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8-K - ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC. 8-K - ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP INCa50260735.htm

Exhibit 99.1

Alaska Communications Systems Reports First Quarter 2012 Results

ANCHORAGE, Alaska--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 1, 2012--Alaska Communications Systems Group, Inc. (“ACS”) (NASDAQ:ALSK) today reported financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

“We are in the early stages of executing on our business plan and our results reflect the impact of initial investments we have made in our business. This quarter also saw the launch of several new products, including the most recent launch of the iPhone. We remain focused on executing to our business plan which is all about driving top line growth and de-levering the balance sheet,” said Anand Vadapalli, Alaska Communications president and CEO.

Financial Highlights: First Quarter 2012 Compared to First Quarter 2011

  • Excluding $5.2 million of out-of-period access and CETC revenue recognized in Q1 2011, revenues of $85.9 million increased $4.5 million, or 5.5 percent.
    • Business and Wholesale revenue increased by $2.2 million, or 9.0 percent. Broadband revenue increased $1.1 million, or 15.6 percent, partially offset by a $0.4 million decrease in voice revenue. Wholesale and other increased by $1.5 million benefiting from a $0.6 capacity exchange with another carrier.
    • Consumer revenue decreased by $0.3 million, or 3.0 percent due primarily to lower voice revenue.
    • Wireless revenue increased by $1.8 million, or 6.6 percent, with increased roaming revenue of $2.6 million partially offset by $0.8 lower net retail service, equipment and other revenue.
    • Excluding the prior year benefit from the release of $3.4 million CETC reserves and $1.8 million other out-of-period revenue, Access and CETC revenue increased by $0.9 million.
  • Exclusive of the out-of-period revenue recorded in the first quarter of 2011, EBITDA of $26.0 million decreased $0.5 million.
    • Costs of services and sales increased $2.3 million, or 6.9 percent, due in part to increases of $1.8 million in Intrastate access expense, and the impact of the capacity exchange arrangement.
    • Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $2.2 million, or 9.5 percent. The increase was in-line with management expectations and was related to $1.7 million higher selling, marketing and advertising expenses, and $0.6 million in process improvement and other strategic initiatives.

Metric Highlights: First Quarter 2012 Compared to Fourth Quarter 2011

  • Wireless connections decreased from 117,559 to 117,156 and churn was relatively unchanged at 2.3 percent.
  • Retail wireless ARPU decreased by 3.2 percent to $51.83. Decrease in voice ARPU was partially offset by an increase in broadband ARPU to $17.35.
  • Broadband consumer connections decreased by 294 to 38,449, while ARPU increased from $36.52 to $37.56.
  • Broadband business connections decreased by 67 to 19,076, while ARPU increased from $140.37 to $141.60.

“We are reporting our results to reflect the way we manage ACS. The press release presents revenue categorized by our targeted customer groups. These customer groups consist of business and wholesale, consumer, wireless, and access and CETC. We are reporting EBITDA on a consolidated basis and are no longer reporting wireline and wireless segments. We also began the process of delevering our balance sheet, and reduced our level of debt by $5.3 million in the first quarter,” said Wayne Graham, ACS chief financial officer.

“We are pleased with the early success of the iPhone, which was launched April 20, 2012. Given higher equipment subsidies associated with this device we believe previous guidance on EBITDA and free cash flow will be impacted. Once we have a more extended selling period to make an accurate assessment, we will provide updated guidance numbers,” concluded Graham.


Conference Call

The Company will host a conference call and live webcast today at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Parties in the United States and Canada can call 800-762-8779 to access the conference call. Parties outside the United States and Canada can access the call at 480-629-9866. The webcast will be archived for a period of 90 days. A telephonic replay of the conference call will also be available two hours after the call and will run until Tuesday, May 8, 2012 at midnight Eastern Time. To hear the replay, parties in the United States and Canada can call 800-406-7325 and enter pass code 4531650. Parties outside the United States and Canada can call 303-590-3030 and enter pass code 4531650.

Revenue Mix – Schedule 5 Enhancements

Additional information regarding an illustrated mapping of Q1 2012 revenues is available in the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) section of the Alaska Communications website. Select the question: How can I find more information on Alaska Communications enhanced Q1 2012 revenue mapping?

About Alaska Communications

Headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska Communications Systems Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALSK) is a leading provider of high-speed wireless, mobile broadband, Internet, local, long-distance and advanced broadband solutions for businesses and consumers in Alaska. The Alaska Communications network includes advanced broadband and voice networks and the most diverse undersea fiber optic system connecting Alaska to the contiguous United States. For more information, visit www.alaskacommunications.com or www.alsk.com.

Forward-Looking Guidance

This press release includes information related to management's estimate of EBITDA and Free Cash Flow (FCF) for the year ending December 31, 2012. EBITDA and FCF, as defined by the Company, may not be consistent with EBITDA and FCF measures used by other companies are not measurements under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), and should not be a considered a substitute for other measures of financial performance recorded in accordance with GAAP. Management believes that EBITDA provides useful information to investors about the Company's performance because it eliminates the effects of period-to-period changes in costs associated with , interest income and expense, stock-based compensation expense, losses and gains associated with the extinguishment of debt and disposal of assets, gift of services, income tax expense and depreciation and amortization that are not directly attributable to the underlying performance of the Company's business operations. Similarly, FCF provides useful information about the ability of the Company to pay dividends and reduce its outstanding indebtedness. Due to the difficulty in forecasting and quantifying the amounts that would be required to be included in the most comparable GAAP measure, “net cash provided by operating activities” the Company is not providing an estimate of the year-end 2012 amount for that measure.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes certain "forward-looking statements," as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs as well as on a number of assumptions concerning future events made using information currently available to management. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside ACS' control. Such factors include, without limitation, Verizon’s entry into the Alaska market, Universal Service Fund reforms, the outcome of on-going IRS audits, adverse national economic conditions, adverse conditions in the credit markets impacting the cost, including interest rates, and/or availability of financing, adverse local economic conditions, including an unexpected downturn in the Alaskan oil and gas or tourism markets, changes in capital expenditures, the effects of competition in our markets, the entry of one or more additional facilities-based carriers into the Alaska market, or other factors affecting the Company's ability to generate sufficient earnings and cash flows to continue to make dividend payments to its stockholders; the Company’s ability to complete, manage, integrate, market, maintain, and attract sufficient customers to the products and services it may derive, adverse changes in labor matters, including workforce levels, labor negotiations, and benefits costs; disruption of our suppliers' provisioning of critical products or services; the impact of natural or man-made disasters; changes in Company's relationships with large carrier or enterprise customers or its roaming partners; changes in revenue from universal service funds; unforeseen changes in public policies; changes in accounting policies, including the Company’s application of regulatory accounting rules, which could result in an impact on earnings; or disruptive technological developments in the telecommunications industry. For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with ACS' business, please refer to the Company's SEC filings, including, but not limited to, the sections entitled "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in our annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. Copies of the Company's SEC filings may be obtained by contacting its investor relations department at (907) 564-7556 or by visiting its investor relations website at www.alsk.com.


 
Schedule 1
   
ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(Unaudited, In Thousands, Except Per Share Amounts)
 
 
Three Months Ended
March 31,
2012   2011
 
Total operating revenues $ 85,947 $ 86,593
 
Operating expenses:
Cost of services and sales 35,162 32,885
Selling, general & administrative 25,495 23,278
Depreciation and amortization 12,942 14,935
Loss on disposal of assets, net   280     43  
Total operating expenses   73,879     71,141  
 
Operating income 12,068 15,452
 
Other income and expense:
Interest expense (9,559 ) (9,692 )
Loss on extinguishment of debt (323 ) -
Interest income   10     8  
Total other income and expense   (9,872 )   (9,684 )
 
Income before income tax expense 2,196 5,768
 
Income tax expense   (1,067 )   (3,069 )
 
Net income $ 1,129   $ 2,699  
 
Net income per share:

Basic and diluted

$ 0.02   $ 0.06  
 
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic   45,364     44,808  
Diluted   45,624     46,106  
 

 
Schedule 2
   
ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(Unaudited, In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)
 
 
March 31, December 31,
Assets 2012   2011  
 
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $ 17,865 $ 20,490
Restricted cash 5,088 4,956
Accounts receivable-trade, net of allowance of $5,577 and $5,788 34,413 36,986
Materials and supplies 6,845 5,412
Prepayments and other current assets 6,098 4,920
Deferred income taxes   6,062     6,596  
Total current assets 76,371 79,360
 
Property, plant and equipment 1,427,699 1,428,597
Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization   (1,025,521 )   (1,023,360 )
Property, plant and equipment, net 402,178 405,237
 
Goodwill 8,850 8,850
Intangible assets 24,118 24,118
Debt issuance costs 8,997 9,515
Deferred income taxes 72,773 72,814
Equity method investment 2,060 2,060
Other assets   3,584     3,154  
Total assets $ 598,931   $ 605,108  
 
Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity (Deficit)
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term obligations $ 26,502 $ 30,930
Accounts payable, accrued and other current liabilities 49,040 48,919
Advance billings and customer deposits   8,888     9,218  
Total current liabilities 84,430 89,067
 
Long-term obligations, net of current portion 537,780 538,624
Other long-term liabilities   28,662     28,340  
Total liabilities   650,872     656,031  
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders' equity (deficit):
Common stock, $.01 par value; 145,000 authorized 455 453
Additional paid in capital 142,934 144,631
Accumulated deficit (186,559 ) (187,688 )
Accumulated other comprehensive loss   (8,771 )   (8,319 )
Total stockholders' equity (deficit)   (51,941 )   (50,923 )
 
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity (deficit) $ 598,931   $ 605,108  
 

 
Schedule 3
       
ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
(Unaudited, In Thousands)
 
Three Months Ended
March 31,
2012   2011  
Cash Flows from Operating Activities:
Net income $ 1,129 $ 2,699
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
 
Depreciation and amortization 12,942 14,935
Amortization of debt issuance costs and debt discount 1,606 2,014
Stock-based compensation 717 1,344
Deferred income taxes 1,063 3,038
Provision for uncollectible accounts 550 495
Other non-cash expenses 429 228
Changes in operating assets and liabilities   1,135     (3,059 )
Net cash provided by operating activities 19,571 21,694
 
Cash Flows from Investing Activities:
Capital expenditures (10,018 ) (8,188 )
Change in unsettled capital expenditures (3,131 ) (859 )
Net change in restricted accounts   (132 )   -  
Net cash used by investing activities (13,281 ) (9,047 )
 
Cash Flows from Financing Activities:
Repayments of long-term debt (6,417 ) (1,294 )
Debt issuance costs - (84 )
Payment of cash dividend on common stock (2,268 ) (9,628 )
Payment of withholding taxes on stock-based compensation (231 ) (1,912 )
Proceeds from issuance of common stock   1     1  
Net cash used by financing activities (8,915 ) (12,917 )
 
Change in cash and cash equivalents (2,625 ) (270 )
 
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period   20,490     15,316  
 
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 17,865   $ 15,046  
 
Supplemental Cash Flow Data:
Interest paid $ 7,016 $ 9,838
 
Supplemental Noncash Transactions:
Dividend declared, but not paid $ 2,278 $ 9,721
Additions to ARO asset $ 22 $ 7
 

 
Schedule 4
 
     
ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC.
EBITDA AND FREE CASH FLOW
(Unaudited, In Thousands)
 
Three Months Ended
March 31,

 

2012

 

 

2011

 
 
 
Net cash provided by operating activities $ 19,571 $ 21,694
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization (12,942 ) (14,935 )
Amortization of debt issuance costs and debt discount (1,606 ) (2,014 )
Stock-based compensation (717 ) (1,344 )
Deferred income taxes (1,063 ) (3,038 )
Provision for uncollectible accounts (550 ) (495 )
Other non-cash expenses (429 ) (228 )
Changes in operating assets and liabilities   (1,135 )   3,059  
Net income $ 1,129 $ 2,699
Add (subtract):
Interest expense 9,559 9,692
Loss on extinguishment of debt 323 -
Interest income (10 ) (8 )
Depreciation and amortization 12,942 14,935
Loss on disposal of assets 280 43
Gift of services - (51 )
Income tax expense 1,067 3,069
Stock-based compensation   717     1,344  
EBITDA $ 26,007   $ 31,723  
 
Less:
Cash capital expenditures (13,149 ) (9,047 )
Cash interest expense   (7,016 )   (9,838 )

Free cash flow

$ 5,842   $ 12,838  
 
Revenue $ 85,947   $ 86,593  
 
EBITDA Margin 30.3 % 36.6 %
 

Note: In an effort to provide investors with additional information regarding the Company's results as determined by generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the Company also discloses certain non-GAAP information which management utilizes to assess performance and believes provides useful information to investors. The Company has disclosed its net income before interest, provisions for taxes, depreciation expense, gain or loss on asset purchases or disposals, gift of services, amortization of intangibles and stock-based compensation expense (EBITDA), and EBITDA Margin, defined as EBITDA divided by Operating Revenues, and Free Cash Flow as reconciled above, because the Company believes they are important indicators providing information about our ability to service debt, pay dividends and fund capital expenditures. EBITDA, EBITDA Margin and Free cash flow are not GAAP measures and should not be considered a substitute for net cash provided by operating activities and other measures of financial performance recorded in accordance with GAAP.

 

 
Schedule 5
     
ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC.
Revenue Mix
(Unaudited, In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)
 
Three Months Ended
March 31,
Operating revenues:   2012     2011  

Business and wholesale

Retail service revenue
Voice $ 6,040 $ 6,480
Broadband 8,118 7,020
Equipment sales 336 303
Wholesale and other   11,954     10,455  
Total business and wholesale revenue   26,448     24,258  
 
Consumer
Retail service revenue
Voice 4,936 5,422
Broadband 4,349 4,156
Equipment sales 42 51
Other   266     258  
Total consumer revenue   9,593     9,887  
Wireless
Retail service revenue
Voice 12,667 13,939
Broadband 5,551 4,686
Equipment sales 1,172 1,373
Foreign roaming 8,776 6,186
Other   946     1,127  
Total wireless revenue   29,112     27,311  
 
Access and CETC
CETC 5,527 9,475
High cost support 4,949 6,790
Switched, special and other access   10,318     8,872  
Total access and CETC   20,794     25,137  
 
Total revenues $ 85,947   $ 86,593  
 

Revenue mix:

Business and wholesale 31 % 28 %
Consumer 11 % 11 %
Wireless 34 % 32 %
Access and CETC 24 % 29 %
 
 
Retail Service Revenue % of Total Revenues 48 % 48 %

Broadband % of Total Service Revenue

43 % 38 %
 

Notes: Broadband contains the following dial-up revenue:

First Quarter 2012: $101 Consumer and $27 Business.
First Quarter 2011: $135 Consumer, and $31 Business.
 

In 2012, our financial presentation has been remapped to focus on expanded customer groups. Significant changes in presentation include:

 
- Retail, Enterprise and Wholesale revenue in our prior presentation are now included in the categories of Business and Wholesale, Consumer, and Access and CETC.
 
- Access and CETC revenue has been combined into one group with CETC and Access broken out into Switched, Special, Other Access, and High Cost Support line items.
 
- Wireless revenue included CETC in our prior presentation and is now included in the category Access and CETC.
 

A one page illustration of the enhanced reporting changes, included within the financial reporting titled Revenue Mix - Schedule 5, will be available at www.alsk.com in the “Investor FAQs” section. Select the question: How can I find more information on Alaska Communications enhanced reporting changes?

 

 
Schedule 6
     
ALASKA COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS GROUP, INC.
KEY OPERATING STATISTICS
(Unaudited)
 
Three Months Ended

March 31,

December 31,

March 31,
  2012     2011     2011  
 
Voice:
Consumer access lines 61,422 62,507 66,582
Business access lines 82,317 83,055 85,550
 
Voice ARPU consumer $ 26.55 $ 26.52 $ 26.93
Voice ARPU business $ 24.35 $ 24.07 $ 25.11
 
Broadband:
Consumer connections 38,449 38,743 41,027
Business connections 19,076 19,143 18,961
 
ARPU consumer $ 37.56 $ 36.52 $ 33.73
ARPU business $ 141.60 $ 140.37 $ 126.66
 
Wholesale lines 22,157 23,063 24,664
 
Wireless:
Postpaid connections 106,133 107,530 108,639
Prepaid connections   11,023     10,029     7,604  
Total   117,156     117,559     116,243  
 
Retail wireless ARPU $ 51.83 $ 53.54 $ 52.64
Wireless broadband ARPU $ 17.35 $ 17.17 $ 14.78
 
Churn:
 
Voice access lines 1.3 % 1.4 % 1.4 %
Broadband connections 2.3 % 2.6 % 3.1 %
Wireless connections 2.3 % 2.2 % 2.7 %
 
 
Wireless equipment subsidy $ 1,799 $ 2,264 $ 3,074
 
 
 
 
Note: Broadband contains the following dial-up connections:

March 31, 2012: 2,620 Consumer and 516 Business.

December 31, 2011: 2,831 Consumer, and 529 Business.

March 31, 2011: 3,435 Consumer, and 594 Business.

 

CONTACT:
Alaska Communications Investors:
Vice President, Investor Relations and Financial Planning & Analysis
Michael Allen, 907-564-7556
investors@acsalaska.com