Consolidated Communications Reports Fourth Quarter 2019 Results

Company achieved another consistent quarter of stable revenue and Adjusted EBITDA; Retired over $27 million in senior unsecured notes, demonstrating clear progress on its capital allocation plan


Fourth Quarter Highlights

  • Revenue totaled $331 million, generating Adjusted EBITDA of $130.9 million
  • Data and transport revenue was up 2 percent
  • Broadband revenue grew 1.4 percent
  • Net cash from operating activities was $90.5 million
  • Cost management efforts resulted in reduced operating expense, excluding depreciation and amortization, of $24.6 million or 10.4 percent  
  • Retired over $27 million of senior unsecured notes at par value; executing on capital allocation plan

Full-Year 2019 Highlights

  • Revenue totaled $1.34 billion, generating Adjusted EBITDA of $523.5 million
  • Data and transport revenue and broadband revenue both grew 2 percent
  • Net cash from operating activities was $339.1 million
  • Fiber lit buildings increased 18 percent and 600 fiber-route miles were built
  • Capital allocation plan resulted in $55 million of senior unsecured notes at par value being retired in the last half of the year

MATTOON, Ill. , Feb. 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: CNSL) (the “Company” or “Consolidated”) reported results for the fourth quarter 2019 and will hold a conference call and simultaneous webcast to discuss its results and developments today at 10 a.m. E.T.

“We produced another quarter of consistent and stable Adjusted EBITDA and revenue,” said Bob Udell, president and chief executive officer of Consolidated Communications. “Consumer broadband revenue grew 1.4 percent and our commercial and carrier data-transport revenue grew 2 percent in the quarter. We achieved a 10.4 percent reduction in operating expenses as a result of disciplined cost management and process improvements within our operations.” 

“Our number one priority in 2019 was executing on our capital allocation plan and reducing our debt, and I am very pleased with our progress in this area,” added Udell. “We retired $27 million in senior unsecured notes in the recent quarter and $55 million in the last half of the year. We are intensely focused on deleveraging and we will allocate substantially all free cash flow in 2020 to pay down debt and strengthen the balance sheet.”  

Financial Results for the Fourth Quarter   

  • Revenues totaled $331.0 million, a decline of $13.7 million compared to fourth quarter 2018.

    • Data and transport service revenue increased 2 percent or $1.8 million.
    • Broadband revenue increased 1.4 percent or $876,000.
    • Commercial and carrier other revenue was down $3.9 million primarily due to timing on equipment sales.
    • Voice services revenue across all customer channels declined 6.3 percent or $6.1 million.
    • Network access revenues declined 11.6 percent or $4.3 million.
       
  • Income from operations increased to $26.7 million compared to $3.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2018. The change was primarily due to operating expense reductions of $24.6 million were largely attributed to ongoing cost savings initiatives along with continued network cost optimization. Depreciation and amortization expense declined $12.3 million primarily due to certain acquired assets, which became fully depreciated.

  • Net interest expense was $33.4 million, down $2.1 million from the same period last year. After giving effect to interest rate swap agreements, as of Dec. 31, our weighted average cost of debt was approximately 5.6 percent.

  • Cash distributions from the Company’s wireless partnerships totaled $7.0 million, compared to $10.3 million for the prior year period, down due to accelerated partnership capital expenditures in the quarter.  

  • Other income was a net loss of $286,000 compared to income of $11.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2018. The change was due to lower income from the Company’s minority interest in wireless partnerships and a non-cash, pension settlement charge of $6.7 million in the fourth quarter as a result of the transfer of certain pension benefit obligations to an annuity provider during the quarter.
       
  • On a GAAP basis, net loss was $5.8 million, compared to a net loss of $14.0 million for the same period last year. GAAP net loss per share was $(0.08). Adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share excludes certain items as outlined in the table provided in this release. Adjusted diluted net income per share was $0.01 in the fourth quarter of 2019, compared to a net loss per share of $(0.09) in the fourth quarter of 2018. 

  • Adjusted EBITDA was $130.9 million compared to $132.4 million in the fourth quarter last year.

  • The total net debt to last 12-month Adjusted EBITDA ratio was 4.33x, an improvement over the prior quarter primarily due to the retirement of over $27 million senior unsecured notes at par value.

  • Capital expenditures totaled $47.9 million in the fourth quarter driven by success-based, fiber and wireless tower projects and broadband network investments. 

Full Year 2019 Results

  • For the full year 2019, operating revenue totaled $1.34 billion, down 4.5 percent from fiscal year 2018. The decline was primarily due to the continued transition of legacy voice services and access revenues as well as the final step down in CAF II funding support.

  • Net cash from operating activities was $339.1 million.

  • Adjusted EBITDA was $523.5 million, in line with the Company’s 2019 guidance range. Adjusted diluted net income per share was $0.02.

  • $55 million of senior unsecured notes at par value were retired in 2019, per the capital allocation plan.

  • Capital expenditures totaled $232.2 million in 2019, slightly higher than projected to support success-based, fiber projects and broadband network investments.

2020 Outlook

“We are excited about the strong momentum we have going into 2020, our financial priorities are well aligned to achieve our capital allocation plan and fiscal guidance including consistent Adjusted EBITDA,” commented Udell. “While our sector is undergoing continued transformation, Consolidated remains a top 10 fiber provider in the U.S., focused on growing our fiber network and delivering on our promise of competitive, broadband solutions to rural America.”

Consolidated Communications is providing the following financial guidance for 2020.

 2019 Results2020 Range
Adjusted EBITDA$523.5 million$520 million to $525 million
Cash interest expense$133.2 million$125 million to $130 million
Cash income taxes(1)$2.4 million$1 million to $3 million
Capex$232.2 million$195 million to $205 million
Free cash flow(2)$121.6 million$145 million to $155 million
  1. Cash income taxes primarily include local and state income taxes as federal income taxes will be shielded by existing net operating losses and the benefit of The Tax Cuts and Job Act of 2017 tax reform legislation, which was enacted in Dec. 2017.
  2. 2019 Free Cash Flow of $121.6 million excludes $55.4 million of dividend payments made prior to the change in capital allocation policy announced in April.             

Conference Call Information

Consolidated’s fourth-quarter earnings conference call will be webcast today at 10 a.m. ET. The live webcast and replay will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at http://ir.consolidated.com.

About Consolidated Communications 

Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNSL) is a leading broadband and business communications provider serving consumers, businesses, and wireless and wireline carriers across rural and metro communities and a 23-state service area. Leveraging an advanced fiber network spanning 37,500 fiber route miles, Consolidated Communications offers a wide range of communications solutions, including: high-speed Internet, data, phone, security, managed services, cloud services and wholesale, carrier solutions. From our first connection 125 years ago, Consolidated is dedicated to turning technology into solutions, connecting people and enriching how they work and live. Visit www.consolidated.com for more information.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures                         

This press release, as well as the conference call, includes disclosures regarding “EBITDA,” “adjusted EBITDA,” “total net debt to last twelve month adjusted EBITDA ratio,” “free cash flow” and “adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share,” all of which are non-GAAP financial measures and described in this section as not being in compliance with Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they should not be construed as alternatives to net cash from operating or investing activities, cash and cash equivalents, cash flows from operations, net income or net income per share as defined by GAAP and are not, on their own, necessarily indicative of cash available to fund cash needs as determined in accordance with GAAP. In addition, not all companies use identical calculations, and the non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. A reconciliation of the differences between these non-GAAP financial measures and the most directly comparable financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP is included in the tables that follow.

Adjusted EBITDA is comprised of EBITDA, adjusted for certain items as permitted or required by the lenders under our credit agreement in place at the end of each quarter in the periods presented.  The tables that follow include an explanation of how adjusted EBITDA is calculated for each of the periods presented with the reconciliation to net income.  EBITDA is defined as net earnings before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization on a historical basis. 

We present adjusted EBITDA for several reasons.  Management believes adjusted EBITDA is useful as a means to evaluate our ability to fund our estimated uses of cash (including interest on our debt). In addition, we have presented adjusted EBITDA to investors in the past because it is frequently used by investors, securities analysts and other interested parties in the evaluation of companies in our industry, and management believes presenting it here provides a measure of consistency in our financial reporting. Adjusted EBITDA, referred to as Available Cash in our credit agreement, is also a component of the restrictive covenants and financial ratios contained in our credit agreement that requires us to maintain compliance with these covenants and limit certain activities, such as our ability to incur debt. The definitions in these covenants and ratios are based on adjusted EBITDA after giving effect to specified charges. In addition, adjusted EBITDA provides our board of directors with meaningful information, with other data, assumptions and considerations, to measure our ability to service and repay debt.  We present the related “total net debt to last twelve month adjusted EBITDA ratio” principally to put other non-GAAP measures in context and facilitate comparisons by investors, security analysts and others; this ratio differs in certain respects from the similar ratio used in our credit agreement.  These measures differ in certain respects from the ratios used in our senior notes indenture. 

These non-GAAP financial measures have certain shortcomings. In particular, adjusted EBITDA does not represent the residual cash flows available for discretionary expenditures, since items such as debt repayment and interest payments are not deducted from such measure. Because adjusted EBITDA is a component of the ratio of total net debt to last twelve month adjusted EBITDA, these measures are also subject to the material limitations discussed above. In addition, the ratio of total net debt to last twelve month adjusted EBITDA is subject to the risk that we may not be able to use the cash on the balance sheet to reduce our debt on a dollar-for-dollar basis. Management believes this ratio is useful as a means to evaluate our ability to incur additional indebtedness in the future. 

Free cash flow represents net cash provided by operating activities adjusted for capital expenditures, cash dividends and proceeds received from the sale of assets.  Free cash flow is a measure of operating cash flows available for corporate purposes after providing sufficient fixed asset additions.  The tables that follow include a calculation of free cash flow for each of the periods presented with a reconciliation to net cash provided by operating activities.  Free cash flow provides useful information to investors in the evaluation of our operating performance and liquidity.

We present the non-GAAP measure “adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share” because our net income (loss) and net income (loss) per share are regularly affected by items that occur at irregular intervals or are non-cash items.  We believe that disclosing these measures assists investors, securities analysts and other interested parties in evaluating both our company over time and the relative performance of the companies in our industry.

Safe Harbor                                         

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) encourages companies to disclose forward-looking information so that investors can better understand a company’s future prospects and make informed investment decisions.  Certain statements in this communication are forward-looking statements and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements reflect, among other things, our current expectations, plans, strategies, and anticipated financial results.  There are a number of risks, uncertainties, and conditions that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include a number of factors related to our business, including economic and financial market conditions generally and economic conditions in our service areas;  various risks to the price and volatility of our common stock; changes in the valuation of pension plan assets; the substantial amount of debt and our ability to repay or refinance it or incur additional debt in the future; our need for a significant amount of cash to service and repay the debt  restrictions contained in our debt agreements that limit the discretion of management in operating the business; regulatory changes, including changes to subsidies, rapid development and introduction of new technologies and intense competition in the telecommunications industry; risks associated with our possible pursuit of acquisitions; system failures; cyber-attacks, information or security breaches or technology failure of ours or of a third party; losses of large customers or government contracts; risks associated with the rights-of-way for the network; disruptions in the relationship with third party vendors; losses of key management personnel and the inability to attract and retain highly qualified management and personnel in the future; changes in the extensive governmental legislation and regulations governing telecommunications providers and the provision of telecommunications services; new or changing tax laws or regulations; telecommunications carriers disputing and/or avoiding their obligations to pay network access charges for use of our network; high costs of regulatory compliance; the competitive impact of legislation and regulatory changes in the telecommunications industry; and liability and compliance costs regarding environmental regulations; and risks associated with discontinuing paying dividends on our common stock. A detailed discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from such forward-looking statements are discussed in more detail in our filings with the SEC, including our reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q. Many of these circumstances are beyond our ability to control or predict.  Moreover, forward-looking statements necessarily involve assumptions on our part.  These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “project,” “intend,” “plan,” “should,” “may,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue” or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements of Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries to be different from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements that appear throughout this communication. Furthermore, forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Except as required under the federal securities laws or the rules and regulations of the SEC, we disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Company Contact                                                                      

Jennifer Spaude, Consolidated Communications
Phone:  507-386-3765
jennifer.spaude@consolidated.com

 

  
Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. 
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets 
(Dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts) 
(Unaudited) 
 December 31, December 31, 
  2019   2018  
   
ASSETS    
Current assets:    
  Cash and cash equivalents$12,395  $9,599  
  Accounts receivable, net 120,016   133,136  
  Income tax receivable 2,669   11,072  
  Prepaid expenses and other current assets 41,787   44,336  
Total current assets 176,867   198,143  
Property, plant and equipment, net 1,835,878   1,927,126  
Investments 112,717   110,853  
Goodwill 1,035,274   1,035,274  
Customer relationships, net 164,069   228,959  
Other intangible assets 10,557   11,483  
Other assets 54,915   23,423  
Total assets$3,390,277  $3,535,261  
     
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY    
Current liabilities:    
  Accounts payable$30,936  $32,502  
  Advance billings and customer deposits 45,710   47,724  
  Dividends payable -   27,579  
  Accrued compensation 57,069   64,459  
  Accrued interest 7,874   9,232  
  Accrued expense 75,406   71,650  
  Current portion of long-term debt and finance lease obligations 27,301   30,468  
Total current liabilities 244,296   283,614  
Long-term debt and finance lease obligations 2,250,677   2,303,585  
Deferred income taxes 173,027   188,129  
Pension and other post-retirement obligations 302,296   314,134  
Other long-term liabilities 72,730   30,145  
Total liabilities 3,043,026   3,119,607  
     
Shareholders' equity:    
  Common stock, par value $0.01 per share; 100,000,000 shares    
authorized, 71,961,045 and 71,187,301, shares outstanding    
  as of December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, respectively 720   712  
  Additional paid-in capital 492,246   513,070  
  Accumulated deficit (71,217)  (50,834) 
  Accumulated other comprehensive loss, net (80,868)  (53,212) 
Noncontrolling interest 6,370   5,918  
Total shareholders' equity 347,251   415,654  
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity$3,390,277  $3,535,261  
  


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)
    
 Three Months Ended Year Ended
 December 31, December 31,
  2019   2018   2019   2018 
        
        
Net revenues$331,035  $344,750  $1,336,542  $1,399,074 
Operating expenses:       
  Cost of services and products 136,201   154,656   574,936   611,872 
  Selling, general and administrative expenses 76,473   82,433   299,088   333,605 
  Acquisition and other transaction costs -   197   -   1,960 
  Depreciation and amortization 91,642   103,909   381,237   432,668 
Income from operations 26,719   3,555   81,281   18,969 
Other income (expense):       
  Interest expense, net of interest income (33,390)  (35,499)  (136,660)  (134,578)
  Gain on extinguishment of debt 3,140   -   4,510   - 
  Other income, net (286)  11,069   27,224   40,911 
Loss before income taxes (3,817)  (20,875)  (23,645)  (74,698)
Income tax expense (benefit) 2,005   (6,877)  (3,714)  (24,127)
Net loss (5,822)  (13,998)  (19,931)  (50,571)
Less: net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest 166   (19)  452   263 
        
Net loss attributable to common shareholders$(5,988) $(13,979) $(20,383) $(50,834)
        
 Net loss per basic and diluted common shares       
  attributable to common shareholders$(0.08) $(0.20) $(0.29) $(0.73)
        


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. 
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows 
  (Dollars in thousands) 
(Unaudited)
         
 Three Months Ended Year Ended 
   December 31, December 31, 
   2019 2018 2019 2018 
OPERATING ACTIVITIES         
 Net loss $(5,822) $(13,998) $(19,931) $(50,571)
 Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by operating activities:         
 Depreciation and amortization 91,642 103,909 381,237 432,668
 Deferred income taxes (5,888) (23,203) (5,249) (26,008)
 Cash distributions from wireless partnerships less than earnings (340) (160) (1,901) (194)
 Pension and post-retirement contributions in excess of expense (246) (5,948) (24,507) (30,361)
 Non-cash, stock-based compensation 1,596 1,365 6,836 5,119
 Amortization of deferred financing 1,253 1,199 4,932 4,721
 Gain on extinguishment of debt (3,140) - (4,510) -
 Other adjustments, net 696 2,251 1,487 6,066
 Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net 10,708 27,870 702 15,881 
 Net cash provided by operating activities 90,459 93,285 339,096 357,321
INVESTING ACTIVITIES        
 Purchase of property, plant and equipment, net (47,860) (58,051) (232,203) (244,816)
 Proceeds from sale of assets 375 485 14,718 2,125
 Proceeds from business dispositions - - - 20,999
 Distributions from investments - - 329 233
 Other (213) - (663) -
 Net cash used in investing activities (47,698) (57,566) (217,819) (221,459)
FINANCING ACTIVITIES        
 Proceeds from issuance of long-term debt 43,000 53,001 195,000 189,588
 Payment of finance lease obligations (2,776) (3,165) (12,519) (12,755)
 Payment on long-term debt (52,587) (51,588) (195,350) (207,938)
 Repurchase of senior notes (23,818) - (49,804) -
 Share repurchases for minimum tax withholding (363) (593) (363) (593)
 Dividends on common stock - (27,601) (55,445) (110,222)
 Net cash used in financing activities (36,544) (29,946) (118,481) (141,920)
Net change in cash and cash equivalents 6,217 5,773 2,796 (6,058)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 6,178 3,826 9,599 15,657
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $12,395 $9,599 $12,395 $9,599
          


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Consolidated Revenue by Category
(Dollars in thousands)
(Unaudited)
            
   Three Months Ended   Year Ended
   December 31,   December 31,
    2019  2018    2019  2018 
Commercial and carrier:           
Data and transport services (includes VoIP)  $89,905 $88,152   $355,325 $349,413 
Voice services   46,510  49,301    188,322  202,875 
Other   12,500  16,389    52,894  56,395 
    148,915  153,842    596,541  608,683 
Consumer:           
Broadband (VoIP and Data)   64,474  63,598    257,083  253,119 
Video services   19,838  21,649    81,378  88,338 
Voice services   44,238  47,597    180,839  202,032 
    128,550  132,844    519,300  543,489 
            
Subsidies   18,122  17,948    72,440  83,371 
Network access   33,056  37,382    138,056  152,582 
Other products and services   2,392  2,734    10,205  10,949 
Total operating revenue   331,035  344,750    1,336,542  1,399,074 
Less operating revenues from divestitures   -  -    -  (3,337)
   $331,035 $344,750   $1,336,542 $1,395,737 
            


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. 
Consolidated Revenue by Category 
(Dollars in thousands) 
(Unaudited) 
             
            
  Three Months Ended  
  Q4 2019 Q3 2019 Q2 2019 Q1 2019 Q4 2018  
Commercial and carrier:            
Data and transport services (includes VoIP) $89,905 $88,756 $88,538 $88,126 $88,152  
Voice services  46,510  46,606  47,136  48,070  49,301  
Other  12,500  11,828  13,390  15,176  16,389  
   148,915  147,190  149,064  151,372  153,842  
Consumer:            
Broadband (VoIP and Data)  64,474  65,456  64,068  63,085  63,598  
Video services  19,838  20,463  20,341  20,736  21,649  
Voice services  44,238  45,487  45,235  45,879  47,597  
   128,550  131,406  129,644  129,700  132,844  
             
Subsidies  18,122  18,025  18,134  18,159  17,948  
Network access  33,056  34,211  34,198  36,591  37,382  
Other products and services  2,392  2,494  2,492  2,827  2,734  
Total operating revenue $331,035 $333,326 $333,532 $338,649 $344,750  
             


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Schedule of Adjusted EBITDA Calculation
(Dollars in thousands)
(Unaudited)
        
        
 Three Months Ended Year Ended
 December 31, December 31,
  2019   2018   2019   2018 
Net loss$(5,822) $(13,998) $(19,931) $(50,571)
Add (subtract):       
  Income tax expense (benefit) 2,005   (6,877)  (3,714)  (24,127)
  Interest expense, net 33,390   35,499   136,660   134,578 
  Depreciation and amortization 91,642   103,909   381,237   432,668 
EBITDA 121,215   118,533   494,252   492,548 
        
Adjustments to EBITDA (1):       
Other, net (2) 3,914   11,552   17,754   34,599 
Investment income (accrual basis) (7,483)  (10,597)  (38,088)  (39,596)
Investment distributions (cash basis) 6,986   10,263   35,809   39,078 
Pension/OPEB expense 7,797   1,249   11,487   5,546 
Gain on extinguishment of debt (3,140)  -   (4,510)  - 
Non-cash compensation (3) 1,596   1,365   6,836   5,119 
Adjusted EBITDA$130,885  $132,365  $523,540  $537,294 
        
Notes:       
(1) These adjustments reflect those required or permitted by the lenders under our credit agreement.
(2)  Other, net includes income attributable to noncontrolling interests, cash distributions less equity earnings from our investments, dividend income, acquisition and non-recurring related costs, gain on the extinguishment of debt and certain miscellaneous items.
(3) Represents compensation expenses in connection with our Restricted Share Plan, which because of the non-cash nature of the expenses are excluded from adjusted EBITDA.


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. 
Schedule of Free Cash Flow Calculation 
(Dollars in thousands) 
(Unaudited) 
         
         
 Three Months Ended Year Ended 
 December 31, December 31, 
  2019   2018   2019   2018  
Net cash provided by operating activities$90,459  $93,285  $339,096  $357,321  
Add (subtract):        
Capital expenditures (47,860)  (58,051)  (232,203)  (244,816) 
Dividends paid -   (27,601)  (55,445)  (110,222) 
Proceeds from the sale of assets 375   485   14,718   23,124  
Free cash flow$42,974  $8,118  $66,166  $25,407  
         


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA Guidance
(Dollars in millions)
(Unaudited)
    
    
 Twelve Months Ended
 December 31, 2020
 Range
 Low High
Net income$40  $50 
Add:   
  Income tax expense 28   33 
  Interest expense, net 135   130 
  Depreciation and amortization 314   309 
EBITDA 517   522 
    
Adjustments to EBITDA (1):   
Other, net (2) (3)  (3)
Pension/OPEB expense (1)  (1)
Non-cash compensation (3) 7   7 
Adjusted EBITDA$520  $525 
    
Notes:   
(1) These adjustments reflect those required or permitted by the lenders under our credit agreement.
(2) Other, net includes income attributable to noncontrolling interests, cash distributions less equity earnings from our investments, dividend income, acquisition and non-recurring related costs, gain on the extinguishment of debt and certain miscellaneous items.
(3) Represents compensation expenses in connection with our Restricted Share Plan, which because of the non-cash nature of the expenses are excluded from adjusted EBITDA.


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Reconciliation of Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities
to Free Cash Flow Guidance
(Dollars in millions)
(Unaudited)
    
    
 Twelve Months Ended
 December 31, 2020
 Range
 Low High
Net cash provided by operating activities$350  $350 
Less capital expenditures (205)  (195)
Free cash flow$145  $155 
    
    
To enhance the information in our outlook with respect to non-GAAP metrics, we are providing a range for certain GAAP measures that are components of the reconciliation of the non-GAAP metrics. The provision of these ranges is in no way meant to indicate that we are explicitly or implicitly providing an outlook on those GAAP components of the reconciliation. In order to reconcile the non-GAAP financial metric to GAAP, we have used ranges for the GAAP components that arithmetically add up to the non-GAAP financial metric. While we feel reasonably comfortable about the outlook for the non-GAAP financial metrics, we fully expect that the ranges used for the GAAP components will vary from actual results. We will consider our outlook of non-GAAP financial metrics to be accurate if the specific non-GAAP metric is met or exceeded, even if the GAAP components of the reconciliation are different from those provided in an earlier reconciliation.


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Total Net Debt to LTM Adjusted EBITDA Ratio
(Dollars in thousands)
(Unaudited)
  
 December 31,
Summary of Outstanding Debt: 2019 
Term loans, net of discount $5,604$1,779,109 
Revolving loan 40,000 
Senior unsecured notes due 2022, net of discount $1,998 443,002 
Finance leases 24,019 
Total debt as of December 31, 2019$2,286,130 
Less deferred debt issuance costs (8,152)
Less cash on hand (12,395)
Total net debt as of December 31, 2019$2,265,583 
  
Adjusted EBITDA for the twelve 
months ended December 31, 2019$523,540 
  
Total Net Debt to last twelve months 
Adjusted EBITDA 4.33x 


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Adjusted Net Income (Loss) and Net Income (Loss) Per Share
(Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)
        
        
 Three Months Ended Year Ended
 December 31, December 31,
  2019   2018   2019   2018 
Net loss$(5,822) $(13,998) $(19,931) $(50,571)
Integration and severance related costs, net of tax 5,712   7,590   17,449   23,986 
Storm costs (recoveries), net of tax 105   282   (171)  1,768 
Gain on extinguishment of debt, net of tax (2,289)  -   (3,288)  - 
Local switching support settlement, net of tax -   -   -   (2,978)
Non-cash interest expense for swaps, net of tax (112)  1,051   (28)  3,480 
Tax related to acquisition -   -   -   1,062 
Divestiture related, tax (1) -   -   -   767 
Change in deferred tax rate 686   (2,763)  686   (2,763)
Change in deferred tax rate, federal tax reform -   (772)  -   (5,169)
Other, tax 1,227   1,340   1,865   1,340 
Non-cash stock compensation, net of tax 1,163   1,020   4,983   3,824 
Adjusted net income (loss)$670  $(6,250) $1,565  $(25,254)
        
Weighted average number of shares outstanding 70,909   70,658   70,837   70,613 
Adjusted diluted net income (loss) per share$0.01  $(0.09) $0.02  $(0.36)
        
Notes:       
        
(1) Includes sale of Virginia properties on July 31, 2018.
        


Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc.
Key Operating Statistics
(Unaudited)
            
   December 31,September 30, % Change  December 31,% Change
    2019   2019  in Qtr  2018  YOY
            
Voice Connections  835,997   854,430  (2.2%)   902,414  (7.4%) 
            
Data and Internet Connections  784,165   784,151  0.0%   778,970  0.7% 
            
Video Connections  84,171   86,446  (2.6%)   93,065  (9.6%) 
            
Business and Broadband as % of total revenue (1) 75.8%   75.6%  0.3%   76.2%  (0.5%) 
            
Fiber route network miles (long-haul and metro)  37,511   37,359  0.4%   36,944  1.5% 
            
On-net buildings  12,264   11,732  4.5%   10,424  17.7% 
            
Consumer Customers  582,818   602,482  (3.3%)   628,649  (7.3%) 
            
Consumer ARPU $73.52  $72.70  1.1%  $70.44  4.4% 
            
            
Notes:          
(1) Business and Broadband revenue % includes: commercial/carrier, equipment sales and service, directory, consumer broadband and special access.