CALGARY, Alberta, Aug. 25, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Western Investment Company of Canada Limited (“Western” or the “Company”) (TSX Venture:WI) announces results for the second quarter ending June 30, 2017 (“Q2 2017”). All results are presented in Canadian dollars. Readers should refer to the June 30, 2017 Management Discussion and Analysis and condensed interim consolidated financial statements for complete information, which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Key Highlights for the period ended June 30, 2017
- Western reports its first profitable quarter since its inception. Net Income and Net Income Normalized for Portfolio Investment Operations (“NPIO”) for the three months ended June 30, 2017 was $136,259 ($0.004 EPS) and $184,451 ($0.006 EPS). The NPIO metric removes $48,192 after-tax in expenditures from Net Income that are related to acquisition activity. Management believes NPIO provides investors with important information on the Company’s ongoing operations excluding new acquisition expenses. For more information on NPIO see ‘Description of Non-IFRS Measures’ section.
- The Company’s financial results include revenue from its first equity investment, a 50.1% interest in GlassMasters ARG Autoglass Two Inc. (“GlassMasters”). Revenues and EBITDA of GlassMasters for the six months ended June 30, 2017 increased 10% and 12% respectively from the same period in 2016. GlassMasters management continues to pursue expansion opportunities and plans to open between one to three new retail locations in 2018.
- Western is actively marketing its investment strategy across Western Canada to seek out new opportunities. The efforts to identify, assess and negotiate acquisitions will show itself in subsequent quarters as evidenced by the recent Golden Health Care partnership (please see Corporate Update – Golden Health Care Partnership below). The Company has a robust pipeline of potential transactions and is confident it will enter into new partnerships with strong and profitable Western Canadian based companies by the end of the fiscal year.
Western’s financial results for June 30, 2017 and comparable period of the prior year are presented below.
| In C$000s except for per share amounts | Three Months ended June 30, 2017 | Three months ended June 30, 2016 | |||
| Total Revenue | $371.3 | -- | |||
| Operating Expenses | $235.1 | $106.4 | |||
| Net Income (Loss) NPIO | $184.5 | ($106.4) | |||
| Net Income (Loss) | $136.3 | ($106.4) | |||
| Earnings (Loss) per Share NPIO: | |||||
| Basic1 | $0.006 | ($0.010) | |||
| Diluted2 | $0.006 | ($0.010) | |||
| Earnings (Loss) per Share: | |||||
| Basic | $0.004 | ($0.010) | |||
| Diluted | $0.004 | ($0.010) | |||
Notes
1 Defined as Net Income (Loss) NPIO divided by the number of basic shares outstanding for the quarter
2 Defined as Net Income (Loss) NPIO divided by the number of diluted shares outstanding for the quarter
Review of Western Operations and Financial Results
During the three months ended June 30, 2017 the Corporation recorded equity income of $327,496 relating to the 50.1% equity pick-up from GlassMasters, revenue of $25,000 for the Q2 management fee from GlassMasters and $18,816 in interest income on the cash balance held in savings. Expenses of $235,053 were recorded of which $48,192 is comprised of acquisition expenses associated with acquisition sourcing activities, including the Golden Health Care partnership announced August 9, 2017.
Corporate Update – Golden Health Care Partnership
Western is actively marketing its investment strategy across Western Canada to seek out opportunities. As a result of these efforts, on August 9, 2017, the Corporation announced it signed a non-binding Letter of Intent (“LOI”) whereby the Corporation intends to acquire a 30% interest in three seniors care homes, located in Saskatchewan. The cost of this acquisition is approximately $5 million with a definitive purchase agreement and closing expected by September 1, 2017.
Scott Tannas, CEO of Western comments: "We are pleased with our early success investing in strong Western Canadian companies like GlassMasters and Golden Health Care. There’s much more to be done. We have multiple acquisition projects at various stages of analysis and/or negotiation. We will keep shareholders apprised of our progress.”
About Western (www.winv.ca)
Our purpose is to create long-term wealth for shareholders by building and maintaining a portfolio of strong, stable, and profitable Western-based companies and help them to grow.
Not for distribution to United States news wire services or dissemination in the United States.
Advisory
This news release may contain certain forward-looking information and statements, including without limitation, statements pertaining to the differences between future Net Income and Net Income NPIO and future seasonality of GlassMasters' operations. Statements containing the words: 'believes', 'intends', 'expects', 'plans', 'seeks' and 'anticipates' and any other words of similar meaning are forward-looking. All statements included herein involve various risks and uncertainties because they relate to future events and circumstances beyond Western's control. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. A description of assumptions used to develop such forward-looking information and a description of risk factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking information can be found in Western's disclosure documents on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and Western does not undertake to update any forward-looking information except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Description of Non-IFRS Measures
The Company uses accounting principles that are accepted in Canada under the International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). Certain supplementary measures in this document do not have any standardized meaning as prescribed by IFRS, including the non-IFRS measures "Net Income (Loss) Normalized for Portfolio Investment Operations" (NPIO), "Earnings Per Share Normalized for Portfolio Investment Operations" and “EBITDA”.
EBITDA for both our corporate head office and investees is defined as earnings before interest, taxes, non-cash items such as depreciation and amortization. NPIO removes from Net Income certain after-tax expenses incurred by the Company that relate directly to the finding and executing of new acquisitions. Western is currently not taxable, no adjustment in tax was recorded to NPIO however this will change in the future once Western pays taxes. A reconciliation of the Company’s Net Income to NPIO is as follows:
| in C$000s | Three Months ended June 30, 2017 | |
| Net Income - per IFRS | $ | 136.3 |
| Acquisition related expenses (after-tax) | $ | 48.2 |
| Net Income NPIO | $ | 184.5 |
The Company's method of calculating these non-IFRS measures may differ from other issuers, and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other reporting issuers. These non-IFRS financial measures are included because management uses this information to analyze operating performance. Readers are cautioned that these non-IFRS financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.