PANAMA CITY,
May 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Copa Holdings, S.A.
(NYSE: CPA), parent company of Copa Airlines and Aero Republica, today
announced financial results for the first quarter of 2009 (1Q09). The terms
"Copa Holdings" or "the Company" refer to the consolidated entity, whose
operating subsidiaries are Copa Airlines and Aero Republica. The following
financial and operating information, unless otherwise indicated, is presented
in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Unless otherwise stated, all comparisons with
prior periods refer to the first quarter of 2008 (1Q08).
OPERATING AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
-- Copa Holdings reported net income of US$71.6 million for 1Q09, or
diluted earnings per share (EPS) of US$1.65, an increase of 81.3% as compared
to net income of US$39.5 million or diluted EPS of US$0.91 in 1Q08.
-- Excluding special items, which for 1Q09 included a US$16.2 million
non-cash gain associated with the mark-to-market of fuel hedge contracts, Copa
Holdings would have reported an adjusted net income of $55.5 million, or $1.28
per share, compared to an adjusted net income of US$37.7 million or US$0.87
per share for 1Q08. See the accompanying reconciliation of non-GAAP financial
information to GAAP financial information included in the financial tables
section of this earnings release.
-- Operating income for 1Q09 came in at US$68.9 million, despite a
$19.9 million fuel hedge loss, representing an increase of 33.3% as compared
to operating income of US$51.7 million for 1Q08. Operating margin increased
from 17.5% to 22.3%, maintaining our position among the most profitable
airlines in the industry.
-- In 1Q09, total revenues increased to US$308.8 million, representing
growth of 4.3%, on a 17.0% capacity expansion. Yield per passenger mile
decreased 6.2% to 16.2 cents and operating revenue per available seat mile
(RASM) decreased 10.8% to 12.7 cents.
-- Revenue passenger miles (RPMs) increased 11.6% from 1.62 billion in
1Q08 to 1.81 billion in 1Q09, and available seat miles (ASMs) increased 17.0%
from 2.08 billion in 1Q08 to 2.43 billion in 1Q09, with the Copa Airlines
segment increasing 18.9% year-over-year and Aero Republica increasing 8.0%.
Consolidated load factor decreased 3.6 percentage points to 74.4%. Underlying
Break-even load factor for 1Q09 decreased 7.7 percentage points to 57.5% from
65.2% in 1Q08.
-- Operating cost per available seat mile (CASM) decreased 16.0%, from
11.8 cents in 1Q08 to 9.9 cents in 1Q09. CASM, excluding fuel costs,
decreased 11.0% from 7.7 cents in 1Q08 to 6.8 cents in 1Q09.
-- Liquidity including cash, short term and long term investments, plus
committed credit lines of US$31 million, ended the quarter at
US$434.2 million, representing 33% of the last twelve months' revenues.
-- Copa Airlines ended the quarter with a fleet of 43 aircraft, consisting
of 28 Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft and 15 Embraer-190 aircraft. Aero
Republica received two Embraer-190 aircraft and ended the quarter with a fleet
of 15 aircraft, consisting of 11 Embraer-190 and four MD-80 aircraft. Copa
Holdings ended the quarter with a consolidated fleet of 58 aircraft.
-- For 1Q09, Copa Airlines reported on-time performance of 90.6% and a
flight-completion factor of 99.6%, maintaining its position among the best in
the industry.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
-- On May 6, the Copa Holdings Board of Directors declared an annual
dividend of $0.37 per share. Although this dividend is the same amount per
share paid in 2008, it represents 14% of 2008 consolidated net income. The
determination to pay dividends in excess of the Company's current 10% policy
was made due to the Company's strong operating earnings, balance sheet and
liquidity position. The dividend will be paid on June 15, 2009 to stockholders
of record as of May 29, 2009.
-- Recently, Continental Airlines announced its intention to leave SkyTeam
effective October 24, 2009. Due to the long-standing alliance relationship
with Continental, and in order to ensure Copa remains fully aligned with
Continental on a number of important joint initiatives, Copa will also be
leaving SkyTeam concurrently with Continental on October 24, 2009.
Consolidated Financial &
Operating Highlights 1Q09 1Q08 % Change 4Q08 % Change
RPMs (millions) 1,807 1,619 11.6% 1,760 2.7%
ASMs (mm) 2,430 2,077 17.0% 2,375 2.3%
Load Factor 74.4% 78.0% -3.6 p.p. 74.1% 0.3 p.p.
Yield 16.2 17.3 -6.2% 18.5 -12.4%
PRASM (cents) 12.1 13.5 -10.6% 13.7 -12.0%
RASM (cents) 12.7 14.2 -10.8% 14.6 -12.8%
CASM (cents) 9.9 11.8 -16.0% 11.0 -10.5%
CASM Excl. Fuel (cents) 6.8 7.7 -11.0% 7.2 -4.7%
Breakeven Load Factor (2) 57.5% 65.2% -7.7 p.p. 56.9% 0.6 p.p.
Operating Revenues (US$ mm) 308.8 295.9 4.3% 346.1 -10.8%
EBITDAR (US$ mm) (1) 111.4 75.8 46.9% 66.6 67.2%
Adjusted EBITDAR (US$ mm)
(1)(2) 95.3 74.1 28.6% 106.1 -10.2%
EBITDAR Margin (1) 36.1% 25.6% 10.5 p.p. 19.3% 16.8 p.p.
Adjusted EBITDAR Margin
(1)(2) 30.9% 25.0% 5.8 p.p. 30.7% 0.2 p.p.
Operating Income (US$ mm) 68.9 51.7 33.3% 84.0 -18.0%
Operating Margin 22.3% 17.5% 4.8 p.p. 24.3% -2.0 p.p.
Net Income (US$ mm) 71.6 39.5 81.3% 25.8 178.1%
Adjusted Net Income (US$ mm)
(2) 55.5 37.7 47.0% 65.2 -15.0%
EPS - Basic (US$) 1.67 0.92 81.6% 0.60 179.9%
Adjusted EPS - Basic (US$)
(2) 1.29 0.88 47.3% 1.51 -14.4%
EPS - Diluted (US$) 1.65 0.91 81.2% 0.59 177.8%
Adjusted EPS - Diluted (US$)
(2) 1.28 0.87 46.9% 1.50 -15.0%
Weighted Avg. # of Shares -
Basic (000) 42,908 42,985 -0.2% 43,195 -0.7%
Weighted Avg. # of Shares -
Diluted (000) 43,464 43,433 0.1% 43,426 0.1%
(1) EBITDAR means earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation,
amortization and rent.
(2) Break-even load factor, adjusted EBITDAR, Adjusted EBITDAR margin,
Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS (Basic and Diluted) exclude non-cash
charges/gains associated with the mark-to-market of fuel hedges.
Note: A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the comparable
US GAAP measures appears at the end of this press release.
Full 1Q09 earnings release available for download at:
http://investor.shareholder.com/copa/results.cfm
1Q09 EARNINGS RESULTS CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST
Date: May 7, 2009
Time: 11:00 a.m. EDT (10:00 a.m. Panama Time)
Conference Call:
Telephone Number: 877-548-7913 (U.S. Domestic Callers)
719-325-4863 (International Callers)
Webcast Link: http://investor.shareholder.com/copa/events.cfm
About Copa Holdings
Copa Holdings, through its Copa Airlines and Aero Republica operating
subsidiaries, is a leading Latin American provider of passenger and cargo
service. Copa Airlines currently offers approximately 144 daily scheduled
flights to 45 destinations in 24 countries in North, Central and South America
and the Caribbean. In addition, Copa Airlines provides passengers with access
to flights to more than 120 other international destinations through code
share agreements with Continental Airlines and other airlines. Aero Republica,
the second-largest domestic carrier in Colombia, provides service to 12 cities
in Colombia as well as international connectivity with Copa Airlines' Hub of
the Americas through flights from Bogota, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cartagena,
Medellin and Pereira. Additionally, Aero Republica has direct daily flights to
Caracas, Venezuela, from the cities of Bogota and Medellin.
This release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking
statements are based on current plans, estimates and expectations, and are not
guarantees of future performance. They are based on management's expectations
that involve a number of business risks and uncertainties, any of which could
cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied
by the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statement. The risks and uncertainties
relating to the forward-looking statements in this release are among those
disclosed in Copa Holdings' filed disclosure documents and are, therefore,
subject to change without prior notice.
Copa Holdings, S.A.
NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURE RECONCILIATION
This press release includes the following non GAAP financial measures:
Adjusted EBITDAR, Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS. This supplemental
information is presented because we believe they are useful indicators of our
operating performance and are useful in comparing our performance with other
companies in the airline industry. These measures should not be considered in
isolation, and should be considered together with comparable U.S. GAAP
measures, in particular operating income and net income. The following is a
reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the comparable US GAAP
measures:
Reconciliation of EBITDAR
Excluding Special Items 1Q09 1Q08 4Q08
Net income as Reported $71,615 $39,499 $25,755
Interest Expense (8,936) (10,980) (10,891)
Capitalized Interest 318 521 525
Interest Income 2,563 2,768 2,863
Income Taxes (5,641) (4,104) (8,113)
EBIT 83,311 51,294 41,371
Depreciation and Amortization 11,928 10,000 11,326
EBITDA 95,239 61,294 52,697
Aircraft Rent 12,366 10,673 10,078
Other Rentals 3,812 3,883 3,873
EBITDAR $111,417 $75,850 $66,648
Special Items (adjustments):
Unrealized (gain) loss on fuel
hedging instruments (1) (16,163) (1,786) 39,462
Adjusted EBITDAR $95,254 $74,064 $106,111
Reconciliation of Net Income
Excluding Special Items 1Q09 1Q08 4Q08
Net income as Reported $71,615 $39,499 $25,755
Special Items (adjustments):
Unrealized (gain) loss on fuel
hedging instruments (1) (16,163) (1,786) 39,462
Adjusted Net Income $55,452 $37,713 $65,217
Shares used for Computation
(in thousands)
Basic 42,908 42,985 43,195
Diluted 43,464 43,433 43,426
Adjusted earnings per share
Basic 1.29 0.88 1.51
Diluted 1.28 0.87 1.50
FOOTNOTE:
The 1Q09 and 1Q08 periods included a non-cash gains of US$16.2 million and
$1.8 Million, respectively, and 4Q08 period included non-cash charge of
US$39.5 million resulting from the mark-to-market accounting for changes in
the fair value of fuel hedging instruments.
CPA-G
Print This Page
Email This Page
Archives
Copyright Permissions
