049,000			4,880,000			3,316,000
Earnings from continuing operations	4,583,000			3,644,000			9,472,000			5,897,000
Earnings from discontinued operations, net of income taxes				735,000						927,000
Net earnings	$	4,583,000		$	4,379,000		$	9,472,000		$	6,824,000
Per share data - basic:
Earnings from continuing operations	$	0.57		$	0.47		$	1.21		$	0.77
Net earnings	$	0.57		$	0.57		$	1.21		$	0.89
Average common shares outstanding	7,978,871			7,742,995			7,847,169			7,682,706
Per share data - diluted:
Earnings from continuing operations	$	0.56		$	0.45		$	1.17		$	0.73
Net earnings	$	0.56		$	0.54		$	1.17		$	0.84
Average common shares outstanding	8,238,996			8,052,412			8,062,397			8,121,621

Quixote Corporation
Balance Sheet

	As of June 30,
	2003		2002
Assets
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents	$	3,753,000	$	1,798,000
Accounts receivable, net	36,835,000		24,448,000
Inventories, net	22,967,000		11,890,000
Other current assets	3,533,000		4,958,000
	67,088,000		43,094,000
Property, plant and equipment, net	26,237,000		21,959,000
Intangible assets and other, net	57,500,000		34,991,000
	$	150,825,000	$	100,044,000
Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
Current liabilities	$	30,999,000	$	12,171,000
Long-term debt, net	39,789,000		24,772,000
Other long-term liabilities	4,482,000		3,875,000
Shareholder's equity	75,555,000		59,226,000
	$	150,825,000	$	100,044,000

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