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Spark Networks Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2005 Financial Results19 February 2006
Spark Networks plc (Amex: LOV), a leading provider of online personals services, today reported fourth quarter and full year 2005 financial results.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050202/LAW091LOGO )
Highlights
"2005 was a turnaround year in which we made significant strides towards right-sizing our cost structure and generating cash flow from operations," stated David Siminoff, Spark Networks president and chief executive officer. "We begin 2006 newly listed on the American Stock Exchange. We are energized by recent technology improvements and are poised for balanced growth with significant operating leverage."
The Company reported record results for its JDate(R) operating segment. For the year ended December 31, 2005, JDate revenue grew 9%, to $26.0 million, with 89% contribution margin. Revenue for the Company's Other Businesses segment grew by 72%, partially driven by the purchase of MingleMatch, Inc. in the second quarter of 2005.
The Company also reported that during the fourth quarter, it relaunched its JDate and AmericanSingles(R) websites on its new technology platform. The Company expects that its new three-tier architecture, based upon distributed Service Oriented Architecture principles, will enable it to more rapidly develop new capabilities and enhance its ability to efficiently scale its websites.
"While 2005 was a record year for JDate, we were also able to successfully re-architect and relaunch JDate and AmericanSingles on our new technology platform," stated Siminoff. "We plan to build on this performance in 2006. Our next level of growth will come from leveraging the communities we acquired in the MingleMatch acquisition in order to move quickly into new vertical markets that show promising market potential, as well as from our continuing focus on enhancing the consumer experience and finding new ways for our members to communicate and connect."
Financial Results
Reported revenue for the fourth quarter of 2005 was $16.6 million, a decrease of 3%, compared to $17.1 million, over the same period in 2004. This decrease is primarily the result of lower AmericanSingles revenue due to a significant cut in marketing expenditures for the website, designed to improve its contribution margin. Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2005 was $65.5 million, an increase of 1%, compared to revenue of $65.1 million, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
Total operating expenses for the fourth quarter of 2005 were $10.8 million, a decrease of 10%, compared to $12.0 million, in the same period in 2004. Total operating expenses for the year ended December 31, 2005 were $42.0 million, a decrease of 8%, compared to operating expenses of $45.5 million, for the same period ended December 31, 2004. The decline in operating expenses was primarily due to a decrease in G&A expense as a result of the continued right-sizing of the Company's infrastructure.
With share compensation expenses included, the Company reported a net loss of $403,000, or $(0.01) per share, for the fourth quarter of 2005, compared to a net loss of $1.6 million, or $(0.06) per share, for the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, the Company reported a net loss of $1.4 million, or $(0.06) per share, compared to a net loss of $11.6 million, or $(0.51) per share, for the year ended December 31, 2004. During the third quarter of 2005, the Company began accounting for share options in accordance with the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123 (R), Share-Based payment ("SFAS 123 (R)"). Periods prior to the third quarter of 2005 do not contain any expense for share options in accordance with SFAS 123(R). Due to the Company's implementation of SFAS 123 (R), the net loss for the year ended December 31, 2005 includes compensation expense related to share options of $2.7 million. Excluding FAS 123 (R), the Company would have reported a profit for the year of $0.05 per share, compared to a $(0.44) per share loss in 2004(2). See the attached Consolidated Statement of Operations for the Share-Based Compensation Expense for each period.
EBITDAS (EBITDA adjusted to remove share compensation expense) for the fourth quarter of 2005 was $2.0 million, compared to EBITDAS of $7,000, during the same period in 2004. EBITDAS for the year ended December 31, 2005 was $6.0 million, compared to an EBITDAS loss of $6.0 million, for the year ended December 31, 2004. See the attached Consolidated Statement of Operations for a reconciliation of EBITDA and EBITDAS to net income (loss).
Balance Sheet, Cash, Debt
As of December 31, 2005, the Company had a cash and marketable securities position of $17.3 million, compared to cash and marketable securities of $7.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2004. The increase in cash and marketable securities on the balance sheet is partially the result of the exercise of options to purchase 4.0 million shares by the Company's founders. As a result of this exercise, the share count increased from 26.2 million to 30.2 million. As of December 31, 2005, the Company had remaining payments in respect of the purchase of MingleMatch, Inc. of $9.0 million. Of this amount, $2.0 million was paid in January 2006, $3.0 million is due in March 2006 and $4.0 million is due in May 2006. As of December 31, 2005, the Company has accumulated over $50.0 million of NOLs.
Segment Reporting(3)
The Company reported fourth quarter 2005 revenue for its JDate segment of $6.8 million, an increase of 10%, compared to $6.2 million, in the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, JDate segment revenue was $26.0 million, an increase of 9%, compared to $23.8 million, in the year ended December 31, 2004.
The Company reported fourth quarter 2005 revenue for its AmericanSingles segment of $6.7 million, a decrease of 22%, compared to $8.6 million, in the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, AmericanSingles segment revenue was $29.2 million, a decrease of 17%, compared to $35.2 million, in the year ended December 31, 2004. "In early 2005, we re-oriented management of our marketing program and realigned our spending, which impacted revenue results for AmericanSingles," stated Siminoff. "We have since begun to capitalize on efficient marketing opportunities as they present themselves."
The Company reported fourth quarter 2005 revenue for its Other Businesses segment of $3.1 million, an increase of 41%, compared to $2.2 million, in the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, the Other Businesses segment reported revenue of $10.3 million, an increase of 72%, compared to $6.0 million, in the year ended December 31, 2004. The 2005 results for the Other Businesses Segment includes the financial results for MingleMatch, Inc. which the Company acquired and consolidated during the second quarter of 2005.
Business Metrics
Average paying subscribers for the Company's JDate segment were 73,700, during the fourth quarter of 2005, an increase of 8%, compared to 68,500, from the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, average paying subscribers for JDate were 70,500, an increase of 1%, compared to 69,800, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
Average paying subscribers for the Company's AmericanSingles segment were 91,900, during the fourth quarter of 2005, a decrease of 29%, compared to 129,400, from the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, average paying subscribers for AmericanSingles were 105,300, a decrease of 21%, compared to 132,500, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
Average paying subscribers for the Company's Other Businesses segment were 58,600, during the fourth quarter of 2005, an increase of 88%, compared to 31,100, from the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, average paying subscribers for the Company's Other Businesses were 44,200, an increase of 86%, compared to 23,800, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
Average paying subscribers for the Company, as a whole, in the fourth quarter of 2005, were approximately 224,200, a decrease of 2%, compared to 229,000, from the same period in 2004. For the year, average paying subscribers were 220,000, a decrease of 3%, compared to 226,100, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
Direct subscriber acquisition cost(4) (SAC) for the Company's JDate segment in the fourth quarter of 2005 was $12.25, an increase of 15%, compared to $10.68, from the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, SAC for the Company's JDate segment totaled $12.70, an increase of 57%, compared to $8.09, for the year ended December 31, 2004. "SAC metrics for JDate are not an apples-to-apples comparison when you consider the marketing mix has shifted from a primarily online, direct marketing effort to one that now includes a wide mix of offline initiatives focused on continuing to strengthen the JDate brand," stated Siminoff. "Because of these efforts, we proudly feel that, within the Jewish community, JDate has become a verb."
SAC for the Company's AmericanSingles segment in the fourth quarter of 2005 was $36.66, compared to $36.52, in the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, SAC for the Company's AmericanSingles segment totaled $35.16, a decrease of 19%, compared to $43.29, for the year ended December 31, 2004. The decrease in SAC for AmericanSingles is a result of the re-orientation of the Company's marketing program during 2005, which resulted in a reduced AmericanSingles marketing spend.
SAC for the Company's Other Businesses segment in the fourth quarter of 2005 was $29.73, a decrease of 11%, compared to $33.51, from the same period in 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, SAC for the Company's Other Businesses segment totaled $32.05, a decrease of 8%, compared to $34.74, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
SAC for the Company, as a whole, in the fourth quarter of 2005 was $27.78, a decrease of 5%, compared to $29.37, from the same period last year. For the year ended December 31, 2005, SAC totaled $28.36, a decrease of 16%, compared to $33.85, for the year ended December 31, 2004.
Investor conference call:
The Company will discuss its financial results during a live teleconference today at 1:30 p.m. Pacific time and 10:30 p.m. Frankfurt time.
Call Title: Spark Networks 2005 Financial Results
Toll-Free (United States): +1-800-370-0898
International: +1-973-409-9260
Confirmation #: 7023107
One-Week Replay
Toll-Free (United States): +1-877-519-4471
International: +1-973-341-3080
PIN Number: 7023107
The company will also be hosting a webcast of its call which can be accessed here: http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.asp?id=32397
Safe Harbor Statement:
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Any statements in this news release that are not statements of historical fact may be considered to be forward-looking statements. Written words such as "may," "will," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "intends," "goal," "objective," "seek," "attempt," or variations of these or similar words, identify forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements and forecasts involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the near future. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially, including, but not limited to, our ability to attract members, convert members into paying subscribers and retain our paying subscribers, our ability to keep pace with rapid technological changes, the strength of our existing brands and our ability to maintain and enhance those brands and our dependence upon the telecommunications infrastructure and out networking hardware and software infrastructure. For a discussion of those and further risks and uncertainties, please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We file annual, quarterly and special reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. You may read and copy any reports, statements or other information that we file at the SEC's public reference room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C., 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference room. Our public filings with the SEC also are available from commercial document retrieval services and at the web site maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov.
About Spark Networks plc:
Spark Networks' American Depository Shares trade on the American Stock Exchange under the symbol "LOV" and its Global Depositary Shares trade on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol "MHJG". The Spark Networks portfolio of consumer websites includes, among others, JDate.com (http://www.jdate.com), AmericanSingles.com (http://www.americansingles.com), BlackSinglesConnection(TM).com (http://www.blacksinglesconnection.com) and ChristianMingle(R).com (http://www.christianmingle.com).
(1) "EBITDAS" is defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation,
amortization and share-based compensation. EBITDAS should not be
construed as a substitute for net income (loss) or net cash provided
by (used in) operating activities (all as determined in accordance
with GAAP) for the purpose of analyzing our operating performance,
financial position and cash flows, as EBITDAS is not defined by GAAP.
However, the Company regards EBITDAS as a complement to net income and
other GAAP financial performance measures, including an indirect
measure of operating cash flow. As such, management believes that the
investment community finds it to be a useful tool to perform
meaningful comparisons of past, present and future operating results
and as a means to evaluate the results of core on-going operations.
(2) Share-Based Compensation is a non-cash charge recorded in the
Company's income statements. The Company believes that the non-GAAP
financials measures that exclude share-based compensation from net
income (loss) provide useful information to management and investors
regarding how the expenses associated with the application of SFAS
123(R) are reflected on the statements of operations and facilitates
comparisons to the Company's historical operating results. The
Company's management uses this information internally for reviewing
the financial results, forecasting and budgeting.
(3) In accordance with Financial Accounting Standard No. 131, the
Company's financial reporting includes detailed data on three separate
operating segments. The JDate segment consists of the Company's
JDate.com website and its co-branded websites. The AmericanSingles
segment consists of the Company's AmericanSingles.com website and its
co-branded and private label websites. The Other Businesses segment
consists of all of the Company's other websites and businesses and
gives effect to the MingleMatch acquisition on May 19, 2005.
(4) Direct subscriber acquisition cost is defined as total direct
marketing costs divided by the number of new paying subscribers during
the period. This represents the average cost of acquiring a new
paying subscriber during the period.
(Consolidated financial statements to follow)
SPARK NETWORKS PLC
(formerly known as MatchNet plc)
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in thousands, except share data)
December 31,
Assets 2005 2004
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $17,096 $4,265
Marketable securities 196 3,158
Restricted cash 1,085 1,330
Accounts receivable, net of allowance of $13 932 641
Advances to employees 1 20
Prepaid expenses and other 1,492 879
Total current assets 20,802 10,293
Property and equipment, net 4,453 6,467
Goodwill, net 17,344 7,955
Intangible assets, net 4,627 1,069
Investment in noncontrolled affiliate 1,099 1,167
Deposits and other assets 295 408
Total assets $48,620 $27,359
Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable $2,267 $3,014
Accrued liabilities 3,632 8,052
Deferred revenue 4,991 3,933
Notes payable - current portion 9,930 400
Current portion of obligations under
capital leases -- 173
Total current liabilities 20,820 15,572
Deferred tax liability 1,717 --
Notes payable - long term 900 1,300
Total liabilities 23,437 16,872
Shares subject to rescission 3,819 3,819
Commitments and contingencies -- --
Shareholders' equity:
Authorized capital 800,000 pounds Sterling
divided into 80,000,000 ordinary shares of
1p each; issued and outstanding 30,241,496
shares as of December 31, 2005, 24,587,351
shares as of December 31, 2004 at a stated
value of: 508 401
Additional paid-in-capital 66,313 50,423
Deferred share-based compensation -- (305)
Accumulated other comprehensive
income (loss) (302) (13)
Notes receivable from employees (82) (203)
Accumulated deficit (45,073) (43,635)
Total shareholders' equity 21,364 6,668
Total liabilities and shareholders'
equity $48,620 $27,359
SPARK NETWORKS PLC
(formerly known as MatchNet plc)
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(in thousands, except per share data)
Three Months Ended Years Ended
December 31, December 31,
2005 2004 2005 2004 2003
Net revenues $16,586 $17,052 $65,511 $65,052 $36,941
Direct marketing expenses 6,059 6,628 24,411 31,240 18,395
Contribution margin 10,527 10,424 41,100 33,812 18,546
Operating expenses(1):
Indirect marketing 450 547 1,208 2,607 986
Customer service 1,040 778 2,827 3,379 2,536
Technical operations 2,698 1,983 7,546 7,184 4,481
Product development 1,169 637 4,118 2,013 959
General and
administrative 5,061 7,694 25,074 29,253 18,537
Amortization of
intangible assets
other than goodwill 237 190 1,085 860 555
Impairment of
long-lived assets 105 208 105 208 1,532
Total operating
expenses 10,760 12,037 41,963 45,504 29,586
Operating loss (233) (1,613) (863) (11,692) (11,040)
Interest (income) and
other expenses, net 426 (52) 711 (66) (188)
Loss before income taxes (659) (1,561) (1,574) (11,626) (10,852)
Provision for income
taxes (256) -- (136) 1 --
Net loss $(403) $(1,561) $(1,438) $(11,627) $(10,852)
Net loss per share -
basic and diluted $(0.01) $(0.06) $(0.06) $(0.51) $(0.57)
Weighted average
shares outstanding -
basic and diluted 27,530 24,234 26,105 22,667 18,970
EBITDA
Net income (loss) $(403) $(1,561) $(1,438) $(11,627)$ (10,852)
Interest 81 (21) 193 (32) (163)
Taxes (256) -- (136) 1 --
Depreciation 913 857 3,624 3,065 1,441
Amortization 237 190 1,085 860 555
EBITDA 572 (535) 3,328 (7,733) (9,019)
Share based
compensation 1,393 542 2,717 1,704 1,871
EBITDAS $1,965 $7 $6,045 $(6,029) $(7,148)
1.Share based compensation included in operating expenses:
Indirect marketing $14 $28 $24 $156 $79
Customer service 22 -- 44 -- --
Technical operations 170 -- 338 22 140
Product development 124 -- 248 -- --
General and
administrative 1063 514 2,063 1,526 1,652
SPARK NETWORKS PLC
(formerly known as MatchNet plc)
SEGMENT RESULTS FROM OPERATIONS
(in thousands)
Three Months Ended Years Ended
December 31, December 31,
2005 2004 2005 2004 2003
Net Revenues
JDate $6,800 $6,198 $25,961 $23,820 $16,091
AmericanSingles 6,691 8,639 29,217 35,224 19,253
Other Businesses 3,095 2,215 10,333 6,008 1,597
Total Net revenues $16,586 $17,052 $65,511 $65,052 $36,941
Direct Marketing
Expenses
JDate $775 $587 $2,885 $1,740 $739
AmericanSingles 3,597 4,666 15,167 24,954 15,887
Other Businesses 1,687 1,375 6,359 4,546 1,769
Total Direct marketing
expenses $ 6,059 $6,628 $24,411 $31,240 $18,395
Contribution Margin
JDate $6,025 $5,611 $23,076 $22,080 $15,352
AmericanSingles 3,094 3,973 14,050 10,270 3,366
Other Businesses 1,408 840 3,974 1,462 (172)
Total Contribution
margin $10,527 $10,424 $41,100 $33,812 $18,546
SPARK NETWORKS PLC
(formerly known as MatchNet plc)
SEGMENT METRICS
(For the Period)
Three Months Ended Years Ended
December 31, December 31,
2005 2004 2005 2004 2003
Average Paying
Subscribers (Thousands)
JDate 73.7 68.5 70.5 69.8 50.7
AmericanSingles 91.9 129.4 105.3 132.5 71.5
Other Businesses 58.6 31.1 44.2 23.8 3.6
Total 224.2 229.0 220.0 226.1 125.8
Average Monthly Net
Revenue Per Paying
Subscriber
JDate $30.74 $ 30.15 $30.70 $28.42 $26.44
AmericanSingles 24.26 22.25 23.12 22.16 22.43
Other Businesses 17.61 18.16 17.58 16.75 23.72
Total 24.66 24.06 24.44 23.53 24.09
Direct Subscriber
Acquisition Cost
JDate $ 12.25 $ 10.68 $12.70 $8.09 $ 4.39
AmericanSingles 36.66 36.52 35.16 43.29 45.70
Other Businesses 29.73 33.51 32.05 34.74 80.32
Total 27.78 29.37 28.36 33.85 33.84
Monthly Subscriber Churn
JDate 25.1% 26.0% 25.9% 25.8% 22.4%
AmericanSingles 35.0% 36.4% 36.3% 35.6% 32.1%
Other Businesses 27.2% 29.6% 25.6% 26.8% 33.4%
Total 29.7% 32.4% 30.8% 31.7% 28.2%
We define our key business metrics as follows:
* Average paying subscribers: Paying subscribers are defined as
individuals who have paid a monthly fee for access to communication and
website features beyond those provided to our members. Average paying
subscribers for each month are calculated as the sum of the paying
subscribers at the beginning and end of the month, divided by two.
Average paying subscribers for periods longer than one month are
calculated as the sum of the average paying subscribers for each month,
divided by the number of months in such period.
* Average monthly net revenue per paying subscriber: Average monthly net
revenue per paying subscriber represents the total net subscriber
revenue for the period divided by the number of average paying
subscribers for the period, divided by the number of months in the
period.
* Direct subscriber acquisition cost: Direct subscriber acquisition cost
is defined as total direct marketing costs divided by the number of new
paying subscribers during the period. This represents the average cost
of acquiring a new paying subscriber during the period.
* Monthly subscriber churn: Monthly subscriber churn represents the
ratio, expressed as a percentage, of (i) the number of paying subscriber
cancellations during the period divided by the number of average paying
subscribers during the period and (ii) the number of months in the
period.
Source: prnewswire
All trademarks and copyrighted information contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
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