|
|
close window |
|
Bridges' Fiscal Year Revenues Up 33%; EBITDA Up 54%
February 26, 2002 Bridges.com Inc. (TSE:BIT), North America's leading provider of career and educational planning solutions, today reported results for its fiscal year ending November 30, 2001. The following message is from Bridges' CEO and President Doug Manning. CEO'S MESSAGE Bridges has continued to thrive during these turbulent times, growing our business by more than 33% on a year-over-year basis, increasing our organizational effectiveness, and positioning our company to rapidly capitalize on new and existing markets. Despite an unprecedented year of global business disruption and financial market volatility, Bridges continues to deliver exceptional growth, building a successful, self-sustaining business focused on the development and distribution of market-leading products for individuals facing a lifetime of career and educational choices. In addition to these global challenges, Bridges also successfully completed the majority of the integration of our two formerly separate business units: our original legacy business and Careerware. To gain greater organizational efficiencies, 2001 was a year focused on the consolidation and reengineering of technical platforms and the restructuring of our business systems. Revenues for the fourth quarter were $6.96 million, a 12.6% increase from the $6.18 million reported for the same period in fiscal 2000. For the quarter, EBITDA reached $2.51 million, an increase of 80.3% from the $1.39 million reported for Q4, fiscal year 2000. For the fiscal year ending November 30, 2001, revenues climbed to $19.52 million, an increase of 33.5% compared to $14.62 million from the previous fiscal year. EBITDA was $3.27 million, an increase of 54.6% compared to the $2.11 million for fiscal year 2000. Earnings on a year-to-date basis continue to be impacted by Bridges' rapid write-down of goodwill and software costs from the Careerware acquisition, resulting in amortization of $3.76 million and a net loss for 2001 of $1.18 million. Positive cash flow from operating activities of $3.18 million for the fiscal year 2001 resulted in a 14.7% increase compared to the $2.77 million for fiscal year 2000. Bridges continues to maintain a strong balance sheet with cash and short-term investments in excess of $6.95 million. During the fourth quarter Bridges purchased an additional 118,600 of its shares. As of November 30, 2001 a total of 450,000 shares had been purchased under the Normal Course Issuer Bid announced February 21,2001, of which 431,200 shares have already been cancelled. During this year of integration Bridges invested in its future by committing more than $2.7 million in new technology, integrating three different administrative systems into one customer management tool and initiating development of a product infrastructure that enables us to integrate and expand our suite of online product solutions. The integration of our sales force, our business systems, our customer support functions, and our training teams was successfully completed during the year. Bridges enters 2002 stronger and better positioned to grow in our target markets. Business Development Bridges' services are sold directly to educational and government institutions, as well as to individuals and corporations. These distribution channels, supported by our strategic partners, deliver our resources to end users at every point along the continuum of life's career transitions. From elementary students exploring future careers to retirees pursuing their vocational passion, Bridges' services connect people to opportunity. Our focus for 2002 is on increasing our market leading presence, leveraging that position through high margin partnerships and re-deploying our proprietary content to capitalize on adjacent space markets. Bridges is pursuing these three distinct strategies to enhance our growth in 2002. Consolidating our Core Market -- Serving more schools with more products Leveraging our Leading Position -- Offering more services for graduating seniors Re-deploying our Proprietary Content -- Strengthening our reach in adjacent markets Bridges continues to benefit from its significant business momentum, which is further supported by strong fiscal management and excellent productivity from our highly qualified staff. The majority of our integration work is behind us and we have a very clear direction for the business -- seeking to enable people to proactively manage career-life transitions. We have "raised the bar" for the level of service and product quality a school, government agency or corporation can expect in the process of enabling others to create a meaningful future for themselves. Conference Call Bridges will host a conference call and webcast to discuss its financial results for the third fourth quarter and year-end 2001.
To listen to the conference call, please dial 1-800-478-9326 or 1-416-695-5801 ten minutes before the scheduled start of the call. No password is required. If you experience problems during the call or reaching the numbers above, please call Darome Teleconferencing at 1-800-268-9072 or 1-416-695-6740. A live webcast (listen-only mode) at the time of the conference call will be available at: http://www.vcall.com/EventPage.asp?ID=80806. The news release announcing Bridges' Q4 and year-end results will be distributed through Canadian Corporate News before markets open on February 26. The news release will also be posted on Bridges' Web site. Replays of the conference call will be available through midnight on March 12, 2002. A webcast replay will be available at the Web site noted above. Replay information is as follows: Replay: 1-416-695-5800 / 1-800-408-3053 If you have any questions, please contact: Pat Horrill, Bridges.com at 1-250-869-4357 or 1-800-281-1168. |
|
BRIDGES.COM INC. Consolidated Balance Sheets |
November 30, |
|
|
ASSETS |
2001 |
2000 |
Current |
||
|
Cash and cash equivalents |
$6,952,794 |
$8,232,897 |
|
Accounts receivable |
6,611,783 |
5,179,998 |
|
Prepaid expenses and other |
690,369 |
612,415 |
|
14,254,946 |
14,025,310 |
|
|
Capital assets |
4,681,239 |
2,538,408 |
|
Goodwill and other intangibles, net |
3,077,346 |
6,954,379 |
|
Future income taxes |
542,127 |
642,599 |
|
$22,555,658 |
$24,160,696 |
|
LIABILITIES |
||
|
Current |
||
|
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities |
$3,155,955 |
$1,842,467 |
|
Deferred revenue |
3,246,207 |
3,257,961 |
|
Current portion of capital lease obligations |
149,196 |
127,738 |
|
6,551,358 |
5,228,166 |
|
|
Capital lease obligations, net of current portion |
96,001 |
245,213 |
|
6,647,359 |
5,473,379 |
|
|
SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY |
||
|
Common stock |
18,220,754 |
19,643,889 |
|
Deficit |
(2,312,455) |
(956,572) |
|
15,908,299 |
18,687,317 |
|
|
$22,555,658 |
$24,160,696 |
|
|
BRIDGES.COM INC. Consolidated Statements of Operations and Deficit |
||||||
|
Three months ended November 30, |
Years ended November 30, |
|||||
|
2001 Unaudited |
2000 Unaudited |
2001 |
2000 |
|||
|
REVENUE |
$6,957,558 |
$6,180,383 |
$19,524,945 |
$14,626,157 |
||
|
COSTS OF REVENUE |
1,735,781 |
1,924,022 |
5,715,298 |
4,459,760 |
||
|
GROSS MARGIN |
5,221,777 |
4,256,361 |
13,809,647 |
10,166,397 |
||
|
EXPENSES |
||||||
|
Sales and marketing |
1,389,232 |
1,589,492 |
5,925,294 |
4,288,276 |
||
|
Research and development |
190,189 |
181,431 |
632,015 |
725,725 |
||
|
General and administrative |
1,135,111 |
1,095,035 |
3,980,510 |
3,036,676 |
||
|
2,714,532 |
2,865,958 |
10,537,819 |
8,050,677 |
|||
|
EARNINGS BEFORE AMORTIZATION, |
||||||
|
OTHER INCOME AND INCOME TAXES |
2,507,245 |
1,390,403 |
3,271,828 |
2,115,720 |
||
|
Amortization of capital assets |
(410,322) |
(365,662) |
(1,083,962) |
(762,133) |
||
|
Amortization of other intangibles |
(550,175) |
(550,174) |
(2,200,697) |
(1,467,130) |
||
|
Other income |
226,578 |
356,664 |
650,906 |
537,449 |
||
|
EARNINGS BEFORE INCOME TAXES AND |
||||||
|
AMORTIZATION OF GOODWILL |
1,773,326 |
831,231 |
638,075 |
423,906 |
||
|
Income tax expense |
766,753 |
403,877 |
259,158 |
223,731 |
||
|
EARNINGS BEFORE AMORTIZATION OF GOODWILL |
1,006,573 |
427,354 |
378,917 |
200,175 |
||
|
Amortization of goodwill, net of future income taxes |
(302,398) |
(419,084) |
(1,559,649) |
(1,012,599) |
||
|
NET INCOME ( LOSS) |
704,175 |
8,270 |
(1,180,732) |
(812,424) |
||
|
Deficit, Beginning of Period |
(2,932,699) |
(964,843) |
(956,572) |
(144,148) |
||
|
Excess of purchase cost over carrying value of common |
||||||
|
shares cancelled |
(83,931) |
- |
(175,151) |
- |
||
|
Deficit, End of Period |
$(2,312,455) |
$(956,573) |
$(2,312,455) |
$(956,572) |
||
|
Basic earnings before amortization of goodwill per share |
$0.08 |
$0.04 |
$0.03 |
$0.02 |
||
|
Basic and diluted (loss) per share |
$0.05 |
$0.00 |
$(0.09) |
$(0.07) |
||
|
Diluted earnings before amortization of goodwill per share |
$0.07 |
$0.03 |
$0.03 |
$0.01 |
||
BRIDGES.COM
INC. Consolidated Statements |
Three months ended November 30, |
Years ended November 30, |
||
|
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES |
2001 Unaudited |
2000 Unaudited |
2001 |
2000 |
|
Net Income (loss) for the year |
$704,175 |
$8,270 |
$(1,180,732) |
$(812,424) |
|
Items not affecting cash |
||||
|
Amortization of capital assets |
410,322 |
365,662 |
1,083,962 |
762,133 |
|
Amortization of other intangibles |
550,175 |
550,173 |
2,200,697 |
1,467,130 |
|
Amortization of goodwill, net of future income taxes |
302,398 |
314,126 |
1,559,649 |
1,012,599 |
|
Future income taxes |
724,753 |
982,844 |
217,158 |
223,731 |
|
Changes in operating assets and liabilities |
(653,466) |
152,665 |
(699,639) |
119,123 |
|
2,038,357 |
2,373,740 |
3,181,095 |
2,772,292 |
|
|
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES |
||||
|
Acquisition of Careerware |
- |
- |
- |
(11,430,236) |
|
Purchase of capital assets, net of related accounts payable |
(528,544) |
(1,009,124) |
(2,735,160) |
(1,675,702) |
|
(528,544) |
(1,009,124) |
(2,735,160) |
(13,105,938) |
|
|
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES |
||||
|
Issuance of special warrants |
- |
(25,922) |
- |
16,297,486 |
|
Issuance of common shares |
3,157 |
(404,003) |
23,725 |
161,545 |
|
Shares purchased for cancellation |
(55,470) |
- |
(55,470) |
- |
|
Shares purchased and cancelled |
(231,634) |
- |
(816,640) |
- |
|
Repayment of obligations under capital lease |
(33,820) |
(79,500) |
(127,753) |
(79,500) |
|
Advances for share purchase loans |
(548,645) |
- |
(749,900) |
- |
|
(866,412) |
(509,425) |
(1,726,038) |
16,379,531 |
|
|
NET CASH (OUTFLOW) INFLOW DURING THE PERIOD |
643,401 |
855,191 |
(1,280,103) |
6,045,885 |
|
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
6,309,393 |
7,377,706 |
8,232,897 |
2,187,012 |
|
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, END OF PERIOD |
$ 6,952,794 |
$ 8,232,897 |
$ 6,952,794 |
$ 8,232,897 |
|
Supplemental Cash Flow Disclosures: |
||||
|
Interest paid |
$ 9,932 |
$ 47,263 |
$ 50,738 |
$ 50,243 |
|
Supplemental Non-Cash Investing |
||||
|
Capital assets acquired under capital leases |
$ - |
$ 452,451 |
$ - |
$ 452,451 |
|
Common shares issued on conversion of special warrants |
$ - |
$ - |
$ - |
$ 16,297,486 |
|
For a complete set of Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statement please refer to: www.corporate.bridges.com or www.sedar.com. About Bridges Forward-Looking Statements These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, plans and timing for the introduction or enhancement to the company's services and products; expectations concerning future revenue and earnings; market opportunities; general economic and business conditions; loss of key employees; integration of acquisitions; stock market volatility; supply and demand for services offered by Bridges; changes in laws and regulations; Bridges ability to compete successfully, and adapt to technological advances and changing industry standards and other factors. All forward-looking statements in this news release are based on management's reasonable beliefs, intentions and expectations with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions as of the date of this release. In light of the many risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected, the company cannot give assurance that the forward-looking statements contained in this report will be realized. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Bridges assumes no obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent information or events. Contacts:
|
|
|
close window |