Hughes Communications Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2009 Results
Record Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2009 Adjusted EBITDA
Consumer Business Continues Impressive Growth Trajectory
Strong Growth in Enterprise Services Revenues
Cash from Operations Improves by 111% in Full Year 2009
Germantown, Md., February 24, 2010—Hughes Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: HUGH) (“Hughes”), the global leader in broadband satellite network solutions and services, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009. Hughes’ consolidated operations are classified into four reportable segments: North America Broadband; International Broadband; Telecom Systems; and Corporate and Other. The North America Broadband, International Broadband, and Telecom Systems segments represent all the operations of Hughes Network Systems, LLC (“HNS”), Hughes’ principal operating subsidiary.
Fourth Quarter 2009 Financial Highlights:
· | Record fourth quarter Adjusted EBITDA of $56 million, an increase of 25% over the fourth quarter of 2008. |
· | Consumer business continues impressive growth: |
– | Revenue increased by 15% over the fourth quarter of 2008. |
– | Record fourth quarter subscriber gross adds of 45,000. |
– | Net adds of 14,000 for a growth of 18% over the fourth quarter of 2008. |
– | Consumer ARPU increased to $72 from $68 for the fourth quarter of 2008. |
– | Churn improved to 2.1% from 2.4% for the fourth quarter of 2008 and 2.3% for the third quarter of 2009. |
· | Consolidated revenues of $262 million, an 8% decline from the fourth quarter of 2008, or a 5% decline excluding revenues from the Telematics contract which was terminated following the Chrysler bankruptcy. |
· | New orders of $271 million, with major orders from Shell, Conoco Phillips, AGF, Burger King, Barrett Xplore, Rite Aid, Big 5, CSK O’Reilly, Row 44, Realtime, and Comdata in our North America broadband business; Avanti Communications, Afsat, Shenzen Securities, Telemar, PT Selindo, and Valuable Media in our International broadband business; and STS Romania and Iridium in our Telecom Systems business. |
· | Positive net cash from operations of $41 million, a 29% increase over the fourth quarter of 2008. |
Full Year 2009 Financial Highlights
· | Record Adjusted EBITDA of $174 million for a growth of 15% over 2008; excluding the Telematics business, Adjusted EBITDA increased by 18% over 2008. |
· | Strong Consumer business growth with revenue of $420 million, an increase of 12% over 2008. |
– | Gross adds of almost 200,000 subscribers resulting in a subscriber base of 504,000 at December 31, 2009, a growth of 17% over the subscriber base at December 31, 2008; |
– | Net adds of 71,000, a growth of 34% over 2008, |
– | Consumer ARPU of $70 for 2009 compared to $68 for 2008 |
– | Churn improved to 2.2% for 2009 from 2.4% for 2008. |
· | Total enterprise revenue of $475 million compared to $529 million in 2008 but enterprise services revenue up 19%. |
· | Telecom Systems revenue down 27% primarily due to completion of mobile satellite development contracts and termination of Telematics contract. |
· | Consolidated revenue of $1,010 million, a decline of 5% from 2008, a 3% decline on a constant dollar basis. |
· | New orders of $1,023 million and a non-consumer backlog of $835 million as of December 31, 2009. |
· | Positive net cash from operations of $151 million, an increase of 111% over the twelve months ended December 31, 2008. |
Set forth below are tables highlighting certain of Hughes’ and HNS’ results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2009 and 2008.
| Hughes Communications, Inc. | |
| | | Three Months | | | Twelve Months | |
| | | Ended December 31, | | | Ended December 31, | |
| (Dollars in thousands) | | 2009 | | | 2008 | | | 2009 | | | 2008 | |
| Revenue | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| North America Broadband | | $ | 175,306 | | | $ | 180,234 | | | $ | 690,279 | | | $ | 667,665 | |
| International Broadband | | | 60,961 | | | | 67,067 | | | | 203,886 | | | | 237,188 | |
| Telecom Systems | | | 25,069 | | | | 38,361 | | | | 112,500 | | | | 155,038 | |
| Corporate and Other | | | 904 | | | | 110 | | | | 3,034 | | | | 462 | |
| Total | | $ | 262,240 | | | $ | 285,772 | | | $ | 1,009,699 | | | $ | 1,060,353 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Operating income (loss) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| North America Broadband | | $ | 16,363 | | | $ | 8,750 | | | $ | (8,028 | ) ** | | $ | 21,339 | |
| International Broadband | �� | | 5,168 | | | | 7,589 | | | | 15,120 | | | | 21,679 | |
| Telecom Systems | | | 3,485 | | | | 5,271 | | | | 14,227 | | | | 25,116 | |
| Corporate and Other | | | (5,427 | ) *** | | | (1,089 | ) | | | (9,007 | ) *** | | | (3,842 | ) |
| Total | | $ | 19,589 | | | $ | 20,521 | | | $ | 12,312 | | | $ | 64,292 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Net income (loss) attributable to HCI stockholders | | $ | 2,367 | | | $ | 3,351 | | | $ | (52,693 | ) | | $ | 9,018 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Adjusted EBITDA* | | $ | 56,482 | | | $ | 45,164 | | | $ | 173,929 | | | $ | 151,441 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| New Orders | | $ | 271,470 | | | $ | 274,103 | | | $ | 1,022,922 | | | $ | 1,164,876 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| * | For the definition of Adjusted EBITDA, see “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures to GAAP Financial Measures” below. |
| ** | Includes a $44 million one-time charge as a result of the Chapter 11 filing by Sea Launch. |
| *** | Includes $5.2 million one-time charge for impairment of HTI investment |
| Hughes Network Systems, LLC | |
| | | Three Months | | | Twelve Months | |
| | | Ended December 31, | | | Ended December 31, | |
| (Dollars in thousands) | | 2009 | | | 2008 | | | 2009 | | | 2008 | |
| Revenue | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| North America Broadband | | $ | 175,306 | | | $ | 180,234 | | | $ | 690,279 | | | $ | 667,665 | |
| International Broadband | | | 60,961 | | | | 67,067 | | | | 203,886 | | | | 237,188 | |
| Telecom Systems | | | 25,069 | | | | 38,361 | | | | 112,500 | | | | 155,038 | |
| Total | | $ | 261,336 | | | $ | 285,662 | | | $ | 1,006,665 | | | $ | 1,059,891 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Operating income (loss) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| North America Broadband | | $ | 16,363 | | | $ | 8,750 | | | $ | (8,028 | ) ** | | $ | 21,339 | |
| International Broadband | | | 5,168 | | | | 7,589 | | | | 15,120 | | | | 21,679 | |
| Telecom Systems | | | 3,485 | | | | 5,271 | | | | 14,227 | | | | 25,116 | |
| Total | | $ | 25,016 | | | $ | 21,610 | | | $ | 21,319 | | | $ | 68,134 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Net income (loss) attributable to HNS | | $ | 7,229 | | | $ | 4,419 | | | $ | (44,905 | ) | | $ | 12,096 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Adjusted EBITDA* | | $ | 55,922 | | | $ | 46,438 | | | $ | 174,647 | | | $ | 155,410 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| New Orders | | $ | 270,742 | | | $ | 273,993 | | | $ | 1,020,324 | | | $ | 1,164,414 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| * | For the definition of Adjusted EBITDA, see “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures to GAAP Financial Measures” below. |
| ** | Includes a $44 million one-time charge as a result of the Chapter 11 filing by Sea Launch. |
Recent Highlights:
· | HNS continues its leadership position in the VSAT terminal market having shipped almost 320,000 VSATs across its product lines in 2009, according to the 2009 COMSYS VSAT Report. In the enterprise VSAT market, the report confirmed that Hughes has sold more than 165,000 terminals over the past two years, approximately half the total enterprise terminals sold globally and twice that of its nearest competitor. |
· | HNS announced that it surpassed 500,000 North American subscribers on its HughesNet® service. At a time when the U.S. is debating how to bring about universal broadband connectivity, Hughes continues to deliver high-speed Internet access services to individuals and small businesses that are in underserved and unserved areas of North America and otherwise would have to rely on slow dial-up connections. |
· | HNS expanded provision of high-speed satellite Internet access for U.S. troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Available at U.S. military bases, the broadband Internet service is being delivered via HNS’ new operations hub in Dubai, enabling troops to stay in touch with family and friends at home. |
· | HNS’ initiative in providing services to state and local governments gained much momentum; in 2009, HNS signed contracts with Arkansas, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, and Texas and more recently, with Colorado and Virginia. |
· | HNS was selected by Frost & Sullivan as the 2009 North American Company of the Year in the Satellite Industry, in recognition of HNS’ growth strategies, high-quality customer service, and product/service reliability. |
· | HNS announced the availability of the Hughes 9350 BGAN mobile satellite terminal, fully type-approved for operation over Inmarsat’s Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) satellite service. |
To summarize, Pradman Kaul, president and CEO said, “Despite the challenging economic environment last year, I’m happy to report that the Hughes business model has proven to be steadfast. Innovation of broadband technologies and products continues as our core strength, but it’s the thriving service business
globally that’s fueling our growth. In 2009, recurring service revenue from an expanding base of repeat customers in North America, Europe, India, and Brazil exceeded our product revenues and is growing at a faster rate. Overall, the company exceeded its 2009 objectives for both Adjusted EBITDA and cash despite slightly lower revenues. Our consumer business continued to lead the way with outstanding growth in subscriber acquisitions and ARPU, combined with lower churn. This validates our strategy of pursuing the estimated 10 million households and 3.5 million small businesses in North America unserved and underserved by terrestrial broadband technologies. The resulting strong revenue growth was offset by some slowdown in hardware spending by our enterprise customers which we believe is a reflection of the macro-economic climate. As noted earlier, the termination of the Telematics contract impacted our revenues and margins, and we expect insignificant business from this sector in the next few years. Looking to the future, our new Jupiter satellite construction is proceeding on plan and we are actively assessing a number of interesting strategic opportunities. We continue to improve our positive bottom-line results as a fully integrated service provider, now with almost 250,000 subscribers on our SPACEWAY® 3 satellite. I believe we are positioned well for continued success and growth in 2010 and beyond.”
Commenting on Hughes’ financial performance, Grant Barber, executive vice president and CFO said, “Our focus on cost control and working capital management continued in the fourth quarter resulting in the strong performance in Adjusted EBITDA and cash from operations. Our liquidity position continues to be healthy with consolidated cash and marketable securities of $308 million at December 31, 2009.”
Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures to GAAP Financial Measures
The following table reconciles the differences between Hughes’ Net Income (Loss) as determined under United States of America Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and Adjusted EBITDA.
| Hughes Communications, Inc. | |
| | | Three Months | | | Twelve Months | |
| | | Ended December 31, | | | Ended December 31, | |
| (Dollars in thousands) | | 2009 | | | 2008 | | | 2009 | | | 2008 | |
| Net income (loss) attributable to HCI stockholders | | $ | 2,367 | | | $ | 3,351 | | | $ | (52,693 | ) | | $ | 9,018 | |
| Add: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Equity incentive plan compensation | | | 1,898 | | | | 1,733 | | | | 7,371 | | | | 5,724 | |
| Interest expense | | | 16,994 | | | | 14,022 | | | | 64,119 | | | | 51,327 | |
| Income tax expense | | | 1,656 | | | | 3,463 | | | | 2,446 | | | | 7,593 | |
| Depreciation and amortization | | | 29,522 | | | | 20,029 | | | | 102,731 | | | | 68,937 | |
| Long-term incentive/retention cash plan | | | - | | | | 3,279 | | | | 1,538 | | | | 13,219 | |
| Sea Launch impairment | | | - | | | | - | | | | 44,400 | | | | - | |
| HTI investment impairment | | | 5,239 | | | | - | | | | 5,239 | | | | - | |
| Other asset impairment | | | - | | | | - | | | | 1,000 | | | | - | |
| Less: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Interest income | | | (1,194 | ) | | | (713 | ) | | | (2,222 | ) | | | (4,377 | ) |
| Adjusted EBITDA | | $ | 56,482 | | | $ | 45,164 | | | $ | 173,929 | | | $ | 151,441 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
The following table reconciles the differences between HNS’ Net Income (Loss) as determined under GAAP and Adjusted EBITDA.
| Hughes Network Systems, LLC | |
| | | Three Months | | | Twelve Months | |
| | | Ended December 31, | | | Ended December 31, | |
| (Dollars in thousands) | | 2009 | | | 2008 | | | 2009 | | | 2008 | |
| Net income (loss) attributable to HNS | | $ | 7,229 | | | $ | 4,419 | | | $ | (44,905 | ) | | $ | 12,096 | |
| Add: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Equity incentive plan compensation | | | 1,816 | | | | 1,611 | | | | 6,933 | | | | 5,221 | |
| Interest expense | | | 16,988 | | | | 14,022 | | | | 64,094 | | | | 51,327 | |
| Income tax expense | | | 1,661 | | | | 3,487 | | | | 2,436 | | | | 7,588 | |
| Depreciation and amortization | | | 29,351 | | | | 20,029 | | | | 102,139 | | | | 68,937 | |
| Long-term incentive/retention cash plan | | | - | | | | 3,279 | | | | 1,538 | | | | 13,219 | |
| Sea Launch impairment | | | - | | | | - | | | | 44,400 | | | | - | |
| Less: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Interest income | | | (1,123 | ) | | | (409 | ) | | | (1,988 | ) | | | (2,978 | ) |
| Adjusted EBITDA | | $ | 55,922 | | | $ | 46,438 | | | $ | 174,647 | | | $ | 155,410 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
The consolidated financial statements of Hughes and HNS for the periods ended December 31, 2009 and 2008 are attached to this press release.
Note on Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Hughes provides non-GAAP financial data in addition to providing financial results in accordance with GAAP. This press release includes Adjusted EBITDA as a supplemental non-GAAP financial measure. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as earnings (loss) before interest, income taxes, depreciation, amortization, equity incentive plan compensation, long-term incentive/retention cash plan and other adjustments permitted by the debt instruments of HNS. We believe this non-GAAP financial measure provides useful information to both management and investors by excluding specific expenses that we believe are not indicative of our core operating results. Internally, we use this non-GAAP measure in our review of the performance of management and in the performance of our business and operations. Management also uses Adjusted EBITDA of HNS for purposes of determining the payments to be made in connection with the long-term cash incentive retention program. Externally, we believe that investors may find this non-GAAP financial information useful in their assessment of our operating performance. In addition, we believe that this non-GAAP financial measure provides information that is useful to investors in understanding period-over-period operating results separate and apart from items that may, or could, have a disproportionately positive or negative impact on results in any particular period. Adjusted EBITDA of HNS is also used in calculating covenant compliance under HNS’ credit agreements and the indenture governing HNS’ 9½% Senior Notes due 2014 issued in 2006 and 2009.
Adjusted EBITDA is not a recognized term under GAAP. This non-GAAP measure does not represent net income or cash flows from operations, as these terms are defined under GAAP and should not be considered as an alternative to net income as an indicator of operating performance or to cash flows as a measure of liquidity. Additionally, this non-GAAP measure is not intended to be a measure of cash flow available to management for discretionary use, as such measure does not consider certain cash requirements such as capital expenditures (including expenditures on VSAT operating lease hardware and capitalized software development costs), tax payments, debt service requirements (including VSAT operating lease hardware), and payments under the long-term cash incentive retention program. Adjusted EBITDA as presented herein is not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. Any analysis of non-GAAP financial measures should be used only in conjunction with results presented in accordance with GAAP.
About Hughes Communications, Inc.
Hughes Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: HUGH) is the 100 percent owner of Hughes Network Systems, LLC. Hughes is the global leader in providing broadband satellite networks and services for enterprises, governments, small businesses, and consumers. HughesNet® encompasses all broadband solutions and managed services from Hughes, bridging the best of satellite and terrestrial technologies. Its broadband satellite products are based on global standards approved by the TIA, ETSI, and ITU standards organizations, including IPoS/DVB-S2, RSM-A, and GMR-1. To date, Hughes has shipped more than 2.2 million systems to customers in over 100 countries.
Headquartered outside Washington, DC, in Germantown, Maryland, USA, Hughes maintains sales and support offices worldwide. For more information, please visit www.hughes.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
This press release may contain statements that are forward looking, as that term is defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, discussions regarding industry outlook and Hughes’ expectations regarding the performance of its business, its future liquidity and capital resource needs, its strategic plans, and objectives. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management. When used in this release, the words “believe,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “project,” “plans” and similar expressions and the use of future dates are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. These statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, but not limited to, the following: risks related to Hughes’ substantial leverage and restrictions
contained in its debt agreements, technological developments, its reliance on providers of satellite transponder capacity, changes in demand for Hughes’ services and products, competition, industry trends, regulatory changes, foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, and other risks identified and discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in Hughes’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 5, 2009 and in the other documents Hughes files with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time.