GeoEye Reports Record 2009 Third Quarter Results

09 November 2009, 9:35pm

DULLES, Va., Nov. 9 - GeoEye, Inc. (NASDAQ: GEOY), a premier provider of satellite and aerial-based geospatial information and services, announced today results for its fiscal third quarter ended September 30, 2009.

THIRD QUARTER RESULTS

Total revenues were $79.9 million for the third quarter of 2009, a 123% increase from $35.8 million for the third quarter of 2008. Net income for the third quarter of 2009 was $12.5 million, or $0.61 per fully diluted share, compared to net income of $31.6 million, or $1.57 per fully diluted share, for the third quarter of 2008. The 2008 third quarter earnings included a $27.8 million non-recurring net tax benefit which amounted to $1.38 per share of net income.

Revenues related to contracts with the U.S. Government, the Company's largest customer, were $53.6 million for the third quarter of 2009, representing 67% of total revenues for the period. Domestic revenues were $57.9 million for the third quarter of 2009, which were 72.5% of total revenues for the period. International revenues were $22.0 million for the third quarter of 2009, which were 27.5% of total revenues for the period. Domestic revenues increased 186% for the third quarter of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008, and international revenues increased 41.3% for the third quarter of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008.

Operating profit for the third quarter of 2009 increased $19.3 million from the third quarter of 2008 to $27.7 million. Operating margin was 34.7% for the third quarter of 2009 compared to 23.5% in the same period in 2008. Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measurement defined as net income before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, and non-cash recognition of stock compensation expense, increased approximately $32.3 million to approximately $44.5 million for the third quarter of 2009 from $12.2 million the same period in 2008. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 55.7% for the third quarter of 2009 compared to 34.0% for the same period in 2008.

The Company ended the third quarter of 2009 with unrestricted cash and cash equivalents of $123.6 million, total assets of $812.1 million, and stockholders' equity of $257.6 million and long-term debt of $248.0 million.

NINE MONTH RESULTS

Total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2009 were $197.9 million, an 86.7% increase from $106.0 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2008. The Company's Adjusted EBITDA for the nine month period ended September 30, 2009 was $95.5 million, an increase of 213.8% from the same period in 2008. Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2009 was $20.3 million, or $0.99 per fully diluted share, as compared to net income of $30.3 million, or $1.49 per fully diluted share, in the same period of 2008. The 2008 number includes $23.7 million of non-recurring net tax benefits which amounts to $1.17 per share of net income.

FISCAL YEAR 2009 FINANCIAL OUTLOOK

Matt O'Connell, Chief Executive Officer and President, commented, "We're very pleased with our third quarter results. We experienced very strong year-over-year revenue growth, cash flow growth, solid operating performance in our business and superior EPS results.

"We continued to ramp our revenues from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (the NGA) contract in the third quarter, which was attributable to GeoEye-1's best-in-class operating capabilities. We successfully negotiated terms of an extension to our existing Service Level Agreement with the NGA that will take us through March 31, 2010, with an option by the NGA to extend the agreement through December 2010. We successfully completed a $400.0 million notes offering that closed in October. This notes offering process was a very positive event in that it laid the foundation for the Company's growth over the next three to five years.

"With the healthy mix of U.S. Government agency and commercial contracts, and the growth of our international business, we believe we have strong visibility into the fourth quarter of 2009. GeoEye currently expects fiscal 2009 revenue to be between $275.0 million to $280.0 million, with adjusted EBITDA (excluding a non-recurring charge related to the extinguishment of debt) in the range of $133.0 million to $137.0 million, and proforma EPS in a range of $1.30 per share to $1.45 per share (excluding a non-recurring charge related to the extinguishment of debt). These estimates represent management's current expectations about the Company's future financial performance, based on information available at this time."

GeoEye, Inc.

Geo: International