Winnipeg, Manitoba — May 14, 2008 — Boyd Group Income Fund (TSX: BYD.UN) (“the Fund” or “the Boyd Group”) today reported its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2008. The Fund’s complete fiscal 2008 first quarter financial statements and MD&A will be filed on www.sedar.com on May 14, 2008.
2008 First Quarter Highlights
- Revenue increased to $53.1 million compared to $52.6 million in Q1 2007
- Same store sales growth of 10.3% in the U.S. and 4.6% in Canada
- Net earnings increased to $1.9 million from $0.8 million in Q1 2007
- Adjusted distributable cash1 increased to $2.3 million from $0.5 million in Q1 2007
- Trustees of the Fund approved an increase to monthly distributions to $0.01625 per unit beginning in May 2008, for unitholders and shareholders of record on April 30, 2008
- Subsequently, on May 14, 2008 the Trustees of the Fund approved an increase in monthly distributions to $0.0175 per unit
“The Fund continued to perform well during the first quarter of 2008 as we built on the positive results demonstrated in fiscal 2007, with increases in revenue, net earnings and cash available for distribution,” said Terry Smith, CEO of the Boyd Group.
“In March 2008, based on continuing improvement in our financial performance, we announced an increase to monthly distributions beginning in May 2008,” continued Mr. Smith. “I am pleased to announce today that, subsequent to the end of the first quarter, on May 14, 2008, the Trustees of the Fund approved an additional increase in monthly distributions to $0.0175 per unit beginning in July 2008. With stable to improving financial performance, we expect that distributions will continue to be gradually increased over time.”
Despite the negative effect of translating U.S. revenues at lower exchange rates, revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2008, increased 1.0% to $53.1 million compared to revenue of $52.6 million in the first quarter of 2007, after adjusting for the effect of discontinued operations. The increased revenue resulted from same store sales growth, both in Canada and the U.S., as well as $1.5 million in new sales generated from two 2007 U.S. start-ups.
Earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”)2 for the first quarter of 2008 totalled $3.4 million or 6.4% of sales compared to EBITDA of $3.2 million or 6.1% of sales in the same period of the prior year. The increase in EBITDA was primarily the result of higher sales and lower operating expenses as a percentage of sales, partially offset by lower gross margins in the Company’s retail and network glass businesses.
The Fund’s net earnings for the three months ended March 31, 2008 were $1.9 million or $0.16 per fully diluted unit compared to net earnings of $0.8 million or $0.07 per fully diluted unit for the same period in the prior year. The increase in net earnings reflects the strong same store sales growth for the first quarter of 2008 in both Canada and the U.S., as well as reductions in operating costs as a percentage of sales and reduced interest, amortization and income tax expenses.
On a segmented basis, sales in Canada in the first quarter of 2008 totalled $19.1 million, an increase of $0.8 million or 4.6%, compared to the first quarter a year ago. Sales increases in Canada are entirely due to same store sales growth.
Sales in the U.S. in the first quarter of 2008 totalled $34.0 million down $0.3 million or 0.9% from $34.3 million in the first quarter a year ago. Sales in the U.S. included $1.5 million in new sales from two 2007 start-ups in Glenview, Illinois and Tempe, Arizona. Excluding the impact of foreign currency translation, U.S. same store sales increased by $3.5 million or 10.3%, compared to the first quarter a year ago.
The Fund had total debt outstanding at March 31, 2008 of $22.6 million compared to $30.1 million in total debt outstanding as at December 31, 2007 and $40.3 million outstanding as at March 31, 2007. Subsequent to the end of the first quarter, on April 15, 2008, the Fund repaid the final US$0.6 million of its Canadian senior debt facility.
Distributable Cash1
Adjusted distributable cash for the first quarter, which includes adjustments for the collection of additional prepaid rebates, proceeds on the sale of equipment and capital lease repayments, increased to $2.3 million from $0.5 million in the first quarter a year ago.
Based on continued improvement in the Fund’s financial performance, on March 25, 2008, the Trustees of the Fund approved an increase in monthly distributions and dividends to $0.01625 per unit/exchangeable share commencing in May 2008, for unitholders and shareholders of record at the end of April 2008. Subsequent to the end of the first quarter, on May 14, 2008, the Trustees of the Fund approved a further increase in monthly distributions and dividends to $0.0175 per unit/exchangeable share commencing July 2008, for unitholders and shareholders of record on June 30, 2008.
2008 First Quarter Conference call & Webcast
Management of the Fund will hold a conference call on May 15th, at 10:00 a.m. (EDT) to review the financial results. A live audio webcast of the conference call will be available through www.boydgroup.com. An archived replay of the webcast will be available for 90 days. A taped replay of the conference call will also be available until Thursday May 22, 2008 at midnight by calling
1-877-289-8525 or 416-640-1917, reference number 21270527#.
(¹)(²) EBITDA, distributable cash and adjusted distributable cash are not recognized measures under Canadian generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Management believes that in addition to revenue, net earnings and cash flows, the supplemental measures of distributable cash, adjusted distributable cash and EBITDA are useful as they provide investors with an indication of earnings from operations and cash available for distribution, both before and after debt management, productive capacity maintenance and non-recurring and other adjustments. Investors should be cautioned, however, that EBITDA, distributable cash and adjusted distributable cash should not be construed as an alternative to net earnings determined in accordance with GAAP as an indicator of the Fund’s performance. Boyd’s method of calculating distributable cash and adjusted distributable cash may differ from other public issuers and, accordingly, may not be comparable to similar measures used by other issuers. For a detailed explanation of how the Fund’s distributable cash and adjusted distributable cash is calculated, please refer to the Fund’s MD&A filing for the three-month period ended March 31, 2008, which can be accessed via the SEDAR Web site (www.sedar.com).
About The Boyd Group Inc.
The Boyd Group Inc. is the largest operator of collision repair centres in Canada and among the largest in North America. The company operates locations in the four western Canadian provinces principally under the trade names Boyd Autobody & Glass and Service Collision Repair, as well as in seven U.S. states principally under the trade name Gerber Collision & Glass. The company also operates Gerber National Glass Services, an auto glass repair and replacement referral business with affiliated service providers throughout the United States. For more information on The Boyd Group Inc. or Boyd Group Income Fund, please visit our Web site at www.boydgroup.com.
About The Boyd Group Income Fund
The Boyd Group Income Fund is an unincorporated, open-ended mutual fund trust created for the purposes of acquiring and holding certain investments, including a majority interest in The Boyd Group Inc. and its subsidiaries.
For further information, please contact:
Terry Smith
CEO
Tel: (204) 895-1244
terry.smith@boydgroup.com
Bruce Wigle
Investor Relations
Tel: (416) 815-0700 or toll free 1-800-385-5451 (ext.228)
bwigle@equicomgroup.com
Dan Dott
Chief Financial Officer
Tel: (204) 895-1244
dan.dott@boydgroup.com
Caution concerning forward-looking statements
Statements made in this press release, other than those concerning historical financial information, may be forward-looking and therefore subject to various risks and uncertainties. Some forward-looking statements may be identified by words like “may”, “will”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intend”, or “continue” or the negative thereof or similar variations. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements, as actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Factors that could cause results to vary include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in cash distributions and capital expenditures; dependence on the Fund’s operating subsidiary to pay its interest obligations; loss of services of key senior management personnel; operational and infrastructure risks including possible equipment failure and performance of information technology systems; the ability to complete acquisitions of collision repair facilities and other businesses and to integrate these acquisitions successfully; the ability to identify start-up locations and reach anticipated profitability levels; access to capital; management of credit and refinancing risks; potential discovery of undisclosed liabilities associated with acquisitions; ability to expand into the United States; loss of key customers; impact of government owned insurance; variation in the number of insurance claims; competition from established competitors and new entrants in the businesses in which the Company operates; the management of key supplier relationships; employee relations; fluctuations in the cost of benefit plans; insurance coverage of sufficient scope to satisfy any liability claims; environmental risk; pending and proposed legislative or regulatory developments including the impact of changes in laws, regulations and the enforcement thereof; quality of corporate governance; quality of internal control systems; fluctuations in operating results and seasonality; energy costs; weather conditions; technology risks; interest rate fluctuations and general economic conditions; fluctuations in foreign currencies; and the possible impacts from public health emergencies, international conflicts and other developments including those relating to terrorism; and the Fund’s success in anticipating and managing the foregoing risks.
We caution that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive and that when reviewing our forward-looking statements, investors and others should refer to the “Risk Factors” section of the Fund’s Annual Information Form, the “Risks and Uncertainties” and other sections of our Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Operating Results and Financial Position and our other periodic filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities. All forward-looking statements presented herein should be considered in conjunction with such filings. The Fund does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements; such statements speak only as of the date made.