Printer Friendly
The Free Library
19,595,263 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

Charter Reports First-Quarter 2006 Financial and Operating Results; Revenues up 8.1% Year-over-Year; 294,800 Revenue Generating Units Added in First Quarter.


ST. LOUIS -- Charter Communications Charter Communications NASDAQ: CHTR is an American company providing cable television, high-speed Internet, and telephone services to more than 5.7 million customers in 29 states. It is the third-largest publicly traded cable operator in the U.S. , Inc. (Nasdaq: CHTR CHTR Charter
CHTR Canadian High Temperature Research
) (along with its subsidiaries, the "Company" or "Charter") today reported its first-quarter 2006 financial results. First-quarter revenue increased 8.1% over the first quarter of 2005, and the Company achieved a net gain of 294,800 Revenue Generating Units (RGUs) compared with December December: see month.  31, 2005. Adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) A metric used to show a company's profitability, but not its cash flow. EBITDA became popular in the 1980s to show the potential profitability of leveraged buyouts, but has become  in the first quarter was $471 million, essentially flat compared with the first quarter of 2005, reflecting increased operating expenses Operating expenses

The amount paid for asset maintenance or the cost of doing business, excluding depreciation. Earnings are distributed after operating expenses are deducted.
 associated with higher customer counts, investments in customer service enhancements, increased marketing spending, and annual programming rate increases.

Highlights

--Charter ended the first quarter with 11,293,800 RGUs, up 294,800 from December 31, 2005. It was the highest quarterly gain in more than three years and reflected growth in all customer categories.

--Average monthly revenue per customer was up in all of Charter's product lines, resulting in a 9.7% increase in total average monthly revenue per analog video The original video recording method that stores continuous waves of red, green and blue intensities. In analog video, the number of rows is fixed. There are no real columns, and the maximum detail is determined by the frequency response of the analog system.  customer to $77.64, from $70.75 a year ago.

--Charter's telephone customer base continued to expand rapidly, ending the first quarter at 191,100, up 57% from December 31, 2005. As a result of Charter's accelerated rollout of its telephone service, the Company's phone service was available to approximately ap·prox·i·mate  
adj.
1. Almost exact or correct: the approximate time of the accident.

2.
 3.9 million homes at March 31, an increase of nearly 1 million homes during the quarter.

--Charter also recently completed a $6.85 billion refinancing Refinancing

An extension and/or increase in amount of existing debt.
 of its senior secured credit facilities credit facilities nplfacilidades fpl de crédito

credit facilities nplfacilités fpl de paiement

credit facilities 
, which improves the company's liquidity, extends its debt maturities, and reduces interest cost.

"Disciplined execution of our growth and operating strategies is driving consistent improvement in a range of key metrics metrics Managed care A popular term for standards by which the quality of a product, service, or outcome of a particular form of Pt management is evaluated. See TQM. , including customer counts, average revenue per customer, total revenue, and churn churn: see butter. ," said Neil Smit, president and chief executive officer.

"Simply put, we're we're  

Contraction of we are.


we're we are
 selling more products to more customers at better prices. We remain sharply focused on achieving profitable revenue growth by executing our strategies to enhance the end-to-end end-to-end

a pattern of anastomosis in which severed ends are matched and united, in contrast with other patterns such as end-to-side or side-to-side. Usually applied to anastomosis of the intestine.
 customer experience, improve operating effectiveness, grow sales and increase retention," Smit said.

Operating Results

Charter's increased investment in targeted marketing and improved service levels continued to drive organic customer growth across all product categories. Excluding the 53,200 RGUs that Charter acquired in January January: see month.  with the purchase of certain cable systems from Seren Seren Chlordiazepoxide, see there  Innovations, Inc., Charter added a net 241,600 RGUs during the quarter, more than double the net gain of 117,100 RGUs in the first quarter of 2005 and handily hand·i·ly  
adv.
1. In an easy manner.

2. In a convenient manner.

Adv. 1. handily - in a convenient manner; "the switch was conveniently located"
conveniently

2.
 exceeding the net gain of 133,400 RGUs in the fourth quarter of 2005. Charter achieved net gains in all customer categories during the quarter:

--Analog video customers increased by approximately 29,400, including approximately 17,500 customers acquired from Seren, compared with a net loss of 6,700 customers in the first quarter of 2005. It was Charter's first net gain in analog video customers in 10 quarters.

--Digital video customers increased by approximately 69,800, including approximately 8,000 customers acquired from Seren, compared with a net gain of 19,900 customers a year ago.

--High-speed Internet Internet

Publicly accessible computer network connecting many smaller networks from around the world. It grew out of a U.S. Defense Department program called ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), established in 1969 with connections between computers at the
 (HSI (Hue Saturation Intensity) A color space similar to HSB. See HSB. ) customers increased by approximately 126,000, including approximately 13,200 customers acquired from Seren, compared with a net gain of 94,000 customers in the first quarter of 2005.

--Telephone customers increased by approximately 69,600, including approximately 14,500 customers acquired from Seren, compared with a net gain of 9,900 customers in the year-ago quarter.

As of March 31, 2006, Charter served approximately 11,293,800 RGUs, comprising 5,913,900 analog video, 2,866,400 digital video, 2,322,400 HSI and 191,100 telephone customers.

Average monthly revenue per analog video customer increased 9.7% for the first quarter of 2006 compared to 2005, with gains in all product categories.

Churn for the first quarter of 2006 declined compared with the first quarter of 2005, marking the fifth consecutive quarter of year-over-year improvement. Despite the significant growth in RGUs, bad debt expense declined as a percentage of revenue compared with the first quarter of 2005. "The increase in average revenue per customer across all product lines, coupled with the declines in churn and the bad debt rate, indicates that we're adding high-quality customers - consistent with the results we expect from our targeted marketing and bundled bun·dle  
n.
1. A group of objects held together, as by tying or wrapping.

2. Something wrapped or tied up for carrying; a package.

3. Biology A cluster or strand of closely bound muscle or nerve fibers.
 product strategies," said Mr. Smit.

Charter continued to achieve strong organic growth in its telephone offering, with customer count increasing 57% (including 14,500 customers gained from Seren) in the 2006 first quarter, following a 35% increase in customers in the fourth quarter of 2005. During the first quarter, Charter made telephone service available to approximately 1 million additional homes, bringing total homes passed with telephone service to 3.9 million as of March 31, 2006. The Company remains on track to make the service available to between 6 million and 8 million homes by year-end year-end also year·end
n.
The end of a year.

adj.
Occurring or done at the end of the year: a year-end audit.

Noun 1.
 2006. In markets where telephone service is available, Charter is experiencing reduced customer churn, increased revenue per analog video customer, and improved customer satisfaction, as customers take advantage of Charter's bundled product offerings.

Charter continued strong growth of its HSI service, ending the quarter with 2,322,400 customers, up more than 17 percent over the prior year.

During 2005, Charter's operations in the Gulf Coast were affected by hurricanes Katrina KATRINA Keeping All the Resources in New Orleans Alive
KATRINA Krewe Aiding Trash Removal In the New Orleans Area
 and Rita, with an estimated net loss of approximately 7,600 analog video customers during the first quarter, which was below the Company's previous estimate of 10,000 to 15,000. This loss is included in the customer counts above, and Charter does not expect to incur To become subject to and liable for; to have liabilities imposed by act or operation of law.

Expenses are incurred, for example, when the legal obligation to pay them arises. An individual incurs a liability when a money judgment is rendered against him or her by a court.
 further customer losses related to last year's hurricanes.

Financial Results

First-quarter 2006 revenues increased 8.1%, or $103 million, to $1.374 billion, with gains in average revenue per customer in all product categories. HSI revenues increased 18.1%, or $39 million, and telephone revenues more than doubled to $20 million. Commercial revenues increased $11 million, or 16.9%, and advertising sales revenues increased $6 million, or 9.4%. Video revenues increased $27 million, or 3.2%, as the result of both more services per customer and higher rates.

Reflecting Charter's continuing investments in customer growth and retention, as well as higher programming costs from annual rate increases, first-quarter 2006 operating costs operating costs nplgastos mpl operacionales  and expenses increased $107 million, or 13.4%, to $903 million.

Income from operations decreased by $44 million to $7 million for the first quarter of 2006, versus $51 million for the first quarter of 2005, primarily due to a $68 million increase in asset impairment Impairment

1. A reduction in a company's stated capital.

2. The total capital that is less than the par value of the company's capital stock.

Notes:
1. This is usually reduced because of poorly estimated losses or gains.

2.
 charges related to Charter's recently-announced asset sales to New Wave Communications and subsidiaries of Orange BroadBand broadband

Term describing the radiation from a source that produces a broad, continuous spectrum of frequencies (contrasted with a laser, which produces a single frequency or very narrow range of frequencies).
 Holding Company, LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol.

LLC - Logical Link Control
.

Net loss applicable to common stock for the first quarter of 2006 was $459 million. For the first quarter of 2005, Charter reported a net loss applicable to common stock of $353 million.

Liquidity

Net cash flows provided by operating activities for the first quarter of 2006 were $209 million, compared to $153 million for the year-ago quarter. The increase in net cash provided by operating activities is primarily the result of changes in operating assets Operating Assets

Another term for working capital.
 and liabilities, which provided $100 million more cash in 2006 than in 2005, offset by an increase in cash interest expense of $45 million.

Adjusted EBITDA totaled $471 million for the three months ended March 31, 2006, a decrease of $4 million, or 0.8%, compared with the year-ago period.

Expenditures for property, plant and equipment for the first quarter of 2006 were $241 million, compared to first-quarter 2005 expenditures of $211 million. The increase in capital expenditures reflects success-based investments in customer premise equipment resulting from customer growth, primarily in digital, telephone and HSI. During 2006, Charter expects capital expenditures to be flat with 2005 at approximately $1.0 billion to $1.1 billion, primarily for purchases of customer premise equipment, support capital, and scalable infrastructure investments.

Charter reported negative free cash flow of $186 million for the first quarter of 2006, compared to negative free cash flow of $107 million for the first quarter of 2005. Higher capital expenditures, higher debt balances, and interest on cash-pay obligations contributed to the increase.

As of March 31, 2006, Charter had $19.522 billion in long-term debt Long-Term Debt

Loans and financial obligations lasting over one year.

Notes:
For example debts obligations such as bonds and notes which have maturities greater than one year would be considered long-term debt.
 and $40 million of cash on hand. On April 28, the Company completed a refinancing of its senior secured credit facilities. The $6.85 billion credit facilities include a new $350 million revolver/term credit facility, a $5.0 billion term loan due in 2013, and the existing $1.5 billion revolving credit Revolving Credit

A line of credit where the customer pays a commitment fee and is then allowed to use the funds when they are needed. It is usually used for operating purposes, fluctuating each month depending on the customers current cash flow needs.
 facility. Pro forma As a matter of form or for the sake of form. Used to describe accounting, financial, and other statements or conclusions based upon assumed or anticipated facts.

The phrase pro forma
 for the refinancing, Charter's total potential availability under its credit facilities at March 31 would have been approximately $1.3 billion, although the actual availability at that time would have been $516 million because of limits imposed by covenant covenant (kŭv`ənənt), agreement entered into voluntarily by two or more parties to do or refrain from doing certain acts. In the Bible and in theology the covenant is the agreement or engagement of God with man as revealed in the  restrictions.

The Company expects that cash on hand, cash flows from operating activities, proceeds from sales of assets, and the amounts available under its credit facilities will be adequate to meet its cash needs through 2007. The Company plans to continue its opportunistic opportunistic /op·por·tu·nis·tic/ (op?er-tldbomacn-is´tik)
1. denoting a microorganism which does not ordinarily cause disease but becomes pathogenic under certain circumstances.

2.
 approach to maintain liquidity, extend maturities, and de-lever the balance sheet.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Metrics

The Company uses certain measures that are not defined by GAAP GAAP

See: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles


GAAP

See generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
 (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles The standard accounting rules, regulations, and procedures used by companies in maintaining their financial records.

Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) provide companies and accountants with a consistent set of guidelines that cover both broad accounting
) to evaluate various aspects of its business. Adjusted EBITDA, un-levered free cash flow and free cash flow are non-GAAP financial measures and should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, net cash flows from operating activities reported in accordance Accordance is Bible Study Software for Macintosh developed by OakTree Software, Inc.[]

As well as a standalone program, it is the base software packaged by Zondervan in their Bible Study suites for Macintosh.
 with GAAP. These terms as defined by Charter may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies.

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as income from operations before special charges, non-cash depreciation and amortization, loss on sale of assets, asset impairment charges and option compensation expense. As such, it eliminates the significant non-cash depreciation and amortization expense that results from the capital-intensive Capital-intensive

Used to describe industries that require large investments in capital assets to produce their goods, such as the automobile industry. These firms require large profit margins and/or low costs of borrowing to survive.
 nature of the Company's businesses and intangible assets Intangible Asset

An asset that is not physical in nature.

Notes:
Examples are things like copyrights, patents, intellectual property, and goodwill. These are the opposite of tangible assets.
 recognized in business combinations as well as other non-cash or non-recurring items, and is unaffected by the Company's capital structure or investment activities. Adjusted EBITDA is a liquidity measure used by Company management and its Board of Directors to measure the Company's ability to fund operations and its financing obligations. For this reason, it is a significant component of Charter's annual incentive compensation program. However, this measure is limited in that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain capitalized Capitalized

Recorded in asset accounts and then depreciated or amortized, as is appropriate for expenditures for items with useful lives longer than one year.
 tangible Possessing a physical form that can be touched or felt.

Tangible refers to that which can be seen, weighed, measured, or apprehended by the senses. A tangible object is something that is real and substantial. An automobile is an example of tangible Personal Property.
 and intangible assets used in generating revenues, and the cash cost of financing for the Company. Company management evaluates these costs through other financial measures.

Un-levered free cash flow is defined as adjusted EBITDA less purchases of property, plant and equipment. The Company believes this is an important measure as it takes into account the period costs associated with capital expenditures used to upgrade, extend and maintain Charter's plant, without regard to the Company's leverage structure.

Free cash flow is defined as un-levered free cash flow less interest on cash pay obligations. It can also be computed as net cash flows from operating activities, less capital expenditures and cash special charges, adjusted for the change in operating assets and liabilities, net of dispositions. As such, it is unaffected by fluctuations in working capital levels from period to period.

The Company believes that adjusted EBITDA, un-levered free cash flow and free cash flow provide information useful to investors in assessing Charter's ability to service its debt, fund operations, and make additional investments with internally generated funds. In addition, adjusted EBITDA generally correlates to the leverage ratio calculation under the Company's credit facilities or outstanding notes to determine compliance with the covenants contained in the facilities and notes (all such documents have been previously filed with the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area.  Securities and Exchange Commission). Adjusted EBITDA, as presented, is reduced for management fees in the amounts of $33 million and $26 million for the three months ended March 31, 2006 and 2005, respectively, which amounts are added back for the purposes of calculating compliance with leverage covenants. As of March 31, 2006, Charter and its subsidiaries are in compliance with their debt covenants and expect to remain in compliance for the next 12 months.

Conference Call

The Company will host a Conference Call on Tuesday Tuesday: see week. , May 2, 2006, at 9:00 AM Eastern Time (ET) related to the contents of this release.

The Conference Call will be webcast live via the Company's website at www.charter.com. Access the webcast by clicking on "About Us" at the top right of the page, then again on "Investor Center." Participants should go to the call link at least 10 minutes prior to the start time to register. The call will be archived on the website beginning two hours after its completion.

Those participating via telephone should dial 888-233-1576. International participants should dial 706-643-3458.

A replay will be available at (800) 642-1687 or (706) 645-9291 beginning two hours after completion of the call through midnight May 9, 2006. The passcode for the replay is 7215682.

About Charter Communications

Charter Communications, Inc., a leading broadband communications company Communications Company is a communications unit of the United States Marine Corps. They are part of Combat Logistics Regiment 37 , 3rd Marine Logistics Group (3MLG) and III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF). The unit is based out of the Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. , provides a full range of advanced broadband services See broadband and broadband service provider.  to the home, including advanced digital video entertainment programming (Charter Digital(TM)), Charter High-Speed high-speed
adj.
1. Operated or designed for operation at high speed: a high-speed food processor.

2. Taking place at high speed: a high-speed chase.

3.
(TM) Internet access See how to access the Internet.  service, and Charter Telephone(TM) services. Charter Business(TM) similarly provides scalable, tailored and cost-effective cost-effective,
n the minimal expenditure of dollars, time, and other elements necessary to achieve the health care result deemed necessary and appropriate.
 broadband communications solutions to business organizations, such as business-to-business This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.
You can assist by [ editing it] now.
 Internet access, data networking, and video and music entertainment services. Charter's advertising sales and production services are sold under the Charter Media(R) brand. More information about Charter can be found at www.charter.com.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements forward-looking statement

A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections.
:

This release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended a·mend  
v. a·mend·ed, a·mend·ing, a·mends

v.tr.
1. To change for the better; improve: amended the earlier proposal so as to make it more comprehensive.

2.
 (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), regarding, among other things, our plans, strategies and prospects, both business and financial. The Company will not undertake to revise forward-looking for·ward-look·ing
adj.
Concerned with or making provision for the future: forward-looking educators; a forward-looking corporate plan.

Adj. 1.
 projections to reflect events after this date. Although we believe that our plans, intentions and expectations reflected in or suggested by these forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or realize these plans, intentions or expectations. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many of the forward-looking statements contained in this release may be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "should," "planned," "will," "may," "intend," "estimated" and "potential," among others. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements we make in this release are set forth in reports or documents that we file from time to time with the SEC, and include, but are not limited to:

--the availability, in general, of funds to meet interest payment obligations under our debt and to fund our operations and necessary capital expenditures, either through cash flows from operating activities, further borrowings or other sources and, in particular, our ability to be able to provide under applicable debt instruments such funds (by dividend, investment or otherwise) to the applicable obligor The individual who owes another person a certain debt or duty.

The term obligor is often used interchangeably with debtor.


obligor (ah-bluh-gore) n.
 of such debt;

--our ability to comply with all covenants in our indentures and credit facilities, any violation VIOLATION. An act done unlawfully and with force. In the English stat. of 25 E. III., st. 5, c. 2, it is declared to be high treason in any person who shall violate the king's companion; and it is equally high treason in her to suffer willingly such violation.  of which would result in a violation of the applicable facility or indenture An agreement declaring the benefits and obligations of two or more parties, often applicable in the context of Bankruptcy and bond trading.

The term indenture primarily describes secured contracts and has several applications in U.S. law.
 and could trigger (1) A mechanism that initiates an action when an event occurs such as reaching a certain time or date or upon receiving some type of input. A trigger generally causes a program routine to be executed.  a default of other obligations under cross-default Cross-default

A provision under which default on one debt obligation triggers default on another debt obligation.
 provisions;

--our ability to pay or refinance Refinance

1. When a business or person revises their payment schedule for repaying debt.

2. Replacing an older loan with a new loan offering better terms.

Notes:
When a business refinances they typically extend the maturity date.
 debt prior to or when it becomes due and/or and/or  
conj.
Used to indicate that either or both of the items connected by it are involved.

Usage Note: And/or is widely used in legal and business writing.
 to take advantage of market opportunities and market windows to refinance that debt through new issuances, exchange offers or otherwise, including restructuring restructuring - The transformation from one representation form to another at the same relative abstraction level, while preserving the subject system's external behaviour (functionality and semantics).  our balance sheet and leverage position;

--our ability to sustain and grow revenues and cash flows from operating activities by offering video, high-speed Internet See broadband. , telephone and other services and to maintain and grow a stable customer base, particularly in the face of increasingly aggressive competition from other service providers;

--our ability to obtain programming at reasonable prices or to pass programming cost increases on to our customers;

--general business conditions, economic uncertainty or slowdown For articles with similar titles, see Slow Down (disambiguation).
A slowdown is an industrial action in which employees perform their duties but seek to reduce productivity or efficiency in their performance of these duties.
; and

--the effects of governmental regulation, including but not limited to local franchise authorities, on our business.

All forward-looking statements attributable attributable

emanating from or pertaining to attribute.


attributable proportion
see attributable risk (below).

attributable risk
 to us or any person acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety The whole, in contradistinction to a moiety or part only. When land is conveyed to Husband and Wife, they do not take by moieties, but both are seised of the entirety.  by this cautionary statement. We are under no duty or obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this release.
CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
  UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND OPERATING DATA
        (DOLLARS IN MILLIONS, EXCEPT PER SHARE AND SHARE DATA)

                                     Three Months Ended March 31,
                                 ------------------------------------
                                    2006          2005
                                    Actual        Actual    % Change
                                 ------------  ------------ ---------

REVENUES:
   Video                        $        869  $       842         3.2%
   High-speed Internet                   254          215        18.1%
   Telephone                              20            6       233.3%
   Advertising sales                      70           64         9.4%
   Commercial                             76           65        16.9%
   Other                                  85           79         7.6%
                                 ------------ ------------
      Total revenues                   1,374        1,271         8.1%
                                 ------------ ------------

COSTS AND EXPENSES:
   Programming                           391          358         9.2%
   Service                               209          176        18.8%
   Advertising sales                      26           25         4.0%
   General and administrative            239          202        18.3%
   Marketing                              38           35         8.6%
                                 ------------ ------------
      Operating costs and
       expenses                          903          796        13.4%
                                 ------------ ------------

      Adjusted EBITDA                    471          475       (0.8)%
                                 ------------ ------------

      Adjusted EBITDA margin              34%          37%
                                 ------------ ------------

   Depreciation and amortization         358          381
   Asset impairment charges               99           31
   Loss on sale of assets, net             -            4
   Option compensation expense,
    net                                    4            4
   Special charges, net                    3            4
                                 ------------ ------------

      Income from operations               7           51
                                 ------------ ------------

OTHER INCOME AND (EXPENSES):
   Interest expense, net                (468)        (420)
   Gain on derivative
    instruments and hedging
    activities, net                        8           27
   Gain on extinguishment of
    debt                                   -            7
   Other, net                              3           (2)
                                 ------------ ------------
                                        (457)        (388)
                                 ------------ ------------

Loss before income taxes                (450)        (337)

Income tax expense                        (9)         (15)
                                 ------------ ------------

Net loss                                (459)        (352)

Dividends on preferred stock -
 redeemable                                -           (1)
                                 ------------ ------------

Net loss applicable to common
 stock                          $       (459) $      (353)
                                 ============ ============

Loss per common share, basic and
 diluted                        $      (1.45) $     (1.16)
                                 ============ ============

Weighted average common shares
 outstanding, basic and diluted  317,413,472  303,308,880
                                 ============ ============

             CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
                 UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
                         (DOLLARS IN MILLIONS)

                                                   March    December
                                                    31,        31,
                                                   2006        2005
                                                  --------  ----------

                              ASSETS

CURRENT ASSETS:
   Cash and cash equivalents                     $     40  $       21
   Accounts receivable, net of allowance for
    doubtful accounts                                 149         214
   Prepaid expenses and other current assets           87          92
   Assets held for sale                               754           -
                                                  --------  ----------
         Total current assets                       1,030         327
                                                  --------  ----------

INVESTMENT IN CABLE PROPERTIES:
   Property, plant and equipment, net               5,440       5,840
   Franchises, net                                  9,287       9,826
                                                  --------  ----------
         Total investment in cable properties,
          net                                      14,727      15,666
                                                  --------  ----------

OTHER NONCURRENT ASSETS:                              446         438
                                                  --------  ----------
        Total assets                             $ 16,203  $   16,431
                                                  ========  ==========

                LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS'
                 DEFICIT

CURRENT LIABILITIES:
   Accounts payable and accrued expenses         $  1,285  $    1,191
   Liabilities held for sale                           19           -
                                                  --------  ----------
         Total current liabilities                  1,304       1,191
                                                  --------  ----------

LONG-TERM DEBT                                     19,522      19,388

NOTE PAYABLE - RELATED PARTY                           51          49

DEFERRED MANAGEMENT FEES - RELATED PARTY               14          14

OTHER LONG-TERM LIABILITIES                           503         517

MINORITY INTEREST                                     188         188

PREFERRED STOCK - REDEEMABLE                            4           4

SHAREHOLDERS' DEFICIT                              (5,383)     (4,920)
                                                  --------  ----------
          Total liabilities and shareholders'
           deficit                               $ 16,203  $   16,431
                                                  ========  ==========

         CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
        UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
                     (DOLLARS IN MILLIONS)

                                                  Three Months Ended
                                                        March 31,
                                                  --------------------
                                                     2006        2005
                                                  --------  ----------

CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES:
   Net loss                                      $   (459) $     (352)
   Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash
    flows from operating activities:
      Depreciation and amortization                   358         381
      Asset impairment charges                         99          31
      Noncash interest expense                         52          49
      Deferred income taxes                             7          13
      Loss on sale of assets, net                       -           4
      Option compensation expense, net                  4           4
      Gain on derivative instruments and hedging
       activities, net                                 (8)        (27)
      Gain on extinguishment of debt                    -         (11)
      Other, net                                       (3)          2
   Changes in operating assets and liabilities,
    net of effects from acquisitions and
    dispositions:
      Accounts receivable                              61          45
      Prepaid expenses and other assets                 3          (4)
      Accounts payable, accrued expenses and
       other                                           95          18
                                                  --------  ----------
          Net cash flows from operating
           activities                                 209         153
                                                  --------  ----------

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
   Purchases of property, plant and equipment        (241)       (211)
   Change in accrued expenses related to capital
    expenditures                                       (7)         14
   Proceeds from sale of assets                         9           6
   Purchase of cable system                           (42)          -
   Purchases of investments                             -          (2)
   Proceeds from investments                            5           -
                                                  --------  ----------
          Net cash flows from investing
           activities                                (276)       (193)
                                                  --------  ----------

CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
   Borrowings of long-term debt                       415         200
   Repayments of long-term debt                      (759)       (775)
   Proceeds from issuance of debt                     440           -
   Payments for debt issuance costs                   (10)         (3)
                                                  --------  ----------
          Net cash flows from financing
           activities                                  86        (578)
                                                  --------  ----------

NET INCREASE (DECREASE) IN CASH AND CASH
 EQUIVALENTS                                           19        (618)
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, beginning of period         21         650
                                                  --------  ----------
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, end of period         $     40  $       32
                                                  ========  ==========

CASH PAID FOR INTEREST                           $    240  $      249
                                                  ========  ==========

NONCASH TRANSACTIONS:
   Issuance of debt by Charter Communications
    Operating, LLC                               $     37  $      271
                                                  ========  ==========
   Retirement of Renaissance Media Group LLC
    debt                                         $    (37) $        -
                                                  ========  ==========
   Retirement of Charter Communications
    Holdings, LLC debt                           $      -  $     (284)
                                                  ========  ==========

          CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
            UNAUDITED SUMMARY OF OPERATING STATISTICS

                                          Approximate as of
                                --------------------------------------
                                  March 31,   December 31,  March 31,
                                     2006 (a)     2005 (a)    2005 (a)
                                ------------- ------------ -----------

 Customer Summary:
 Customer Relationships:
 Residential (non-bulk) analog
  video customers (b)              5,640,200    5,616,300   5,732,600
 Multi-dwelling (bulk) and
  commercial unit customers (c)      273,700      268,200     252,200
                                ------------- ------------ -----------
       Total analog video
        customers (b) (c)          5,913,900    5,884,500   5,984,800

 Non-video customers (b)             287,700      272,700     241,700
                                ------------- ------------ -----------
       Total customer
        relationships (d)          6,201,600    6,157,200   6,226,500
                                ============= ============ ===========

 Average monthly revenue per
  analog video customer (e)     $      77.64  $     75.88  $    70.75

 Bundled customers (f)             2,050,200    1,944,800   1,743,800

 Revenue Generating Units:
   Analog video customers (b)
    (c)                            5,913,900    5,884,500   5,984,800
   Digital video customers (g)     2,866,400    2,796,600   2,694,600
   Residential high-speed
    Internet customers (h)         2,322,400    2,196,400   1,978,400
   Residential telephone
    customers (i)                    191,100      121,500      55,300
                                ------------- ------------ -----------
       Total revenue generating
        units (j)                 11,293,800   10,999,000  10,713,100
                                ============= ============ ===========

 Video Cable Services:
 Analog Video:
   Estimated homes passed (k)     12,582,100   12,519,300  12,214,900
   Analog video customers
    (b)(c)                         5,913,900    5,884,500   5,984,800
   Estimated penetration of
    analog video homes passed
    (b) (c) (k) (l)                       47%          47%         49%
   Average monthly analog
    revenue per analog video
    customer (m)                $      37.97  $     37.66  $    37.80
   Analog video customers
    quarterly net gain (loss)
    (b) (c) (n)                       29,400      (21,800)     (6,700)

 Digital Video:
   Estimated digital video homes
    passed (k)                    12,493,100   12,427,800  12,104,600
   Digital video customers (g)     2,866,400    2,796,600   2,694,600
   Estimated penetration of
    digital homes passed (g) (k)
    (l)                                   23%          23%         22%
   Digital penetration of analog
    video customers (b) (c) (g)
    (o)                                   48%          48%         45%
   Digital set-top terminals
    deployed                       4,086,900    3,981,100   3,829,200
   Average incremental monthly
    digital revenue per digital
    video customer (m)          $      27.66  $     26.45  $    24.58
   Digital video customers
    quarterly net gain (g) (n)        69,800       47,200      19,900

 Non-Video Cable Services:
 High-Speed Internet Services:
   Estimated high-speed Internet
    homes passed (k)              11,338,200   11,260,300  10,944,700
   Residential high-speed
    Internet customers (h)         2,322,400    2,196,400   1,978,400
   Estimated penetration of
    high-speed Internet homes
    passed (h) (k) (l)                    20%          20%         18%
   Average monthly high-speed
    Internet revenue per high-
    speed Internet customer (m) $      37.33  $     36.60  $    37.11
   Residential high-speed
    Internet customers quarterly
    net gain (h) (n)                 126,000       76,400      94,000

 Telephone Services:
  Estimated telephone homes
   passed (k)                      3,911,600    2,918,000   1,116,700
  Residential telephone
   customers (i)                     191,100      121,500      55,300
  Average monthly telephone
   revenue per telephone
   customer (m)                 $      43.00  $     39.57  $    41.34
  Residential telephone
   customers quarterly net gain
   (i) (n)                            69,600       31,600       9,900

Reducing the 29,400 net gain and included in the 21,800 net loss of
analog video customers for the first quarter of 2006 and fourth
quarter of 2005, respectively, is approximately 7,600 and 8,200,
respectively, of net losses related to systems impacted by hurricanes
Katrina and Rita.

After giving effect to the acquisition of cable systems in January
2006, December 31, 2005 analog video customers, digital video
customers,  high-speed Internet customers and telephone customers
would have been 5,902,000, 2,804,600,  2,209,600 and 136,000,
respectively.

After giving effect to the acquisition of cable systems in January
2006 and the sale of certain non-strategic cable systems in July 2005,
March 31, 2005 analog video customers, digital video customers, high-
speed Internet customers and telephone customers would have been
5,974,600, 2,690,300, 1,990,200 and 70,300, respectively.

See footnotes to unaudited summary of operating statistics on page
5 of this Addendum.

(a) "Customers" include all persons our corporate billing records
show as receiving service (regardless of their payment status), except
for complimentary accounts (such as our employees). In addition, at
March 31, 2006, December 31, 2005 and March 31, 2005, "customers"
include approximately 48,500, 50,500 and 43,100 persons whose accounts
were over 60 days past due in payment, approximately 11,900, 14,300
and 7,000 persons whose accounts were over 90 days past due in payment
and approximately 7,800, 7,400 and 3,600 of which were over 120 days
past due in payment, respectively.

(b) "Analog video customers" include all customers who receive
video services (including those who also purchase high-speed Internet
and telephone services) but excludes approximately 287,700, 272,700
and 241,700 customer relationships at March 31, 2006, December 31,
2005 and March 31, 2005, respectively, who receive high-speed Internet
service only or telephone service only and who are only counted as
high-speed Internet customers or telephone customers.

(c) Included within "video customers" are those in commercial and
multi-dwelling structures, which are calculated on an equivalent bulk
unit ("EBU") basis. EBU is calculated for a system by dividing the
bulk price charged to accounts in an area by the most prevalent price
charged to non-bulk residential customers in that market for the
comparable tier of service. The EBU method of estimating analog video
customers is consistent with the methodology used in determining costs
paid to programmers and has been used consistently. As we increase our
effective analog video prices to residential customers without a
corresponding increase in the prices charged to commercial service or
multi-dwelling customers, our EBU count will decline even if there is
no real loss in commercial service or multi- dwelling customers.

(d) "Customer relationships" include the number of customers that
receive one or more levels of service, encompassing video, Internet
and telephone services, without regard to which service(s) such
customers receive. This statistic is computed in accordance with the
guidelines of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association
(NCTA) that have been adopted by eleven publicly traded cable
operators, including Charter.

(e) "Average monthly revenue per analog video customer" is
calculated as total quarterly revenue divided by three divided by
average analog video customers during the respective quarter.

(f) "Bundled customers" include customers receiving a combination
of at least two different types of service, including Charter's video
service, high-speed Internet service or telephone. "Bundled customers"
do not include customers who only subscribe to video service.

(g) "Digital video customers" include all households that have one
or more digital set-top terminals. Included in "digital video
customers" on March 31, 2006, December 31, 2005 and March 31, 2005 are
approximately 8,500, 8,600 and 10,000 customers, respectively, that
receive digital video service directly through satellite transmission.

(h) "Residential high-speed Internet customers" represent those
customers who subscribe to our high-speed Internet service. At March
31, 2006, December 31, 2005 and March 31, 2005, approximately
2,055,500, 1,943,000 and 1,749,000 of these high-speed Internet
customers, respectively, receive video and/or telephone services from
us and are included within the respective statistics above.

(i) "Residential telephone customers" include all households
receiving telephone service. As of March 31, 2006, December 31, 2005
and March 31, 2005, approximately 170,300, 102,200 and 43,000 of these
telephone customers, respectively, receive video and/or high- speed
Internet services from us and are included within the respective
statistics above.

(j) "Revenue generating units" represent the sum total of all
analog video, digital video, high-speed Internet and telephone
customers, not counting additional outlets within one household. For
example, a customer who receives two types of service (such as analog
video and digital video) would be treated as two revenue generating
units, and if that customer added on high-speed Internet service, the
customer would be treated as three revenue generating units. This
statistic is computed in accordance with the guidelines of the NCTA
that have been adopted by eleven publicly traded cable operators,
including Charter.

(k) "Homes passed" represent our estimate of the number of living
units, such as single family homes, apartment units and condominium
units passed by our cable distribution network in the areas where we
offer the service indicated. "Homes passed" exclude commercial units
passed by our cable distribution network. These estimates are updated
for all periods presented when estimates change.

(l) "Penetration" represents customers as a percentage of homes
passed for the service indicated.

(m) "Average monthly revenue per customer" represents quarterly
revenue for the service indicated divided by three divided by the
number of customers for the service indicated during the respective
quarter.

(n) "Quarterly net gain (loss)" represents the net gain or loss in
the respective quarter for the service indicated.

(o) "Digital penetration of analog video customers" represents the
number of digital video customers as a percentage of analog video
customers.

             CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
    UNAUDITED RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP MEASURES TO GAAP MEASURES
                         (DOLLARS IN MILLIONS)

                                                  Three Months Ended
                                                        March 31,
                                                 --------------------
                                                    2006       2005
                                                   Actual     Actual
                                                 --------------------

Adjusted EBITDA (a)                              $    471  $      475
Less:  Purchases of property, plant and equipment    (241)       (211)
                                                 --------------------

Un-levered free cash flow                             230         264

Less:  Interest on cash pay obligations (b)          (416)       (371)
                                                 --------------------

Free cash flow                                       (186)       (107)

Purchases of property, plant and equipment            241         211
Special charges, net                                   (3)         (4)
Other, net                                             (2)         (6)
Change in operating assets and liabilities            159          59
                                                 --------------------

Net cash flows from operating activities         $    209  $      153
                                                 ====================

(a) See page 1 of this addendum for detail of the components
included within adjusted EBITDA.

(b) Interest on cash pay obligations excludes accretion of
original issue discounts on certain debt securities and amortization
of deferred financing costs that are reflected as interest expense in
our consolidated statements of operations.

The above schedules are presented in order to reconcile adjusted
EBITDA, un-levered free cash flows and free cash flows, all non-GAAP
measures, to the most directly comparable GAAP measures in accordance
with Section 401(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

             CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
                         CAPITAL EXPENDITURES
                         (DOLLARS IN MILLIONS)


                                                  Three Months Ended
                                                       March 31,
                                                  -------------------
                                                     2006       2005
                                                  --------  ---------

Customer premise equipment (a)                   $    130  $       86
Scalable infrastructure (b)                            34          42
Line extensions (c)                                    26          29
Upgrade/Rebuild (d)                                     9          10
Support capital (e)                                    42          44
                                                  --------  ---------

   Total capital expenditures                    $    241  $      211
                                                  ========  =========


(a) Customer premise equipment includes costs incurred at the
customer residence to secure new customers, revenue units and
additional bandwidth revenues. It also includes customer installation
costs in accordance with SFAS No. 51 and customer premise equipment
(e.g., set-top terminals and cable modems, etc.).

(b) Scalable infrastructure includes costs, not related to
customer premise equipment or our network, to secure growth of new
customers, revenue units and additional bandwidth revenues or provide
service enhancements (e.g., headend equipment).

(c) Line extensions include network costs associated with entering
new service areas (e.g., fiber/coaxial cable, amplifiers, electronic
equipment, make-ready and design engineering).

(d) Upgrade/rebuild includes costs to modify or replace existing
fiber/coaxial cable networks, including betterments.

(e) Support capital includes costs associated with the replacement
or enhancement of non-network assets due to technological and physical
obsolescence (e.g., non-network equipment, land, buildings and
vehicles).

COPYRIGHT 2006 Business Wire
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2006, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Publication:Business Wire
Date:May 2, 2006
Words:5252
Previous Article:Lenny's Sub Shop Grows In Georgia, Expands to South Carolina; Coastal Subs, Inc. to Open 25 Restaurants in Coastal Georgia and South Carolina.
Next Article:Alaska Communications Systems Announces Participation at CIBC Media, Internet & Telecommunications Conference on May 9.
Topics:



Related Articles
Charter Reports Third Quarter 2005 Financial and Operating Results; Long-Standing CC VIII Dispute Resolved; Quarterly Revenues Increased by 5.6% to...
Charter Reports Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2005 Financial and Operating Results; The Company Added 133,400 Revenue Generating Units During the...
Chartered Reports Results for First Quarter 2006.
OMI Corporation Reports 2006 First Quarter Results.
Teekay Reports First Quarter Net Income of $102 Million.
Airline Finance News - Europe.
Charter Reports Third-Quarter 2006 Financial and Operating Results.
Company Watch - Delta Air Lines.
The Coca-Cola Company Reports First Quarter 2007 Results.
Charter Reports First-Quarter Financial and Operating Results.

Terms of use | Copyright © 2012 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles