Videocon d2h Achieves Positive Free Cash Flows[1] and Profit After Tax

"In line with our focus on paying down term loans, the Company recently pre-paid further term loans, strengthening our balance sheet further. We have significantly de-levered our balance sheet and become a stronger company going from strength to strength, reducing term loans by around USD 200 million since our IPO, with over USD 55 million repaid in the current fiscal year."

Speaking on the results, Mr. Anil Khera, CEO of Videocon, d2h said "We are happy to report that Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of fiscal year 2017 grew 32.4% year on year, which is primarily a result of strong subscriber growth, higher revenue realizations and better operating margins. During the quarter, we expanded our retail network in areas that come under India's Phase III and Phase IV Digitalization program. We are happy to announce our strategic tie-up with Vodafone to enable recharge using their well established m-pesa digital wallet and at Vodafone outlets, as it will give our customers an easy and efficient way to recharge their d2h account at their convenience."

Financial Summary: 

                                          (In INR million, unless otherwise indicated)

   
                                                                      % growth
    Key financial metrics                 Q1FY16   Q4FY16   Q1FY17  year on year
    Revenue from operations               6,628    7,715    8,185      23.5%
    Subscription and activation revenue   6,073    7,056    7,523      23.9%
    Adjusted EBITDA                       1,903    2,191    2,519      32.4%
    Adjusted EBITDA margin (%)            28.7%    28.4%    30.8%
    Profit after tax (loss)               (244)    (212)      27
    Content cost (% of revenue)           37.0%    37.5%    36.1%

    Adjusted EBITDA less capex             373      455      887       137.8%

                                                                      % growth
    Key operating metrics                 Q1FY16   Q4FY16   Q1FY17  year on year
    Net subscribers (million)             10.64    11.86    12.29      15.5%
    ARPU (INR)                             205      214      219        6.8%
    Churn per month (%)                   0.46%    0.58%    0.49%

During the quarter ended June 30, 2016, subscription and activation revenue grew 23.9% year on year to INR 7.52 billion. Revenue from operations grew 23.5% year on year to INR 8.19 billion.

Videocon d2h generated Adjusted EBITDA of INR 2.52 billion, reporting a growth of 32.4% year on year. Adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 210 basis points year on year to 30.8% during the quarter. Content cost came in at 36.1% of revenue as compared to 37.0% of revenue a year ago.

The Company reported profit after tax for the first time since its inception of INR 27 million during the first quarter of fiscal 2017. This compares to a net loss of INR 244 million during the first quarter of fiscal 2016.

The Company added 0.60 million gross subscribers and 0.43 million net subscribers during the first quarter of fiscal 2017. Net subscribers totaled 12.29 million as of June 30, 2016. Churn came in at 0.49% per month for the quarter as compared to 0.46% during the same quarter last year. ARPU grew by 6.8% year on year to INR 219.

Subscriber acquisition costs in the form of hardware subsidies were INR 1,872 per subscriber.

The Company had term loans of INR 21.87 billion and total cash and short term investments of INR 6.12 billion as of June 30, 2016. The Company repaid term loans amounting to INR 3.87 billion in the current fiscal year. With this, the Company has reduced total term loans by over INR 13 billion since its IPO.

Conference Call: Dial-in Details 

The results conference call time and details are provided below.

   
                     Call #1                             Call #2
    Date             July 26, 2016                       July 26, 2016

    Time             11:00 am India time                 6:30 pm India time
                     1:30pm HK time                      9:00pm HK time
                     6:30am UK time                      2:00pm UK time
                     1:30am NYC time                     9:00am NYC time

    Dial in details
    India         +91 22 6746 8376 / +91 22 3960 0752 +91 22 6746 8376 / +91 22 3960 0752
    Hong Kong     800 964 448 / +852 3018 6877        800 964 448 / +852 3018 6877
    Singapore     800 101 2045 / +65 3157 5746        800 101 2045 / +65 3157 5746
    USA           1866 746 2133 / +1 323 386 8721     1866 746 2133 / +1 323 386 8721
    UK            0808 101 1573 / +44 20347 85524     0808 101 1573 / +44 20347 85524
     Pin code      Not required                        Not required

    Playback details
    India         +91 22 3065 2322 / +91 22 6181 3322 +91 22 3065 2322 / +91 22 6181 3322
    USA           1855 4360 715 / 1863 9490 105       1855 4360 715 / 1863 9490 105
    Playback ID   76076                               03597

Forward looking statements 

This earnings release may contain forward-looking statements, as defined in the safe harbor provisions of the US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In addition to statements which are forward-looking by reason of context, the words "may", "will", "should", "expects", "plans", "intends", "anticipates", "believes", "estimates", "predicts", "potential", or "continue" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. We caution you that reliance on any forward-looking statement involves risks and uncertainties that might cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. These and other factors are more fully discussed in the Videocon d2h's registration statement on Form F-4 filed with the SEC and available at http://www.sec.gov. All information provided in this earnings release is as of the date hereof, unless the context otherwise requires. Other than as required by law, Videocon d2h does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements or other information in this earnings release.

Q1 FY17 financial results are available on the SEC web site and company web site ir.videocond2h.com 

1. We calculate free cash flow as Adjusted EBITDA less capital expenditure and net interest expense, as increased by other income. Free cash flow is not an IFRS measure and should not be construed as an alternative to any IFRS measure such as cash flow from operating activities. Free cash flow should not be considered in isolation and is not a measure of our financial performance or liquidity under IFRS and should not be considered as an alternative to cash flow from operating, investing or financing activities or any other measure of our liquidity derived in accordance with IFRS. Free cash flow does not necessarily indicate whether cash flow will be sufficient or available for cash requirements and may not be indicative of our results of operations. Free cash flow as defined herein may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures used by other companies.

2. We calculate EBITDA by calculating profit or loss after tax as increased by income tax expense, net finance costs, depreciation, amortization and impairment and reduced by other income. Adjusted EBITDA is EBITDA adjusted for the recognition of fair value of the Employee Stock Option Plan 2014 recognized as an expense over the vesting period which amounted to INR 117.77 million for the fiscal year 2016, INR 29.45 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2016 and INR 21.01 million for the first quarter of fiscal year 2017. Adjusted EBITDA presented in this earnings release, is a supplemental measure of performance and liquidity that is not required by or represented in accordance with the IFRS. Furthermore, Adjusted EBITDA is not a measure of financial performance or liquidity under IFRS and should not be considered as an alternative to profit after tax, operating income or other income or any other performance measures derived in accordance with the IFRS or as an alternative to cash flow from operating activities or as a measure of liquidity. In addition, Adjusted EBITDA is not a standardized term, hence direct comparison between companies using the same term may not be possible. Other companies may calculate Adjusted EBITDA differently from our Company, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA helps identify underlying trends in our business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of the expenses that are excluded when calculating Adjusted EBITDA. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA enhances the overall understanding of our past performance and future prospects and allows for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by our management in our financial and operational decision-making.

3. Net subscriber means subscribers authorized to receive DTH broadcasting services on account of payment of subscription charges or any entry offer at the time of initial connection, as well as subscribers who are temporarily disconnected due to non-payment of subscription charges for a period not exceeding 120 days

4. Average Revenue Per User ("ARPU") is calculated by dividing our subscription and activation revenue by the average of our net subscribers for the period. Subscription and activation charges are considered on a gross basis without netting off the recharge margins or discounts provided to the distributors.

5. Gross subscribers means total registered subscribers.

6. Churn has been calculated as the number of subscribers who have not made payment for at least 120 days and is the difference between the number of gross subscribers and the number of net subscribers.

SOURCE Videocon d2h