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Lamar Advertising Company Announces Fourth Quarter and Year End 2018 Operating Results

February 20, 2019 6:01 AM

Three Month Results

• Net revenue increased 7.4% to $427.9 million• Net income increased 9.8% to $95.7 million• Adjusted EBITDA increased 9.5% to $195.3 million

Three Month Acquisition-Adjusted Results

• Acquisition-adjusted net revenue increased 5.6%• Acquisition-adjusted EBITDA increased 6.4%

BATON ROUGE, La., Feb. 20, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lamar Advertising Company (Nasdaq: LAMR), a leading owner and operator of outdoor advertising and logo sign displays, announces the Company’s operating results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2018.

"We completed 2018 with a strong fourth quarter, allowing us to exceed the upper end of our guidance for full year diluted AFFO per share," said Chief Executive Sean Reilly. "Our integration of the markets that we acquired from Fairway in late December is going well and we anticipate another year of solid sales and AFFO growth in 2019.”

Fourth Quarter Highlights

• Same unit digital revenue increased 10.8%• AFFO increased 8.6%• Diluted AFFO per share increased 7.2%

Fourth Quarter Results Lamar reported net revenues of $427.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 versus $398.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2017, a 7.4% increase. Operating income for the fourth quarter of 2018 increased $10.6 million to $130.6 million as compared to $120.0 million for the same period in 2017. Lamar recognized net income of $95.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to net income of $87.2 million for same period in 2017. Net income per diluted share was $0.96 and $0.88 for the three months ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2018 was $195.3 million versus $178.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2017, an increase of 9.5%.

Cash flow provided by operating activities was $194.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018, an increase of $8.4 million as compared to the same period in 2017. Free cash flow for the fourth quarter of 2018 was $126.0 million as compared to $112.3 million for the same period in 2017, a 12.2% increase.

For the fourth quarter of 2018, Funds From Operations, or FFO, was $150.8 million versus $140.0 million for the same period in 2017, an increase of 7.7%. Adjusted Funds From Operations, or AFFO, for the fourth quarter of 2018 was $147.5 million compared to $135.8 million for the same period in 2017, an increase of 8.6%. Diluted AFFO per share increased 7.2% to $1.48 for the three months ended December 31, 2018 as compared to $1.38 for the same period in 2017.

Acquisition-Adjusted Three Months Results Acquisition-adjusted net revenue for the fourth quarter of 2018 increased 5.6% over Acquisition-adjusted net revenue for the fourth quarter of 2017. Acquisition-adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2018 increased 6.4% as compared to Acquisition-adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2017. Acquisition-adjusted net revenue and Acquisition-adjusted EBITDA include adjustments to the 2017 period for acquisitions and divestitures for the same time frame as actually owned in the 2018 period. See “Reconciliation of Reported Basis to Acquisition-Adjusted Results”, which provides reconciliations to GAAP for Acquisition-adjusted measures.

Twelve Months ResultsLamar reported net revenues of $1.63 billion for the twelve months ended December 31, 2018 versus $1.54 billion for the same period in 2017, a 5.6% increase. Due to non-cash operating expense growth in depreciation, amortization and stock-based compensation for the year ended December 31, 2018 of $34.0 million over the same period in 2017, operating income for the year ended December 31, 2018 increased only 1.1% to $460.6 million. Due to the above factors and a $15.4 million loss on debt extinguishment related to the prepayment of Lamar Media’s 5 7/8% Senior Subordinated Notes due 2022 in the first quarter of 2018, Lamar’s net income for the year ended December 31, 2018 decreased $12.4 million to $305.2 million as compared to $317.7 million for the same period in 2017. Net income per diluted share for the year ended December 31, 2018 was $3.08 compared to $3.23 for the year ended December 31, 2017. In addition, Adjusted EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2018 was $722.5 million versus $671.4 million for the same period in 2017, a 7.6% increase.

Cash flow provided by operating activities increased to $564.8 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2018, as compared to $507.0 million in the same period in 2017. Free cash flow for the twelve months ended December 31, 2018 increased 9.5% to $471.1 million as compared to $430.0 million for the same period in 2017.

For the twelve months ended December 31, 2018, FFO was $527.0 million versus $513.0 million for the same period in 2017, a 2.7% increase. AFFO for the twelve months ended December 31, 2018 was $544.5 million compared to $496.3 million for the same period in 2017, a 9.7% increase. Diluted AFFO per share increased to $5.50 for the twelve months ended December 31, 2018, as compared to $5.05 in the same period in 2017, an increase of 8.9%.

LiquidityAs of December 31, 2018, Lamar had $178.3 million in total liquidity that consisted of $156.8 million available for borrowing under its revolving senior credit facility and approximately $21.5 million in cash and cash equivalents. On January 17, 2019, Lamar increased its borrowing capacity under the revolving portion of Lamar Media’s credit facility by an additional $100 million in aggregate principal amount.

GuidanceWe expect Diluted AFFO per share for fiscal year 2019 will be between $5.67 and $5.83, representing growth of approximately 3.0% to 6.0% over 2018, with net income per diluted share expected to be between $3.69 and $3.86. See “Supplemental Schedules and Unaudited Reconciliations of Non-GAAP Measures” for a reconciliation of GAAP.

Forward Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding sales trends. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: (1) our significant indebtedness; (2) the state of the economy and financial markets generally and the effect of the broader economy on the demand for advertising; (3) the continued popularity of outdoor advertising as an advertising medium; (4) our need for and ability to obtain additional funding for operations, debt refinancing or acquisitions; (5) our ability to continue to qualify as a Real Estate Investment Trust (“REIT”) and maintain our status as a REIT; (6) the regulation of the outdoor advertising industry by federal, state and local governments; (7) the integration of companies and assets that we acquire and our ability to recognize cost savings or operating efficiencies as a result of these acquisitions; (8) changes in accounting principles, policies or guidelines; (9) changes in tax laws applicable to REITs or in the interpretation of those laws; (10) our ability to renew expiring contracts at favorable rates; (11) our ability to successfully implement our digital deployment strategy; and (12) the market for our Class A common stock. For additional information regarding factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in our forward-looking statements, we refer you to the risk factors included in Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, as supplemented by any risk factors contained in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and our Current Reports on Form 8-K. We caution investors not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this document. These statements speak only as of the date of this document, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise the statements, except as may be required by law.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial MeasuresThe Company has presented the following measures that are not measures of performance under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”): Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization), Free Cash Flow, Funds From Operations (“FFO”), Adjusted Funds From Operations (“AFFO”), Diluted AFFO per share, Outdoor Operating Income and Acquisition-Adjusted Results. Our management reviews our performance by focusing on these key performance indicators not prepared in conformity with GAAP. We believe these non-GAAP performance indicators are meaningful supplemental measures of our operating performance and should not be considered in isolation of, or as a substitute for their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. Our Non-GAAP financial measures are determined as follows:

Adjusted EBITDA, FFO, AFFO, Outdoor Operating Income and Acquisition-Adjusted Results are not intended to replace other performance measures determined in accordance with GAAP. Free Cash Flow, FFO and AFFO do not represent cash flows from operating activities in accordance with GAAP and, therefore, these measures should not be considered indicative of cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity or of funds available to fund our cash needs, including our ability to make cash distributions. Adjusted EBITDA, Free Cash Flow, FFO, AFFO, Diluted AFFO per share, Outdoor Operating Income and Acquisition-Adjusted Results are presented as we believe each is a useful indicator of our current operating performance. Specifically, we believe that these metrics are useful to an investor in evaluating our operating performance because (1) each is a key measure used by our management team for purposes of decision making and for evaluating our core operating results; (2) Adjusted EBITDA is widely used in the industry to measure operating performance as it excludes the impact of depreciation and amortization, which may vary significantly among companies, depending upon accounting methods and useful lives, particularly where acquisitions and non-operating factors are involved; (3) Adjusted EBITDA, FFO, AFFO and Diluted AFFO per share each provides investors with a meaningful measure for evaluating our period-over-period operating performance by eliminating items that are not operational in nature and reflect the impact on operations from trends in occupancy rates, operating costs, general and administrative expenses and interest costs; (4) Acquisition-Adjusted Results is a supplement to enable investors to compare period-over-period results on a more consistent basis without the effects of acquisitions and divestitures, which reflects our core performance and organic growth (if any) during the period in which the assets were owned and managed by us; (5) Free Cash Flow is an indicator of our ability to service debt and generate cash for acquisitions and other strategic investments; (6) Outdoor Operating Income provides investors a measurement of our core results without the impact of fluctuations in stock-based compensation, depreciation and amortization and corporate expenses; and (7) each of our Non-GAAP measures provides investors with a measure for comparing our results of operations to those of other companies.

Our measurement of Adjusted EBITDA, FFO, AFFO, Outdoor Operating Income and Acquisition-Adjusted Results may not, however, be fully comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies. Reconciliations of Adjusted EBITDA, FFO, AFFO, Outdoor Operating Income and Acquisition-Adjusted Results to the most directly comparable GAAP measures have been included herein.

Conference Call InformationA conference call will be held to discuss the Company’s operating results on Wednesday, February 20, 2019 at 8:00 a.m. central time. Instructions for the conference call and Webcast are provided below:

Conference Call

All Callers: 1-334-323-0520 or 1-334-323-9871
Passcode: Lamar
Replay: 1-334-323-0140 or 1-877-919-4059
Passcode: 47595293
Available through Wednesday, February 27, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. eastern time
Live Webcast: www.lamar.com
Webcast Replay:www.lamar.com
Available through Wednesday, February 27, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. eastern time
Company Contact:Buster Kantrow
Director of Investor Relations
(225) 926-1000
[email protected]

General InformationFounded in 1902, Lamar Advertising (Nasdaq: LAMR) is one of the largest outdoor advertising companies in North America, with approximately 360,000 displays across the United States and Canada. Lamar offers advertisers a variety of billboard, interstate logo, transit and airport advertising formats, helping both local businesses and national brands reach broad audiences every day. In addition to its more traditional out-of-home inventory, Lamar is proud to offer its customers the largest network of digital billboards in the United States with over 3,100 displays.

LAMAR ADVERTISING COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(UNAUDITED)
(IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AND PER SHARE DATA)
Three months ended December 31, Twelve months ended December 31,
2018 2017 2018 2017
Net revenues$427,898 $398,475 $1,627,222 $1,541,260
Operating expenses (income)
Direct advertising expenses 142,072 138,984 561,848 540,880
General and administrative expenses 73,160 67,344 278,894 267,504
Corporate expenses 17,379 13,787 63,987 61,470
Stock-based compensation 6,698 2,539 29,443 9,599
Depreciation and amortization 58,010 56,101 225,261 211,104
(Gain) loss on disposition of assets (32) (287) 7,233 (4,664)
297,287 278,468 1,166,666 1,085,893
Operating income 130,611 120,007 460,556 455,367
Other (income) expense
Loss on extinguishment of debt 15,429 71
Interest income (221) (534) (6)
Interest expense 32,411 32,870 129,732 128,396
32,190 32,870 144,627 128,461
Income before income tax expense 98,421 87,137 315,929 326,906
Income tax expense (benefit) 2,728 (27) 10,697 9,230
Net income 95,693 87,164 305,232 317,676
Preferred stock dividends 92 92 365 365
Net income applicable to common stock$95,601 $87,072 $304,867 $317,311
Earnings per share:
Basic earnings per share$0.97 $0.89 $3.09 $3.24
Diluted earnings per share$0.96 $0.88 $3.08 $3.23
Weighted average common shares outstanding:
- basic 99,472,422 98,152,852 98,817,525 97,930,555
- diluted 99,759,674 98,602,599 99,086,160 98,369,865
OTHER DATA
Free Cash Flow Computation:
Adjusted EBITDA$ 195,287 $ 178,360 $ 722,493 $ 671,406
Interest, net (30,932) (31,616) (124,278) (123,270)
Current tax (expense) benefit (2,765) 572 (9,159) (8,426)
Preferred stock dividends (92) (92) (365) (365)
Total capital expenditures (35,464) (34,883) (117,638) (109,329)
Free Cash Flow$ 126,034 $112,341 $ 471,053 $ 430,016
Selected Balance Sheet Data: December 31, 2018 December 31, 2017
Cash and cash equivalents $21,494 $115,471
Working capital $(91,366) $94,525
Total assets $4,544,641 $4,214,345
Total debt, net of deferred financing costs (including current maturities) $2,888,688 $2,556,690
Total stockholders’ equity $1,131,784 $1,103,493
Three months ended December 31, Twelve months ended December 31,
2018 2017 2018 2017
Selected Cash Flow Data:
Cash flows provided by operating activities$194,757 $186,378 $564,846 $507,016
Cash flows used in investing activities$463,822 $209,037 $584,148 $400,066
Cash flows provided by (used in) financing activities$280,380 $108,846 $(73,563) $(28,641)

SUPPLEMENTAL SCHEDULES
UNAUDITED RECONCILIATIONS OF NON-GAAP MEASURES
(IN THOUSANDS)
Three months ended December 31, Twelve months ended December 31,
2018 2017 2018 2017
Reconciliation of Cash Flows Provided by Operating Activities
to Free Cash Flow:
Cash flows provided by operating activities$194,757 $186,378 $564,846 $507,016
Changes in operating assets and liabilities (30,729) (38,309) 32,195 39,456
Total capital expenditures (35,464) (34,883) (117,638) (109,329)
Preferred stock dividends (92) (92) (365) (365)
Other (2,438) (753) (7,985) (6,762)
Free cash flow$126,034 $112,341 $471,053 $430,016
Reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA:
Net Income$95,693 $87,164 $305,232 $317,676
Loss on extinguishment of debt 15,429 71
Interest income (221) (534) (6)
Interest expense 32,411 32,870 129,732 128,396
Income tax expense (benefit) 2,728 (27) 10,697 9,230
Operating Income 130,611 120,007 460,556 455,367
Stock-based compensation 6,698 2,539 29,443 9,599
Depreciation and amortization 58,010 56,101 225,261 211,104
(Gain) loss on disposition of assets (32) (287) 7,233 (4,664)
Adjusted EBITDA$195,287 $178,360 $722,493 $671,406
Capital expenditure detail by category:
Billboards - traditional$13,983 $12,315 $37,905 $36,015
Billboards - digital 12,728 10,650 45,938 40,218
Logo 4,438 3,205 11,438 9,614
Transit 987 2,285 5,364 2,863
Land and buildings 1,798 5,494 8,420 13,690
Operating equipment 1,530 934 8,573 6,929
Total capital expenditures$35,464 $34,883 $117,638 $109,329

SUPPLEMENTAL SCHEDULES
UNAUDITED RECONCILIATIONS OF NON-GAAP MEASURES
(IN THOUSANDS)
Three months ended December 31,
2018 2017 % Change
Reconciliation of Reported Basis to Acquisition-Adjusted Results (a):
Net revenue$427,898 $398,475 7.4%
Acquisitions and divestitures 6,570
Acquisition-adjusted net revenue$427,898 $405,045 5.6%
Reported direct advertising and G&A expenses$215,232 $206,328 4.3%
Acquisitions and divestitures 1,448
Acquisition-adjusted direct advertising and G&A expenses$215,232 $207,776 3.6%
Outdoor operating income$212,666 $192,147 10.7%
Acquisitions and divestitures 5,122
Acquisition-adjusted outdoor operating income$212,666 $197,269 7.8%
Reported corporate expenses$17,379 $13,787 26.1%
Acquisitions and divestitures
Acquisition-adjusted corporate expenses$17,379 $13,787 26.1%
Adjusted EBITDA$195,287 $178,360 9.5%
Acquisitions and divestitures 5,122
Acquisition-adjusted EBITDA$195,287 $183,482 6.4%
(a) Acquisition-adjusted net revenue, direct advertising and general and administrative expenses, outdoor operating income, corporate expenses and EBITDA include adjustments to 2017 for acquisitions and divestitures for the same time frame as actually owned in 2018.
Three months ended December 31,
2018 2017
Reconciliation of Net Income to Outdoor Operating Income:
Net Income $95,693 $87,164
Interest expense, net 32,190 32,870
Income tax expense (benefit) 2,728 (27)
Operating Income 130,611 120,007
Corporate expenses 17,379 13,787
Stock-based compensation 6,698 2,539
Depreciation and amortization 58,010 56,101
Gain on disposition of assets (32) (287)
Outdoor Operating Income $212,666 $192,147

SUPPLEMENTAL SCHEDULES
UNAUDITED REIT MEASURES
AND RECONCILIATIONS TO GAAP MEASURES
(IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AND PER SHARE DATA)
Adjusted Funds From Operations:
Three months ended December 31, Twelve months ended December 31,
2018 2017 2018 2017
Net income$95,693 $87,164 $305,232 $317,676
Depreciation and amortization related to real estate 54,516 52,631 212,457 198,630
Loss (gain) from disposition of real estate assets and investments (tax effected) 339 (71) 8,689 (4,185)
Adjustment for unconsolidated affiliates and non-controlling interest 263 259 648 839
Funds From Operations$150,811 $139,983 $527,026 $512,960
Straight-line income (1,816) (372) (2,036) (754)
Stock-based compensation expense 6,698 2,539 29,443 9,599
Non-cash portion of tax provision (37) 545 660 804
Non-real estate related depreciation and amortization 3,494 3,470 12,804 12,474
Amortization of deferred financing costs 1,258 1,254 4,920 5,120
Loss on extinguishment of debt 15,429 71
Capitalized expenditures—maintenance (12,655) (11,359) (43,108) (43,119)
Adjustment for unconsolidated affiliates and non-controlling interest (263) (259) (648) (839)
Adjusted Funds From Operations$147,490 $135,801 $544,490 $496,316
Divided by weighted average diluted common shares outstanding 99,759,674 98,602,599 99,086,160 98,369,865
Diluted AFFO per share$1.48 $1.38 $5.50 $5.05

SUPPLEMENTAL SCHEDULES AND
UNAUDITED RECONCILIATIONS OF NON-GAAP MEASURES
(IN THOUSANDS, EXCEPT SHARE AND PER SHARE DATA)
Projected 2019 Adjusted Funds From Operations:
Year ended December 31, 2019
Low High
Net income$368,900 $385,900
Depreciation and amortization related to real estate 231,000 231,000
Gain from disposition of real estate assets and investments (2,000) (2,000)
One time tax adjustment for REIT election for companies acquired (15,000) (20,000)
Adjustment for unconsolidated affiliates and non-controlling interest 700 700
Funds From Operations$583,600 $595,600
Straight-line expense 1,600 1,600
Stock-based compensation expense 22,000 26,000
Non-cash portion of tax provision 1,000 1,000
Non-real estate related depreciation and amortization 13,000 13,000
Amortization of deferred financing costs 5,500 5,500
Non-cash impact of the adoption of ASC 842 (1) (11,000) (11,000)
Capitalized expenditures—maintenance (48,000) (48,000)
Adjustment for unconsolidated affiliates and non-controlling interest (700) (700)
Adjusted Funds From Operations$567,000 $583,000
Weighted average diluted shares outstanding 100,000,000 100,000,000
Diluted earnings per share$3.69 $3.86
Diluted AFFO per share$5.67 $5.83
(1) Due to Company’s required adoption of FASB issued Accounting Standard ASC 842, Leases, the majority of our advertising contracts entered into or modified on or after January 1, 2019 will no longer meet the criteria of a lease and will be accounted for under ASC 606, Revenue. Due to this transition the Company will be required to capitalize its costs to fulfill its advertising contracts and amortize the costs over the term of the contract

______________________The guidance provided above is based on a number of assumptions that management believes to be reasonable and reflect our expectations as of February 2019. Actual results may differ materially from these estimates as a result of various factors, and we refer to the cautionary language regarding “forward looking” statements included in the press release when considering this information.

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Source: Lamar Advertising Company

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