Canada NewsWire
HALIFAX, Nov 8, 2017
Delivering regional aviation to the world
HALIFAX, Nov 8, 2017 /CNW/ - Chorus Aviation Inc. ('Chorus') (TSX: CHR) today announced solid financial results for the third quarter of 2017.
"I'm pleased with our financial performance in the third quarter, delivering increases in all key financial metrics including growth in adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net earnings of 19.2% and 68.9% respectively over the same period in 2016," said Joe Randell, President and Chief Executive Officer, Chorus. "In a short period of time, we have consummated significant transactions around the world, establishing a strong market position in the regional aircraft leasing sector. Aside from the 41 regional aircraft under lease in the CPA we have announced an additional 19 aircraft. Upon closing previously announced transactions, we will have 60 regional aircraft on lease, valued at over one billion dollars. We are making progress towards our goal of becoming one of the largest global players focused on regional aircraft."
"We are transitioning our business with contracted leases and margins on attractive regional aircraft," continued Mr. Randell. "We are differentiated from our competitors as we can deliver customers a complete suite of regional aviation services including contracted flying, aircraft engineering, maintenance, repair and overhaul, parts provisioning and aircraft leasing solutions by leveraging the strengths in Jazz and Voyageur."
Q3 2017 Overview
Chorus remains focused on its vision of delivering regional aviation to the world. Chorus delivered solid financial results, in line with management's expectations, and showing progress in its growth and diversification initiatives.
Chorus Aviation Capital ('CAC') is executing on the regional aircraft leasing strategy through the acquisition of aircraft and leases with new, well-established customers located in seven countries across five continents, and a diversified fleet comprising five of the best regional jet and turbo-prop offerings from Bombardier, ATR and Embraer.
To date CAC has completed the acquisition of:
CAC also expects to complete the acquisition of two additional E190s on lease to Aeromexico Connect in the fourth quarter. Upon completion of pending aircraft acquisitions, CAC will have grown Chorus' fleet of regional aircraft, outside of the Capacity Purchase Agreement ('CPA'), with Air Canada, to 19 aircraft with the average age of this fleet being under three years old.
During the quarter, Jazz Technical Services completed the Extended Service Program on one additional Dash 8-300 aircraft, bringing the total to two that are now being leased into the CPA operation. In October, Voyageur delivered a fourth Dash 8-100 on lease to Wasaya Airways.
Financial Performance - third quarter 2017 compared to third quarter 2016
In the third quarter of 2017, Chorus reported adjusted EBITDA of $83.4 million versus $70.0 million in 2016; an increase of $13.4 million or 19.2%.
The $13.4 million increase in adjusted EBITDA was primarily driven by:
These increases were partially offset by:
Adjusted net income was $48.6 million for the quarter, an increase from the third quarter of 2016 of $19.8 million, or 68.9%. The change was a result of the $13.4 million increase in adjusted EBITDA previously described, plus a $15.2 million decrease in income taxes; partially offset by:
Net income was $79.1 million for the quarter, an increase of $59.0 million from the third quarter of 2016. The increase was primarily due to the previously noted $19.8 million increase in adjusted net income plus an increase of $39.6 million in unrealized foreign exchange gains on long-term debt.
Year to date 2017 compared to year to date 2016
For the nine months ended September 30, 2017, Chorus reported adjusted EBITDA of $203.0 million versus $178.7 million in 2016; an increase of $24.3 million or 13.6%.
The $24.3 million increase in adjusted EBITDA was primarily driven by:
These increases were partially offset by:
Adjusted net income was $91.1 million for the period, an increase from 2016 of $20.3 million, or 28.6%. The change was a result of the $24.3 million increase in adjusted EBITDA previously described, plus a $17.6 million decrease in income taxes and a $4.7 million foreign exchange gain related to working capital, partially offset by:
Net income was $146.6 million for the period, an increase of $47.5 million, or 47.9% from the same period of 2016. The increase was due primarily to the previously noted $20.3 million increase in adjusted net income plus:
This was offset by $9.4 million in employee separation program costs in the first nine months of 2017, versus $3.7 million in the same period of 2016.
2017 OUTLOOK
(See cautionary statement regarding forward-looking information below)
Chorus' subsidiaries continue to deliver results within management's expectations, supporting positive operating income and cash flows from operations. Chorus is determined to create additional long-term shareholder value by strengthening the foundational CPA business, growing and diversifying aircraft leasing revenues, and pursuing additional growth opportunities.
Chorus intends to grow its regional aircraft leasing business through CAC by leveraging the proceeds from the private placement of convertible debt units to acquire aircraft for lease to regional aircraft operators. CAC intends to deploy the capital by mid-2018 leveraging that capital with further debt financing at a ratio ranging between three and four to one, to acquire new to mid-life regional aircraft for lease to high-quality operators.
Based on updated planning assumptions received from Air Canada, Billable Block Hours for 2017 are expected to be between 358,000 and 363,000 hours based on 117 Covered Aircraft as at December 31, 2017. The actual number of Billable Block Hours for 2017 may vary from this anticipated range due to several factors, (see Section 9 - Risk Factors in the third quarter 2017 MD&A). However, the CPA fleet transition to larger aircraft will generate approximately 8% more available seat miles in fiscal 2017 over the same period in 2016.
Capital expenditures for 2017, excluding those for the acquisition of aircraft and the extended service program, and including capitalized major maintenance overhauls, are expected to be between $47.0 million and $56.0 million. We are projecting 2017 expenditures for aircraft related acquisitions and the extended service program to range between $490 and $510 million. This includes the acquisition of two CRJ1000s, six ATR72-600s, four Embraer 190s, two Embraer 195s, three Q400s and the ESP, and excludes any additional capital for CAC beyond what has been announced.
Investor Conference Call / Audio Webcast
Chorus will hold an analyst call at 08:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, November 8, 2017 to discuss the third quarter financial results. The call may be accessed by dialing 1-888-231-8191. The call will be simultaneously audio webcast via: http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=1523826&s=1&k=6158C8DC297967D303093FA8C8D134FA
This is a listen-in only audio webcast. Media Player or Real Player is required to listen to the broadcast; please download well in advance of the call.
The conference call webcast will be archived on Chorus' website at www.chorusaviation.ca under Reports > Executive Management Presentations. A playback of the call can also be accessed until midnight ET, November 16, 2017 by dialing toll-free 1-855-859-2056, and passcode 97262114#.
1NON-GAAP MEASURES
This news release references several non-GAAP measures to supplement the analysis of Chorus' results. These measures are provided to enhance the reader's understanding of our current financial performance. They are included to provide investors and management with an alternative method for assessing our operating results in a manner that is focused on the performance of our ongoing operations and to provide a consistent basis for comparison between periods. These non-GAAP measures are not recognized measures under GAAP, and therefore they are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to their nearest GAAP measure is provided in Management's Discussion and Analysis ('MD&A') dated November 7, 2017.
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
EBITDA is defined as earnings before net interest expense, income taxes, and depreciation and amortization and is a non-GAAP financial measure. Adjusted EBITDA (net income before net interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, signing bonuses, employee separation program costs, strategic advisory fees and other items such as asset impairment and foreign exchange gains or losses) is a non-GAAP financial measure used by Chorus, and commonly by other regional airlines in the industry, as a supplemental financial measure of operational performance. Management believes Adjusted EBITDA assists investors in comparing Chorus' performance on a consistent basis without regard to depreciation and amortization, which are non-cash in nature and can vary significantly depending on accounting methods and factors such as historical cost. During the first quarter of 2017, Chorus revised its definition of Adjusted EBITDA to include signing bonuses, employee separation program costs and strategic advisory fees to facilitate transparency and comparability as these items can fluctuate from period to period. Adjusted EBITDA should not be used as an exclusive measure of cash flow because it does not account for the impact of working capital growth, capital expenditures, debt repayments and other sources and uses of cash, which are disclosed in the statements of cash flows, forming part of Chorus' financial statements.
Adjusted Net Income
Adjusted net income and Adjusted net income per Share are used by Chorus to assess performance without the effects of unrealized foreign exchange gains or losses on long-term debt and finance leases related to aircraft, realized foreign exchange gains or losses on cash held for on deposit for investment in the leasing business, signing bonuses, employee separation program costs and strategic advisory fees. Chorus manages its exposure to currency risk on such long-term debt by billing the lease payments within the CPA in the underlying currency (US dollars) related to the aircraft debt. These items are excluded because they affect the comparability of our financial results, period-over-period, and could potentially distort the analysis of trends in business performance. Excluding these items does not imply they are non-recurring due to ongoing currency fluctuations between the Canadian and US dollar. During the first quarter of 2017, Chorus revised its definition of Adjusted net income to exclude the signing bonuses, employee separation program costs, and strategic advisory fees to facilitate transparency and comparability as these items can fluctuate from period to period. In addition, Chorus revised its definition of Adjusted Net Income to exclude foreign exchange gains or losses on US dollar denominated cash held on deposit for investment in the leasing business. This item is excluded as it relates to a foreign exchange gain or loss on proceeds from the Convertible Units that were converted to US dollars and will be used to invest in long-term and primarily US dollar denominated assets, whose related income is expected to be earned over time.
Various Financial Measures
Third Quarter Summary | |||||||||
| | ||||||||
(unaudited) | Three months ended September 30, | ||||||||
2017 $ | 2016 $ | Change $ | Change % | ||||||
| | | | | | ||||
Operating revenue | 344,632 | | 331,097 | | 13,535 | | 4.1 | | |
Operating expenses | 288,953 | | 282,555 | | 6,398 | | 2.3 | | |
Operating income | 55,679 | | 48,542 | | 7,137 | | 14.7 | | |
Non-operating income (expenses) | 20,208 | | (16,470) | | 36,678 | | (222.7) | | |
Income before income taxes | 75,887 | | 32,072 | | 43,815 | | 136.6 | | |
Income tax recovery (expense) | 3,178 | | (12,017) | | 15,195 | | (126.4) | | |
Net income | 79,065 | | 20,055 | | 59,010 | | 294.2 | | |
Add (Deduct) items to get to Adjusted net income(1) | | | | | |||||
| Unrealized foreign exchange(gain) loss | (31,088) | | 8,523 | | (39,611) | | (464.8) | |
| Employee separation program | 583 | | 170 | | 413 | | 242.9 Werbung Mehr Nachrichten zur Chorus Aviation Aktie kostenlos abonnieren
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