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Covad Communications Group Reports Fourth Quarter 2006 Results.


Company Achieves 48% Subscription Revenue Increase From Growth Products and Reports Improvement in 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  and Cash Flow

SAN JOSE San Jose, city, United States
San Jose (sănəzā`, săn hōzā`), city (1990 pop. 782,248), seat of Santa Clara co., W central Calif.; founded 1777, inc. 1850.
, Calif. -- Covad Communications Group, Inc. (AMEX AMEX

See: American Stock Exchange
:DVW DVW Deutscher Verein für Vermessungswesen eV (German Surveying Association)
DVW Dynamic Virtual Worlds
):

Fourth Quarter Financial and Business Highlights

* Net revenues of $119.5 million

* 48.4 percent increase in subscription revenue from Growth products from the fourth quarter of 2005

* A-EBITDA of $6.7 million, which includes $2.0 million of LPVA LPVA Libertarian Party of Virginia  build-out costs

* Net loss of $8.4 million ($0.03 per share)

* Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, and restricted cash and cash equivalents decreased by $0.9 million. Excluding the cash outlay of $4.4 million related to the LPVA build-out expenditures and $1.2 million related to the acquisition of DataFlo assets, cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, and restricted cash and cash equivalents increased by $4.7 million

* Completed build-out of the nation's largest next-generation network, covering 758 central offices and 14 million households.

* Enhanced distribution capability through strategic partnerships with United Online, TalkSwitch, and Telarus

* Expanded fixed broadband wireless See wireless broadband.  footprint to Chicago with acquisition of DataFlo assets

Covad Communications Group, Inc. (AMEX:DVW), a leading national provider of integrated voice and data communications data communications, application of telecommunications technology to the problem of transmitting data, especially to, from, or between computers. In popular usage, it is said that data communications make it possible for one computer to "talk" with another. , today announced its fourth quarter of 2006 financial results, including $119.5 million in net revenues, $6.7 million in A-EBITDA and a net loss of $8.4 million, or $0.03 loss per share.

Charles Hoffman, Covad president and chief executive officer, said: "In 2006, Covad achieved its goals of becoming cash flow, excluding LPVA expenditures, and A-EBITDA positive while accelerating our transition from being a provider of wholesale broadband services See broadband and broadband service provider.  to becoming a direct provider of high-growth, high-margin offerings like Voice over IP, line-powered voice, and business-class wireline and wireless broadband High-speed wireless transmission of data. What is "high" speed is always a changing number. Wireless systems are typically slower than land-based, wireline networks. In the past, wireless broadband started at 250 Kbps, whereas land-based broadband was generally considered to start at T1 . We also continued to invest in our future growth through the completion of the nation's largest next-generation network."

Summary of Financial Results

* Net revenues for the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $119.5 million, an increase of $0.9 million from the $118.6 million reported for the third quarter of 2006, and an increase of $5.8 million, or 5.1 percent, from the $113.7 million reported for the fourth quarter of 2005.

* Direct subscribers for the fourth quarter of 2006 contributed $42.4 million of net revenues, or 35.5 percent, as compared to $40.3 million, or 34.0 percent, for the third quarter of 2006, and $33.6 million, or 29.6 percent, for the fourth quarter of 2005. Wholesale subscribers for the fourth quarter of 2006 contributed $77.1 million of net revenues, or 64.5 percent, as compared to $78.3 million, or 66.0 percent, for the third quarter of 2006, and $80.1 million, or 70.4 percent, for the fourth quarter of 2005.

* Subscription revenue from Growth products for the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $47.5 million, an increase of $3.5 million, or 8.0 percent, from the third quarter of 2006, and an increase of $15.5 million, or 48.4 percent from the fourth quarter of 2005. Covad's growth products are T-1, business ADSL See DSL.

ADSL - Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line
, Line-Powered Voice Access ("LPVA"), Voice over Internet Protocol See Internet and TCP/IP.

(networking) Internet Protocol - (IP) The network layer for the TCP/IP protocol suite widely used on Ethernet networks, defined in STD 5, RFC 791. IP is a connectionless, best-effort packet switching protocol.
 ("VoIP") and wireless. The increase from the third quarter of 2006 was attributable to increases in broadband subscription revenue from T-1, business ADSL and LPVA of $1.8 million, VoIP subscription revenue of $1.5 million and Wireless subscription revenue of $0.2 million. The increase from the fourth quarter of 2005 was attributable to increases in broadband subscription revenue from T-1, business ADSL and LPVA of $8.4 million, VoIP subscription revenue of $3.7 million and wireless subscription revenue of $3.4 million. Subscription revenue from Growth products for the fourth quarter of 2006 contributed 43.3 percent of total subscription revenues, an increase of 2.6 percent from the third quarter of 2006 and an increase of 12.1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2005. Refer to the Selected Financial Data below, including Note 3, for additional information, including a summary of subscription revenue from Growth and Legacy products and a reconciliation of subscription revenue to the most directly comparable GAAP GAAP

See: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles


GAAP

See generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
 measure.

* Subscription revenue from Legacy products for the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $62.2 million, a decrease of $2.0 million, or 3.1 percent, from the third quarter of 2006, and a decrease of $8.3 million, or 11.8 percent from the fourth quarter of 2005. Covad's legacy products, primarily sold through wholesale channels, are consumer ADSL, business SDSL See DSL.

SDSL - Single-line Digital Subscriber Line
, frame relay A high-speed packet switching protocol used in wide area networks (WANs). Providing a granular service of up to DS3 speed (45 Mbps), it has become popular for LAN to LAN connections across remote distances, and services are offered by most major carriers.  and high-capacity transport circuits. The decreases from the third quarter of 2006 and fourth quarter of 2005 were primarily attributable to decreases in broadband subscription revenue from consumer ADSL and business SDSL and frame relay products. Subscription revenue from Legacy products for the fourth quarter of 2006 contributed 56.7 percent of total subscription revenues, a decrease of 2.6 percent from the third quarter of 2006 and a decrease of 12.1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2005. Refer to the Selected Financial Data below, including Note 3, for additional information, including a summary of subscription revenue from Growth and Legacy products and a reconciliation of subscription revenue to the most directly comparable GAAP measure.

* Revenue from business subscribers for the fourth quarter of 2006 contributed $93.9 million of net revenues, a 1.7 percent increase from the third quarter of 2006 and a 13.4 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2005. Revenue from business subscribers comprised 78.6 percent of net revenues, up from 77.8 percent in the third quarter of 2006 and 72.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2005. Revenue from consumer subscribers for the fourth quarter of 2006 contributed $25.6 million of net revenues compared to $26.3 million in the third quarter of 2006 and $30.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2005. Revenue from consumer subscribers for the fourth quarter of 2006 comprised 21.4 percent of net revenues, down from 22.2 percent in the third quarter of 2006 and 27.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2005.

* Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) is a non-GAAP metric that can be used to evaluate a company's profitability.
:EBITDA = Operating Revenue – Operating Expenses + Other Revenue
 ("A-EBITDA") for the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $6.7 million, an improvement of $2.2 million from the $4.5 million A-EBITDA reported for the third quarter of 2006, and an improvement of $10.1 million from the $3.4 million A-EBITDA loss reported for the fourth quarter of 2005. A-EBITDA in the fourth quarter of 2006 includes the benefit of a transaction-based tax adjustment of approximately $2.3 million which was offset by costs of approximately $2.0 million related to the build-out of LPVA service and $0.3 million related to facility expenses. The third quarter of 2006 includes costs of approximately $1.6 million related to the build-out of LPVA service. Included in A-EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2005 is a reduction in network costs of approximately $4.2 million, primarily as a result of a billing settlement reached with Verizon Communications
"Verizon" redirects here: this article is about the corporation; see also Verizon Wireless, Verizon Online DSL and Verizon FiOS.


Verizon Communications, Inc.
, Inc. This benefit was partially offset by an increase in employee compensation and other 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.
 of approximately $2.5 million, primarily as a result of reductions in workforce during the fourth quarter of 2005. Excluding these items, A-EBITDA for the fourth and third quarter of 2006, and fourth quarter 2005 would have been $6.7 million, $6.1 million and an A-EBITDA loss of $5.1 million, respectively. Refer to the Selected Financial Data below, including Note 2, for additional information, including a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial performance measure to the most directly comparable GAAP measure.

* Net loss for the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $8.4 million, or $0.03 loss per share, an improvement of $0.3 million from the $8.7 million net loss, or $0.03 loss per share, reported for the third quarter of 2006 and an improvement of $9.5 million from the $17.9 million net loss, or $0.07 loss per share, reported for the fourth quarter of 2005. As stated above, fourth quarter of 2006 results include the benefit of a transaction-based tax adjustment of approximately $2.3 million which was offset by costs of approximately $2.0 million related to the build-out of LPVA service and $0.3 million related to facility expenses. Third quarter of 2006 includes costs of approximately $1.6 million related to the LPVA build-out. Included in net loss for the fourth quarter of 2005 is a reduction in network costs of approximately $4.2 million, primarily as a result of a billing settlement reached with Verizon Communications, Inc. This benefit was partially offset by an increase in employee compensation and other operating expenses of approximately $2.5 million, primarily as a result of reductions in workforce during the fourth quarter of 2005. Excluding these items, net loss for fourth and third quarter of 2006, and fourth quarter of 2005 would have been $8.4 million, $7.1 million and $19.6 million, respectively.

* Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, and restricted cash and cash equivalents at the end of the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $81.7 million, a decrease of $0.9 million when compared to the balance of $82.6 million at the end of the third quarter of 2006. Excluding the cash outlay of $4.4 million related to the LPVA build-out expenditures, which is being funded with the proceeds from the strategic agreement with EarthLink, and $1.2 million related to the acquisition of DataFlo assets, cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, and restricted cash and cash equivalents improved by $4.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2006.

"As Covad enters 2007 we are in a strong position to capitalize upon the investments made over the last several quarters and our continual improvements Continual Improvement (also called incremental improvement or staircase improvement) is a process or productivity improvement tool intended to have a stable and consistent growth and improvement of all the segments of a process or processes.  in operational efficiency," said Christopher Dunn For the mechanical engineer, see .

Christopher Dunn is an American soap opera writer.

Guiding Light (GL)
  • Associate Head Writer (2000-2001; 2002 - Present)
  • Co-Head Writer (2001 - 2002)
Santa Barbara (SB)
, Covad's chief financial officer. "Our growth products are building momentum and will allow us to enhance our offerings to customers while generating additional revenue and continue to improve the bottom line. This operating leverage Operating Leverage

A measurement of the degree to which a firm or project relies on fixed rather than variable costs.

Notes:
The higher the degree of operating leverage, the greater the potential danger from forecasting risk.
 in our business gives Covad an opportunity to deliver value to our customers as well as our shareholders."

Business Outlook

Due to the strong business foundation built in 2006 and stability in the key components of its cost structure, the company will no longer provide a business outlook on a quarterly basis but will instead provide full year guidance for 2007. In addition, due to the completion of the LPVA project in the fourth quarter of 2006, the Company will no longer separate LPVA expenditures.

Covad expects to update this full year guidance on a quarterly basis. For the fiscal year 2007, Covad expects:

* Net revenues in the range of $490 - $525 million

* A-EBITDA in the range of $30 - $50 million

* Net loss in the range of $15 - $39.5 million

* Covad also expects to increase its cash position in 2007.

Conference Call Information

Covad will conduct a conference call to discuss these financial results on Tuesday, February 13, 2006 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET)/ 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (PT). The conference call will be webcast over the Internet. To listen to the call, visit the Event Calendar section on the Covad web site at http://www.covad.com/about_investors.shtml. Investors and press may also listen by telephone to the call by dialing (800) 240-2134. Participants are advised to call in 10 minutes prior to the start time. The conference call will be recorded and available for replay listening until 11:59 p.m. EST P.M. also p.m. or p.m.
abbr.
post meridiem

Usage Note: By definition, 12 a.m.
 on February 20, 2007 by dialing (800) 405-2236 and reference pass code 11083115. A companion presentation providing graphical details of this press release is also available on the same investor section of the Covad Website.

About Covad

Covad is a leading nationwide provider of integrated voice and data communications. The company offers DSL DSL
 in full Digital Subscriber Line

Broadband digital communications connection that operates over standard copper telephone wires. It requires a DSL modem, which splits transmissions into two frequency bands: the lower frequencies for voice (ordinary
, Voice Over IP, T1, Web hosting Making a Web site available on the Internet. Many ISPs host a few personal Web pages for an individual at no additional cost above the monthly service fee, but the address is subordinate to the ISP; for example, www.friendlyisp.com/pat_smith. , managed security, IP and dial-up, broadband wireless, and bundled voice and data services directly through Covad's network and through Internet Service Providers Internet service provider (ISP)

Company that provides Internet connections and services to individuals and organizations. For a monthly fee, ISPs provide computer users with a connection to their site (see data transmission), as well as a log-in name and password.
, value-added resellers A value-added reseller (VAR) is a company that adds some feature(s) to an existing product(s), then resells it (usually to end-users) as an integrated product or complete "turn-key" solution. , telecommunications carriers and affinity groups A special interest group. This is a marketing term for a group of people with similar interests.  to small and medium-sized businesses and home users. Covad broadband services are currently available across the nation in 44 states and 235 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) and can be purchased by more than 57 million homes and businesses, which represent over 50 percent of all US homes and businesses. Corporate headquarters is located at 110 Rio Robles Robles is a common surname in the Spanish language meaning oaks, and may refer to:
  • Alfonso García Robles (1911-1991), Mexican diplomat and politician
  • Aurora Robles (born 1980), Mexican fashion model
  • Charlie Robles (born 1943), Puerto Rican musician
 San Jose, CA 95134. Telephone: 1-888-GO-COVAD. Web Site: www.covad.com.

Safe Harbor Safe Harbor

1. A legal provision to reduce or eliminate liability as long as good faith is demonstrated.

2. A form of shark repellent implemented by a target company acquiring a business that is so poorly regulated that the target itself is less attractive.
 Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) implemented several significant substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation and awards fees and  of 1995:

The foregoing contains "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.
" which are based on management's current information and beliefs as well as on a number of assumptions concerning future events made by management. Examples of forward-looking statements include the company's expected revenue, net loss, A-EBITDA, increases in its cash position, enhancements in its offerings to its customers and improvements to the bottom line. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside Covad's control that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. These risk factors include our ability to rapidly expand and deploy new services and improve and upgrade our existing network and services, the impact of increasing competition, pricing pressures, consolidation in the telecommunications industry, uncertainty in telecommunications regulations and changes in technologies, among other risks. For a more detailed description of the risk factors that could cause such a difference, please see Covad's 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Covad disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This information is presented solely to provide additional information to further understand the results of Covad.
[TABLE OMITTED]
[TABLE OMITTED]
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Notes to Unaudited Selected Financial Data

1. Gross margin is calculated by subtracting cost of sales (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) from revenues, net.

2. Management believes that Adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization ("A-EBITDA"), defined as net loss excluding (i) depreciation and amortization of property and equipment, (ii) amortization of 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.
, (iii) other income (expense), net, and (iv) employee stock-based compensation expense, is a useful measure because it provides additional information about the company's ability to meet future capital expenditures and working capital requirements Capital requirements

Financing required for the operation of a business, composed of long-term and working capital plus fixed assets.
 and fund continued growth. Management excludes employee stock-based compensation expense from this measure to make the results comparable to prior years when employee stock-based compensation expense was not included in the statement of operations See Income statement. . Management also uses this measure to evaluate the performance of its business segments and as a factor in its employee bonus program. A-EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies and should not be used as an alternative to our operating and other financial information as determined under accounting principles generally accepted in 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. . A-EBITDA is not a prescribed term under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, does not directly correlate to cash provided by or used in operating activities and should not be considered in isolation, nor as an alternative to more meaningful measures of performance determined in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. A-EBITDA generally excludes the effect of capital costs. Management reconciles A-EBITDA to net income or loss because it believes that net income or loss is the closest measure determined under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States that approximates A-EBITDA.

3. Broadband, VoIP, Wireless and High-Capacity subscription revenues are defined as billings for recurring re·cur  
intr.v. re·curred, re·cur·ring, re·curs
1. To happen, come up, or show up again or repeatedly.

2. To return to one's attention or memory.

3. To return in thought or discourse.
 services provided during the period. These subscription revenues exclude charges for Federal Universal Service Fund ("FUSF FUSF Federal Universal Service Fee ") assessments, dial-up services An information service on demand. The term was popular when analog modems were the only way to connect to a remote system. See dial-up.  and other adjustments. In addition, these subscription revenues include bills issued to customers that are classified as financially distressed and whose revenue is only recognized if cash is received (refer to Note 4 below for a more detailed discussion on accounting for financially distressed partners). Management believes that Broadband, VoIP, Wireless and High-Capacity subscription revenues are useful measures for investors as they represent key indicators of the growth of the company's core business. Management uses these subscription revenue measures to evaluate the performance of its business segments.

4. When the company determines that (i) the collectibility of a bill issued to a customer is not reasonably assured or (ii) its ability to retain some or all of the payments received from a customer that has filed for bankruptcy protection is not reasonably assured, the customer is classified as "financially distressed" for revenue recognition purposes. A bill issued to a financially distressed customer is recognized as revenue when services are rendered and cash for those services is received, assuming all other criteria for revenue recognition have been met, and only after the collection of all previous outstanding accounts receivable accounts receivable n. the amounts of money due or owed to a business or professional by customers or clients. Generally, accounts receivable refers to the total amount due and is considered in calculating the value of a business or the business' problems in paying  balances. Consequently, there may be significant timing differences between the time a bill is issued, the time the services are provided and the time that cash is received and revenue is recognized.

5. Customer rebates and incentives not subject to deferral deferral - Waiting for quiet on the Ethernet.  consist of amounts paid or accrued under marketing, promotion and rebate incentive programs with certain customers. Rebates and incentives paid or accrued under these programs are not accompanied by any up-front charges billed to customers. Therefore, these charges are accounted for as reductions of revenue as incurred.

6. Other revenues consist primarily of revenue recognized from amortization of prior period SAB SAB Spontaneous abortion. See Abortion.  104 deferrals (refer to Note 7 below for a discussion of SAB 104), FUSF billed to our customers and other revenues not subject to SAB 104 deferral because they do not relate to an on-going customer relationship or performance of future services.

7. In accordance with SAB 104, the company recognizes up-front fees associated with service activation, net of any amounts concurrently paid or accrued under certain marketing, promotion and rebate incentive programs, over the expected term of the customer relationship, which is presently estimated to be 24 to 48 months, using the straight-line method Noun 1. straight-line method - (accounting) a method of calculating depreciation by taking an equal amount of the asset's cost as an expense for each year of the asset's useful life
straight-line method of depreciation
. The company also treats the incremental Additional or increased growth, bulk, quantity, number, or value; enlarged.

Incremental cost is additional or increased cost of an item or service apart from its actual cost.
 direct costs of service activation (which consist principally of customer premises equipment See CPE. , service activation fees paid to other telecommunications companies See telecom company.  and sales commissions) as deferred charges in amounts that are no greater than the up-front fees that are deferred, and such deferred incremental direct costs are amortized to expense using the straight-line method over 24 to 48 months.

8. Direct costs of revenue, net consists of monthly charges we receive from telecommunications carriers to support the delivery of broadband and VoIP services to our customers. Direct costs of revenue, net includes the on-going costs associated with high-capacity circuits provisioned for our wholesalers and the costs associated with local loops provisioned for our broadband and dial-up end-users.

9. Other network and product costs consist of all other costs, excluding depreciation and amortization, associated with equipment maintenance, central offices' (COs) cost, installation costs paid to others, the internal installation services group, and federal universal service fund tax.
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