Business News
R.H. Donnelley Reports Third Quarter 2009 Results
Wednesday 04. November 2009 - - Net Revenue of $534 Million - Adjusted EBITDA of $265 Million - Adjusted Free Cash Flow of $227 Million
R.H. Donnelley Corporation, one of the nation’s leading consumer and business-to-business local commercial search companies, today reported third quarter 2009 net revenue of $534 million, representing an 18 percent decline from third quarter 2008. Adjusted EBITDA(1) in the quarter was $265 million, down 21 percent from third quarter 2008. Adjusted free cash flow in the quarter was $227 million – based on cash flow from operations of $232 million, capital expenditures of $8 million and $3 million related to reorganization and restructuring costs – up from $108 million in third quarter 2008, primarily due to the termination of bond interest payments during bankruptcy. Third quarter advertising sales were $420 million, down 21 percent from advertising sales in the third quarter 2008. Net income was $24 million in the quarter compared to net income of $26 million in third quarter 2008.
“While there are preliminary signs of stabilization, the local ad sales environment remained difficult in the third quarter,” said David C. Swanson, Chairman and CEO of R.H. Donnelley. “Nevertheless, we aggressively managed the aspects of the business that we can control. For example, operating costs in the third quarter were down $45 million year-over-year; we are increasing our customer focus throughout the organization; and we continue to enhance our online and mobile solutions to help local businesses in our markets reach active consumers wherever they are searching. We expect that these efforts, in addition to implementing a more sustainable capital structure, will help us emerge from Chapter 11 as a stronger company in early 2010.”
Important information regarding operating results and related reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP measures can be found in the schedules and related footnotes of this press release, which should be thoroughly reviewed. In addition, the forthcoming quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2009 for R.H. Donnelley and its subsidiaries that are SEC registrants should be carefully examined as they will contain important information, including the financial impact of filing voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Advertising sales is a statistical measure and consists of sales of advertising in print directories distributed during the period and Internet-based products and services with respect to which such advertising first appeared publicly during the period. It is important to distinguish advertising sales from net revenue, which is recognized under the deferral and amortization method.
Helping Local Small- and Medium-Sized Businesses Reach More Customers
R.H. Donnelley’s integrated Dex product solutions extend the marketing reach of local businesses. Through its unique Dex Advantage, customers’ business information is leveraged and marketed through a single profile, and efficiently distributed via a variety of local search products. Dex ensures advertisers’ business content and messages are found wherever, whenever and however consumers choose to search. The Dex Advantage spans multiple media platforms for local advertisers including print with the Dex directories; online and mobile devices with DexKnows.com; voice-activated directory search at 1-800-Call-Dex; and leading search engines and other online sites via Dex Net.