Monitronics International, Inc. Announces Results for Second Quarter of Fiscal 2005
DALLAS, Feb. 10 -- Monitronics International, Inc., a leading national provider of security alarm monitoring services, today announced its financial results for the three months and six months ended December 31, 2004.
Second Quarter Results Total revenues increased $4.0 million, or 11% to $41.5 million in the three months ended December 31, 2004 from $37.5 million in the three months ended December 31, 2003.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA") for the three months ended December 31, 2004 was $29.3 million, an increase of 9% from $26.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2003.
The Company reported a net loss of $0.6 million for the three months ended December 31, 2004 compared to a restated net loss of $0.1 million for the same period last year.
Six Months Results Total revenues increased $8.6 million, or 12% to $82.0 million in the six months ended December 31, 2004 from $73.4 million in the six months ended December 31, 2003.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA") for the six months ended December 31, 2004 was $57.5 million, an increase of 10% from $52.5 million for the six months ended December 31, 2003.
The Company reported a net loss of $1.4 million for the six months ended December 31, 2004 compared to a restated net loss of $4.9 million for the same period last year. The smaller loss was primarily due to last year's results including $8.8 million in expenses incurred in connection with our August 2003 refinancing.
Operations Perspective
"Monitronics perceives the residential security market at this point to be stable and growing. Further, the Company is well positioned to take advantage of the market," said James R. Hull, Chief Executive Officer of Monitronics.
"The Company's attrition rate rose to 12.7% for the 12 months ended December 31, 2004 from 11% for the 12 months ended December 31, 2003. This increase primarily reflects a slight change in policy made by us in June 2004 whereby subscribers in their annual renewal period may cancel with proper 30-days written notice. This change created a small number of accounts cancelled ahead of schedule." Mr. Hull continued, "This change in policy was made as a result of our comparing the small amount of revenue lost to the level of customer dissatisfaction created when a one-year renewal is enforced and deciding that customer satisfaction is the much greater influence on the level of our future business. We believe this change in policy will reduce our attrition rate in the long term."
EBITDA represents a non-GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) financial measure. EBITDA is a key performance measure used in the security alarm monitoring industry and is one of the financial measures, subject to adjustments, by which our covenants are calculated under the agreements governing our debt obligations. EBITDA does not represent cash flow from operations as defined by GAAP, should not be construed as an alternative to net income, and is indicative neither of our operating performance nor of cash flows available to fund all of our cash needs. A table reconciling this measure to the appropriate GAAP measure is included in this press release.
Conference Call
Monitronics will hold a conference call on Thursday, February 10, 2005 at 2:00 p.m. CST (Central Standard Time) to discuss the Company's second quarter fiscal 2005 financial performance. James R. Hull, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Michael R. Meyers, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will host the call. The call will be open to the public. The conference call can be accessed by calling 866-200-5830 and entering the participant pin #783416. Interested parties are encouraged to access the conference call 10-15 minutes prior to the start. A replay of the conference call will be available from 5:00 p.m. (CST) February 10, 2005 through 12:00 a.m. (CST) February 17, 2005 at 866-206-0193, access code 150659.
