CLEARWATER, Fla., Sept. 28, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Avantair, Inc. (OTCBB:AAIR), the only publicly traded stand-alone private aircraft operator and the sole North American provider of fractional shares and flight hour time cards in the Piaggio Avanti aircraft, today announced financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter and year ended June 30, 2009.
Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2009 Highlights:
-- Total revenues of $34.1 million, an increase of 8.6%, as
compared to $31.4 million for the three months ended June 30,
2008.
-- Operating loss of $684,000, compared with an operating loss of
$2.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2008.
-- EBITDA profit (profitable results from operations before
depreciation and amortization) of $908,000, compared with an
EBITDA loss of $1.3 million in the fourth fiscal quarter of
2008.
-- Net loss attributable to common stockholders of $1.4 million,
or $0.09 per basic and diluted common share, compared with a
net loss attributable to common stockholders of $3.7 million,
or $0.24 per basic and diluted common share, for the fiscal
fourth quarter of 2008.
-- Closed initial tranches of a PIPE (Private Investment in a
Public Entity) financing on June 30th for gross proceeds of
approximately $1.4 million, and on September 25th (subsequent
event) for $0.6 million.
-- Quarter-over-quarter gains in charter cards sold, new Axis
Club membership, and overall market share in North American
fractional aircraft industry with stronger gains into the first
fiscal quarter 2010.
-- Acquired one new Piaggio Avanti aircraft.
Full Year Fiscal 2009 Highlights:
-- Total revenues of $136.8 million, an increase of 18.3%, as
compared to $115.6 million for the fiscal year ended June 30,
2008.
-- Operating income of $38,000, compared to an operating loss of
$16.6 million for fiscal year 2008.
-- EBITDA profit of $5.3 million, compared with EBITDA loss of
$12.9 million for fiscal year 2008.
-- Net loss attributable to common stockholders of $5.9 million,
or $0.39 per basic and diluted common share, compared with a
net loss attributable to common stockholders of $19.8 million,
or $1.30 per basic and diluted common share for fiscal year
2008.
-- Record number of revenue-generating flight hours flown for
fiscal year 2009.
Steven Santo, Chief Executive Officer of Avantair, stated, "We closed fiscal year 2009 with another quarter of strong business performance, resulting in operating profitability and solid revenue growth to a record $136.8 million. Charter card sales continue to exceed our expectations and we are gaining strong traction in Axis Club membership. Overall growth in each strategic category of unit sales coupled with new seasonal record numbers of revenue-generating flight hours flown is driving significant economies of scale and maintenance efficiencies. As we've added fractional owners, new customers and flight hours, we have also increased our employee total headcount, including new sales representatives and pilots, by a proportionate level to keep pace with our growth.
"Our total fleet size as of June 30th remained consistent with the prior quarter at 52 aircraft as we took delivery of a new Piaggio Avanti aircraft and sold one of our older core aircraft during the fourth quarter. The net profit derived from the sale of this core aircraft demonstrates that the Avanti aircraft maintains value over time even as the value of other competing light jet aircraft has fallen dramatically, especially through the economic downturn.
"More than ever, customers are looking for value in today's market," Mr. Santo continued. "In the fractional industry, we service the high value, low cost niche extremely well with superior aircraft designed to achieve high utilization and efficient turnaround times, contributing to lower operating costs and among the lowest fuel charges for available programs. We were able to take advantage of more favorable engine overhaul pricing from our new engine service vendor in the fourth quarter to position ourselves for a more balanced maintenance spend going forward. Our operating results indicate that we are successfully gaining market share through customer satisfaction, brand recognition and referral business, which we believe will lead to long term sustainability in recurring revenues and form a basis for future profitability. Our team made great progress this past fiscal year and we look forward to ongoing growth, expansion and new milestone achievements in the year ahead."
Conference Call
Chief Executive Officer Steven Santo, Chief Financial Officer Richard Pytak and Chief Operating Officer Kevin Beitzel will hold a conference call with the financial community on Tuesday morning, September 29, 2009, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern time to review the Company's financial results and provide an update on business developments.
Interested parties may participate in the conference call by dialing 1-888-846-5003 (480-629-9856 for international callers). When prompted, ask for the "Avantair, Inc. Fourth Quarter 2009 Earnings Conference Call." A telephonic replay of the conference call may be accessed approximately two hours after the call through October 9, 2009, by dialing 800-406-7325 (303-590-3030 for international callers). The replay access code is 4164785 #. The conference call will be webcast simultaneously on the Avantair, Inc. website at www.avantair.com under the Investors section. The webcast replay will be archived for 12 months.
About Avantair
Avantair, the only publicly traded stand-alone private aircraft operator and the sole North American provider of fractional shares and flight hour time cards in the Piaggio Avanti aircraft, is headquartered in Clearwater, FL, with approximately 450 employees. The Company offers private travel solutions for individuals and businesses traveling within its service area, which includes the continental United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Mexico, at a fraction of the cost of whole aircraft ownership. The Company currently manages a fleet of 52 aircraft, with another 56 Piaggio Avanti aircraft on order through 2013. For more information about Avantair, please visit: http://www.avantair.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, with respect to Avantair's future financial or business performance, strategies and expectations. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as "trend," "potential," "opportunity," "pipeline," "believe," "comfortable," "expect," "anticipate," "current," "intention," "estimate," "position," "assume," "outlook," "continue," "remain," "maintain," "sustain," "seek," "achieve," and similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as "will," "would," "should," "could," "may" and similar expressions. Avantair cautions that forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which change over time. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Avantair assumes no duty to and does not undertake to update forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements and future results could differ materially from historical performance.
In addition to factors previously disclosed in Avantair's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and those as may be identified elsewhere in this press release, the following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements or historical performance: general economic and business conditions in the U.S. and abroad, changing interpretations of generally accepted accounting principles, changes in market acceptance of the company's products, inquiries and investigations and related litigation, fluctuations in customer demand, management of rapid growth, intensity of competition. The information set forth herein should be read in light of such risks. Avantair does not assume any obligation to update the information contained in this press release.
Avantair's filings with the SEC, accessible on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov, discuss these factors in more detail and identify additional factors that can affect forward-looking statements.
AVANTAIR, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
ASSETS
------
June 30,
2009 2008
------------ ------------
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents $ 3,773,789 $ 19,149,777
Accounts receivable, net of
allowance for doubtful accounts
of $187,842 at June 30, 2009 and
$213,487 at June 30, 2008 5,711,055 5,692,809
Inventory 140,997 252,407
Current portion of aircraft costs
related to fractional sales 36,910,206 40,417,203
Current portion of notes receivable 272,731 832,107
Prepaid expenses and other current
assets 1,278,506 2,173,992
------------ ------------
Total current assets 48,087,284 68,518,295
------------ ------------
Aircraft costs related to
fractional share sales, net of
current portion 70,199,786 92,383,071
------------ ------------
Property and equipment, at cost,
net of accumulated depreciation
and amortization of $11,695,229
at June 30, 2009 and $8,640,096
at June 30, 2008 29,842,365 25,663,264
------------ ------------
OTHER ASSETS
Cash-restricted 2,352,337 2,826,290
Deposits on aircraft 9,264,890 8,679,277
Deferred maintenance on aircraft
engines 1,538,175 2,228,509
Notes receivable-net of current
portion -- 1,008,223
Goodwill 1,141,159 1,141,159
Other assets 1,639,407 2,029,367
------------ ------------
Total other assets 15,935,968 17,912,825
------------ ------------
Total assets $164,065,403 $204,477,455
============ ============
AVANTAIR, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIT
-------------------------------------
June 30,
2009 2008
------------ ------------
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable $ 7,307,320 $ 4,718,355
Accrued liabilities 5,010,745 5,528,472
Customer deposits 1,282,936 1,905,682
Short-term notes payable 11,500,000 15,775,260
Current portion of long-term
notes payable 11,020,590 6,648,093
Current portion of deferred revenue
related to fractional aircraft
share sales 43,385,779 47,778,900
Unearned management fee and charter
card revenues 17,807,796 16,316,044
------------ ------------
Total current liabilities 97,315,166 98,670,806
------------ ------------
Long-term notes payable, net of
current portion 20,111,011 23,856,322
Deferred revenue related to fractional
aircraft share sales, net of
current portion 65,071,197 96,525,785
Other liabilities 3,047,329 2,636,730
------------ ------------
Total long-term liabilities 88,229,537 123,018,837
------------ ------------
Total liabilities 185,544,703 221,689,643
------------ ------------
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Series A convertible preferred stock,
$.0001 par value, authorized 300,000
shares; 152,000 shares issued and
outstanding 14,528,383 14,439,358
------------ ------------
STOCKHOLDERS' DEFICIT
Preferred stock, $.0001 par value,
authorized 700,000 shares; none issued -- --
Common stock, Class A, $.0001 par value,
75,000,000 shares authorized, 16,463,615
shares issued and outstanding at
June 30, 2009 and 15,286,792 shares
issued and outstanding at June 30, 2008 1,646 1,529
Additional paid-in capital 45,419,060 45,314,393
Accumulated deficit (81,428,389) (76,967,468)
------------ ------------
Total stockholders' deficit (36,007,683) (31,651,546)
------------ ------------
Total liabilities and
stockholders' deficit $164,065,403 $204,477,455
============ ============
AVANTAIR, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Consolidated Statements of Operations
Three Months Ended June 30, Year Ended June 30,
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
2009 2008 2009 2008
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Revenue
Fractional
aircraft sold $ 12,386,160 $ 11,793,201 $ 51,864,010 $ 43,426,696
Maintenance and
management
fees 17,886,211 16,090,000 70,693,367 58,211,457
Charter card
and Access
Club
membership
revenue 2,881,259 1,771,820 9,384,110 7,236,151
Other revenue 929,885 1,733,789 4,885,563 6,744,679
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total revenue 34,083,515 31,388,809 136,827,050 115,618,983
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Operating
expenses
Cost of
fractional
aircraft
shares sold 10,497,662 10,264,521 44,118,352 36,637,959
Cost of flight
operations 12,673,823 11,249,573 46,723,184 50,058,692
Cost of fuel 2,819,282 4,115,481 13,349,084 16,489,422
General and
administrative
expenses 6,177,004 5,850,720 23,628,541 20,703,120
Selling
expenses 1,007,254 1,277,922 3,736,424 4,670,246
Depreciation
and
amortization 1,592,467 745,732 5,233,250 3,624,710
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total operating
expenses 34,767,492 33,503,948 136,788,835 132,184,149
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Income (loss)
from
operations (683,977) (2,115,139) 38,215 (16,565,166)
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Other income
(expenses)
Interest income 7,201 64,495 46,073 482,666
Other income 1,394,764 520,292 1,397,012 861,662
Interest
expense (1,785,377) (1,806,174) (5,942,221) (3,661,227)
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total other
expenses (383,412) (1,221,387) (4,499,136) (2,316,899)
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Net loss (1,067,389) (3,336,526) (4,460,921) (18,882,065)
Preferred stock
dividend and
accretion of
expenses (360,401) (367,992) (1,488,071) (903,851)
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Net loss
attributable
to common
stockholders $ (1,427,790) $ (3,704,518) $ (5,948,992) $(19,785,916)
============ ============ ============ ============
Loss per
common share:
Basic and
diluted $ (0.09) $ (0.24) $ (0.39) $ (1.30)
============ ============ ============ ============
Weighted-
average common
shares
outstanding:
Basic and
diluted 15,289,806 15,259,476 15,306,725 15,230,482
============ ============ ============ ============