Air T, Inc. Reports Second Quarter Fiscal 2024 Results

CHARLOTTE, NC / ACCESSWIRE / November 13, 2023 / Air T, Inc. (NASDAQ:AIRT) is an industrious American company with a portfolio of businesses, each of which is independent yet interrelated. We seek dynamic individuals and teams to operate companies using processes that increase value over time. We believe we can apply corporate resources to help activate growth and overcome challenges.

Our core segments are overnight air cargo; aviation ground equipment manufacturing and sales; commercial jet engines and parts; and corporate and other.

Today the Company is announcing results for the fiscal second quarter ended September 30, 2023:

• Revenues totaled $79.0 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $18.3 million, or 30% from the prior year's comparable quarter.
• Operating income was $0.8 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $0.6 million from the prior year's operating income of $0.2 million.
• Adjusted EBITDA* profit of $1.5 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, compared to an Adjusted EBITDA* profit of $2.3 million in the prior year's comparable quarter.
• Loss per share of $0.57 for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, compared to the loss per share of $0.43 for the prior year's comparable quarter.
• Total Equity decreased from $13.0 million as of March 31, 2023, to $11.0 million as of September 30, 2023, a decrease of $2.0 million, or 15%.

*Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure; see below for further explanation and reconciliation to GAAP measure.

Company Chairman and CEO Nick Swenson commented:

"Our results reflect a significant contribution by Worldwide Aircraft Services ("WASI"). The integration of this recent acquisition within the Mountain Air Cargo ("MAC") family has contributed significantly to the growth in our Overnight Air Cargo segment. By adding capacity to our system, MAC has been able to expand beyond its previous capacity and continue to grow with its new maintenance customer base.

Sales levels and backlog are notably lower at Global Ground Support ("GGS"). We believe this is a temporary phenomenon reflecting our customers' demand cycles and fleet planning. GGS is focusing on the future and using this time to set the stage for 2024.

Finally, Commercial Jet Engines and Parts delivered strong year over year growth, consistent with strong industry fundamentals and subsequent demand for aftermarket parts. The supply chain continues to be restricting-generally causing a dampening of margins and slower inventory turns."

Business Segment Results

Overnight Air Cargo

• This segment provides repair services and air express delivery services, primarily for FedEx.
• Revenues for this segment increased 28% to $28.2 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2023, compared to $22.1 million in the prior year quarter. The increase was principally attributable to higher administrative fees due to increased fleet, higher pass-through revenues from FedEx, and the WASI acquisition, which contributed revenues for a full quarter in 2023 but was not part of the segment in the prior comparable quarter.
• Adjusted EBITDA* for this segment was $2.1 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $0.9 million when compared to the prior year quarter, primarily due to the revenue increase noted above.

Aviation Ground Equipment Manufacturing and Sales

• Global Ground Support, one of the world's largest manufacturer of aircraft deicing equipment, manufactures, and provides mobile deicers and other specialized equipment products to passenger and cargo airlines, airports, and military and industrial customers.
• Revenues for this segment totaled $12.2 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, down 32% when compared to revenue of $18.0 million in the same quarter in 2022. The decrease was primarily driven by the lower number of deicing trucks sold in the current year quarter compared to prior year's comparable quarter.
• Adjusted EBITDA* for this segment was $23.0 thousand in the quarter ended September 30, 2023, a decrease of $1.9 million compared to the prior year quarter, due primarily to the revenue decrease noted above.
• As of September 30, 2023, this segment's order backlog was $7.0 million versus $21.1 million as of September 30, 2022.

Commercial Jet Engines and Parts

• This segment leases commercial jet engines and aircraft; buys, sells and trades in surplus and aftermarket commercial jet engines, engine parts, airframes, and airframe parts, avionics, and other; then delivers the related documents and logistics.
• Revenues for this segment totaled $36.5 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $17.5 million versus the previous year's second fiscal quarter. The increase was primarily driven by engine sales at Contrail and higher component part sales across multiple companies within the segment in the current quarter compared to prior year comparable quarter.
• Adjusted EBITDA* for this segment was $1.3 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $0.4 million when compared to the prior year quarter, primarily due to the revenue increase noted above.

Corporate and Other

• This segment acts as the capital allocator and resource for other consolidated businesses. Further, Corporate and other also comprises smaller businesses and business interests.
• This segment's Adjusted EBITDA* for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, represented a loss of $2.0 million in the quarter, which was relatively equivalent to an Adjusted EBITDA* loss of $1.8 million in the same quarter a year ago.

*Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure; see below for further explanation and reconciliation to GAAP measures.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company uses adjusted earnings before taxes, interest, and depreciation and amortization ("Adjusted EBITDA"), a non-GAAP financial measure as defined by the SEC, to evaluate the Company's financial performance. This performance measure is not defined by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States and should be considered in addition to, and not in lieu of, GAAP financial measures.

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as earnings before taxes, interest, and depreciation and amortization, adjusted for specified items. The Company calculates Adjusted EBITDA by removing the impact of specific items and adding back the amounts of interest expense and depreciation and amortization to earnings before income taxes. When calculating Adjusted EBITDA, the Company does not add back depreciation expense for aircraft engines that are on lease, as the Company believes this expense matches with the corresponding revenue earned on engine leases. There was no depreciation expense for leased engines for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and $0.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022.

Management believes that Adjusted EBITDA is a useful measure of the Company's performance because it provides investors additional information about the Company's operations allowing better evaluation of underlying business performance and better period-to-period comparability. Adjusted EBITDA is not intended to replace or be an alternative to operating income, the most directly comparable amounts reported under GAAP.

The table below provides a reconciliation of operating income to Adjusted EBITDA for the periods ended September 30, 2023, and 2022 (in thousands):

The following table shows the Company's Adjusted EBITDA by segment for the periods ended September 30, 2023, and 2022 (in thousands):

NOTE REGARDING STAKEHOLDER QUESTIONS

If you have questions related to this release or other Air T matters, please use our interactive Q&A capability, through Slido.com, accessible from our website, to submit your questions. We intend to keep that link open and available for shareholder questions. Questions submitted through Slido will be answered "live" and in writing at our Annual Meeting, and via a written response on a quarterly basis. Note that legal and pragmatic requirements restrict us from answering every question posted, yet we intend to address all reasonable and relevant questions with a written answer.

ABOUT AIR T, INC.

Established in 1980, Air T Inc. is a portfolio of powerful businesses and financial assets, each of which is independent yet interrelated. Its core segments are overnight air cargo, aviation ground support equipment manufacturing and sales, commercial jet engines and parts, and corporate and other. We seek to expand, strengthen and diversify Air T's after-tax cash flow per share. Our goal is to build Air T's core businesses, and when appropriate, to expand into adjacent and other industries. We seek to activate growth and overcome challenges while delivering meaningful value for all stakeholders. For more information, visit www.airt.net.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements in this press release, including those contained in "Overview," are "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 with respect to the Company's financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business. Forward-looking statements include those preceded by, followed by or that include the words "believes", "pending", "future", "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "depends" or similar expressions. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements, because of, among other things, potential risks and uncertainties, such as:

• An inability to finance our operations through bank or other financing or through the sale of issuance of debt or equity securities as a result of the existence of substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern;
• Economic and industry conditions in the Company's markets;
• The risk that contracts with FedEx could be terminated or adversely modified;
• The risk that the number of aircraft operated for FedEx will be reduced;
• The risk that GGS customers will defer or reduce significant orders for deicing equipment;
• The impact of any terrorist activities on United States soil or abroad;
• The Company's ability to manage its cost structure for operating expenses, or unanticipated capital requirements, and match them to shifting customer service requirements and production volume levels;
• The Company's ability to meet debt service covenants and to refinance existing debt obligations;
• The risk of injury or other damage arising from accidents involving the Company's overnight air cargo operations, equipment or parts sold and/or services provided;
• Market acceptance of the Company's commercial and military equipment and services;
• Competition from other providers of similar equipment and services;
• Changes in government regulation and technology;
• Changes in the value of marketable securities held as investments;
• Mild winter weather conditions reducing the demand for deicing equipment;
• Market acceptance and operational success of the Company's relatively new aircraft asset management business and related aircraft capital joint venture; and
• Despite our current indebtedness levels, we and our subsidiaries may still be able to incur substantially more debt, which could further exacerbate the risks associated with our substantial leverage.

A forward-looking statement is neither a prediction nor a guarantee of future events or circumstances, and those future events or circumstances may not occur. We are under no obligation, and we expressly disclaim any obligation, to update or alter any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

CONTACT

Air T, Inc. Brian Ochocki, CFO
[email protected]
612-843-4302

SOURCE: Air T, Inc.