HOUSTON, Feb. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Universal Compression Holdings,
Inc. (NYSE: UCO) today reported net income of $19.6 million, or $0.60 per
diluted share, in the three months ended December 31, 2005 compared to $17.7
million, or $0.54 per diluted share, in the three months ended September 30,
2005 and $14.1 million, or $0.44 per diluted share, in the prior year period.
Revenue was $224.8 million in the three months ended December 31, 2005
compared to $181.1 million in the three months ended September 30, 2005 and
$192.7 million in the prior year period. EBITDA, as adjusted (as defined
below), was $74.5 million in the three months ended December 31, 2005 compared
to $66.2 million in the three months ended September 30, 2005 and $61.0
million in the prior year period.
Stephen A. Snider, Universal's President and Chief Executive Officer,
said, "We are pleased with our financial performance for the three months
ended December 31, 2005 which included record levels of revenue, EBITDA, as
adjusted, and earnings per diluted share. Market demand for our products and
services continues to be robust, as each of our four business segments
achieved higher revenue and gross profit levels as compared to the three month
periods ended September 30, 2005 and December 31, 2004. We are excited about
our momentum going into 2006, as activity levels and backlog totals remain
strong."
Michael Anderson, Universal's Chief Financial Officer, added, "During
December, Weatherford International Ltd. sold its remaining 6.75 million share
ownership position in Universal. In this transaction, we repurchased 2.4
million shares at a total cost of $100 million, funded largely with borrowings
under our senior credit facility. We believe our repurchase of shares was a
good investment and expect the repurchase to be accretive to our earnings per
share in 2006. Additionally, we believe our recently announced change in
fiscal year end from March to December will simplify how investors analyze
Universal going forward."
Guidance
The following statements are based on current expectations. These
statements are forward-looking, and actual results may differ materially.
Factors affecting these forward-looking statements are detailed below under
the section titled "Forward-Looking Statements." These statements do not
include the potential impact of any acquisition, disposition, merger, joint
venture or other transactions that could occur in the future.
For the three months ending March 31, 2006, Universal expects revenue of
$215 million to $225 million and earnings per diluted share of $0.58 to $0.62.
For the twelve months ending December 31, 2006, Universal expects revenue of
$910 million to $935 million and earnings per diluted share of $2.65 to $2.80.
Capital expenditures, net of sale proceeds, are expected to be $210 million to
$240 million in 2006. Universal's earnings per diluted share guidance
includes expenses of approximately $0.10 per diluted share for the twelve
months ending December 31, 2006 due to the adoption of Statement of Financial
Accounting Standards No. 123R, under which non-cash cost relating to common
stock-based compensation is recognized in financial statements beginning in
calendar year 2006.
Conference Call
Universal will host a conference call today, February 23, 2006, at 10:00
am Central Time, 11:00 am Eastern Time, to discuss the quarter's results and
other corporate matters. The conference call will be broadcast live over the
Internet to provide interested persons the opportunity to listen. The call
will also be archived for approximately 90 days to provide an opportunity to
those unable to listen to the live broadcast. Both the live broadcast and
replay of the archived version are free of charge to the user.
Persons wishing to listen to the conference call live may do so by logging
onto http://www.universalcompression.com (click "Investor Home" in the
"Investor Relations" section) at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the
call. The replay of the call will be available at the website
http://www.universalcompression.com.
EBITDA, as adjusted, is defined as net income plus income taxes, interest
expense (including debt extinguishment costs and excluding gain on termination
of interest rate swaps), depreciation and amortization, foreign currency gains
or losses, excluding non-recurring items (including facility consolidation
costs), and extraordinary gains or losses.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements about Universal's outlook and all other statements in this
release (and oral statements made regarding the subjects of this release,
including on the conference call announced herein) other than historical facts
are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements rely on a
number of assumptions concerning future events and are subject to a number of
uncertainties and factors, many of which are outside Universal's control,
which could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements.
While Universal believes that the assumptions concerning future events are
reasonable, it cautions that there are inherent difficulties in predicting
certain important factors that could impact the future performance or results
of its business. Among the factors that could cause results to differ
materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are the
worldwide supply and demand for natural gas; the demand for Universal's
products and services; our ability to implement and effect price increases for
our products and services; our ability to timely, properly and cost-
effectively implement our enterprise resource planning system; employment
workforce factors, including our ability to hire, train and retain key
employees; the ability of our competitors to capture market share and our
ability to retain or increase our market share; our ability to manage the
rising costs and availability of components and materials from our vendors;
changes in our strategic direction; and changes in economic conditions, laws
or regulatory conditions in the U.S. and other countries in which we operate.
These forward-looking-statements are also affected by the risk factors,
forward-looking statements and challenges and uncertainties described in
Universal's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended March 31, 2005 and
those set forth from time to time in Universal's filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission, which are available through our website
http://www.universalcompression.com. Universal expressly disclaims any
intention or obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements
whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Universal, headquartered in Houston, Texas, is a leading natural gas
compression services company, providing a full range of contract compression,
sales, operations, maintenance and fabrication services to the domestic and
international natural gas industry.
UNIVERSAL COMPRESSION HOLDINGS, INC.
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
Three Months Ended
December 31, September 30, December 31,
2005 2005 2004
Revenue:
Domestic contract compression $86,778 $81,964 $75,170
International contract
compression 33,455 31,076 27,810
Fabrication 59,681 28,193 50,823
Aftermarket services 44,921 39,895 38,873
Total revenue 224,835 181,128 192,676
Costs and expenses:
Domestic contract compression -
direct costs 30,533 29,849 27,071
International contract
compression - direct costs 7,762 8,087 6,427
Fabrication - direct costs 51,778 24,769 48,605
Aftermarket services - direct
costs 36,050 31,782 30,917
Depreciation and amortization 27,827 26,439 23,611
Selling, general and
administrative 23,819 21,012 19,224
Interest expense, net 14,727 13,034 16,821
Foreign currency (gain) loss 755 (610) (238)
Other (income) expense 388 (524) (589)
Total costs and expenses 193,639 153,838 171,849
Income before income taxes 31,196 27,290 20,827
Income tax expense 11,642 9,611 6,702
Net income $19,554 $17,679 $14,125
Weighted average common and common
equivalent shares outstanding:
Basic 31,616 31,902 31,406
Diluted 32,522 32,836 32,082
Earnings per share:
Basic $0.62 $0.55 $0.45
Diluted $0.60 $0.54 $0.44
UNIVERSAL COMPRESSION HOLDINGS, INC.
UNAUDITED SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
(Dollars in thousands)
Three Months Ended
December 31, September 30, December 31,
2005 2005 2004
Revenue:
Domestic contract compression $86,778 $81,964 $75,170
International contract
compression 33,455 31,076 27,810
Fabrication 59,681 28,193 50,823
Aftermarket services 44,921 39,895 38,873
Total $224,835 $181,128 $192,676
Gross Profit:
Domestic contract compression $56,245 $52,115 $48,099
International contract
compression 25,693 22,989 21,383
Fabrication 7,903 3,424 2,218
Aftermarket services 8,871 8,113 7,956
Total $98,712 $86,641 $79,656
Selling, General and
Administrative $23,819 $21,012 $19,224
% of Revenue 11% 12% 10%
EBITDA, as adjusted $74,505 $66,153 $61,021
% of Revenue 33% 37% 32%
Capital Expenditures $37,557 $38,642 $45,797
Proceeds from Sale of PP&E 3,532 3,876 13,408
Net Capital Expenditures $34,025 $34,766 $32,389
Gross Margin:
Domestic contract compression 65% 64% 64%
International contract
compression 77% 74% 77%
Fabrication 13% 12% 4%
Aftermarket services 20% 20% 20%
Total 44% 48% 41%
Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP
Financial Information:
Net income $19,554 $17,679 $14,125
Income tax expense 11,642 9,611 6,702
Depreciation and amortization 27,827 26,439 23,611
Interest expense, net 14,727 13,034 16,821
Foreign currency (gain) loss 755 (610) (238)
EBITDA, as adjusted (1) $74,505 $66,153 $61,021
December 31, September 30, December 31,
2005 2005 2004
Debt and Capital Lease
Obligations $923,341 $818,646 $847,057
Stockholders' Equity $831,312 $908,605 $856,334
Total Debt to Capitalization 52.6% 47.4% 49.7%
(1) Management believes disclosure of EBITDA, as adjusted, a non-GAAP
measure, provides useful information to investors because, when viewed
with our GAAP results and accompanying reconciliations, it provides a
more complete understanding of our performance than GAAP results
alone. Management uses EBITDA, as adjusted, as a supplemental measure
to review current period operating performance, a comparability
measure, a performance measure for period to period comparisons and a
valuation measure.
UNIVERSAL COMPRESSION HOLDINGS, INC.
UNAUDITED SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
(Horsepower in thousands)
Three Months Ended
December 31, September 30, December 31,
2005 2005 2004
Total Available Horsepower (at
period end):
Domestic contract
compression 1,965 1,948 1,908
International contract
compression 584 565 518
Total 2,549 2,513 2,426
Average Contracted Horsepower:
Domestic contract compression 1,787 1,751 1,696
International contract
compression 538 524 442
Total 2,325 2,275 2,138
Horsepower Utilization:
Spot (at period end) 92.3% 91.0% 89.9%
Average 91.7% 91.0% 89.8%
Fabrication Backlog (in millions) $145 $114 $83
SOURCE Universal Compression Holdings, Inc.
02/23/2006
CONTACT: David Oatman, Vice President, Investor Relations of Universal,
1-713-335-7460
2632 02/23/2006 08:00 EST http://www.prnewswire.com