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Liberty Latin America Reports First Quarter 2021 Results

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Liberty Latin America Ltd. (“Liberty Latin America” or “LLA”) (NASDAQ: LILA and LILAK, OTC Link: LILAB) today announced its financial and operating results for the three months (“Q1”) ended March 31, 2021.

CEO Balan Nair commented, “We had a strong start to the year as our focus on volume resulted in record Q1 RGU additions of 76,000, over 25% higher than the prior year, as well as continued recovery in our mobile operations. Overall, our markets are beginning to recover from the worst impacts of the pandemic, however, the operating environment remains challenging given reduced tourism and government imposed lockdowns and restrictions continuing during the quarter.”

“Fixed subscribers grew across all of our markets, with particularly strong performance in Puerto Rico where we maintained momentum from 2020 and saw close to three times as many RGU additions in the first quarter as compared to the prior-year period. There remains a significant broadband penetration opportunity across our region and during the first quarter we added or upgraded approximately 130,000 homes using fiber technologies to bring high-speed connectivity to more customers. Mobile additions were also particularly strong for the first quarter, driven by over 60,000 adds in Panama.”

“We reported $1.2 billion in revenue, $178 million of operating income and $449 million in Adjusted OIBDA in the first quarter. Despite the ongoing impact of the pandemic on our financial performance, particularly across our mobile and B2B operations, we delivered rebased Adjusted OIBDA growth of 3%, our strongest result in a year. Furthermore, we had a record Q1 in terms of cash flow from operations and Adjusted Free Cash Flow, posting $204 million and $58 million, respectively.”

“As part of our proactive balance sheet management, we successfully refinanced over $1 billion of our debt across Puerto Rico and Chile in March. These financings improved our average debt tenor, reduced our borrowing costs, and added $250 million of incremental capital to our corporate balance sheet.”

“Overall, we started the year well and anticipate that the regional operating environment will improve as vaccination rates increase and local economies recover in the coming months and quarters. In addition to our organic growth opportunities, we continue to drive the integration of AT&T's Puerto Rico and USVI operations and are working towards a summer completion of the acquisition of Telefónica's Costa Rica assets.”

Business Highlights

  • C&W Caribbean & Networks: strong operating and improving sequential financial results
    • Record Q1 additions of 28,000 RGUs, up 12% YoY, driven by broadband
    • Continued mobile recovery with Q1 additions higher YoY, led by Jamaica
  • C&W Panama: resilient operating metrics
    • Robust RGU additions of 10,000 and record Q1 mobile subscriber additions of 61,000
    • Investing in fixed connectivity opportunity, added / upgraded over 20,000 homes
  • Liberty Puerto Rico: strong start to year; first full quarter including Liberty Mobile
    • Continued broadband demand drove record Q1 RGU additions of 25,000
    • Strong reported and rebased Adj. OIBDA growth of 197% and 26%, respectively
  • VTR: COVID-19 mobility restrictions and 2020 subscriber losses set up challenging start to year
    • Improved subscriber results in Q1, RGU adds following two consecutive quarters of loss
    • Added over 75,000 new build / upgraded homes in the quarter
  • Cabletica: positive opening to 2021 with continued growth in subscribers and financial results
    • RGU additions 9% higher YoY, driven by broadband
    • Reported and rebased Adj. OIBDA growth of 6% and 14%, respectively

Organizational Update

As a result of organizational changes during the first quarter of 2021, VTR and Cabletica are now separate operating and reportable segments. Accordingly, as of March 31, 2021, our reportable segments are as follows:

  • C&W Caribbean & Networks
  • C&W Panama
  • Liberty Puerto Rico
  • VTR
  • Cabletica

Additional information, including historic quarterly revenue, adjusted OIBDA and P&E additions under our updated reporting segments, can be found on our website at https://www.lla.com/investors.

Financial and Operating Highlights

Financial Highlights

 

Q1 2021

 

Q1 2020

 

YoY Growth

 

YoY Rebase Growth1

 

(USD in millions)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Revenue

 

$

1,160

 

 

$

931

 

 

25

%

 

%

Adjusted OIBDA2

 

$

449

 

 

$

364

 

 

23

%

 

3

%

Operating income

 

$

178

 

 

$

108

 

 

65

%

 

 

Property & equipment additions

 

$

152

 

 

$

133

 

 

15

%

 

 

As a percentage of revenue

 

13.1

%

 

14.3

%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adjusted FCF3

 

$

58

 

 

$

(49)

 

 

 

 

 

Cash provided by operating activities

 

$

204

 

 

$

115

 

 

 

 

 

Cash used by investing activities

 

$

(126)

 

 

$

(147)

 

 

 

 

 

Cash provided by financing activities

 

$

333

 

 

$

455

 

 

 

 

 

Operating Highlights4

 

Q1 2021

 

Q1 2020

 

YoY Growth

 

YoY FX-Neutral Growth5

 

Total Customers

 

3,217,400

 

 

3,177,900

 

 

1

%

 

 

Organic customer adds

 

12,800

 

 

31,100

 

 

 

 

 

Total RGUs

 

6,262,300

 

 

6,101,600

 

 

3

%

 

 

Organic RGU adds

 

76,000

 

 

60,000

 

 

 

 

 

Broadband

 

34,000

 

 

48,400

 

 

 

 

 

Video

 

6,100

 

 

4,600

 

 

 

 

 

Telephony

 

35,900

 

 

7,000

 

 

 

 

 

Mobile subscribers*

 

4,506,200

 

 

3,619,800

 

 

24

%

 

 

Organic mobile adds (losses)

 

54,900

 

 

(38,700)

 

 

 

 

 

Fixed ARPU

 

$

49.58

 

 

$

47.61

 

 

4

%

 

1

%

Mobile ARPU

 

$

19.51

 

 

$

12.60

 

 

55

%

 

55

%

* Q1 2021 figure includes 1,020,700 mobile subscribers related to operations in Puerto Rico and USVI. These operations were acquired on October 31, 2020 and therefore not included in Q1 2020 subscriber data.

Revenue Highlights

The following table presents (i) revenue of each of our segments and corporate operations for the periods indicated, and (ii) the percentage change from period-to-period on both a reported and rebased basis:

 

Three months ended

 

Increase/(decrease)

 

March 31,

 

 

2021

 

2020

 

%

 

Rebased %

 

in millions, except % amounts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

C&W Caribbean & Networks

$

429.8

 

 

$

452.0

 

 

(5)

 

 

(4)

 

C&W Panama

122.0

 

 

138.3

 

 

(12)

 

 

(11)

 

Liberty Puerto Rico

361.3

 

 

104.6

 

 

245

 

 

14

 

VTR

210.3

 

 

206.4

 

 

2

 

 

(8)

 

Cabletica

36.2

 

 

33.7

 

 

7

 

 

15

 

Corporate

5.4

 

 

 

 

N.M.

 

 

N.M.

 

Eliminations

(5.1)

 

 

(4.0)

 

 

N.M.

 

 

N.M.

 

Total

$

1,159.9

 

 

$

931.0

 

 

25

 

 

 

N.M. – Not Meaningful.

  • Our reported revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2021 increased by 25%.
    • Reported revenue growth was driven by (1) the addition of $240 million from Liberty Mobile, which was acquired on October 31, 2020, (2) double-digit growth in our legacy Liberty Puerto Rico operations, and (3) a net positive foreign exchange ("FX") impact of $11 million. These increases were partially offset by organic declines across C&W Panama, VTR and C&W Caribbean & Networks.

Q1 2021 Revenue Growth – Segment Highlights

  • C&W Caribbean & Networks: revenue declined on a reported and rebased basis by 5% and 4%, respectively. The higher reported decline was primarily driven by adverse currency movements.
    • B2B revenue declined 4% on both a reported and rebased basis, as compared to the prior-year period. The year-over-year decline continued to be driven by reduced or suspended service across our markets as a result of a decline in economic activity following COVID-19 restrictions. Our subsea network performance was also lower in the quarter, primarily due to revenue recognized on a cash basis for services to a significant customer in the prior-year period.
    • Fixed residential revenue was 2% lower on a reported basis and flat on a rebased basis, as compared to the prior-year period. Rebased performance was driven by the addition of 106,000 RGUs in the past twelve months, of which 66,000 were broadband subscribers as customers sought improved connectivity to support work and education from home. Volume growth was offset by lower ARPUs primarily across telephony and video products and by a decline in non-subscription revenue due to lower interconnect volumes.
    • Mobile revenue declined 10% on a reported basis and 8% on a rebased basis, as compared to the prior-year period. The decrease was driven by lower average numbers of mobile subscribers due to COVID-19 impacts, including reduced retail and acquisition activities, and lower ARPU from mobile services as lockdowns and travel restrictions reduced outbound roaming and usage.
  • C&W Panama: revenue declined by 12% on a reported basis and 11% on a rebased basis as our operations in Panama continued to be impacted by COVID-19. Sequential performance was relatively stable, excluding the impact of reduced non-recurring B2B revenue in Q1 2021 as compared to a strong performance in Q4 2020.
    • B2B revenue was 13% lower on a reported basis, primarily due to reduced non-recurring revenue compared to the prior-year period where we secured some notable Government-related projects.
    • Fixed residential revenue was 9% lower on a reported basis. Subscription revenue declined as volume growth across all products was offset by lower ARPU in telephony and video services. Non-subscription revenue drove the overall decline, primarily due to lower payphone usage.
    • Mobile revenue declined 11% on a reported basis, driven by continued reduction in recharge activity and fewer subscribers year-over-year following COVID-19 lockdowns.
  • Liberty Puerto Rico: revenue grew by 245% and 14% on a reported and rebased basis, respectively. Reported growth benefited from the inclusion of Liberty Mobile in the quarter. Our legacy Puerto Rico business delivered double-digit revenue growth driven by 136,000 RGU additions and increased ARPU over the last twelve months.
  • VTR: revenue increased by 2% on a reported basis and declined by 8% on a rebased basis. The higher reported growth as compared to the prior-year period was driven by a 10% depreciation of the U.S. dollar relative to the Chilean peso. Despite fixed additions in the current quarter, carryover effects from subscriber losses during the second half of 2020 continue to impact rebased revenue performance. Increased competitive intensity has further led to discounting of bundles and associated lower ARPUs.
  • Cabletica: revenue grew by 7% and 15% on a reported and rebased basis, respectively. This was driven by increased broadband subscribers and overall ARPU growth over the year.

Operating Income

  • Operating income was $178 million and $108 million for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
    • We reported higher operating income during Q1 2021, as compared with the corresponding period during 2020, primarily due to the net effect of (i) an increase in Adjusted OIBDA as further discussed below, (ii) an increase in depreciation and amortization expense and (iii) a decrease in impairment, restructuring and other operating items, net.

Adjusted OIBDA Highlights

The following table presents (i) Adjusted OIBDA of each of our reportable segments and our corporate category for the periods indicated and (ii) the percentage change from period-to-period on both a reported and rebased basis:

 

Three months ended

 

Increase (decrease)

 

March 31,

 

 

2021

 

2020

 

%

 

Rebased %

 

in millions, except % amounts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

C&W Caribbean & Networks

$

181.3

 

$

187.0

 

(3)

 

 

(2)

 

C&W Panama

44.0

 

45.8

 

(4)

 

 

(3)

 

Liberty Puerto Rico

149.9

 

50.5

 

197

 

 

26

 

VTR

70.5

 

80.1

 

(12)

 

 

(20)

 

Cabletica

14.1

 

13.3

 

6

 

 

14

 

Corporate

(10.5)

 

(12.8)

 

18

 

 

18

 

Total

$

449.3

 

$

363.9

 

23

 

 

3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operating income margin

15.4

%

 

11.6

%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adjusted OIBDA margin

38.7

%

 

39.1

%

 

 

 

 

 
  • Our reported Adjusted OIBDA for the three months ended March 31, 2021 increased by 23%.
    • Reported Adjusted OIBDA increase in Q1 2021 was largely driven by (1) the addition of $86 million contributed by Liberty Mobile, (2) strong growth in our legacy Liberty Puerto Rico operations, and (3) a net positive FX impact of $3 million. These increases were partially offset by declines in VTR, C&W Caribbean & Networks and C&W Panama.

Q1 2021 Adjusted OIBDA Growth – Segment Highlights

  • C&W Caribbean and Networks: Adjusted OIBDA declined on a reported and rebased basis by 3% and 2%, respectively. Our rebased performance was driven by the aforementioned rebased revenue decline, partly offset by lower costs. Direct costs were lower due to reduced wholesale call volumes. Other operating costs and expenses were lower as (i) reduced personnel costs due to ongoing restructuring activities and (ii) lower travel and entertainment and marketing costs given COVID-19 related mobility restrictions were partly offset by increased network maintenance costs as usage increased.
  • C&W Panama: Adjusted OIBDA declined by 4% on a reported basis and 3% on a rebased basis. Performance was driven by the aforementioned revenue decline, partly offset by lower direct and operating costs. Direct costs decreased due to certain non-recurring projects that have been put on hold due to economic uncertainty related to COVID-19, and lower handset sales due to lockdown restrictions. Other operating costs and expenses were lower year-over-year, due to (i) the benefits of certain ongoing restructuring activities, (ii) reduced bad debt provisions, and (iii) lower network maintenance costs due to the renegotiation of certain vendor contracts and reduced expense as we upgrade legacy networks.
  • Liberty Puerto Rico: reported and rebased Adjusted OIBDA growth of 197% and 26%, respectively. Reported growth was driven by the inclusion of Liberty Mobile in the quarter. For our legacy operations, rebased growth was driven by the previously mentioned revenue growth, partly offset by (i) annual increases in programming rates and a higher number of video subscribers, and (ii) higher labor and commercial costs, including commissions associated with increased sales. Liberty Mobile also posted strong rebased Adjusted OIBDA growth driven by higher gross profit due to improved equipment sales margins and higher net roaming income.
  • VTR: Adjusted OIBDA declined on a reported and rebased basis by 12% and 20%, respectively. The lower reported year-over-year decline was driven by a depreciation of the U.S. dollar relative to the Chilean peso. The rebased Adjusted OIBDA decline was driven by the aforementioned revenue impacts and higher other operating costs and expenses, slightly offset by lower direct costs driven by lower interconnect rates and equipment sales. Other operating costs and expenses were higher in the quarter, primarily due to increased network and commercial activities.
  • Cabletica: reported and rebased Adjusted OIBDA growth of 6% and 14%, respectively. Rebased growth was driven by the previously mentioned revenue growth and stable Adjusted OIBDA margin of 39%.

Net Earnings (Loss) Attributable to Shareholders

  • Net earnings (loss) attributable to shareholders was $88 million and ($181 million) for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. 

Property & Equipment Additions and Capital Expenditures

The table below highlights the categories of the property and equipment additions (P&E Additions) for the indicated periods and reconciles to cash paid for capital expenditures.

 

Three months ended

 

March 31,

 

2021

 

2020

 

in millions, except % amounts

 

 

 

 

Customer Premises Equipment

$

73.6

 

 

$

67.1

 

New Build & Upgrade

25.5

 

 

28.2

 

Capacity

17.1

 

 

6.1

 

Baseline

26.9

 

 

19.6

 

Product & Enablers

9.3

 

 

11.9

 

Property & equipment additions

152.4

 

 

132.9

 

Assets acquired under capital-related vendor financing arrangements

(18.8)

 

 

(23.6)

 

Changes in current liabilities related to capital expenditures

2.0

 

 

39.9

 

Capital expenditures

$

135.6

 

 

$

149.2

 

Property & equipment additions as % of revenue

13.1

%

 

14.3

%

Property & Equipment Additions:

 

 

 

C&W Caribbean & Networks

$

49.6

 

 

$

57.3

 

C&W Panama

10.7

 

 

13.2

 

Liberty Puerto Rico

33.7

 

 

13.3

 

VTR

46.7

 

 

40.9

 

Cabletica

7.3

 

 

4.0

 

Corporate

4.4

 

 

4.2

 

Property & equipment additions

$

152.4

 

 

$

132.9

 

Property & Equipment Additions as a Percentage of Revenue by Reportable Segment:

 

 

 

C&W Caribbean & Networks

11.5

%

 

12.7

%

C&W Panama

8.8

%

 

9.5

%

Liberty Puerto Rico

9.3

%

 

12.7

%

VTR

22.2

%

 

19.8

%

Cabletica

20.2

%

 

11.9

%

New Build and Homes Upgraded by Reportable Segment:

 

 

 

C&W Caribbean & Networks

21,000

 

 

17,200

 

C&W Panama

21,500

 

 

25,200

 

Liberty Puerto Rico

2,100

 

 

7,200

 

VTR

76,700

 

 

29,300

 

Cabletica

6,600

 

 

1,500

 

Total

127,900

 

 

80,400

 

Q1 2021 Property & Equipment Additions and Capital Expenditures – Segment Highlights

  • C&W Caribbean & Networks: the year-over-year decrease was mainly driven by (i) the Bahamas hurricane Dorian recovery capex spend in the prior-year period and (ii) the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on sales in certain markets.
  • C&W Panama: P&E additions were lower year-over-year due to (i) reduced CPE expenditures as gross adds declined and unit pricing and installation efficiency improved.
  • Liberty Puerto Rico: the year-over-year increase in expenditure and decline in P&E additions as a percentage of revenue was driven by the inclusion of Liberty Mobile in Q1 2021.
  • VTR: P&E additions were higher year-over-year driven by increased CPE, new build activity and capacity investments.
  • Cabletica: P&E additions increased as compared to the prior-year period due to higher CPE costs related to sales and higher cost of new set-top boxes.

Summary of Debt, Finance Lease Obligations, Cash and Cash Equivalents & Restricted Cash

The following table details the U.S. dollar equivalent balances of the outstanding principal amounts of our debt and finance lease obligations, and cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at March 31, 2021:

 

Debt

 

Finance lease
obligations

 

Debt and
finance lease
obligations

 

Cash and cash
equivalents

 

in millions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Liberty Latin America1

$

404.8

 

$

1.1

 

$

405.9

 

 

$

557.1

 

C&W

4,193.9

 

1.2

 

4,195.1

 

 

474.7

 

Liberty Puerto Rico

2,610.0

 

10.8

 

2,620.8

 

 

128.1

 

VTR

1,597.4

 

 

1,597.4

 

 

138.5

 

Cabletica

119.7

 

 

119.7

 

 

7.2

 

Total

$

8,925.8

 

$

13.1

 

$

8,938.9

 

 

$

1,305.6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Consolidated Leverage and Liquidity Information:

 

March 31, 2021

 

December 31,
2020

Consolidated gross leverage ratio2

 

5.0x

 

4.8x

Consolidated net leverage ratio2

 

4.3x

 

4.3x

Average debt tenor3

 

6.5 years

 

6.2 years

Fully-swapped borrowing costs

 

 

6.0%

 

 

 

6.3%

 

Unused borrowing capacity (in millions)4

 

$

1,219.7 

 

 

$

1,172.9

 

  1. Represents the amount held by Liberty Latin America on a standalone basis plus the aggregate amount held by subsidiaries of Liberty Latin America that are outside our borrowing groups.
  2. Consolidated leverage ratios are non-GAAP measures. For additional information, including definitions of our consolidated leverage ratios, required reconciliations and the impact of Liberty Mobile on the ratios, see Non-GAAP Reconciliations below.
  3. For purposes of calculating our average tenor, total debt excludes vendor financing and finance lease obligations.
  4. At March 31, 2021, the full amount of unused borrowing capacity under our subsidiaries' revolving credit facilities was available to be borrowed, both before and after completion of the March 31, 2021 compliance reporting requirements. For information regarding limitations on our ability to access this liquidity, see the discussion under “Material Changes in Financial Condition” in our recently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Quarterly Subscriber Variance

 

Fixed Subscriber Variance Table — March 31, 2021 vs December 31, 2020

 

Homes
Passed

 

Two-way
Homes
Passed

 

Fixed-line
Customer
Relationships

 

Video
RGUs

 

Internet
RGUs

 

Telephony
RGUs

 

Total
RGUs

 

 

Total Mobile
Subscribers

 

 

 

C&W Caribbean & Networks:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jamaica

7,400

 

 

7,400

 

 

6,600

 

 

1,900

 

 

9,100

 

 

11,000

 

 

22,000

 

 

 

10,100

 

The Bahamas

 

 

 

 

(500)

 

 

600

 

 

1,400

 

 

(700)

 

 

1,300

 

 

 

(1,000)

 

Trinidad and Tobago

600

 

 

600

 

 

500

 

 

 

 

1,400

 

 

1,100

 

 

2,500

 

 

 

 

Barbados

 

 

 

 

200

 

 

700

 

 

900

 

 

(100)

 

 

1,500

 

 

 

(3,700)

 

Other

1,900

 

 

1,900

 

 

(2,200)

 

 

(3,000)

 

 

3,200

 

 

200

 

 

400

 

 

 

(3,300)

 

Total C&W Caribbean & Networks

9,900

 

 

9,900

 

 

4,600

 

 

200

 

 

16,000

 

 

11,500

 

 

27,700

 

 

 

2,100

 

C&W Panama1

16,200

 

 

16,200

 

 

3,900

 

 

1,400

 

 

5,100

 

 

3,500

 

 

10,000

 

 

 

61,100

 

Total C&W

26,100

 

 

26,100

 

 

8,500

 

 

1,600

 

 

21,100

 

 

15,000

 

 

37,700

 

 

 

63,200

 

Liberty Puerto Rico2,3

2,300

 

 

2,300

 

 

11,800

 

 

3,200

 

 

15,200

 

 

6,200

 

 

24,600

 

 

 

(1,900)

 

VTR

76,000

 

 

77,000

 

 

(10,500)

 

 

1,700

 

 

(8,200)

 

 

13,000

 

 

6,500

 

 

 

(6,400)

 

Cabletica4

6,600

 

 

6,600

 

 

3,000

 

 

(400)

 

 

5,900

 

 

1,700

 

 

7,200

 

 

 

 

Total Net Adds

111,000

 

 

112,000

 

 

12,800

 

 

6,100

 

 

34,000

 

 

35,900

 

 

76,000

 

 

 

54,900

 

 

Mobile Subscriber Variance Table — March 31, 2021 vs December 31, 2020

 

Consolidated Operating Data — March 31, 2021

 

Q1 Organic Subscriber Variance

 

Prepaid

 

Postpaid

 

Total

 

Prepaid

 

Postpaid

 

Total

C&W Caribbean & Networks:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jamaica

977,200

 

 

25,200

 

 

1,002,400

 

 

7,200

 

 

2,900

 

 

10,100

 

The Bahamas

147,400

 

 

32,700

 

 

180,100

 

 

(3,400)

 

 

2,400

 

 

(1,000)

 

Barbados

84,100

 

 

30,800

 

 

114,900

 

 

(4,300)

 

 

600

 

Liberty Latin America Ltd

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About LILAB

liberty latin america ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides fixed, mobile, and subsea telecommunications services. it offers communications and entertainment services, including video, broadband internet, fixed-line telephony, and mobile services to residential and business customers; and business products and services that include enterprise-grade connectivity, data center, hosting, and managed solutions, as well as information technology solutions for small and medium enterprises, international companies, and governmental agencies. the company also operates a sub-sea and terrestrial fiber optic cable network that connects approximately 40 markets. it provides its services in approximately 20 countries in latin america, the caribbean, chile, and costa rica under the brands of c&w, vtr, liberty puerto rico, cabletica, btc, uts, flow, and mã³vil. liberty latin america ltd. was founded in 2017 and is based in denver, colorado.

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