Exhibit 99.1 | ||
Earnings Release | ||
• | Total Revenue grew +2.0% YoY in FY 2019 to $9.76 billion. Total revenue grew +0.8% YoY in Q4 2019 to $2.475 billion, driven by Q4 Residential revenue growth of +0.1% (including Broadband growth of +11.1%), Q4 Business Services revenue growth of +4.1% and Q4 News and Advertising revenue decline of -9.0% (ex-political, News and Advertising grew +10.3% YoY). |
• | Net Income attributable to stockholders was $138.9 million for FY 2019, or $0.21/share (increased from net income of $18.8 million in FY 2018, or $0.03/share). Net income was $0.3 million in Q4 2019. |
• | Adjusted EBITDA(1) grew +2.5% YoY in FY 2019 to $4.27 billion with a margin of 43.7% (growth of +3.4% and a margin of 44.2% ex-mobile losses). Adjusted EBITDA of $1.085 billion in Q4 2019 declined -1.9% YoY including mobile losses, with an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 43.8%. Q4 Adjusted EBITDA excluding mobile losses was in line with prior year (-0.2% YoY) with an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 45.0%(2). |
• | Free Cash Flow(1) of $1.20 billion in FY 2019, declined 11.5% YoY, mainly reflecting higher investment in key growth initiatives such as fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and mobile, as well as the timing of working capital outflow, partially offset by lower interest costs. Free Cash Flow of $397 million declined -4.8% YoY in Q4 2019, reflecting the same factors. |
• | FY 2020 Outlook: The company expects revenue growth (ex-mobile) to accelerate to 2.0% to 2.5% with a further expansion in Adjusted EBITDA margin (ex-mobile). The company continues to target year-end leverage of 4.5-5.0x (L2QA) and expects to complete $1.7 billion in share repurchases in 2020. |
Three Months Ended December 31, | Twelve Months Ended December 31, | |||||||
($k) | 2019 | 2018 | 2019 | 2018 | ||||
Revenue | $2,474,549 | $2,454,940 | $9,760,859 | $9,566,608 | ||||
Net income attributable to Altice USA, Inc. stockholders | 329 | 213,086 | 138,936 | 18,833 | ||||
Adjusted EBITDA(1)(2) | 1,085,000 | 1,106,097 | 4,265,471 | 4,163,078 | ||||
Capital Expenditures (cash) | 322,795 | 320,765 | 1,355,350 | 1,153,589 |
(1) | See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures” on page 7 of this release. |
(2) | Adjusted EBITDA decline of -0.2% and margin of 45.0% in Q4-19 excluding approximately $20.4m of losses related to Altice USA’s mobile business in the current period and $1.2m in the year-ago period. |
Earnings Release | ||
• | Ongoing network investments and the rollout of Altice One supported 2019 broadband and video customer trends, which were in line with prior years despite a temporary uptick in churn in early Q4. The company saw a significant rebound in customer and broadband net additions in December. Altice USA reached 543k unique Altice One customers as of the end 2019 (approximately 17% of total video customers, up from 9% at the end of 2018). |
• | Total unique Residential customer relationships grew +0.3% YoY in FY 2019 with Residential revenue per customer relationship growth of +1.3% YoY to $143.98, supporting Residential revenue growth of +1.6% YoY (in line with FY 2018 Residential customer growth of +0.2% YoY, revenue per customer relationship growth of +1.3% YoY and revenue growth of +1.5% YoY). In Q4 2019, Residential revenue grew +0.1% YoY with quarterly unique Residential customer relationships down -5k sequentially due to temporary promotional roll-offs and disruption from the completed BSS/OSS integration, all of which was mitigated in December: |
• | Residential Broadband RGU quarterly net additions of +7k in Q4 2019 (vs. +22k in Q4 2018), with +17k net additions in December more than offsetting declines in October and November following promotional roll-offs and BSS/OSS integration. Residential broadband net additions of +72k in FY 2019, +1.7% YoY, were in line with prior year (+72k net additions in FY 2018). |
• | Residential Video RGU quarterly net losses of -44k in Q4 2019 (vs. -14.2k in Q4 2018), leading to a decline of 3.3% YoY for FY 2019 (versus -2.9% YoY video RGUs in FY 2018). |
• | Residential revenue per customer relationship was down slightly (-0.4%) YoY at $142.65 in Q4 2019. |
• | Business Services revenue grew +4.8% in FY 2019 with growth in Enterprise & Carrier of +3.6% YoY and SMB +5.5% YoY. For Q4 2019, Business Services revenue grew +4.1% YoY in Q4 2019 with growth in Enterprise & Carrier of +1.2% YoY and SMB +5.9% YoY. |
• | News and Advertising revenue declined -2.3% in FY 2019. Growth driven by a4 and Cheddar was offset by the political cycle in 2H 2019, which is expected to reverse in 2020 (in FY 2019, excluding political, News and Advertising revenue grew +9.9%). News and Advertising revenue declined -9.0% YoY in Q4 2019 (+10.3% YoY growth ex-political). |
• | Increased demand for higher broadband speed tiers and significant growth in data usage. The average broadband speed taken by Altice USA’s customer base has increased over threefold in the past three years to 213 Mbps at the end of Q4 2019 (from 64 Mbps at the end of 2016) and average household data usage was over 316 GB per month (growth of over 20% YoY). The company observes broadband-only customers on average using 420 GB of data per month, compared to 271 GB per month for video-broadband bundle customers, with video streaming services consistently a key driver of increased demand for higher speeds and greater usage. |
• | Revenue growth (ex-mobile) of 2.0% to 2.5% |
• | Adjusted EBITDA margin (ex-mobile) expansion |
• | Capital expenditures of $1.3 billion to $1.4 billion |
• | Year-end Leverage target 4.5x to 5.0x net debt / Adjusted EBITDA (L2QA basis) |
• | Share repurchases of $1.7 billion |
Earnings Release | ||
Earnings Release | ||
Earnings Release | ||
• | Total revenue for Altice USA grew +2.0% YoY in FY 2019 to $9.76 billion and +0.8% YoY revenue growth to $2.475 billion in Q4. |
• | Net Income attributable to stockholders of $138.9 million in FY 2019, or $0.21/share (increased from net income of $18.8 million in FY 2018, or $0.03/share). Net income of $0.3 million in Q4. |
• | Adjusted EBITDA(3) grew +2.5% YoY in FY 2019 to $4.27 billion with a margin of 43.7% (growth of +3.4% and a margin of 44.2% ex-mobile losses). Adjusted EBITDA of $1.085 billion in Q4, declined -1.9% YoY including mobile losses, with an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 43.8%. Q4 Adjusted EBITDA was in line with prior year (-0.2% YoY) excluding mobile losses with an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 45.0%(2). |
• | For FY 2019 cash capex of $1.36 billion represented 13.9% of revenue, or less than 10% excluding mobile and FTTH / new home build capex. Cash capex was $323 million in Q4, representing 13.0% of revenue (less than 10% excluding mobile and FTTH / new home build capex). |
• | Operating Free Cash Flow(3) for FY 2019 declined -3.3% YoY to $2.91 billion mainly reflecting higher investment in key growth initiatives such as FTTH and mobile, with a decline of -2.9% YoY in Q4 to $762 million. |
• | Free Cash Flow(3) of $1.20 billion in FY 2019 declined 11.5% YoY, mainly reflecting higher investment in key growth initiatives, as well as the timing of working capital outflow, partially offset by lower interest costs. Free Cash Flow of $397 million declined -4.8% YoY in Q4, reflecting the same factors. |
• | Residential revenue grew +1.6% YoY to $7.82 billion for FY 2019 and +0.1% YoY revenue growth to $1.94 billion in Q4. |
• | Business Services revenue grew +4.8% in FY 2019 with growth in Enterprise & Carrier of +3.6% YoY and SMB +5.5% YoY. For Q4, Business Services revenue grew +4.1% YoY in Q4 2019 with growth in Enterprise & Carrier of +1.2% YoY and SMB +5.9% YoY. Altice USA continues to have success with its managed services suite of products including security, Smart WiFi, and hosted voice services for both SMB and mid-market enterprise customers. The overall SMB customer base grew by +0.4% YoY driven by increased demand for higher broadband speed tiers. |
• | News and Advertising revenue declined -2.3% YoY in FY 2019. Growth driven by a4 and Cheddar offset by political cycle in 2H 2019 which is expected to reverse in 2020 (revenue excluding political grew +9.9%). News and Advertising revenue declined -9.0% YoY in Q4 2019 (+10.3% growth ex-political). |
• | Programming costs increased +3.9% YoY in both FY 2019 and in Q4 2019, due primarily to an increase in contractual programming rates, partially offset by the decrease in video customers. Following recent renewals, programming costs per video customer are expected to increase by mid-to-high single digits going forward (+7.2% in FY 2019 and +6.9% in Q4 2019). |
• | Net debt at the end of 2019 was $22.146 billion on a reported basis(4), a decrease of $509 million from the end of the third quarter of 2019 mainly reflecting free cash flow generation in Q4. This represents consolidated L2QA net leverage of 5.1x on a reported basis at the end of December 2019 (5.2x LTM). There are no maturities above $1.1 billion until 2025 (with no bond maturities through 2020) and near-term maturities in the next three years could be covered by ~$2.5 billion revolving credit facility. |
(3) | See “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures” on page 7 of this release. |
(4) | Net debt, defined as debt less cash, and excluding finance leases and other notes. |
Earnings Release | ||
Altice USA Consolidated Operating Results | |||||||
(In thousands, except per share data) | |||||||
Three Months Ended December 31, | Twelve Months Ended December 31, | ||||||
2019 | 2018 | 2019 | 2018 | ||||
Revenue: | |||||||
Broadband | $826,454 | $743,725 | $3,222,605 | $2,887,455 | |||
Video | 968,959 | 1,033,649 | 3,997,873 | 4,156,428 | |||
Telephony | 145,767 | 162,007 | 598,694 | 652,895 | |||
Business services and wholesale | 362,409 | 348,087 | 1,428,532 | 1,362,758 | |||
News and Advertising | 148,649 | 163,272 | 475,904 | 487,264 | |||
Mobile | 18,090 | — | 21,264 | — | |||
Other | 4,221 | 4,200 | 15,987 | 19,808 | |||
Total revenue | 2,474,549 | 2,454,940 | 9,760,859 | 9,566,608 | |||
Operating expenses: | |||||||
Programming and other direct costs | 847,653 | 800,055 | 3,300,528 | 3,173,076 | |||
Other operating expenses | 598,274 | 562,424 | 2,300,398 | 2,290,266 | |||
Restructuring and other expense | 33,888 | 8,683 | 72,978 | 38,548 | |||
Depreciation and amortization (including impairments) | 567,459 | 555,054 | 2,263,144 | 2,382,339 | |||
Operating income | 427,275 | 528,724 | 1,823,811 | 1,682,379 | |||
Other income (expense): | |||||||
Interest expense, net | (376,497) | (397,874) | (1,530,850) | (1,545,426) | |||
Gain (loss) on investments and sale of affiliate interests, net | (4,718) | (68,846) | 473,406 | (250,877) | |||
Gain (loss) on derivative contracts, net | 21,273 | 87,965 | (282,713) | 218,848 | |||
Gain (loss) on interest rate swap contracts | 7,833 | 2,708 | (53,902) | (61,697) | |||
Loss on extinguishment of debt and write-off of deferred financing costs | (84,207) | (7,188) | (243,806) | (48,804) | |||
Other income (expense), net | 1,117 | (11) | 1,183 | (12,484) | |||
Income (loss) before income taxes | (7,924) | 145,478 | 187,129 | (18,061) | |||
Income tax benefit (expense) | 9,255 | 68,330 | (47,190) | 38,655 | |||
Net income | 1,331 | 213,808 | 139,939 | 20,594 | |||
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests | (1,002) | (722) | (1,003) | (1,761) | |||
Net income attributable to Altice USA stockholders | $329 | $213,086 | $138,936 | $18,833 | |||
Basic net income per share | $— | $0.30 | $0.21 | $0.03 | |||
Diluted net income per share | $— | $0.30 | $0.21 | $0.03 | |||
Basic weighted average common shares | 635,029 | 713,478 | 660,384 | 730,088 | |||
Diluted weighted average common shares | 640,839 | 713,478 | 662,541 | 730,088 |
Earnings Release | ||
Three Months Ended December 31, | Twelve Months Ended December 31, | ||||||
2019 | 2018 | 2019 | 2018 | ||||
(in thousands) | |||||||
Net income | $1,331 | $213,808 | $139,939 | $20,594 | |||
Income tax benefit (expense) | (9,255) | (68,330) | 47,190 | (38,655) | |||
Other expense (income), net | (1,117) | 11 | (1,183) | 12,484 | |||
Loss (gain) on interest rate swap contracts | (7,833) | (2,708) | 53,902 | 61,697 | |||
Loss (gain) on derivative contracts, net | (21,273) | (87,965) | 282,713 | (218,848) | |||
Loss (gain) on investments and sales of affiliate interests, net | 4,718 | 68,846 | (473,406) | 250,877 | |||
Loss on extinguishment of debt and write-off of deferred financing costs | 84,207 | 7,188 | 243,806 | 48,804 | |||
Interest expense, net | 376,497 | 397,874 | 1,530,850 | 1,545,426 | |||
Depreciation and amortization | 567,459 | 555,054 | 2,263,144 | 2,382,339 | |||
Restructuring and other expense | 33,888 | 8,683 | 72,978 | 38,548 | |||
Share-based compensation | 56,378 | 13,636 | 105,538 | 59,812 | |||
Adjusted EBITDA | $1,085,000 | $1,106,097 | $4,265,471 | $4,163,078 | |||
Capital Expenditures (cash) | 322,795 | 320,765 | 1,355,350 | 1,153,589 | |||
Operating Free Cash Flow | $762,205 | $785,332 | $2,910,121 | $3,009,489 |
Net cash flows from operating activities | $720,182 | $738,055 | $2,554,169 | $2,508,317 | |||
Capital Expenditures (cash) | 322,795 | 320,765 | 1,355,350 | 1,153,589 | |||
Free Cash Flow | $397,387 | $417,290 | $1,198,819 | $1,354,728 |
Earnings Release | ||
Customer Metrics(9)(in thousands, except per customer amounts) | Net increase (decrease) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Q1-18 | Q2-18 | Q3-18 | Q4-18 | FY-18 | Q1-19 | Q2-19 | Q3-19 | Q4-19 | FY-19 | Q4-19 | YTD-19 | ||||||||||||
Homes passed (5) | 8,620.0 | 8,648.8 | 8,679.4 | 8,714.9 | 8,714.9 | 8,739.4 | 8,766.0 | 8,784.6 | 8,833.7 | 8,833.7 | 49.1 | 118.8 | |||||||||||
Residential (7) | 4,517.5 | 4,513.9 | 4,509.2 | 4,518.1 | 4,518.1 | 4,539.8 | 4,538.9 | 4,538.6 | 4,533.3 | 4,533.3 | (5.3) | 15.2 | |||||||||||
SMB(7) | 391.7 | 394.0 | 395.3 | 396.6 | 396.6 | 397.8 | 399.9 | 399.9 | 398.2 | 398.2 | (1.7) | 1.6 | |||||||||||
Total Unique Customer Relationships(6) | 4,909.2 | 4,907.9 | 4,904.5 | 4,914.7 | 4,914.7 | 4,937.6 | 4,938.8 | 4,938.5 | 4,931.5 | 4,931.5 | (7.0) | 16.8 | |||||||||||
Residential Customers: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Broadband | 4,069.6 | 4,079.1 | 4,093.3 | 4,115.4 | 4,115.4 | 4,152.3 | 4,165.4 | 4,180.3 | 4,187.3 | 4,187.3 | 7.0 | 71.9 | |||||||||||
Video | 3,352.2 | 3,328.0 | 3,300.3 | 3,286.1 | 3,286.1 | 3,276.1 | 3,255.3 | 3,223.4 | 3,179.2 | 3,179.2 | (44.2) | (106.9) | |||||||||||
Telephony | 2,548.6 | 2,544.4 | 2,532.4 | 2,530.1 | 2,530.1 | 2,510.1 | 2,485.8 | 2,446.6 | 2,398.8 | 2,398.8 | (47.8) | (131.3) | |||||||||||
Residential ARPU ($) (8) | 140.43 | 141.00 | 143.77 | 143.22 | 142.11 | 143.33 | 145.02 | 143.63 | 142.65 | 143.98 |
(5) | Homes passed represents the estimated number of single residence homes, apartments and condominium units passed by the broadband network in areas serviceable without further extending the transmission lines. In addition, it includes commercial establishments that have connected to our broadband network. Broadband services were not available to approximately 30 homes passed and telephony services were not available to approximately 500 homes passed. |
(6) | Total Unique Customer Relationships represent number of households/businesses that receive at least one of the Company’s fixed-line services. |
(7) | Customers represent each customer account (set up and segregated by customer name and address), weighted equally and counted as one customer, regardless of size, revenue generated, or number of boxes, units, or outlets. In calculating the number of customers, we count all customers other than inactive/disconnected customers. Free accounts are included in the customer counts along with all active accounts, but they are limited to a prescribed group. Most of these accounts are also not entirely free, as they typically generate revenue through pay-per-view or other pay services and certain equipment fees. Free status is not granted to regular customers as a promotion. In counting bulk Residential customers, such as an apartment building, we count each subscribing family unit within the building as one customer, but do not count the master account for the entire building as a customer. We count a bulk commercial customer, such as a hotel, as one customer, and do not count individual room units at that hotel. |
(8) | ARPU calculated by dividing the average monthly revenue for the respective quarter or annual periods derived from the sale of broadband, pay television and telephony services to Residential customers by the average number of total Residential customers for the same period. |
(9) | Customer metrics do not include Altice Mobile customers. |
Earnings Release | ||
Altice USA (CSC Holdings) In $m | Principal Amount | Coupon / Margin | Maturity |
Guaranteed Notes | 1,096 | 5.375% | 2023 |
Guaranteed Notes | 1,000 | 6.625% | 2025 |
Guaranteed Notes | 1,499 | 5.500% | 2026 |
Guaranteed Notes | 1,310 | 5.500% | 2027 |
Guaranteed Notes | 1,000 | 5.375% | 2028 |
Guaranteed Notes | 1,750 | 6.500% | 2029 |
Senior Notes | 1,000 | 6.750% | 2021 |
Senior Notes | 649 | 5.875% | 2022 |
Senior Notes | 750 | 5.250% | 2024 |
Senior Notes | 1,684 | 10.875% | 2025 |
Senior Notes | 618 | 7.750% | 2025 |
Senior Notes | 1,046 | 7.500% | 2028 |
Senior Notes | 2,250 | 5.750% | 2030 |
Legacy unexchanged Cequel Notes | 6 | ||
Term Loan | 2,925 | L+2.250% | 2025 |
Term Loan B-3 | 1,265 | L+2.250% | 2026 |
Term Loan B-5 | 3,000 | L+2.500% | 2027 |
Drawn RCF | — | L+2.250% | 2021,2024 |
Gross Debt Consolidated | 22,848 | ||
Finance leases and other notes | 210 | ||
Total Debt | 23,058 | ||
Total Cash | (702) | ||
Net Debt | 22,356 | ||
Undrawn RCF | 2,297 | ||
WACD (%) | 5.9% |
Earnings Release | ||
Actual | |
Gross Debt Consolidated(10) | $22,848 |
Cash | (702) |
Net Debt Consolidated | $22,146 |
LTM EBITDA | $4,265.5 |
L2QA EBITDA | $4,306.8 |
Net Leverage (LTM) | 5.2x |
Net Leverage (L2QA) | 5.1x |
Reconciliation to Financial Reported Debt | Actual |
Total Debenture and Loans from Financial Institutions (Carrying Amount) | $22,835 |
Unamortized Financing Costs | 88 |
Fair Value Adjustments | 135 |
Total Value of Debenture and Loans from Financial Institutions (Principal Amount) | 23,058 |
Finance leases and other notes | 210 |
Total Debt | 23,268 |
Cash | (702) |
Net Debt | $22,566 |
(10) | Excluding finance leases and other notes. |
Earnings Release | ||