Erickson Air-Crane Announces First Quarter 2013 Results

PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Erickson Air-Crane Incorporated (EAC) (“Erickson” or “the Company”), a leading global provider of aviation services to a diverse mix of commercial and government customers and the vertically integrated manufacturer and operator of the powerful, heavy-lift helicopter, the Erickson S-64 Aircrane, today announced first quarter 2013 financial results, including record first quarter revenues.

First Quarter Highlights

• Revenue increased 33.8% to $36.9 million, the highest in our history
• Flight hours increased 38.0% to 2,160 hours
• Operating Income was $1.9 million, excluding $2.3 million of acquisition-related expenses
• Adjusted EBITDA increased $5.3 million to $7.0 million

First Quarter Results

Revenue for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 increased by 33.8% compared with the prior year period, rising to $36.9 million. Revenue growth in aerial services was broad-based, driven by a very active fire season in Australia, continued strong growth in the Company’s infrastructure construction business, in particular in the oil and gas sector, and an active quarter for timber harvesting.

The Company reported adjusted first quarter net income attributable to Erickson Air-Crane Incorporated of $0.1 million, or $0.01 adjusted net income per basic and diluted share (a non-GAAP measure described below), compared with a prior year net loss of $2.5 million. Erickson incurred acquisition-related expenses in the first quarter of $2.3 million, or $0.14 of after-tax impact to diluted earnings per share, resulting in a first quarter loss attributable to Erickson Air-Crane of $1.2 million, or $0.13 net loss per basic and diluted share.

Acquisition-related expenses were attributable to both the acquisition of Evergreen Helicopters, Inc. (“EHI”), which was completed on May 2, 2013, as well as the Company’s pending transaction to acquire the Air Amazonia fleet and operations from HRT Oil & Gas. The Company continues to anticipate closing the Air Amazonia transaction in the second quarter. Excluding these acquisition-related expenses, the Company was pleased to achieve a profitable quarter, as adjusted, in its historically weakest quarter.

Udo Rieder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Erickson Air-Crane, commented, “This was a strong start to 2013. Performance by our Aircrane operations and our completion of the EHI transaction position us to quickly transform our business. We believe the execution of our strategic acquisition program is enabling us to emerge as a highly diversified, global company with a wide array of opportunities to generate high-margin growth. We expect to demonstrate our ability to drive value to the full range of our constituents, including customers, partners, and shareholders.”

The Company’s first quarter operating income was $1.9 million, excluding the above-mentioned $2.3 million of acquisition-related expenses, compared with the prior year’s first quarter loss of $1.7 million. Including the acquisition-related expenses, the first quarter operating loss was $0.3 million. First quarter Adjusted EBITDA (a non-GAAP measure described below) was $7.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2013, an increase of $5.3 million as compared to the prior year period’s comparable level of $1.7 million. This increase was driven by revenue growth, a gross margin improvement of 10.5 percentage points and, excluding acquisition-related expenses, an improvement to operating expenses as a percentage of sales of 0.7 percentage points.

Rieder continued, “We are seeing significant scale-related benefits accompany the growth in our Aircrane business. This includes our deployment of a second Aircrane dedicated to our South American oil and gas initiative, an ongoing focus for both organic and acquisition-related expansion. In concert with increased leverage over our fixed corporate infrastructure and the enhanced profitability that accompanied a very active Australian fire season, we drove a strong overall operating performance in the first quarter.”

Updated Guidance

Erickson today provided fiscal year 2013 guidance for revenues and Adjusted EBITDA. This guidance reflects a reiteration of the Company’s previously communicated expectations for its base business and the inclusion of expected results for the acquired EHI business.

The full year guidance provided below is operational and adjusted and therefore does not include any acquisition-related expenses (including the $2.3 million incurred in the first quarter), purchase accounting adjustments, restructuring expenses, or other similar items. The Company noted that its guidance also does not yet include any effect from the planned but still pending acquisition of Air Amazonia from HRT. The guidance below does incorporate a preliminary estimate of synergies expected to be realized this year.

The Company now expects to report full year fiscal 2013 revenues in the range of $325 to $335 million, and it expects Adjusted EBITDA for the full year in the range of $93 to $101 million. On a pro forma basis, as if the acquisition and associated financing had occurred on January 1, 2013, the Company expects full year revenues in the range of $385 to $395 million and Adjusted EBITDA for the full year in the range of $108 to $116 million.

Rieder concluded, “We are deeply grateful for the clear vote of confidence provided to us in recent quarters by the capital markets. We have utilized that support to rapidly implement our strategy and to create what we believe will be enduring value. We are certainly pleased to have opened a new chapter in Erickson’s story with what we believe will be a highly accretive transaction. We believe the new Erickson will leverage our exceptional talent and deep operational efficiencies to better serve our customers and create long-term value for all our stakeholders.”

Conference Call

The Company noted that it will hold a conference call to discuss its earnings results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2013 on May 9 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time with prepared remarks by Udo Rieder, the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer, and Chuck Ryan, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, to be followed by a question and answer session for the investment community. A live webcast of the call can be accessed at investors.ericksonaircrane.com. To access the call, dial toll-free 1-888-438-5519 or 1-719-325-2428 (international). The pass code is 3039751.

To listen to a telephonic replay of the conference call, dial toll-free 1-877-870-5176 or 1-858-384-5517 (international) and enter pass code 3039751. The replay will be available beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 9, 2013 and will last through 11:59 p.m. ET May 23, 2013.

About Erickson Air-Crane Incorporated

Erickson Air-Crane Incorporated is a leading global provider of aviation services to a diverse mix of commercial and government customers. The Company currently operates a diverse fleet of 85 rotary-wing and fixed wing aircraft, including a fleet of 20 heavy-lift S-64 Aircranes. This fleet supports a wide and worldwide variety of government and commercial customers, across a broad range of aerial services, including critical supply and logistics for deployed military forces, humanitarian relief, firefighting, timber harvesting, infrastructure construction, and crewing. The Company also maintains a vertical manufacturing capability for the S-64 Aircrane, related components, and other aftermarket support and maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for the Aircrane and other aircraft. Founded in 1971, Erickson Air-Crane is headquartered in Portland, Oregon and maintains facilities and operations in North America, South America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific. For more information, please visit http://www.ericksonaircrane.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. You can identify forward-looking statements by words such as “believe,” “may,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “expect,” “predict,” “potential,” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations but they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result of risks and uncertainties, which include: the possibility that we do not complete the acquisition of the Brazilian air logistics business, or realize the benefits of the acquisition of EHI or the Brazilian air logistics business on a timely basis or at all; our ability to integrate these businesses successfully or in a timely and cost-efficient manner; our ability to successfully enter new markets and manage international expansion; that we do not have extensive operating history in the aerial services segments in which EHI and Air Amazonia operate nor with the types of aircraft we acquired in the EHI acquisition and those we would Air Amazonia acquisition; that we do not have extensive operating history in South America, the Middle East and Africa, which are where EHI and Air Amazonia provide aerial services; that we do not have any operating history providing services to the Department of Defense and related customers and projects, which are segments to which EHI provides services; that the anticipated reduction in troops in Afghanistan in the near-term may adversely affect EHI; that EHI operates in certain dangerous and war-affected areas, which may result in hazards to its fleet and personnel; that, despite our current indebtedness levels, we and our subsidiaries may still incur significant additional indebtedness; our failure to obtain any required financing on favorable terms; our safety record; the hazards associated with our helicopter operations, which involve significant risks and which may result in hazards that may not be covered by our insurance or may increase the cost of our insurance; compliance with debt obligations and our substantial indebtedness, which could adversely affect our financial condition and impair our ability to grow and operate our business; cancellations; reductions or delays in customer orders; our ability to collect on customer receivables; weather and seasonal fluctuations that impact our Aircrane and other aerial services activities; competition; reliance on a small number of large customers; the impact of short-term contracts; the availability and size of the Aircrane fleet; the ability to implement production rate changes; the impact of government spending; the impact of product liability and product warranties; the ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; the impact of environmental and other regulations, including FAA regulations and similar international regulations; our ability to accurately forecast financial guidance; our ability convert backlog into revenues and appropriately plan expenses; worldwide economic conditions (including conditions in Greece and Italy); our reliance on a small number of manufacturers; the necessity to provide components or services to owners and operators of aircraft; our ability to effectively manage our growth; our ability to keep pace with changes in technology; our ability to adequately protect our intellectual property; our ability to successfully enter new markets and manage international expansion; our ability to expand and diversify our customer base; our ability to expand and market manufacturing and maintenance, repair and overhaul services; the potential unionization of our employees; the fluctuation in the price of fuel; our ability to access public or private debt markets; the impact of equipment failures or other events impacting the operation of our factories; and our ability to successfully manage any future acquisitions; as well as other risks and uncertainties more fully described under the heading “Risk Factors” in our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K as well as the other reports we file with the SEC.

You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Erickson Air-Crane assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions, or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking information, except to the extent required by applicable laws.

Use of Non-GAAP Measures

The Company uses adjusted EBITDA (“Adjusted EBITDA”) in managing our business. We define EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest expense, net, provision for (benefit from) income taxes, and depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA means, with respect to any fiscal period, our EBITDA, adjusted for, without duplication, the sum of the following amounts for such period to the extent included in determining consolidated net earnings (or loss) for such period: (i) extraordinary gains, (ii) non-cash items increasing consolidated net earnings for such period, excluding any items representing the impact of purchase accounting or the reversal of any accrual of, or cash reserve for, anticipated changes in any period, (iii) non-cash extraordinary losses, (iv) any other non-cash charges reducing consolidated net earnings for such period, excluding any such charge that represents an accrual or reserve for a cash expenditure for a future period or amortization of a prepaid cash expense that was paid in a prior period, (v) to the extent not capitalized, (A) non-recurring expenses, fees, costs and charges incurred and funded prior to, on or within 9 months after the closing date in connection with the ABL Revolver and the EHI Acquisition; and (B) expenses incurred and funded prior to, on, or within 2 years of the closing date in connection with the termination of the lease for the location that is the chief executive office of EHI as of the closing date; and (vi) transaction related expenditures incurred and funded prior to, on or within 9 months of the date of consummation of (A) the Air Amazonia acquisition, (B) any permitted acquisition under the ABL Revolver, or (C) any investment that is permitted pursuant to the ABL Revolver, in the case of each of (A), (B), and (C), that arise out of cash charges related to deferred stock compensation, management bonuses, strategic market reviews, restructuring, retention bonuses, consolidation, severance or discontinuance of any portion of operations, termination of the lease for the headquarters of EHI, employees or management of the target of such permitted acquisition, accrued vacation payments and working notices payments and other non-cash accounting adjustments.

The following is the calculation for our Adjusted net income attributable to Erickson Air-Crane and Adjusted earnings per share: