EchoStar Announces Financial Results for Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019

ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Nov. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) today announced its financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019.

Three Months Ended September 30, 2019 Financial Highlights:

• Consolidated revenues of $472.3 million.
• Consolidated net loss of $21.1 million, consolidated net loss attributable to EchoStar common stock of $18.3 million, and diluted loss per share of $0.19.
• Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA of $148.3 million (see discussion and the reconciliation of GAAP to this non-GAAP measure below).

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019 Financial Highlights:

• Consolidated revenues of $1.4 billion.
• Consolidated net loss of $11.2 million, consolidated net loss attributable to EchoStar common stock of $9.8 million, and diluted loss per share of $0.10.
• Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA of $422.7 million (see discussion and the reconciliation of GAAP to this non-GAAP measure below).

"I am pleased with our performance in the third quarter of 2019," commented Michael Dugan, CEO and President of EchoStar.  "On September 10th, we completed the spin-off to DISH of the BSS business and ancillary assets and liabilities in exchange for DISH shares that were distributed to EchoStar shareholders. As a result, the BSS business has been presented as discontinued operations in our current financial results.  We can now focus on the growing broadband market, additional satellite opportunities, and strategic investments.  We grew our consumer subscriber base by approximately 22,000 driven by our international markets and launched a consumer service in Mexico on October 1st.  Our North American capacity is relatively full with the EchoStar 24/J3 satellite scheduled for launch in 2021.  We continue to work to complete our previously announced JVs with Yahsat in Brazil and Bharti Airtel in India and also announced the acquisition of Helios Wire Corporation on October 25th.   The Helios acquisition lays the foundation for the creation of worldwide S-band capabilities."

Three Months Ended September 30, 2019 - Additional Information:

• Consolidated revenue increased 4% or $16.0 million year over year.
• An accrual of $20.7 million was booked during the quarter related to a license fee dispute with the Government of India. This impacted SG&A expenses by $7.1 million and Interest expense, net of amounts capitalized, by $13.6 million. Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests had a corresponding offset of $3.2 million. This fee dispute dates back over a decade and has affected the entire Indian Telecom industry.
• Adjusted EBITDA decreased 4% or $6.0 million year over year.
• Hughes segment Adjusted EBITDA increased by $1.9 million which includes the impact of the industry wide fee dispute with the Government of India.
• ESS segment Adjusted EBITDA decreased by $2.9 million primarily due to lower revenue.
• Corporate and Other segment Adjusted EBITDA decreased by $5.0 million driven primarily by transaction related legal costs and increased losses on equity in earnings of unconsolidated affiliates.
• Net loss from continuing operations was $23.2 million, the loss increasing by $20.0 million from last year. The decline was primarily due to higher unrealized losses on foreign currency of $11.0 million, higher depreciation and amortization expense of $7.0 million, increased equity losses of unconsolidated affiliates of $3.6 million, partially offset by higher gains of investments of $5.4 million.
• Hughes broadband subscribers are approximately 1,437,000 as of September 30, 2019 including approximately 192,000 subscribers in Central and South America.
• Cash, cash equivalents and current marketable investment securities of $2.5 billion as of September 30, 2019.

Set forth below is a table highlighting certain of EchoStar's segment results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 (amounts in thousands):

Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Measurement (amounts in thousands):

Note on Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

EBITDA is defined as "Net income (loss)" excluding "Interest income and expense, net," "Income tax provision (benefit), net," "Depreciation and amortization," "Net income (loss) from discontinued operations," and "Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests."

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA excluding "Gains and losses on investments, net," unrealized gains (losses) on foreign currency, and other non-recurring or non-operational items.  EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not measures determined in accordance with US GAAP. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are reconciled to "Net income (loss)" in the table above and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for operating income, net income or any other measure determined in accordance with US GAAP. Our management uses EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as measures of our operating efficiency and overall financial performance for benchmarking against our peers and competitors. Management believes that these non-GAAP measures provide meaningful supplemental information regarding the underlying operating performance of our business and are appropriate to enhance an overall understanding of our financial performance. Management also believes that EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are useful to investors because they are frequently used by securities analysts, investors, and other interested parties to evaluate the performance of companies in our industry.

The consolidated financial statements of EchoStar for the periods ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 are attached to this press release. Detailed financial data and other information are available in EchoStar's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2019 filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

EchoStar will host its earnings conference call on Thursday, November 7, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. The call-in numbers are (877) 815-1625 (toll-free) and (716) 247-5178 (international), Conference ID 3877704.

About EchoStar Corporation

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:  SATS) is a premier global provider of satellite communications solutions.  Headquartered in Englewood, Colo., and conducting business around the globe, EchoStar is a pioneer in secure communications technologies through its Hughes Network Systems and EchoStar Satellite Services business segments.

Safe Harbor Statement under the US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

This press release may contain statements that are forward looking, as that term is defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management. When used in this release, the words "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "project," "plans," and similar expressions and the use of future dates are intended to identify forward‑looking statements. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in these forward‑looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. We assume no responsibility for the accuracy of forward-looking statements or information or for updating forward-looking information or statements. These statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. See "Risk Factors" in EchoStar's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2018 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2019, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and in the other documents EchoStar files with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time.

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SOURCE Hughes Network Systems, LLC