Bristow Group Reports First Quarter 2024 Results and Issues New Financial Outlook

HOUSTON, May 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --

• Total revenues of $337.1 million in Q1 2024 compared to $337.9 million in Q4 2023
• Net income of $6.6 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, in Q1 2024 compared to net loss of $7.9 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, in Q4 2023
• EBITDA adjusted to exclude special items, asset dispositions and foreign exchange gains (losses) was $47.5 million in Q1 2024 compared to $46.0 million in Q4 2023⁽¹⁾
• Affirmed 2024 outlook, issued 2025 financial outlook and set 2026 targets

Bristow Group Inc. (NYSE: VTOL) ("Bristow" or the "Company")  today reported net income attributable to the Company of $6.6 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, for its quarter ended March 31, 2024 (the "Current Quarter") on operating revenues of $329.4 million compared to net loss attributable to the Company of $7.9 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, for the quarter ended December 31, 2023 (the "Preceding Quarter") on operating revenues of $329.6 million.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA") was $35.8 million in the Current Quarter compared to $41.8 million in the Preceding Quarter. EBITDA adjusted to exclude special items, gains or losses on asset dispositions and foreign exchange gains (losses) was $47.5 million in the Current Quarter compared to $46.0 million in the Preceding Quarter. The following table provides a reconciliation of net income (loss) to EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA excluding gains or losses on asset dispositions and foreign exchange gains (losses) (in thousands, unaudited). See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information on the use of non-GAAP financial measures used herein.

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"In addition to reporting strong first quarter results and affirming full-year 2024 financial guidance, we are pleased to issue Bristow's financial outlook for 2025 and set financial targets for 2026," said Chris Bradshaw, President and CEO of Bristow Group. "The mid-point of our 2026 Adjusted EBITDA target represents a three-year compound annual growth rate of 21% relative to the Company's 2023 Adjusted EBITDA. This outlook is consistent with our view that we are in the early stages of a multi-year growth cycle. The investments that we are making to grow and diversify our leading government services business, combined with an accelerating offshore energy upcycle and a tight supply of offshore-configured helicopters, are increasing the Company's visibility for significant growth in revenues, Adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow. The improvements in margins, capital returns and free cash flow present multiple opportunities to create value for Bristow's shareholders."

Sequential Quarter Results

Operating revenues in the Current Quarter were $0.2 million lower compared to the Preceding Quarter. Operating revenues from offshore energy services were $0.7 million higher primarily due to increased activity and higher rates in Africa and Norway. Operating revenues from government services were $0.4 million higher in the Current Quarter primarily due to the strengthening of the British Pound Sterling ("GBP") relative to the U.S. dollar. Operating revenues from fixed wing services were $2.0 million lower in the Current Quarter primarily due to lower seasonal utilization in Australia and the weakening of the Nigerian Naira ("NGN") relative to the U.S. dollar. Operating revenues from other services were $0.6 million higher primarily due to higher dry-lease revenues.

Operating expenses were $2.2 million lower than the Preceding Quarter primarily due to lower fuel costs and repairs and maintenance costs, partially offset by higher insurance and other operating costs.

General and administrative expenses were $0.8 million lower than the Preceding Quarter primarily due to lower professional services fees and lower insurance costs, partially offset by higher personnel costs.

Interest income was $1.5 million lower primarily due to lower investment balances.

Interest expense, net was $1.8 million lower in the Current Quarter primarily due to higher capitalized interest on aircraft purchases.

Other expense, net of $6.2 million in the Current Quarter primarily resulted from foreign exchange losses of $6.5 million due to the significant devaluation of the NGN. Other income, net of $1.7 million in the Preceding Quarter resulted from foreign exchange gains of $1.9 million, partially offset by an unfavorable interest adjustment to the Company's pension liability of $0.3 million.

Income tax expense was $2.5 million in the Current Quarter compared to $21.6 million in the Preceding Quarter primarily due to the earnings mix of the Company's global operations and changes to deferred tax valuation allowances and assets.

Liquidity and Capital Allocation

As of March 31, 2024, the Company had $140.6 million of unrestricted cash and $81.9 million of remaining availability under its amended asset-based revolving credit facility (the "ABL Facility") for total liquidity of $222.5 million. Borrowings under the ABL Facility are subject to certain conditions and requirements.

In the Current Quarter, purchases of property and equipment were $64.6 million, of which $4.9 million were maintenance capital expenditures. In the Preceding Quarter, purchases of property and equipment were $19.4 million, of which $4.3 million were maintenance capital expenditures.

In January 2024, the Company entered into a long-term equipment financing to upsize its £145 million secured equipment financings with National Westminster Bank Plc (the "NatWest Debt") by an aggregate amount of up to £55 million. The upsizing will be used to support the Company's capital commitments related to the Second-Generation UK Search and Rescue contract. In April 2024, the first utilization date occurred under the upsized NatWest Debt, and the Company borrowed approximately £26 million at that time.

Affirmed 2024 Outlook, Issued 2025 Outlook and 2026 Targets

Please refer to the paragraph entitled "Forward Looking Statements Disclosure" below for further discussion regarding the risks and uncertainties as well as other important information regarding Bristow's guidance. The following guidance also contains the non-GAAP financial measure of Adjusted EBITDA. Please read the section entitled "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information.

Select financial outlook for 2024 and 2025 as well as 2026 targets are as follows (in USD, millions):

There are two main ways in which foreign currency fluctuations impact Bristow's reported financials. The first is primarily non-cash foreign exchange gains (losses) that are reported in the Other Income line on the Income Statement. These are related to the revaluation of balance sheet items, typically do not impact cash flows, and thus are excluded in the Adjusted EBITDA presentation. The second is through impacts to certain revenue and expense items, which impact the Company's cash flows; these impacts are not excluded in the Adjusted EBITDA presentation. The primary exposure is the GBP/USD exchange rate.

Each £0.01 movement in the GBP/USD exchange rate would impact Adjusted EBITDA by +/- ~$1.5 million.

Conference Call

Management will conduct a conference call starting at 10:00 a.m. ET (9:00 a.m. CT) on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, to review the results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, and discuss market conditions, industry developments and newly issued financial outlook for 2025 and 2026. The conference call can be accessed using the following link:

Link to Access Earnings Call: https://www.veracast.com/webcasts/bristow/webcasts/VTOL1Q24.cfm

Replay

A replay will be available through May 29, 2024 by using the link above. A replay will also be available on the Company's website at www.bristowgroup.com shortly after the call and will be accessible through May 29, 2024. The accompanying investor presentation will be available on May 8, 2024, on Bristow's website at www.bristowgroup.com. 

For additional information concerning Bristow, contact Jennifer Whalen at [email protected], (713) 369-4636 or visit Bristow Group's website at https://ir.bristowgroup.com/.

About Bristow Group

Bristow Group Inc. is the leading global provider of innovative and sustainable vertical flight solutions. Bristow primarily provides aviation services to a broad base of offshore energy companies and government entities. The Company's aviation services include personnel transportation, search and rescue ("SAR"), medevac, fixed-wing transportation, unmanned systems, and ad hoc helicopter services. 

Bristow currently has customers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the Dutch Caribbean, the Falkland Islands, India, Ireland, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Spain, Suriname, Trinidad, the UK and the U.S.

Forward-Looking Statements Disclosure

This press release contains "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements represent the Company's current expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "project," or "continue," or other similar words and, for the avoidance of doubt, include all statements herein regarding the Company's financial outlook and targets for the periods mentioned and operational outlook. These statements are made under the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, reflect management's current views with respect to future events and therefore are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown. The Company's actual results may vary materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements. The Company cautions investors not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements (including the Company's financial outlook and targets for the periods mentioned and operational outlook) speak only as of the date of the document in which they are made. The Company disclaims any obligation or undertaking to provide any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which the forward-looking statement is based that occur after the date hereof, except as may be required by applicable law. 

Risks that may affect forward-looking statements include, but are not necessarily limited to, those relating to: the impact of supply chain disruptions and inflation and our ability to recoup rising costs in the rates we charge to our customers; our reliance on a limited number of helicopter manufacturers and suppliers and the impact of a shortfall in availability of aircraft components and parts required for maintenance and repairs of our helicopters, including significant delays in the delivery of parts for our S92 fleet; our reliance on a limited number of customers and the reduction of our customer base as a result of consolidation and/or the energy transition; public health crises, such as pandemics (including COVID-19) and epidemics, and any related government policies and actions; our inability to execute our business strategy for diversification efforts related to government services and advanced air mobility; the potential for cyberattacks or security breaches that could disrupt operations, compromise confidential or sensitive information, damage reputation, expose to legal liability, or cause financial losses; the possibility that we may be unable to maintain compliance with covenants in our financing agreements; global and regional changes in the demand, supply, prices or other market conditions affecting oil and gas, including changes resulting from a public health crisis or from the imposition or lifting of crude oil production quotas or other actions that might be imposed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other producing countries; fluctuations in the demand for our services; the possibility of significant changes in foreign exchange rates and controls; potential effects of increased competition and the introduction of alternative modes of transportation and solutions; the possibility that portions of our fleet may be grounded for extended periods of time or indefinitely (including due to severe weather events); the possibility of political instability, civil unrest, war or acts of terrorism in any of the countries where we operate or elsewhere; the possibility that we may be unable to re-deploy our aircraft to regions with greater demand; the existence of operating risks inherent in our business, including the possibility of declining safety performance; the possibility of changes in tax, environmental and other laws and regulations and policies, including, without limitation, actions of the governments that impact oil and gas operations, favor renewable energy projects or address climate change; any failure to effectively manage, and receive anticipated returns from, acquisitions, divestitures, investments, joint ventures and other portfolio actions; the possibility that we may be unable to dispose of older aircraft through sales into the aftermarket; the possibility that we may impair our long-lived assets and other assets, including inventory, property and equipment and investments in unconsolidated affiliates; general economic conditions, including interest rates or uncertainty in the capital and credit markets; the possibility that reductions in spending on aviation services by governmental agencies where we are seeking contracts could adversely affect or lead to modifications of the procurement process or that such reductions in spending could adversely affect search and rescue ("SAR") contract terms or otherwise delay service or the receipt of payments under such contracts; and the effectiveness of our environmental, social and governance initiatives.

If one or more of the foregoing risks materialize, or if underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those expected. You should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements because the matters they describe are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other unpredictable factors, many of which are beyond our control. Our forward-looking statements are based on the information currently available to us and speak only as of the date hereof. New risks and uncertainties arise from time to time, and it is impossible for us to predict these matters or how they may affect us. We have included important factors in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 which we believe over time, could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ from the anticipated results, performance or achievements that are expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements. You should consider all risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Annual Report and in our filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), all of which are accessible on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company's management uses EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to assess the performance and operating results of its business. Each of these measures, as well as Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow, each as detailed below are non-GAAP measures, have limitations, and are provided in addition to, and not as an alternative for, and should be read in conjunction with, the information contained in the Company's financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S. ("GAAP") (including the notes), included in the Company's filings with the SEC and posted on the Company's website. EBITDA is defined as Earnings before Interest expense, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA further adjusted for certain special items that occurred during the reported period, as noted below. The Company includes EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to provide investors with a supplemental measure of its operating performance. Management believes that the use of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA is meaningful to investors because it provides information with respect to the Company's ability to meet its future debt service, capital expenditures and working capital requirements and the financial performance of the Company's assets without regard to financing methods, capital structure or historical cost basis. Neither EBITDA nor Adjusted EBITDA is a recognized term under GAAP. Accordingly, they should not be used as an indicator of, or an alternative to, net income as a measure of operating performance. In addition, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not intended to be measures of free cash flow available for management's discretionary use, as they do not consider certain cash requirements, such as debt service requirements. Because the definitions of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (or similar measures) may vary among companies and industries, they may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures used by other companies.

The Company is unable to provide a reconciliation of forecasted Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) for 2024, 2025 and 2026 included in this release to projected net income (GAAP) for the same periods because components of the calculation are inherently unpredictable. The inability to forecast certain components of the calculation would significantly affect the accuracy of the reconciliation. Additionally, the Company does not provide guidance on the items used to reconcile projected Adjusted EBITDA due to the uncertainty regarding timing and estimates of such items. Therefore, the Company does not present a reconciliation of forecasted Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) to net income (GAAP) for 2024, 2025 or 2026.

The following tables provide a reconciliation of net income (loss), the most directly comparable GAAP measure, to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (in thousands, unaudited).

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Reconciliation of Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow

Free Cash Flow represents the Company's net cash provided by operating activities less maintenance capital expenditures. Adjusted Free Cash Flow is Free Cash Flow adjusted to exclude costs paid in relation to reorganization items, costs associated with recent mergers, acquisitions and ongoing integration efforts, as well as other special items which include nonrecurring professional services fees and other nonrecurring costs or costs that are not related to continuing business operations. Management believes that Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow are meaningful to investors because they provide information with respect to the Company's ability to generate cash from the business. The GAAP measure most directly comparable to Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow is net cash provided by operating activities. Since neither Free Cash Flow nor Adjusted Free Cash Flow is a recognized term under GAAP, they should not be used as an indicator of, or an alternative to, net cash provided by operating activities. Investors should note numerous methods may exist for calculating a company's free cash flow. As a result, the method used by management to calculate Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow may differ from the methods used by other companies to calculate their free cash flow. As such, they may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures used by other companies.

The following table provides a reconciliation of net cash provided by operating activities, the most directly comparable GAAP measure, to Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow (in thousands, unaudited).

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The chart below presents the number of aircraft in our fleet and their distribution among the regions in which we operate as of March 31, 2024 and the percentage of operating revenue that each of our regions provided during the Current Quarter (unaudited).

SOURCE Bristow Group