National CineMedia, Inc. : Reports Results for Fiscal Third Quarter 2017

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) (the Company), the managing member and owner of 49.5% of National CineMedia, LLC (NCM LLC), the operator of the largest in-theater digital media network in North America, today announced consolidated results for the fiscal third quarter and nine months ended September 28, 2017.

Total revenue for the third quarter ended September 28, 2017 increased 2.6% to $116.4 million from $113.5 million for the comparable quarter last year. Adjusted OIBDA increased 2.8% to $62.6 million for the third quarter of 2017 from $60.9 million for the third quarter of 2016. Operating income increased 3.9% to $50.3 million for the third quarter of 2017 from $48.4 million for the third quarter of 2016. Net income for the third quarter of 2017 was $9.4 million, or net income of $0.15 per diluted share, compared to net income of $8.2 million, or net income of $0.13 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2016. As adjusted to exclude the CEO transition-related costs, the reversal of a reserve for uncertain tax positions and other non-recurring items set forth in the table at the end of this release, net income for the third quarter of 2017 would have been $0.12 per diluted share and net income for the third quarter of 2016 would have remained $0.13 per diluted share.

Total revenue for the nine months ended September 28, 2017 decreased 6.5% to $285.4 million from $305.1 million for the comparable period last year. Adjusted OIBDA decreased 15.1% to $122.5 million for the first nine months of 2017 from $144.3 million for the first nine months of 2016. Operating income decreased 16.9% to $83.7 million for the first nine months of 2017 from $100.7 million for the first nine months of 2016. Included in Adjusted OIBDA and operating income were $3.1 million and $0.7 million of non-cash impairment charges during the first nine months of 2017 and the first nine months of 2016, respectively, on investments obtained in prior years in exchange for advertising services. Net income for the first nine months of 2017 was $5.9 million, or income of $0.10 per diluted share, compared to net income of $10.7 million, or income of $0.18 per diluted share for the first nine months of 2016. As adjusted to exclude the CEO transition-related costs, the reversal of a reserve for uncertain tax positions and certain other non-recurring items set forth in the table at the end of this release, net income for the first nine months of 2017 would have been at $0.08 per diluted share and net income for the first nine months of 2016 would have been $0.20 per diluted share. Adjusted OIBDA and adjusted earnings per share are non-GAAP measures. See the tables at the end of this release for the reconciliations to the closest GAAP basis measurement.

The Company announced today that its Board of Directors has authorized the Company’s regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.22 per share of common stock. The dividend will be paid on December 1, 2017 to stockholders of record on November 16, 2017. The Company intends to pay a regular quarterly dividend for the foreseeable future at the discretion of the Board of Directors consistent with the Company’s intention to distribute over time a substantial portion of its free cash flow. The declaration, payment, timing and amount of any future dividends payable will be at the sole discretion of the Board of Directors who will take into account general economic and advertising market business conditions, the Company’s financial condition, available cash, current and anticipated cash needs, and any other factors that the Board of Directors considers relevant. While it is the intention of the Company to continue its practice of distributing a high proportion of its free cash flow, actual results, ongoing reinvestment in its network and product offerings, as well as prudent capital management may reduce such distributable free cash flow in future periods. As a result, the Board of Directors continues to review these factors to determine a sustainable distribution rate which balances the operating and strategic needs of the Company with those of its lenders and stockholders.

Commenting on the Company’s third quarter of 2017 operating results, Andy England, NCM’s CEO, said, “I’m very pleased with our third quarter results, as we were able to achieve a stable quarter following a challenging first half of the year. Third quarter 2017 revenue was up 2.6% over last year as the scatter market rebounded in our favor, even as network attendance was down 16.1%. The launch of our new Noovie pre-show in September is just the beginning of a new era at NCM, as we continue to lay the foundation for our Noovie digital products ecosystem and work toward achieving our vision to be THE connector between brands and movie audiences, wherever they may be.”

2017 Outlook

For the full year 2017, the Company reaffirms its outlook of total revenue to be down 6% to 1% and Adjusted OIBDA to be down 12% to 6% from the full year 2016. The Company expects total revenue in the range of $422.0 million to $442.0 million for the full year 2017, compared to total revenue for the full year 2016 of $447.6 million and Adjusted OIBDA in the range of $202.0 million to $217.0 million for the full year 2017 compared to Adjusted OIBDA for the full year 2016 of $230.7 million. Currently, total revenue and Adjusted OIBDA are trending towards the lower end of these ranges for the full year 2017. This outlook includes the impact of an 8% increase in the theater access fee paid to the founding members that occurs every five years as well as the non-cash impairment charges of $3.1 million recorded for the first nine months of 2017, described above. During 2017, the Company expects to record approximately $18.0 million to $20.0 million in integration and other encumbered theater payments from Cinemark and AMC associated with the Rave Theatres and Carmike Theatres acquisitions, which are recorded as a reduction of an intangible asset.

Supplemental Information

Integration and other encumbered theater payments due from Cinemark and AMC associated with Rave Theatres and Carmike Theatres for the quarter ended September 28, 2017 and September 29, 2016 and nine months ended September 28, 2017 and September 29, 2016 were $6.9 million, $0.7 million, $11.6 million and $1.5 million, respectively. These payments were recorded as a reduction of an intangible asset.

Conference Call

The Company will host a conference call and audio webcast with investors, analysts and other interested parties November 6, 2017 at 5:00 P.M. Eastern time. The live call can be accessed by dialing 1-877-407-9039 or for international participants 1-201-689-8470. Participants should register at least 15 minutes prior to the commencement of the call. Additionally, a live audio webcast will be available to interested parties at www.ncm.com under the Investor Relations section. Participants should allow at least 15 minutes prior to the commencement of the call to register, download and install necessary audio software.

The replay of the conference call will be available until midnight Eastern Time, November 20, 2017, by dialing 1-844-512-2921 or for international participants 1-412-317-6671, and entering conference ID 13672082.

About National CineMedia, Inc.

National CineMedia (NCM) is America’s Movie Network. As the #1 Millennial weekend network in the U.S., NCM is the connector between brands and movie audiences. According to Nielsen, more than 750 million moviegoers annually attend theaters that are currently under contract to present NCM’s pre-show in 52 leading national and regional theater circuits including AMC Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: AMC), Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK) and Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC). NCM’s cinema advertising network offers broad reach and unparalleled audience engagement with over 20,600 screens in approximately 1,700 theaters in 187 Designated Market Areas® (all of the top 50). NCM Digital goes beyond the big screen, extending in-theater campaigns into online and mobile marketing programs to reach entertainment audiences. National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) owns a 49.5% interest in, and is the managing member of, National CineMedia, LLC. For more information, visit www.ncm.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains various forward-looking statements that reflect management’s current expectations or beliefs regarding future events, including statements providing guidance and projections for the full year 2017. Investors are cautioned that reliance on these forward-looking statements involves risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that the assumptions used in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, any of these assumptions could prove to be inaccurate and, as a result, actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. The factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements are, among others, 1) level of theater attendance or viewership of the pre-show; 2) increased competition for advertising expenditures; 3) technological changes and innovations; 4) economic conditions, including the level of expenditures on cinema advertising; 5) our ability to renew or replace expiring advertising and content contracts; 6) our need for additional funding, risks and uncertainties relating to our significant indebtedness; 7) reinvestment in our network and product offerings may require significant funding and resulting reallocation of resources; 8) fluctuations in operating costs; 9) changes in interest rates; and 10) changes in accounting principles. In addition, the outlook provided does not include the impact of any future unusual or infrequent transactions; sales and acquisitions of operating assets and investments; any future noncash impairments of intangible and fixed assets; amounts related to litigation or the related impact of taxes that may occur from time to time due to management decisions and changing business circumstances. The Company is currently unable to forecast precisely the timing and/or magnitude of any such amounts or events. Please refer to the Company’s Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including the “Risk Factor” section of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 29, 2016, for further information about these and other risks.

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NATIONAL CINEMEDIA, INC.
Non-GAAP Reconciliations
Unaudited

OIBDA, Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted OIBDA Margin

Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization (“OIBDA”), Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted OIBDA margin are not financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP in the United States. OIBDA represents operating income before depreciation and amortization expense. Adjusted OIBDA excludes from OIBDA non-cash share based compensation cost, Chief Executive Officer transition costs and early lease termination expense. Adjusted OIBDA margin is calculated by dividing Adjusted OIBDA by total revenue. Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures to evaluate operating performance, to forecast future results and as a basis for compensation. The Company believes these are important supplemental measures of operating performance because they eliminate items that have less bearing on its operating performance and so highlight trends in its core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on GAAP financial measures. The Company believes the presentation of these measures is relevant and useful for investors because it enables them to view performance in a manner similar to the method used by the Company’s management, helps improve their ability to understand the Company’s operating performance and makes it easier to compare the Company’s results with other companies that may have different depreciation and amortization policies, non-cash share based compensation programs, CEO turnover, early lease termination expense, interest rates, debt levels or income tax rates. A limitation of these measures, however, is that they exclude depreciation and amortization, which represent a proxy for the periodic costs of certain capitalized tangible and intangible assets used in generating revenues in the Company’s business. In addition, Adjusted OIBDA has the limitation of not reflecting the effect of the Company’s share based payment costs, costs associated with the resignation of the company’s former Chief Executive Officer and an early lease termination expense. OIBDA or Adjusted OIBDA should not be regarded as an alternative to operating income, net income or as indicators of operating performance, nor should they be considered in isolation of, or as substitutes for financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. The Company believes that operating income is the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to OIBDA. Because not all companies use identical calculations, these non-GAAP presentations may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies, or calculations in the Company’s debt agreement.

The following tables reconcile operating income to OIBDA and Adjusted OIBDA for the periods presented (dollars in millions):

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Adjusted Net Income and Income per Share

Adjusted net income and income per share are not financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP in the United States. Adjusted net income and income per share are calculated using reported net income and income per share and exclude CEO transition-related costs, early lease termination costs, the reversal of a reserve for uncertain tax positions and a loss on early retirement of debt shown in the below table. Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures as an additional tool to evaluate operating performance. The Company believes these are important supplemental measures of operating performance because they eliminate items that have less bearing on its operating performance and so highlight trends in its core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on GAAP financial measures. The Company believes the presentation of these measures is relevant and useful for investors because it enables them to view performance in a manner similar to a method used by the Company’s management and helps improve their ability to understand the Company’s operating performance. Adjusted net loss should not be regarded as an alternative to net income and should not be regarded as an alternative to loss per share or as indicators of operating performance, nor should they be considered in isolation of, or as substitutes for financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. The Company believes that net income and income per share are the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. Because not all companies use identical calculations, these presentations may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies.

The following table reconciles net income and income per share as reported to adjusted net income and income per share excluding the CEO transition-related costs, early termination expense, loss on early retirement of debt and the reversal of a reserve for uncertain tax positions for the periods presented (dollars in millions):

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