Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited - Fourth Quarter 2013 - Period Ended December 31 (unaudited)

DARTMOUTH, N.S., March 3, 2014 /CNW/ - Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited ("Company") today announces its financial results for the fourth quarter ending December 31, 2013.

Highlights

• Revenue in the fourth quarter of $35.6 million improved by 2% or $0.6 million and for the year ended December 31, 2013, revenue of $132.6 million was 3% or $3.3 million higher than 2012.  This improvement came from a combination of organic growth and incremental revenue from the acquired property in Sydney, Nova Scotia and the new FM stations launched in Fredericton and Miramichi, New Brunswick.
  
  
• Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA"⁽¹⁾) of $10.3 million in the quarter were $0.7 million or 6% lower than last year while year-to-date EBITDA was $33.2 million; $0.2 million or 1% lower than 2012.  The reduction in EBITDA was a result of higher operating expenses in the Broadcasting segment due to incremental costs associated with the acquisition and new station launches, costs associated with re-branding a station in Nova Scotia, higher advertising expenses and increased variable costs related to higher revenue and inflation.
  
  
• Profit for the fourth quarter of $10.3 million was $2.9 million or 39% higher than the same quarter last year due primarily to the $3.8 million gain on disposal of the Fort McMurray, Alberta operations. There were several factors impacting profit year-over-year which at $27.0 million was $16.1 million or 148% higher than 2012.  This year, the Company recognized the gain on disposal of Fort McMurray operations, benefited from lower mark-to-market unrealized losses in addition to a $5.3 million reduction of the income tax provision.  In contrast during 2012, the Company recorded a net impairment charge of $6.6 million, and $2.2 million of mark-to-market unrealized losses which negatively impacted profit.

Significant events

• In December, the Company finalized the sale of CHFT-FM in Fort McMurray, Alberta for cash proceeds of $5.0 million plus an amount for certain working capital balances.
• In December the Board of Directors declared dividends totaling $0.09 per share, bringing the total dividends declared for 2013 to $0.15 per share which was on par with 2012.
• Subsequent to year end, the CRTC approved two new FM licences to serve Fox Creek and Hinton, Alberta. These stations will be launched later in 2014.

"The Company maintained a healthy 3% revenue increase over last year in contrast to the radio industry which experienced flat growth in 2013", commented Rob Steele, President and Chief Executive Officer.  "2014 will be a transformational year for us having entered into the largest acquisition in the Company's history to acquire radio stations in Canada's largest markets, Toronto and Vancouver.  If approved by the CRTC, management's attention will be focused on effectively integrating the operations of these radio stations so that results are accretive immediately."

Financial Highlights - Fourth quarter
(thousands of dollars except share information)		2013		2012
Revenue	$	35,649		35,099
EBITDA^(1)		10,331		11,024
Profit for the period		10,295		7,405
Earnings per share - basic		0.37		0.25
Earnings per share - diluted		0.35		0.24
Share price, NCC.A (closing)		8.75		9.00
Weighted average number of shares outstanding (in thousands)		28,128		29,168
Total assets		235,605		232,396
Long-term debt		42,642		47,904
Shareholders' equity		133,785		119,128

The Company's annual audited consolidated financial statements along with related notes and the annual Management's Discussion and Analysis are available on the Company's website at www.ncc.ca and www.sedar.com.  The Company's Annual Report will be available on the Company's website at www.ncc.ca and www.sedar.com by March 27, 2014.

(1) Non-IFRS Accounting Measure 

EBITDA is a measure that is not defined by International Financial Reporting Standards and is not standardized for public issuers.  This measure may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other public enterprises.  The Company believes this is an important measure because the Company's key decision makers use this measure internally to evaluate the performance of management. The Company's key decision makers also believe certain investors use it as a measure of the Company's financial performance and for valuation purposes.  A calculation of this measure is found in the Company's annual Management's Discussion and Analysis.

About Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited

Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited (TSX: NCC.A, NCC.B) is one of Canada's leading radio broadcasters with 89 licences across Canada.  The Company reaches millions of listeners each week through a variety of formats and is a recognized industry leader in radio programming, sales and networking.

This press release contains forward-looking statements.  These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations.  The use of terminology such as "expect", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "may", "will", "should", "would", "plan" and other similar terminology relate to, but are not limited to, our objectives, goals, plans, strategies, intentions, outlook and estimates.   By their very nature, these statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. As a result, there is no guarantee that any forward-looking statements will materialize and readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these statements. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE: Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited

REF: Robert G. Steele, President and Chief Executive Officer, Scott G.M. Weatherby, Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary, Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited, 745 Windmill Road, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia B3B 1C2, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], e-mail: [email protected], Web: www.ncc.ca