Press Release

Fourth Quarter 2021 Results

• Revenues increased by 52% to $187.6 million from $123.7 million a year ago, primarily due to the successful acquisition of Alaska Communications.
• Net loss, including a one-time $20.6 million goodwill impairment charge, was $24.2 million versus $20.5 million a year ago.
• EBITDA¹ increased to $17.2 million from $7.5 million a year ago.
• Adjusted EBITDA² increased to $42.3 million from $30.5 million a year ago.
• Capital expenditures were $35.2 million.
• Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash was $80.7 million as of December 31, 2021.

BEVERLY, Mass., Feb. 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ATN International, Inc. (“ATN” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: ATNI), a leading provider of digital infrastructure and communications services, today reported results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2021.

“We delivered a strong quarter marked by execution on strategic objectives aligned with our long-term growth plans,” said Michael Prior, Chief Executive Officer of ATN. “Notably, we completed the integration of Alaska Communications, brought digital connectivity to remote areas such as southwestern Alaska and northern Arizona, and made important advances in our domestic fiber-first platform strategy. With the contribution of Alaska Communications, we achieved more than 50% topline growth year over year as well as a more balanced revenue contribution between our domestic and international segments. At the same time, we made key investments in foundational infrastructure across our operating areas for future expansion while bolstering our leadership in both growing and mature markets.

“Our expansion in Alaska drove momentum in our U.S. operations, led by business and wholesale customers, including national wireless carriers. We see ample opportunity to accelerate our revenue and customer growth by further expanding the reach of our domestic data networks. In addition to increasing our coverage, we are investing in our offerings of higher-speed services through fiber and other high-speed data solutions. This also includes fiber and other infrastructure builds for our carrier services customers as we continue to transition away from our legacy wholesale wireless services to a more durable ‘glass and steel’ fiber-first model.

“Our international operations remained resilient with double-digit year-over-year mobility and carrier services revenue growth. In addition, our broadband subscriber levels continued to show strength with year-over-year growth and low churn. Our strategic decision to increase our investments in marketing and network resources resulted in heightened operating expense levels for this segment in the quarter. By maintaining our leadership in mature markets through strong services and continued speed improvements, we are generating steady cash flows and using these proceeds to invest in higher-growth markets, such as Guyana, where we are rapidly expanding the reach and capabilities of our high-speed fixed and mobile networks,” added Prior.

Fourth Quarter 2021 Financial Results

Fourth quarter 2021 consolidated revenues were $187.6 million, up 52% compared with $123.7 million in the same period a year ago. The Company reported an operating loss of $20.3 million and Adjusted EBITDA² of $42.3 million compared with an operating loss of $14.7 million and Adjusted EBITDA² of $30.5 million in the same period a year ago. The increase in revenue and Adjusted EBITDA² was mostly driven by the addition of Alaska Communications' results. The higher operating loss for the quarter was mainly driven by lower profitability in our legacy US Telecom business in addition to the reduction of high-cost support subsidies in our International Telecom business. Net loss attributable to ATN stockholders for the fourth quarter was $24.2 million, or $1.60 per share, compared with net loss attributable to ATN stockholders of $20.5 million, or $1.29 per share, in the same period a year ago.

Fourth Quarter 2021 Operating Segment Results

The Company recorded financial results during the fourth quarter of 2021 in three categories: (i) International Telecom; (ii) US Telecom; and (iii) All Other. For the purposes of the below presentation, the Company’s Renewable Energy segment has been combined with the Company’s Corporate segment and Other segment as “All Other.”

Operating Results (in Thousands)

*For this table presentation, the Renewable Energy segment results and Corporate and Other segment results were combined. See table 4 for the separate presentation of the financial performance of these segments.

**Includes capital expenditures reimbursable from customers of $1.0 and $9.7 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2021, respectively, and $13.1 and $15.0 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020, respectively.

International Telecom 

International Telecom revenues³ were $87.5 million for the quarter, up 4% year over year. This increase was mainly due to mobility subscriber growth as well as higher carrier services revenue, partially offset by a decline in managed services revenue and in federal high-cost support subsidies for the U.S. Virgin Islands. Increased travel and tourism in the U.S. Virgin Islands drove the increase in higher carrier service revenues. Operating expenses increased in most markets incrementally compared with the prior year as operations returned to pre-pandemic levels and the Company worked to expand its subscriber base in these markets. The combination of higher operating expenditures and a one-time impairment charge of $20.6 million for our operations in the U.S. Virgin Islands, contributed to a quarterly operating loss of $7.1 million and Adjusted EBITDA² of $27.9 million, compared with an operating income of $14.8 million and Adjusted EBITDA² of $29.0 million in the same period a year ago.

US Telecom 

US Telecom segment revenues⁴ were $100.1 million in the quarter, up from $38.7 million in the prior year period. Business and carrier services revenues accounted for approximately 75% of the segment’s service revenues in the fourth quarter of 2021. Operating loss was $3.1 million compared with an operating income of $1.8 million in the same period a year ago. This decrease in operating income was mainly due to lower profitability in our legacy US Telecom business and higher acquisition costs and acquisition-related amortization expenses from Alaska Communications. Adjusted EBITDA² for the quarter was $22.3 million compared with $7.8 million in the same period a year ago. The increase in segment revenue and Adjusted EBITDA² was mainly due to the Company’s successful consolidation of Alaska Communications, partially offset by the year-over-year increases in network costs for additional FirstNet sites and expenses for the Company’s private network operations.

By the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, the Company had completed and activated approximately 60% of the total sites related to the network build portion of its long-term FirstNet Agreement. The completion of sites was slightly slower than expected due to delays relating to supply chain and the continuation of the pandemic. The Company expects to complete an additional 30% of the total build by the end of 2022 and that revenues from the build will be largely offset by construction costs incurred in the same period.  

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Highlights

As of December 31, 2021, the Company had total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash of $80.7 million compared with $105.0 million as of December 31, 2020. On July 22, 2021, the Company completed the acquisition of Alaska Communications for approximately $339.5 million. The acquisition was funded through cash on hand, a draw under the Company’s existing revolving credit facility, an equity contribution from the Company’s financial partner, and proceeds from Alaska Communications’ new credit agreement that is non-recourse to the Company. At the end of the quarter, the Company had $61.5 million drawn under its $200.0 million revolving facility, and Alaska Communications had a $210.0 million term loan facility outstanding and $2.0 million drawn under its $35.0 million revolving facility.  

Net cash provided by operating activities was $80.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared with $86.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The year-over-year decline in operating cash flow was mostly due to the increase in operating loss for the full year of 2021 and an increase of $33.0 million in the FirstNet construction customer receivable, which was partially offset by lower working capital balances. For the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company used net cash of $104.8 million for investing and financing activities compared to $143.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The net use of cash was primarily attributable to the $339.5 million purchase price of Alaska Communications, $106.1 million in capital expenditures, $13.3 million of purchases of minority equity interests in the Company’s subsidiaries, $21.4 million in repurchases of Company common stock and dividends to Company stockholders, and $7.5 million in minority partner distributions. These uses of cash were partially offset by net borrowings of $285.0 million and $71.5 million of partner equity contributions to purchase Alaska Communications, $7.5 million in new government grant funding received, $18.6 million in net proceeds received from the completion of the Vibrant Energy equity sale and $35.5 million in net new borrowings under the FirstNet receivables credit facility.  

Stock Buybacks and Quarterly Dividends

On December 13, 2021, ATN announced that its Board of Directors had declared a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share, payable on January 7, 2022, on all common shares outstanding to stockholders of record as of December 31, 2021. For the full year, ATN paid $0.68 per share in dividends. ATN utilized cash from its balance sheet to repurchase $5.7 million in common stock in the fourth quarter of 2021 and $10.5 million in common stock in the full year of 2021.

Business Outlook

“Looking forward, we plan to fully leverage our differentiated approach to connect more people around the world,” Prior continued. “This will include an increased level of investment in our fiber networks and other digital infrastructure across our U.S. and international markets. As a result of these investments, we anticipate additional revenue growth opportunities, higher customer counts and strong market share. We now cover nearly half a million homes with our broadband networks, and we expect that metric, along with the percentage of our customers utilizing fiber and other higher-speed data solutions, to increase as we target what we see as rapidly growing demand. High-speed connectivity has become essential for all communities and businesses. As we focus on meeting this need, we are providing investors with additional operating metrics on homes passed and customer connections and anticipate updating this information in future quarters.

“Additionally, we are providing the following full-year 2022 guidance and three-year outlook to give investors a better sense of the evolution and potential of our business. These forecasts take into account the current state of our domestic and international markets as well as certain strategic initiatives. From a broad perspective, our goal as an organization is to continue leaning into servicing remote and rural markets to better satisfy the growing demand for enhanced digital infrastructure around the world. We have confidence in our strategy and team to execute on these plans going forward, and in our ability to accelerate our business momentum and deliver enhanced shareholder value,” Mr. Prior noted.

2022 Guidance
The Company has provided the following estimates on its expectations for 2022 financial performance:

• Significant revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth, which includes a full year of Alaska Communications business results, compared with the full year of 2021;
• Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2022 down slightly from Adjusted EBITDA of $42.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2021;
• Adjusted EBITDA in the range of $165 - $170 million for the full year; and
• Capital expenditures for the full year in the range of $150 - $160 million, net of reimbursed amounts, with the largest amounts projected to be used for network expansion and upgrades.

Three Year Outlook
The Company has set the following targets for its business to be achieved in 2024. These goals are largely based on, and in line with, the Company’s continuing investments in its “fiber-first” platform strategy. The three-year targets are as follows:

• Revenue compound annual growth rate (“CAGR”), excluding construction, of 4-6%, leading to revenue of $770 - $810 million in 2024;
• Adjusted EBITDA CAGR of 8%-10% over the three-year period;
• Capital expenditures return to more normalized levels of 10-15% of revenue after the three-year period; and
• Net Debt Ratio⁵ of less than 1.5x by the end of 2024.

Upon completion of this three-year plan, and possibly sooner, the Company believes it will be in a position to use its business momentum and growing operating cash flow to return more value to shareholders through increased dividends or other means. The Company will provide updates to the market on these initiatives from time to time as it progresses going forward.

Conference Call Information

ATN will host a conference call on Thursday, February 24, 2022, at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) to discuss its fourth quarter results and business outlook. The call will be hosted by Michael Prior, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Justin Benincasa, Chief Financial Officer. The dial-in numbers are US/Canada: (877) 734-4582 and International: (678) 905-9376. The Conference ID is 3769601. A replay of the call will be available at ir.atni.com beginning at approximately 2:00 p.m. (ET) on Thursday, February 24, 2022.

About ATN

ATN International, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATNI), headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts, is a provider of digital infrastructure and communications services in the United States and internationally, including the Caribbean region, with a focus on rural and remote markets with a growing demand for infrastructure investments. The Company’s operating subsidiaries today primarily provide: (i) advanced wireless and wireline connectivity to residential, business and government customers, including a range of high-speed Internet and data services, fixed and mobile wireless solutions, and video and voice services; and (ii) carrier and enterprise communications services, such as terrestrial and submarine fiber optic transport, and communications tower facilities. For more information, please visit www.atni.com.

Cautionary Language Concerning Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to, among other matters, the Company’s future financial performance, business goals and objectives, and results of operations, expectations regarding the transition of its US Telecom business, its future revenues, operating income, EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and capital expenditures; the competitive environment in the Company’s key markets, demand for the Company’s services and industry trends; the Company’s expectations regarding consumer and enterprise demand for its US Telecom services, construction progress under the Company’s FirstNet agreement and the effect such progress will have on the Company’s financial results; the Company’s expectations regarding the benefits of the Company’s acquisition of Alaska Communications; the impact of federal support program and government subsidy revenues; the Company’s liquidity; the organization of the Company’s business; and management’s plans and strategy for the future. These forward-looking statements are based on estimates, projections, beliefs, and assumptions and are not guarantees of future events or results. Actual future events and results could differ materially from the events and results indicated in these statements as a result of many factors, including, among others, (1) the Company’s ability to successfully transition its US Telecom business away from wholesale wireless to other carrier and consumer-based services; (2) the general performance of the Company’s operations, including operating margins, revenues, capital expenditures, and the retention of and future growth of the Company’s subscriber base and ARPU; (3) the Company’s ability to realize cost synergies and expansion plans for its Alaska Communications business; (4) the Company’s ability to satisfy the needs and demands of the Company’s major carrier customers; (5) the Company’s ability to efficiently and cost-effectively upgrade the Company’s networks and information technology platforms to address rapid and significant technological changes in the telecommunications industry; (6) government subsidy program availability and regulation of the Company’s businesses, which may impact the Company’s telecommunications licenses, the Company’s revenue and the Company’s operating costs; (7) the Company’s reliance on a limited number of key suppliers and vendors for timely supply of equipment and services relating to the Company’s network infrastructure; (8) economic, political and other risks and opportunities facing the Company’s operations, including those resulting from the pandemic; (9) the loss of, or an inability to recruit skilled personnel in the Company’s various jurisdictions, including key members of management; (10) the Company’s ability to find investment or acquisition or disposition opportunities that fit the strategic goals of the Company; (11) the occurrence of weather events and natural catastrophes and the Company’s ability to secure the appropriate level of insurance coverage for these assets; (12) increased competition; (13) the adequacy and expansion capabilities of the Company’s network capacity and customer service system to support the Company’s customer growth; and (14) the Company’s continued access to capital and credit markets. These and other additional factors that may cause actual future events and results to differ materially from the events and results indicated in the forward-looking statements above are set forth more fully under Item 1A “Risk Factors” of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the SEC on March 1, 2021, those set forth under Item 1A “Risk Factors” of the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2021, filed with the SEC on August 9, 2021 and the other reports the Company files from time to time with the SEC. The Company undertakes no obligation and has no intention to update these forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors that may affect such forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to financial measures prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), this press release also contains non-GAAP financial measures. Specifically, the Company has included EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Net Debt Ratio in this release and in the tables included herein.

EBITDA is defined as operating income (loss) before depreciation and amortization expense. The Company has defined Adjusted EBITDA as operating income (loss) before depreciation and amortization expense, transaction-related charges, one-time impairment or special charges and the gain (loss) on disposition of assets. Net Debt Ratio is defined as total debt less cash and cash equivalents divided by Adjusted EBITDA. The Company believes that the inclusion of these non-GAAP financial measures help investors gain a meaningful understanding of the Company's core operating results and enhances the usefulness of comparing such performance with prior periods. Management uses these non-GAAP measures, in addition to GAAP financial measures, as the basis for measuring the Company’s core operating performance and comparing such performance to that of prior periods. The non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release are not meant to be considered superior to or a substitute for results of operations prepared in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures are set forth in the text of, and the accompanying tables to, this press release. While non-GAAP financial measures are an important tool for financial and operational decision-making and for evaluating the Company’s own operating results over different periods of time, the Company urges investors to review the reconciliation of these financial measures to the comparable GAAP financial measures included below, and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate its business.

Contact:

Justin D. Benincasa
Chief Financial Officer
ATN International, Inc.
978-619-1300

Polly Pearson
Investor Relations
ATNI@investorrelations.com

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¹ See Table 5 for reconciliation of Operating Income to EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure.
² See Table 5 for reconciliation of Operating Income to Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure.
³ International Telecom revenues are generated by delivery of a broad range of communications and managed IT services, including data, voice and video services from the Company’s fixed and mobile network operations in Bermuda and the Caribbean, and include direct government payments as part of the FCC high-cost support program in the USVI.
⁴ US Telecom revenues consist of broadband, carrier services, managed IT services, fixed enterprise, and mobile retail revenues from the Company’s networks and operations in Alaska and in the western United States, including various government programs such as CAF II, E-Rate, Lifeline and rural healthcare support programs.
⁵ Net Debt Ratio is defined as total Debt less Cash and Cash Equivalents divided by Adjusted EBITDA – see Table 6.

Source: ATN International, Inc.