SEACOR Holdings Announces Results for the Year and Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2019

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Feb. 28, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SEACOR Holdings Inc. (NYSE:CKH) (the “Company”) today announced its results for the year and fourth quarter ended December 31, 2019:
Net income attributable to stockholders for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $26.8 million ($1.38 per diluted share) compared with $58.1 million ($3.04 per diluted share) for the year ended December 31, 2018.  The prior year benefited from a net gain of $42.6 million ($2.18 per diluted share) related to the sale of the Company’s interest in Hawker Pacific Airservices (“Hawker”).Net loss attributable to stockholders for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 was $1.9 million ($0.10 per diluted share) compared with $4.7 million ($0.26 per diluted share) for the quarter ended December 31, 2018.  The prior year quarter benefited from $5.5 million ($0.30 per diluted share) of net income related to the accelerated amortization of non-cash deferred gains.  Excluding these non-cash gains, loss per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 improved by $0.46 compared with the quarter ended December 31, 2018.“Cash Earnings” for the year ended December 31, 2019, after expensing all charges for maintenance, were $110.6 million compared with $57.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2018 and were $20.1 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 compared with $10.6 million for the same quarter last year.The Company uses the non-GAAP financial measures “Cash Earnings” and OIBDA in this release; a reconciliation to their closest U.S. GAAP measure is included in “Use of non-GAAP Financial Measures” in this release.Charles Fabrikant, Executive Chairman, commented on the quarter’s results as follows:The “Operating Discussion” below is a comparison of results for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 with the prior year quarter ended December 31, 2018.Operating DiscussionOcean Transportation & Logistics Services – Operating income and OIBDA were $7.6 million and $17.8 million, in the current year quarter compared with $10.8 million and $21.5 million excluding the accelerated amortization of previously deferred gains of $7.0 million in the prior year quarter, respectively.  Operating results were impacted by $9.0 million of regulatory dry-docking costs. $2.3 million more than the prior year quarter.  During the quarter Ocean Services docked one U.S.-flag petroleum and chemical carrier and one PCTC.SEACOR Island Lines activity continued to increase in its core markets and it also experienced a boost in demand due to Hurricane Dorian recovery efforts.  Waterman Logistics had increased success this quarter winning bids to move specialized cargo for the U.S. government.  The dry bulk carrier fleet benefited from steady cargo volumes and a full quarter of operations with no dry-dockings.  In the aggregate, these service lines had a positive incremental contribution of $9.9 million compared with the prior year quarter.Inland Transportation & Logistics Services – Operating income and OIBDA were $1.4 million and $7.5 million in the current year quarter compared with $8.3 million and $13.8 million in the prior year quarter, respectively.  U.S. grain exports through the Center Gulf were down 8% compared with the fourth quarter of 2018, reducing demand for barge freight and negatively impacting activity levels at the terminals and fleets on the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. The primary culprits were the China trade war, U.S. government farm subsidy programs which were a disincentive to exports, and competition from South America.  Operating results for Inland Services also continued to be impacted by higher costs due to the prolonged flooding experienced earlier in the year and resulting high-water conditions.Witt O’Brien’s – Operating loss and negative OIBDA were $(0.7) million and $(0.5) million, respectively, in the current year quarter compared with operating income and OIBDA of $5.9 million and $6.6 million, respectively, in the prior year quarter. The primary factors impacting the current year quarter’s results were a lack of activity responding to seasonal storms, lower activity in the U.S. Virgin Islands and a bad debt charge of $0.8 million.Capital Commitments – The Company’s capital commitments as of December 31, 2019 were $62.2 million and included four U.S.-flag harbor tugs, the Company’s interest in two foreign-flag rail ferries, four inland river dry-cargo barges, two inland river towboats, other equipment and vessel and terminal improvements.  Subsequent to December 31, 2019, the Company committed to purchase two inland river dry-cargo barges and other equipment for $2.5 million.Liquidity and Debt – During the current year quarter, the Company repurchased $1.8 million in principal amount of its 3.0% Convertible Senior Notes for $1.8 million.  Subsequent to December 31, 2019, the Company repurchased $2.2 million in principal amount of its 3.0% Convertible Senior Notes for $2.2 million.As of December 31, 2019, the Company’s balances of cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, restricted cash equivalents, and marketable securities totaled $86.4 million.  As of December 31, 2019, total outstanding debt was $314.5 million and the Company had $225.0 million of borrowing capacity under its credit facilities.Equity –  As of December 31, 2019, the total shares outstanding were 20,176,168.SEACOR Holdings Inc. (“SEACOR”) is a diversified holding company with interests in domestic and international transportation and logistics and risk management consultancy.  SEACOR is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol CKH.Certain statements discussed in this release as well as in other reports, materials and oral statements that the Company releases from time to time to the public constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Generally, words such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “project,” “intend,” “believe,” “plan,” “target,” “forecast” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements.  Such forward-looking statements concern management’s expectations, strategic objectives, business prospects, anticipated economic performance and financial condition and other similar matters.  Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or expected by management of the Company.  These statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual events or results may differ significantly from these statements.  Actual events or results are subject to significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors, including risks relating to weakening demand for the Company’s services as a result of unplanned customer suspensions, cancellations, rate reductions or non-renewals of vessel charters or failures to finalize commitments to charter vessels, increased government legislation and regulation of the Company’s businesses that could increase the cost of operations, increased competition if the Jones Act is repealed, liability, legal fees and costs in connection with the provision of emergency response services, decreased demand for the Company’s services as a result of declines in the global economy, declines in valuations in the global financial markets and a lack of liquidity in the credit sectors, including, interest rate fluctuations, availability of credit, inflation rates, change in laws, trade barriers, commodity prices and currency exchange fluctuations, activity in foreign countries and changes in foreign political, military and economic conditions, changes in foreign and domestic oil and gas exploration and production activity, safety record requirements related to Ocean Transportation & Logistics Services, decreased demand for Ocean Transportation & Logistics Services due to construction of additional refined petroleum product, natural gas or crude oil pipelines or due to decreased demand for refined petroleum products, crude oil or chemical products or a change in existing methods of delivery, compliance with U.S. and foreign government laws and regulations, including environmental laws and regulations and economic sanctions, the dependence of Ocean Transportation & Logistics Services and Inland Transportation & Logistics Services on several key customers, consolidation of the Company’s customer base, the ongoing need to replace aging vessels, industry fleet capacity, restrictions imposed by the Shipping Acts on the amount of foreign ownership of the Company’s Common Stock, operational risks of Ocean Transportation & Logistics Services and Inland Transportation & Logistics Services, effects of adverse weather conditions and seasonality, the level of grain export volume, the effect of fuel prices on barge towing costs, variability in freight rates for inland river barges, the effect of international economic and political factors on Inland Transportation & Logistics Services’ operations, the ability to realize anticipated benefits from acquisitions and other strategic transactions, adequacy of insurance coverage, the attraction and retention of qualified personnel by the Company, changes in U.S. and international trade policies and various other matters and factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control as well as those discussed in Item 1A. (Risk Factors) of the Company’s Annual report on Form 10-K and other reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).  It should be understood that it is not possible to predict or identify all such factors.  Consequently, the preceding should not be considered to be a complete discussion of all potential risks or uncertainties.  Given these factors, investors and analysts should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements 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, except as required by law.  It is advisable, however, to consult any further disclosures the Company makes on related subjects in its filings with the SEC, including  Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K (if any).  These statements constitute the Company’s cautionary statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.For additional information, contact Investor Relations at (954) 627-5278 or visit SEACOR’s website at www.seacorholdings.com.______________________Non-GAAP Financial Measure.  See explanation of use of non-GAAP financial measures included elsewhere in this release.______________________Non-GAAP Financial Measure.  See explanation of use of non-GAAP financial measures included elsewhere in this release.
______________________Includes amounts attributable to both SEACOR and noncontrolling interests.Non-GAAP Financial Measure.  See explanation of use of non-GAAP financial measures included elsewhere in this release.Use of non-GAAP Financial MeasuresThe information furnished in this release includes non-GAAP financial measures that differ from measures calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP, including OIBDA and Cash Earnings.The Company defines OIBDA as operating income (loss) plus depreciation and amortization.  The Company includes maintenance and repair costs, including major overhauls and regulatory dry-dockings, and gains or losses (or impairments) on asset dispositions in OIBDA.  The Company defines Cash Earnings as OIBDA further adjusted to exclude the amortization of non-cash deferred gains and amounts attributable to its minority partner in SEA-Vista as well as the gain or loss associated with marking-to-market securities held for investment, accrued net cash expense associated with interest on debt obligations, and the Company’s estimate of cash taxes.  Other companies may calculate OIBDA and Cash Earnings differently than the Company, which may limit their usefulness as comparative measures.  In addition, each of these measures does not necessarily represent funds available for discretionary use and are not measures of the Company’s ability to fund its cash needs.  OIBDA and Cash Earnings are each financial metrics used by management (i) as a supplemental internal measure for planning and forecasting overall expectations and for evaluating actual results against such expectations; (ii) as a criteria for annual incentive bonuses paid to Company officers and other shore-based employees; and (iii) to compare to the OIBDA and Cash Earnings of other companies when evaluating potential acquisitions.  In addition, the Company believes Cash Earnings is meaningful to investors because it assists in evaluating the Company’s results of operations and net cash generated by business activities across previous and subsequent accounting periods and to better understand the long-term performance of the Company.  The Company views OIBDA and Cash Earnings as measures of operating performance not liquidity.The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation from or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP.The following tables reconcile these non-GAAP measures to their most closely comparable U.S. GAAP measures (amounts in thousands, except per share data).______________________Includes diluted earnings (loss) per common share of $0.08 and $(0.48) for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively, related to marking-to-market the Company’s marketable security portfolio.  Includes diluted earnings (loss) per common share of $0.72 and $(0.50) for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively, related to marking-to-market the Company’s marketable security portfolio.All references to OIBDA in this release are calculated in the same manner.For the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2019, amortization of deferred gains is included in gains on asset dispositions.  For the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2018, amortization of deferred gains may be included in operating expenses as a reduction to rental expense and/or included in gains on asset dispositions.Amount is net of interest income, excludes capitalized interest, and is net of our partner’s portion of SEA-Vista net interest expense of $0.6 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018 and $1.2 million and $2.7 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.Cash profit from the sale of the Company’s 34.2% interest in Hawker Pacific Airservices, Limited in April 2018.______________________One line handling vessel and one crew transportation vessel.Pure Car/Truck Carrier.Roll On/Roll Off.Includes non-certificated 10,000 and 30,000 barrel inland river liquid tank barges.