MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC–(Marketwired – May 5, 2016) – New Look Vision Group Inc. (TSX:BCI) (“New Look Vision”), announced today its financial results for the first quarter ended March 26, 2016 and its quarterly dividend.
First quarter results
New Look Vision reported record first quarter revenues of $44.6 million and adjusted EBITDA(1) of $7.3 million for the quarter ended March 26, 2016 representing increases of 6.7% and 8.5% respectively over last year. The increases were mainly due to the net addition of 14 stores since the beginning of 2016 as well as to same store sales growth. Same store sales for the quarter increased by 1.2% over last year.
Adjusted net earnings attributed to shareholders(1) for the first quarter, that is net earnings adjusted to remove the impact of acquisition-related costs, increased by 18.9% which resulted in a per share amount of $0.15(2) compared to $0.13 last year. Without the adjustments, net earnings per share for the first quarter were $0.13 compared to $0.12 last year. These figures reflect the improvement in EBITDA and lower financial expenses.
Cash flows from operating activities (before changes in working capital items) were $4.0 million or $0.29 per share(2) in the first quarter of 2016 compared to $6.1 million or $0.44 per share last year. The difference is attributable to the payments of estimated balances of income taxes for 2015 along with instalments for 2016. Excluding 2015 tax instalments paid, the cash flow from operating activities (before changes in working capital items) would have been $6.3 million, which is $0.2 million or 3.3% above last year. Cash flows before income taxes paid and changes in working capital were $6.74 million in this quarter as compared to $6.65 million last year.
More detail on the financial performance of the first quarter are available in the attachments.
President’s comments
Antoine Amiel, the President of New Look Vision, stated that: “Q1 was a solid quarter with respect to operating and financial results, as we focused on operations and integration of the various acquisitions completed since December 2013.
During the quarter, we closed the acquisition of 16 optical clinics, 15 of which are located in the strategic southwestern Ontario market. We continue to aggressively monitor opportunities arising from the ongoing consolidation of the Canadian retail optical industry.”
Dividend approval
Following the approval of the results of the first quarter of 2016 and taking into account the solid cash inflows from operations in the quarter, the Board of Directors of New Look Vision approved the payment of a dividend of $0.15 per Class A common shares payable on June 30, 2016 to the shareholders of record as of June 22, 2016. The dividend has been designated as an “eligible dividend”, that is a dividend entitling shareholders who are Canadian resident individuals to a higher dividend tax credit.
Through the dividend reinvestment plan, shareholders residing in Canada may elect to re-invest their cash dividends into New Look Vision shares, without incurring brokerage commissions, fees and transaction costs. Until any further announcement, shares will be issued from treasury at 95% of the weighted average trading price for the five days preceding the dividend payment date. Any shareholder wishing to benefit from this opportunity may do so through his or her broker.
Attachments
- Table A – Highlights
- Table B – Consolidated Statement of Earnings
- Table C – Reconciliation of Net Earnings to Adjusted EBITDA
- Table D – Reconciliation of Net Earnings to Adjusted Net Earnings
| (1) | EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net earnings are not recognized measures under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures used by other entities. See Table C and Table D attached for a reconciliation of net earnings to these measures. |
| (2) | Per share amounts are expressed on a diluted basis. |
As of May 5, 2016, New Look Vision had 13,531,272 Class A common shares issued and outstanding. New Look Vision is a leader in the eye care industry in Eastern Canada having a network of 212 corporate stores mainly under the New Look Eyewear, Vogue Optical, Greiche & Scaff and iVision banners and laboratory facilities using state-of-the-art technologies. Tax information regarding payments to shareholders is available at www.newlookvision.ca in the Investors section.
All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this press release are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding the future financial position, business strategy, projected costs and plans and objectives of, or involving New Look Vision. Readers can identify many of these statements by looking for words such as “believe”, “expects”, “will”, “intends”, “projects”, “anticipates”, “estimates”, “plans”, “may”, “would” or similar words or the negative thereof. There can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which these forward-looking statements are based will be achieved. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Although management of New Look Vision believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Some of the factors which could affect future results and could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements contained herein include: pending and proposed legislative or regulatory developments, competition from established competitors and new market entrants, technological change, interest rate fluctuations, general economic conditions, acceptance and demand for new products and services, and fluctuations in operating results, as well as other risks included in New Look Vision’s current Annual Information Form (AIF) which can be found at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and New Look Vision undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise, except as provided by law.
For additional information please see our Web site www.newlookvision.ca.
| TABLE A |
| NEW LOOK VISION GROUP INC. |
| Highlights |
| for the first quarters ended March 26, 2016 and March 28, 2015 |
| In thousands of Canadian dollars, except per share amounts |
| 2016 | 2015 | ||||
| Revenues | $44,590 | $41,785 | |||
| Variance | 6.7 | % | |||
| Variance in comparable store sales orders(a) | 1.2 | % | |||
| Adjusted EBITDA(b) | $7,270 | $6,702 | |||
| Variance | 8.5 | % | |||
| % of revenues | 16.3 | % | 16.0 | % | |
| Per share (diluted) | $0.53 | $0.49 | |||
| Variance | 8.2 | % | |||
| Net earnings attributed to shareholders | $1,839 | $1,631 | |||
| Variance | 12.8 | % | |||
| Net earnings per share | |||||
| Basic | $0.14 | $0.12 | |||
| Diluted | $0.13 | $0.12 | |||
| Variance | 8.3 | % | |||
| Adjusted net earnings attributed to shareholders(b) | $2,085 | $1,753 | |||
| Variance | 18.9 | % | |||
| Per share (diluted) | $0.15 | $0.13 | |||
| Variance | 15.4 | % | |||
| Cash flows from operating activities, before changes in working capital items | $4,018 | $6,091 | |||
| Per share (diluted) | $0.29 | $0.44 | |||
| Variance | (34.1 | )% | |||
| Capital expenditures(c) | $20,165 | $1,687 | |||
| Net debt increase (decrease) in the period(d) | $17,493 | ($2,402 | ) | ||
| Cash dividend per share(e) | $0.15 | $0.15 | |||
| Total dividends(e) | $2,028 | $2,003 | |||
| At end of period | |||||
| Number of stores(f) | 207 | 193 | |||
| (a) | Comparable stores are stores which have been operating for at least 12 months. Revenues are recognized at time of delivery of goods to customers, but management measures the comparable store performance on the basis of sales orders, regardless of delivery. |
| (b) | EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net earnings are not recognized measures under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures used by other entities. Refer to Table C and Table D for a reconciliation of these measures to net earnings. |
| (c) | Capital expenditures include amounts financed through debt assumptions, balances of purchase price, issuance of shares and non-controlling interests. |
| (d) | Net debt refers to the total of the long-term debt, including the short-term portion and borrowings under the revolving facility, and dividends payable, in excess of cash. |
| (e) | The amounts of dividends shown in the table above refer to amounts declared in the periods. |
| (f) | The increase in the number of stores in 2016 reflects the acquisition of 16 stores, as well as two scheduled closures. |
| TABLE B |
| NEW LOOK VISION GROUP INC. |
| Consolidated Statement of Earnings |
| for the first quarters ended March 26, 2016 and March 28, 2015 |
| In thousands of Canadian dollars, except per share amounts |
| 2016 | 2015 | |||
| $ | $ | |||
| Revenues | 44,590 | 41,785 | ||
| Materials consumed | 9,691 | 9,003 | ||
| Employee remuneration expenses | 15,335 | 14,396 | ||
| Other operating expenses | 12,881 | 11,837 | ||
| Earnings before depreciation, amortization, loss on disposal and financial expenses | 6,683 | 6,549 | ||
| Depreciation, amortization and loss on disposal | 2,799 | 2,721 | ||
| Financial expenses, net of interest revenues | 947 | 1,464 | ||
| Earnings before income taxes | 2,937 | 2,364 | ||
| Income taxes | ||||
| Current | 1,128 | 382 | ||
| Deferred | (55 | ) | 332 | |
| Total income taxes | 1,073 | 714 | ||
| Net earnings and comprehensive income | 1,864 | 1,650 | ||
| Net earnings and comprehensive income attributed to: | ||||
| Non-controlling interest | 25 | 19 | ||
| Shareholders of New Look Vision | 1,839 | 1,631 | ||
| 1,864 | 1,650 | |||
| Net earnings per share | ||||
| Basic | 0.14 | 0.12 | ||
| Diluted | 0.13 | 0.12 | ||
| TABLE C |
| NEW LOOK VISION GROUP INC. |
| Reconciliation of Net Earnings to Adjusted EBITDA |
| for the first quarters ended March 26, 2016 and March 28, 2015 |
| In thousands of Canadian dollars, except per share amounts |
| 2016 | 2015 | ||||
| $ | $ | ||||
| Net earnings | 1,864 | 1,650 | |||
| Depreciation, amortization and loss on disposal | 2,799 | 2,721 | |||
| Financial expenses, net of interest revenues | 947 | 1,464 | |||
| Income taxes | 1,073 | 714 | |||
| EBITDA(a) | 6,683 | 6,549 | |||
| Equity-based compensation | 160 | 198 | |||
| Net loss (gain) from changes in fair value of foreign exchange contracts | 90 | (212 | ) | ||
| Acquisition-related costs | 337 | 167 | |||
| Adjusted EBITDA(a) | 7,270 | 6,702 | |||
| Variance in $ | 568 | ||||
| Variance in % | 8.5 | % | |||
| % of revenues | 16.3 | % | 16.0 | % | |
| Per share (diluted) | 0.53 | 0.49 | |||
| (a) | EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA are not recognized measures under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures used by other entities. New Look Vision believes that EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA are useful financial metrics as they assist in determining the ability to generate cash from operations. Investors should be cautioned that EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as an alternative to net earnings or cash flows as determined under IFRS. |
| TABLE D |
| NEW LOOK VISION GROUP INC. |
| Reconciliation of Net Earnings to Adjusted Net Earnings |
| for the first quarters ended March 26, 2016 and March 28, 2015 |
| In thousands of Canadian dollars, except per share amounts |
| 2016 | 2015 | ||||
| $ | $ | ||||
| Net earnings attributable to shareholders | 1,839 | 1,631 | |||
| Acquisition-related costs | 337 | 167 | |||
| Related income taxes | (91 | ) | (45 | ) | |
| Adjusted net earnings attributed to shareholders (a) | 2,085 | 1,753 | |||
| Variance in $ | 332 | ||||
| Variance in % | 18.9 | % | |||
| % of revenues | 4.7 | % | 4.2 | % | |
| Per share amount | |||||
| Diluted | 0.15 | 0.13 | |||
| (a) | Adjusted net earnings are not a recognized measure under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures used by other entities. New Look Vision believes that this disclosure provides useful information as it allows the comparison of net results excluding acquisition and development costs, which may vary significantly from quarter to quarter. Investors should be cautioned that adjusted net earnings should not be considered as an alternative to net earnings as determined under IFRS. |
Lise Melanson
(514) 877-4299, ext. 2234
