Autobytel Reports Record Net Income & Revenue for Fourth Quarter and Year End 2003
IRVINE, Calif.--Jan. 2, 20049, 2004--| Quarterly Net Income Increases to $3.8 Million; Quarterly Revenue Increases to $23.9 Million |
Autobytel Inc. , a leading Internet automotive marketing services company, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2003.
Highlights for the quarter:
-- Net income of $3.8 million, or $0.09 per share, a 126% sequential increase.
-- Full year 2003 net income of $7.4 million, or $0.20 per share, compared to a net loss of $(20.7) million, or $(0.67) per share, for the full year 2002.
-- Cash generation of $2.7 million with cash balance of $61.6 million at the end of Q4, versus $58.9 million at the end of Q3.
-- Revenues of $23.9 million, representing the highest reported quarterly revenues in the Company's history -- a 4% growth sequentially and 20% growth year over year.
-- Twice as many retail dealers added in Q4 versus Q3; churn rate decreases to 7.2%, lowest in two years.
"We are pleased to report record revenue and profits for the quarter. With over 29,000 franchise dealer relationships, Autobytel's reach and influence in the world's largest marketing category continues to grow," said Autobytel President and CEO Jeffrey Schwartz. "This past year -- which was the first full year of profits in the company's history -- demonstrated the unique leverage and financial benefits of our business model, which should become further evident in the coming year."
Autobytel reported net income for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2003 of $3.8 million, or $0.09 per share. Included in net income was a $0.9 million decrease in the allowance for bad debts and $0.8 million for settlement with a former employee of Autoweb. Fourth quarter net income represents a 126% increase over net income of $1.7 million, or $0.04 per share, reported for the third quarter ended September 30, 2003 and a 715% increase over net income of $0.5 million or $0.01 per share for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2002.
Revenues for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2003 totaled $23.9 million, a 4% sequential increase over revenues of $23.0 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2003 and a 20% increase over revenues of $20.0 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2002.
The Company generated $2.7 million in cash from operations during the fourth quarter of 2003, including $0.5 million from a settlement with an ex-employee of Autoweb. The Company's cash balance, including short and long term cash investments of $10.0 million, was $61.6 million as of December 31, 2003, versus $58.9 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2003.
For fiscal year 2003, net income was $7.4 million or $0.20 per share compared to a net loss of $(20.7) million, or $(0.67) per share for fiscal year 2002. For fiscal year 2003, revenues were $88.9 million, a 10% increase over 2002 revenues of $80.9 million.
Highlights for the Fourth Quarter
Revenues: Fourth quarter revenues were $23.9 million, of which $14.7 million were related to Program Fees; $4.3 million were related to Enterprise Sales; $3.2 million were related to Advertising, and $1.8 million were related to Other Products and Services.
Operating Expenses: Total operating expenses, including depreciation and amortization, in the fourth quarter were $21.1 million. Sales and marketing expenses totaled $13.4 million, including traffic acquisition costs. Product development and technology costs totaled $5.0 million. General and administrative costs totaled $2.8 million.
Unique Visitor Count: Autobytel's four Web sites -- Autobytel.com, Autoweb.com, Carsmart.com and AutoSite.com -- ranked as the most visited new car buying and research network for 2003, with over 8.4 million average monthly unique visitors in the fourth quarter, as reported by comScore Media Metrix.
Purchase Requests: The Company delivered approximately 765,000 Purchase Requests during the fourth quarter compared to 763,000 Purchase Requests delivered in the third quarter of 2003.
Dealer Count: The Company reported approximately 29,000 dealer relationships in the fourth quarter. Included in this number are about 24,000 relationships in the lead referral category, of which 5,300 were program dealer relationships and 18,700 were enterprise relationships. Additionally, about 5,000 relationships were in the CRM tools and services category.
"The Company added 186 program dealer relationships, doubling the number of adds during the previous quarter. I am pleased with our continued progress in adding program dealers, and our churn rate is at its lowest point in two years," said Schwartz. "Adding dealers and reducing churn while improving pricing and margin demonstrates that we are seeing a favorable alignment of our marketing, sales and product efforts."
Advertising Revenues: Revenues from online advertising for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2003 were $3.2 million, a 14% sequential increase over revenues of $2.8 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2003 and a 27% increase over revenues of $2.5 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2002.
CRM: AVV successfully launched its Web Control(R) program with Mitsubishi Motors, which offers a customized version of the customer management tool to Mitsubishi dealers nationwide. Autobytel's customer loyalty and retention program, RPM(SM), ended the quarter with 379 dealers and now has ten automotive manufacturers who endorse and co-opt the program, setting the stage for continued growth in 2004.
Headcount: Headcount remained flat at 333 employees as of December 31, 2003.
Quality Initiatives: Closing ratios for Autobytel's program dealers remained strong at 17% and the Company developed several new quality programs. During the quarter, Autobytel's eLearning online dealership training program was rolled-out successfully to hundreds of dealers. In addition, Autobytel's Gold Medal Dealer program -- which recognizes, encourages and rewards dealers who provide exceptional customer service -- was developed and will be launched in February 2004. Finally, the Company has commenced the training and certification of each of its 60 Account Managers to provide dealership Performance Coaching.
"We believe that today's results reflect our ongoing focus on improving operations and raising the quality and integrity of our products and services," continued Schwartz. "There are no shortcuts to accomplishment. By focusing on the long-term character and quality of our business -- and because we have both the discipline and financial resources to do so -- we have been able to lay the foundation for the strategy that we believe wins in the marketplace over time."
Conference Call
In conjunction with Autobytel Inc.'s fourth quarter 2003 earnings release, there will be a conference call broadcast live over the Internet today, January 29, 2004, at 4:00 PM EST (1:00 PM PST). The webcast will be archived within 2 hours of the end of the call until the next quarter's earnings announcement. The link to the webcast conference is as follows:
http://www.irconnect.com/abtl/conf/4q2003.html
About Autobytel Inc.
Autobytel Inc. , a leading Internet automotive marketing services company, helps retailers sell cars and manufacturers build brands through marketing, advertising and CRM (customer relationship management) tools and programs. The Company owns and operates the automotive Web sites Autobytel.com, Autoweb.com, Carsmart.com and AutoSite.com, as well as AIC (Automotive Information Center), a leading provider of automotive marketing data and technology. Autobytel is the industry leader in dealership lead management and CRM solutions and owns and operates AVV, Inc., a leading provider of dealership CRM and data extraction services. Autobytel generates over a billion dollars a month in car sales for dealers through its services and was the most visited new car buying and research destination in 2003, reaching millions of car-shoppers as they made their vehicle buying decisions.
Autobytel Inc.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(Dollar amounts in thousands, except share and per share data)
ASSETS
December 31, September 30, December 31,
2003 2003 2002
(unaudited) (unaudited)
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $51,643 $58,924 $27,571
Short-term cash investments 3,991 - -
Accounts receivable, net of
allowance for bad debts and
customer credits of $2,066,
$3,808, and $4,214,
respectively 10,587 8,265 6,757
Prepaid expenses and other
current assets 903 1,450 3,495
Total current assets 67,124 68,639 37,823
Long-term cash investments 6,000 - -
Property and equipment, net 2,138 2,222 2,088
Capitalized software, net 1,024 1,294 2,105
Investment in unconsolidated
subsidiary 2,810 2,689 4,745
Goodwill 16,830 16,930 8,367
Other assets 400 443 96
Total assets $96,326 $92,217 $55,224
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable $4,063 $4,453 $3,529
Accrued expenses 5,034 5,110 4,795
Deferred revenues 3,720 3,243 3,575
Customer deposits - - 76
Accrued restructuring -
current 258 178 223
Capital lease obligations -
current - 86 -
Other current liabilities 441 346 349
Total current liabilities 13,516 13,416 12,547
Accrued restructuring - non
current - 127 255
Capital lease obligations -
non-current - 39 -
Total liabilities 13,516 13,582 12,802
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders' equity:
Preferred stock, $0.001 par
value; 11,445,187 shares
authorized - - -
Common stock, $0.001 par
value; 200,000,000 shares
authorized; 37,786,767,
37,539,529, and
31,195,681 shares
issued and outstanding,
respectively 38 37 31
Additional paid-in capital 236,544 236,134 203,623
Accumulated other
comprehensive loss - - (40)
Accumulated deficit (153,772) (157,536) (161,192)
Total stockholders'
equity 82,810 78,635 42,422
Total liabilities and
stockholders' equity $96,326 $92,217 $55,224
Autobytel Inc.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(Dollar amounts in thousands, except share and per share data)
(unaudited)
Three Months Ended Year Ended
December 31, December 31,
2003 2002 2003 2002
Revenues:
Program fees $14,656 $13,133 $56,141 $58,008
Enterprise sales 4,265 3,524 15,184 10,504
Advertising 3,169 2,493 11,819 7,914
Other products and
services 1,840 860 5,799 4,429
Total revenues 23,930 20,010 88,943 80,855
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing 13,376 11,958 52,646 49,082
Product and
technology
development 4,972 5,486 18,723 22,695
General and
administrative 2,823 2,209 11,461 9,876
Autobytel.Europe
restructuring and
impairment charges - - - 15,015
Domestic restructuring
charges and other
benefits, net (27) - (27) 1,800
Total operating
expenses 21,144 19,653 82,803 98,468
Income (loss) from
operations 2,786 357 6,140 (17,613)
Loss on
recapitalization of
Autobytel.Europe - - - (4,168)
Interest income 112 86 316 686
Foreign currency
exchange gain (loss) - - 10 (2)
Income (loss) in equity
investees 121 - 217 (434)
Other income (expense) 745 19 745 (43)
Income (loss) before
minority interest
and income taxes 3,764 462 7,428 (21,574)
Minority interest - - - 866
Income (loss) before
income taxes 3,764 462 7,428 (20,708)
Provision for income
taxes - - 8 6
Net income (loss) $3,764 $462 $7,420 $(20,714)
Net income (loss) per
share:
Basic $0.10 $0.01 $0.22 $(0.67)
Diluted $0.09 $0.01 $0.20 $(0.67)
Shares used in
computing net income
(loss) per share:
Basic 37,670,478 31,194,007 34,508,035 31,143,099
Diluted 41,898,181 32,034,853 37,625,645 31,143,099
Comprehensive income
(loss):
Net income (loss) $3,764 $462 $7,420 $(20,714)
Translation
adjustment - 1 40 (512)
Comprehensive
income (loss) $3,764 $463 $7,460 $(21,226)
Autobytel Inc.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(Dollar amounts in thousands, except share and per share data)
(unaudited)
Three Months Ended Year Ended
December 31, December 31,
2003 2002 2003 2002
Cash flows from operating
activities:
Net income (loss) $3,764 $462 $7,420 $(20,714)
Adjustments to reconcile net
income (loss) to net cash
provided
by (used in) operating
activities:
Non-cash charges:
Depreciation and
amortization 708 647 2,608 3,366
Provision (recovery) for
bad debt (917) 252 (568) 1,220
(Gain) loss on disposal of
property and equipment 38 (9) 38 41
Stock based compensation - - 51 20
Autobytel.Europe
restructuring and
impairment - - - 15,015
Loss on recapitalization
of Autobytel.Europe - - - 4,168
(Income) loss in equity
investees (121) (61) (217) 434
Minority interest - - - (866)
Write-down of capitalized
software costs - 79 - 1,937
Changes in assets and
liabilities:
Accounts receivable (1,405) 989 (2,449) 770
Prepaid expenses and other
current assets 547 (409) 2,617 908
Other assets (2) - 21 58
Accounts payable (390) (1,122) 388 (5,541)
Accrued expenses (76) 616 (457) (3,123)
Deferred revenues 477 (232) 145 (1,133)
Customer deposits - (7) (76) (16)
Accrued restructuring -
current 80 (23) 35 (88)
Other current liabilities 95 94 68 106
Accrued restructuring -
non current (127) (64) (255) 255
Net cash provided by
(used in) operating
activities 2,671 1,212 9,369 (3,183)
Cash flows from investing
activities:
Deconsolidation of
Autobytel.Europe - - - (28,163)
Acquisition of business, net
of cash acquired 100 - (4,852) -
Purchases of short and
long-term cash investments (9,991) - (9,991) -
Decrease in restricted cash - (28) 28 (28)
Return of investment
(investment) in foreign
entities - - 2,152 (400)
Purchases of property and
equipment (354) (172) (1,057) (1,087)
Proceeds from sale of
property and equipment 7 12 7 168
Capitalized software costs - - - (1,412)
Net cash used in
investing activities (10,238) (188) (13,713) (30,922)
Cash flows from financing
activities:
Capital lease payments (125) - (157) -
Net proceeds from sale of
common stock 411 10 28,561 323
Net cash provided by
financing activities 286 10 28,404 323
Effect of exchange rates on
cash - 1 40 (512)
Net increase (decrease) in
cash and cash equivalents (7,281) 1,035 24,100 (34,294)
Cash and cash equivalents,
beginning of period 58,924 26,508 27,543 61,837
Cash and cash equivalents, end
of period $51,643 $27,543 $51,643 $27,543
Supplemental disclosure of
cash flow information:
Cash paid during the period
for income taxes $- $- $8 $6
Cash paid during the period
for interest $13 $1 $18 $2