Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. Reports Results for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2019
April 30, 2019
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-- - Net revenues decreased 7% at actual rates but increased 2% at constant rates to US$ 146.6 million -
- Operating income increased 12% at actual rates and 23% at constant rates to US$ 27.6 million -
- OIBDA increased 8% at actual rates and 18% at constant rates to US$ 38.1 million -
HAMILTON, Bermuda--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. ( CME or the Company ) (NASDAQ/Prague Stock Exchange - CETV) today announced financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2019.
Operational and financial highlights:
TV advertising revenues decreased 10% at actual rates and 2% at constant rates in the quarter. In the first four months of 2019, which normalizes the phasing of spending around Easter, TV ad revenues are estimated to have increased 3% at constant rates compared to the same period in 2018.
Carriage fees and subscription revenues increased 4% at actual rates and 12% at constant rates in the first quarter.
Costs charged in arriving at OIBDA decreased 11% at actual rates and 3% at constant rates.
OIBDA margin increased by 360 basis points to 26%.
Cash generated from continuing operating activities increased 34% at actual rates to US$ 96.0 million.
Unlevered free cash flow increased 33% at actual rates to US$ 94.7 million.
CME repaid EUR 60 million of debt from cash generated by the business, which together with the improvement in our operations reduced our net leverage ratio to 3.0x at the end of March from 3.5x at the start of the year.
Michael Del Nin, Co-Chief Executive Officer, commented: The year has gotten off to an outstanding start, exceeding our previous expectations to such an extent that we are raising our guidance for 2019. With the highest Q1 margin in more than a decade, an 18% improvement in like-for-like OIBDA, and a more than 30% surge in unlevered free cash flow, these are among the best Q1 results in the history of the company. Furthermore, they are bolstered by around 20% growth in TV ad revenues in our two largest markets in April, pushing year-to-date sales well into positive territory after the first quarter was impacted by both sector taxes in Romania and the phasing of spending related to the timing of Easter this year.
Christoph Mainusch, Co-Chief Executive Officer, added: With the successful launch of the spring season during the first quarter, our main channel in four countries increased year-to-date audience share in both prime time and all day. Carriage fees have transformed the predictability and profitability of several of our businesses, with four segments now seeing margins of more than 25% in Q1. Facing various headwinds in the quarter, we grew our TV ad revenues in three segments, and we increased market share in four of five countries.
In this release we refer to several non-GAAP financial measures, including OIBDA, OIBDA margin, free cash flow, unlevered free cash flow and constant currency percentage movements. Please see Non-GAAP Financial Measures below for additional information, including definitions and reconciliations to US GAAP financial measures.
Consolidated results for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and 2018 were:
(US$ 000s, except per share data) For the Three Months Ended March 31,
(unaudited)
2019
2018
% Actual
% Lfl (1)
Net revenues $ 146,559 $ 156,709 (6.5)% 1.6%
Operating income 27,637 24,581 12.4% 23.2%
Operating margin 18.9 % 15.7 % 3.2 p.p. 3.3 p.p.
OIBDA 38,057 35,324 7.7% 17.7%
OIBDA margin 26.0 % 22.5 % 3.5 p.p. 3.6 p.p.
Income from continuing operations 11,751 6,756 73.9% 96.6%
Income from continuing operations per share - basic 0.03 0.02 86.9% 127.0%
Income from continuing operations per share - diluted $ 0.03 $ 0.01 144.8% 197.3%
(1) % Lfl (like-for-like) variance reflects the impact of applying the current period average exchange rates to the prior period revenues and costs.
Teleconference and Audio Webcast Details
CME will host a teleconference and audio webcast to discuss its first quarter results on Tuesday, April 30, 2019 at 9 a.m. New York time (2 p.m. London and 3 p.m. Prague time). The audio webcast and teleconference will refer to presentation slides which will be available on CMEs website at www.cme.net prior to the call.
To access the teleconference, U.S. and international callers may dial +1-647-689-5402 ten minutes prior to the start time and reference conference ID 2273725. The conference call will also be audio webcasted via www.cme.net. It can be heard on iPads, iPhones and a range of devices supporting Android and Windows operating systems.
A digital audio replay of the webcast will be available for two weeks following the call at www.cme.net.
Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements. For all forward-looking statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which cannot be predicted with accuracy or are otherwise beyond our control and some of which might not even be anticipated. Forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and because our business is subject to such risks and uncertainties, actual results, our strategic plan, our financial position, results of operations and cash flows could differ materially from those described in or contemplated by the forward-looking statements.
Important factors that contribute to such risks include, but are not limited to, those factors set forth under
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Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. Reports Results for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2019 
