ATN Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Results

• Continued growth in domestic and international telecom drives improved underlying operating results
• Telecom businesses well positioned to continue to deliver strong financial performance in 2020      

BEVERLY, Mass., Feb. 19, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ATN International, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATNI) today reported results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2019.

Business Review and Outlook

“Fourth quarter operating results in our telecom segments improved considerably in most respects from last year’s levels,” said Michael Prior, ATN’s Chief Executive Officer. “Consolidated telecom revenues in the fourth quarter increased at a high single-digit rate, driving higher growth in Adjusted EBITDA¹.

“Positive fourth quarter comparisons in our International Telecom segment were broad-based, reflective of growth in our broadband services across our markets and the continued recovery of our US Virgin Islands operations, following the 2017 hurricanes. Our scale and investments in expanded fiber coverage and capacity, combined with the improved economic conditions in several of our markets, have put us in a strong position to deliver the data services that are in high demand.

“US Telecom operations generated double-digit revenue growth for the quarter due to increased wholesale wireless revenue as part of the FirstNet transaction and our work on the Connect America Fund Phase II (CAF II). This revenue boost and related operating income expansion more than offset additional costs related to our early-stage domestic telecom ventures.

“Fourth quarter net income included $5.8 million of charges tied to a revision to the carrying value of our solar operations in India given changing market conditions and delays in execution on certain pipeline assets.  We are pleased with recent customer acquisition activities in this market and continue to evaluate potential partnering alternatives to execute on the solar energy platform that we have built in India.

“Looking ahead, we believe we have entered 2020 with our core telecom businesses well positioned, and we expect them to continue to increase segment revenue and Adjusted EBITDA¹ for the year. Our International Telecom segment has a broadening revenue base, with the potential to participate in macro-economic growth in multiple markets while at the same time increasing share and driving operating efficiencies.  Our US Telecom segment has made great strides towards strengthening its wholesale revenue pipeline, with potential upside coming from our ability to expand our enterprise and retail offerings. Also, while still early in the development phase, we believe our Geoverse subsidiary is well positioned to play a major role in the promising “private LTE” market. Geoverse has developed a strong platform and technical solution and is pursuing growth both through turnkey in-building deployments and working with strategic partners who are interested in utilizing Geoverse’s network solution.”

Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Financial Results

Fourth quarter 2019 consolidated revenues of $112.1 million were up 4% compared to last year’s reported revenues of $107.8 million.  An operating loss for the fourth quarter of 2019 of $1.7 million included $5.8 million of goodwill impairment charges and losses on disposed assets.  This compares with the prior year operating income of $10.3 million, which included the $10.9 million gain mostly from the sale of the Company’s U.S. solar portfolio.  Adjusted EBITDA¹ was $28.5 million, an increase of 22% compared to $23.4 million in the prior year period and up 39% adjusting for the sale of U.S. solar assets included in Q4 2018.  Net loss attributable to ATN’s stockholders for the fourth quarter was $9.8 million, or $0.61 per share, and included approximately $3.0 million of foreign currency losses from several of our markets.  The prior year period’s net income was $1.1 million, or $0.07 per diluted share.

Revenues for the full year 2019 were $438.7 million, 3% below the $451.2 million reported for the full year 2018.  Operating income for the full year 2019 was $13.4 million including $6.1 million of goodwill impairment charges and losses on disposed assets.  In 2018, operating income was $61.0 million, which included $26.4 million in net gains on the sales of certain wholesale wireless assets in the U.S. and the Company’s U.S. solar portfolio.  Adjusted EBITDA¹ for the full year 2019 was $108.9 million, a decrease of 12% from the prior year.  Net loss attributable to ATN stockholders for the full year 2019 was $10.8 million, or $0.68 per share, compared with the prior year’s net income of $19.8 million or $1.24 per diluted share.
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¹ See Table 5 for reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA.

Fourth Quarter 2019 Operating Highlights

The Company has three reportable segments: (i) US Telecom; (ii) International Telecom; and (iii) Renewable Energy. 

International Telecom

International Telecom consists of a broad range of information and communications services including wireline and wireless data, internet, voice and video service revenues from our operations in Bermuda and the Caribbean.  International Telecom revenues increased 6% year-on-year mainly due to a strong increase in broadband revenues in most of our markets, including the U.S. Virgin Islands, where the market and our operations continue to recover and grow following the 2017 hurricanes.  International Telecom operating income increased 47% to $11.1 million from the prior year’s quarter and Adjusted EBITDA¹ increased 29% to $26.6 million from the prior year’s quarter as a result of the higher broadband revenues in multiple markets, the post-storm recovery in the U.S. Virgin Islands and improved operating margins in multiple markets.

US Telecom

US Telecom revenues consist mainly of wireless revenues from our voice and data wholesale wireless operations and our smaller retail operations in the Southwestern United States, as well as enterprise and wholesale wireline revenues.  US Telecom segment revenues increased by 12% primarily due to the CAF II federal support revenues, which began earlier in 2019 and increased wholesale revenues as part of the FirstNet transaction.  Work has commenced and we expect construction revenues under the network build portion of the FirstNet agreement to begin in mid-2020 and continue through mid-2021.  As revenues from the build will be largely offset by construction costs, we do not expect a material impact on operating income or Adjusted EBITDA¹.   Operating income increased to $2.1 million from the prior year’s quarter and Adjusted EBITDA¹  for this segment increased by 29% to $8.3 million. This was due to the impact of the CAF II and FirstNet revenues and was offset partially by additional operating costs related to our early stage business investments.   

Renewable Energy

Renewable Energy segment revenues are principally the result of the generation and sale of energy from our commercial solar projects in India.  In the fourth quarter of 2018, ATN completed the sale of its portfolio of solar projects in the United States. As a result, fourth quarter 2019 revenues were $1.2 million, compared to $4.9 million in the prior year quarter and Adjusted EBITDA¹ amounted to $0.1 million, compared to $2.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2018.  We finished 2019 with 52 MWs of revenue generating solar facilities compared to 49 MWs at the end of 2018 and have several activities underway to continue expanding that in 2020.  The current year’s operating loss was $6.4 million and includes the impact of $5.8 million of impaired goodwill and asset dispositions.  This compares to the prior year’s operating income of $9.8 million which included the $12.4 million gain on the sale of the U.S. solar portfolio. 

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Highlights

Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at December 31, 2019 was $162.4 million.  Additionally, the Company ended the fourth quarter with $0.4 million in short-term investments.  Net cash provided by operating activities was $87.9 million for the year ended 2019, compared with $115.9 million for the prior year.  The decrease in operating cash flow compared with the prior year is mostly the result of changes in net working capital activity, primarily income tax payments of $26.9 million made in 2019 and the related decrease in accrued taxes as a result of the 2018 gain on the sale of the U.S. solar portfolio.  For the year ended 2019, the Company used net cash of $118.2 million for investing and financing activities compared to $142.5 million for 2018.  In 2019, this included $72.7 million in capital expenditures, $10.9 million of dividends on common stock and $25.4 million for minority investments.  Over the past three years the company has made minority investments totaling approximately $32.3 million in four companies, in addition to serving as the primary funding partner in three early stage controlled subsidiaries.  Management expects full year 2020 capital expenditures in International Telecom to be approximately $45.0 - $50.0 million.  In the US Telecom segment, we expect capital expenditures to be approximately $35.0 - $40.0 million, including $20.0 million on towers and backhaul to support the FirstNet contract.  In the Renewable Energy segment, we expect $2.0 - $4.0 million of project costs in 2020 related to building additional capacity.

Conference Call Information

ATN will host a conference call on Thursday, February 20, 2020 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) to discuss its fourth quarter and year end 2019 results and business outlook. The call will be hosted by Michael Prior, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Justin Benincasa, Chief Financial Officer. The dial-in numbers are US/Canada: (877) 734-4582 and International: (678) 905-9376, conference ID 4758768. A replay of the call will be available at ir.atni.com beginning at 1:00 p.m. (ET) on February 20, 2020.

About ATN

ATN International, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATNI), headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts, invests in and operates communications, energy and technology businesses in the United States and internationally, including the Caribbean region and Asia-Pacific, with a particular focus on markets with a need for significant infrastructure investments and improvements. Our operating subsidiaries today primarily provide: (i) advanced wireless and wireline connectivity to residential and business customers, including a range of mobile wireless solutions, high speed internet services, video services and local exchange services, (ii) distributed solar electric power to corporate and government customers and (iii) wholesale communications infrastructure services such as terrestrial and submarine fiber optic transport, communications tower facilities, managed mobile networks, and in-building systems. For more information, please visit www.atni.com.

Cautionary Language Concerning Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to, among other matters, our future financial performance and results of operations including revenue and Adjusted EBITDA expectations and capital expenditures for 2020; the competitive environment in our key markets, demand for our services and industry trends; the impact of the CAF II federal support revenues and the FirstNet transaction; our growth opportunities; our expectations for macro-economic growth in certain of our markets; and management’s plans and strategy for the future. These forward-looking statements are based on estimates, projections, beliefs, and assumptions and are not guarantees of future events or results.  Actual future events and results could differ materially from the events and results indicated in these statements as a result of many factors, including, among others, (1) the general performance of our operations, including operating margins, revenues, capital expenditures, and the future growth and retention of our major customers and subscriber base and consumer demand for solar power;  (2) our ability to maintain favorable roaming arrangements, receive roaming traffic and satisfy the needs and demands of our major wireless customers; (3) our ability to efficiently and cost-effectively upgrade our networks and IT platforms to address  rapid and significant technological changes in the telecommunications industry; (4) government regulation of our businesses, which may impact our FCC and other telecommunications licenses or our renewables businesses; (5) our reliance on a limited number of key suppliers and vendors for timely supply of equipment and services relating to our network infrastructure; (6) economic, political and other risks and opportunities facing our operations; (7) the loss of or an inability to recruit skilled personnel in our various jurisdictions, including key members of management; (8) our ability to expand and obtain funding for our renewable energy business; (9) our ability to find investment or acquisition or disposition opportunities that fit the strategic goals of the Company; (10) the occurrence of weather events and natural catastrophes; (11) increased competition;  (12) the adequacy and expansion capabilities of our network capacity and customer service system to support our customer growth; (13) our continued access to capital and credit markets; and (14) the risk of currency fluctuation for those markets in which we operate.  These and other additional factors that may cause actual future events and results to differ materially from the events and results indicated in the forward-looking statements above are set forth more fully under Item 1A “Risk Factors” of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, filed with the SEC on February 28, 2019 and the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2019, filed with the SEC on November 8, 2019 and the other reports we file from time to time with the SEC.  The Company undertakes no obligation and has no intention to update these forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors that may affect such forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to financial measures prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), this press release also contains non-GAAP financial measures. Specifically, ATN has included Adjusted EBITDA in this release and in the tables included herein. 

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income attributable to ATN stockholders before (gain) loss on disposition of long-lived assets, restructuring charges, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, transaction-related charges, other income or expense, loss on damaged assets and other hurricane charges, net of insurance recovery and net income attributable to non-controlling interests. 

The Company believes that the inclusion of this non-GAAP financial measure helps investors gain a meaningful understanding of the Company's core operating results and enhances the usefulness of comparing such performance with prior periods. ATN’s management uses this non-GAAP measure, in addition to GAAP financial measures, as the basis for measuring our core operating performance and comparing such performance to that of prior periods. The non-GAAP financial measure included in this press release is not meant to be considered superior to or a substitute for results of operations prepared in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliations of this non-GAAP financial measure used in this press release to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure are set forth in the text of, and the accompanying tables to, this press release.  While our non-GAAP financial measures are an important tool for financial and operational decision-making and for evaluating our own operating results over different periods of time, we urge investors to review the reconciliation of these financial measures to the comparable GAAP financial measures included below, and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate our business.