Concord Medical Reports Financial Results for the First Quarter of 2015

BEIJING, May 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited ("Concord Medical" or the "Company") (NYSE: CCM), a leading specialty hospital management solution provider and operator of the largest network of radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging centers in China, today announced its unaudited interim consolidated financial results for the first quarter of 2015^[1] . Please note that for the first quarter of 2014, the financial contribution from Chang'an Hospital is reflected as the Net (loss) income from discontinued operations..

First Quarter 2015 Highlights

• Total net revenues were RMB150.7 million ($24.3 million) in the first quarter of 2015, a 5.7% increase from net revenues from the network business of RMB142.6 million in the first quarter of 2014.
• Gross profit was RMB74.4 million ($12.0 million), representing a 4.3% decrease from RMB77.8 million in the first quarter of 2014.
• Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders for the first quarter of 2015 increased 5.4% to RMB28.5 million ($4.6 million), compared to RMB27.1 million for the first quarter of 2014. 
• Basic and diluted earnings per American Depositary Share ("ADS")^[2] in the first quarter of 2015 were RMB0.68 ($0.11) and RMB0.68 ($0.11), respectively, compared with RMB0.59 and RMB0.58 in the first quarter of 2014.
• Adjusted EBITDA^[3] (non-GAAP) was RMB68.8 million ($11.1 million) for the first quarter of 2015, representing a 14.3% decrease from the first quarter of 2014.

Dr. Jianyu Yang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Concord Medical, commented, "We are pleased to start 2015 with healthy growth in our radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging center business in the first quarter. We have been gradually broadening our services and growing from a network operator into a specialty hospital management company. We expect the network business to provide steady growth and sustainable cash inflow to our operations while we continue to develop our other initiatives."

"During the quarter, we continued to make progress with our hospital construction in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Datong, and expanded our high-end hospital practice to Singapore through an acquisition. With our long-term collaboration agreement with MD Anderson, we can provide advanced clinical and treatment services to cancer patients in China and Singapore. Our collaboration with MDA is a unique model in China's healthcare industry, and is designed to bring further innovation to the industry in the years to come."

Dr. Yang concluded, "Our goal is to become a leading medical group in China with a focus on specialized cancer hospitals, designed to introduce international-level cancer treatment and diagnostic equipment as well as advanced hospital management experience and training system of medical personnel to China.  The healthcare market in China remains a promising industry with many addressable opportunities. We intend to capitalize on this growing opportunity and take full advantage of favorable government policy and support to contribute to overall cancer treatment and diagnosis while also generating long-term stable returns for our shareholders."

2015 First Quarter Financial Results

Total net revenues were RMB150.7 million ($24.3 million), a 5.7% increase from net revenues from RMB142.6 million in the first quarter of 2014, primarily due to improvement in product mix, especially increased contribution from PET-CT and Cyber Knife centers in the network. As of March 31, 2015, the Company operated a network of 132 centers in 54 cities in China and had entered into agreements to establish two additional centers.

Cost of revenue was RMB76.3 million ($12.3 million), a 17.7% increase from RMB64.9 million in the first quarter of 2014, mainly due to the increased medical consumable expenses for the network.

Gross profit was RMB74.4 million ($12.0 million), representing a 4.3% decrease from RMB77.8 million in the first quarter of 2014. The gross profit margin for the first quarter of 2015 was 49.4%, compared to 54.5% for the first quarter of 2014. The decrease was mainly due to higher cost of revenue attributable to the increased medical consumable expenses for the network.

Selling expenses were RMB25.9 million ($4.2 million), representing a 19.1% increase from RMB21.7 million in the first quarter of 2014. Selling expenses as a percentage of total net revenues increased to 17.2% in the first quarter of 2015 from 15.2% in the first quarter of 2014. The increase was mainly due to increased advertising and promotion related expenses.

General and administrative expenses were RMB21.4 million ($3.5 million), representing a 3.8% increase from RMB20.6 million in the first quarter of 2014. General and administrative expenses as a percentage of total net revenues was 14.2% in the first quarter of 2015, compared to 14.5% in the first quarter of 2014. The increase was mainly due to higher professional service fees incurred in the quarter.

Operating income was RMB27.0 million ($4.4 million) for the first quarter of 2015, compared to RMB35.4 million in the first quarter of 2014. The decrease was mainly due to higher cost of revenues, and selling, general and administrative expense.

Income tax benefit was RMB6.6 million ($1.1 million) for the first quarter of 2015, compared to income tax expense of RMB11.7 million in the first quarter of 2014. The income tax benefit was mainly due to the reversal of withholding taxes related to the Company's overseas investment.

Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders was RMB28.5 million ($4.6 million) for the first quarter of 2015, compared to RMB27.1 million in the first quarter of 2014. The net profit margin in the first quarter of 2015 was 18.9%, compared to 19.0% in the first quarter of 2014.

Non-GAAP net income for the first quarter of 2015 was RMB30.5 million ($4.9 million), compared to RMB28.9 million for the first quarter of 2014. 

Both basic and diluted earnings per ADS for the first quarter of 2015 were RMB0.68 ($0.11). Each ADS represents three ordinary shares. Both non-GAAP basic and diluted earnings per ADS in the first quarter of 2015 were RMB0.72 ($0.12).

Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) was RMB68.8 million ($11.1 million) for the first quarter of 2015, representing a 14.3% decrease from the first quarter of 2014.

During the first quarter of 2015, the Company handled 6,692 patient treatment cases and 73,744 patient diagnostic cases, representing 5.2% decrease and 11.8% decrease from the first quarter of 2014 mainly due to the closure of 7 centers during the quarter.

Capital expenditures were RMB38.9 million ($6.3 million) for the first quarter of 2015, compared with RMB7.1 million in the first quarter of 2014.

As of March 31, 2015, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of RMB572.9 million ($92.4 million) and restricted cash, current portion of RMB316.1 million ($51.0 million), compared to RMB478.7 million and RMB392.3 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2014.

Accounts receivable was RMB303.8 million ($49.0 million) as of March 31, 2015, compared to RMB265.0 million as of December 31, 2014. The average period of sales outstanding for accounts receivable (also known as Days Sales Outstanding) was 170 days in the first quarter of 2015.

As of March 31, 2015, the Company had bank credit lines totaling RMB2.8 billion (US$456.6 million), of which RMB881.7 million ($142.2 million) were utilized.

Total property, plant & equipment net valued at RMB727.1 million ($117.3 million), compared to RMB749.7 million as of December 31, 2014.

Recent Developments

Acquisition of Fortis Surgical Hospital in Singapore - On March 27, 2015, the Company announced the signing of a purchase agreement under which Concord Medical Services (International) Pte Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, agreed to acquire the Fortis Surgical Hospital from Fortis Healthcare International Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of Fortis Healthcare Ltd (Fortis). The acquisition was a 100% cash transaction, for a consideration of SGD55 million (USD39.8 million^[4]) Fortis Surgical Hospital is a private facility in Singapore, currently with 31 bed patient capacity. After the acquisition, Concord Medical will start the application to Singapore's Ministry of Health (MOH) to change the name of the hospital to Singapore Concord Cancer Hospital, and to add more oncology related medical specialties. The transaction was closed in April 2015.

MD Anderson Multi-year Strategic Collaboration Agreement - On May 6, 2015, the Company signed a multi-year strategic development agreement with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center ("MD Anderson"). According to the agreement, MD Anderson will provide Concord Medical with strategic counsel and programmatic services to support the development and implementation of a multidisciplinary oncology program with emphasis on clinical quality, patient safety, training and education, as well as research and development programs. According to the agreement both parties will collaborate exclusively at Concord Medical's new cancer facilities in Shanghai and Beijing, and the collaboration will cover most of the provinces in China and Singapore.

Conference Call Information

Concord Medical's management will hold an earnings conference call at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time on May 21, 2015 (8:00 p.m. Beijing/Hong Kong time on May 21, 2015).

Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as follows:

A replay of the conference call may be accessed by phone at the following numbers for 7 days:

Additionally, a live and archived webcast of this conference call will be available at http://ir.concordmedical.com.

About Concord Medical

Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited is a leading specialty hospital management solution provider and operator of the largest network of radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging centers in China. As of March 31, 2015, the Company operated a network of 132 centers with 77 hospital partners that spanned 54 cities and 25 provinces and administrative regions in China. Under long-term arrangements with top-tier hospitals in China, The Company provides radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging equipment and manages the daily operations of these centers, which are located on the premises of its hospital partners. The Company also provides ongoing training to doctors and other medical professionals in its network of centers to ensure a high level of clinical care for patients. As part of its high-end cancer hospital development strategy and oversea business extension, the Company acquired Fortis Surgical Hospital, a private hospital in Singapore in April, 2015. For more information, please see http://ir.concordmedical.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release may contain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "should" and "will" and similar expressions. These forward looking statements are based upon management's current views and expectations with respect to future events and are not a guarantee of future performance. Furthermore, these statements are by their nature, subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance and results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors. Such factors include: the number of new radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging centers opened; the increase in the number of patients in existing centers; the establishment of specialty cancer hospitals; changes in the healthcare industry in China, including changes in the healthcare policies and regulations of the PRC government; technological or therapeutic changes affecting the field of cancer treatment and diagnostic imaging; and possible effects on consumers and hospitals, hospital construction, and suppliers, as a result of inflation and the Chinese government's policies and actions to control inflation. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available at www.sec.gov. The Company does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required by law.

About Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To supplement the consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ("GAAP"), Concord Medical uses certain non-GAAP measures. The Company presents certain of its financial information that is adjusted from results based on GAAP to exclude the impact of share-based compensation expense and changes in fair value of derivatives. The Company believes excluding share-based compensation expense and changes in fair value of derivatives from its GAAP financial measures is useful for its management and investors to assess and analyze the Company's core operating results, as such expense is not directly attributable to the underlying performance of the Company's business operations and do not impact its current cash earnings. Concord Medical also believes these non-GAAP measures excluding share-based compensation expense and changes in fair value of derivatives are important in helping investors to understand the Company's current financial performance and future prospects and to compare business trends among different reporting periods on a consistent basis. In addition, Concord Medical also presents the non-GAAP measure of Adjusted EBITDA, which is defined in this announcement as net income plus interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, and share-based compensation expenses. Other adjustments include foreign exchange gain (loss), loss from disposal of property, plant and equipment and other income or expense. Furthermore, Adjusted EBITDA eliminates the impact of items that the Company does not consider to be indicative of the performance of the network business and hospital business. The Company believes investors will similarly use Adjusted EBITDA as one of the key metrics to evaluate its financial performance and to compare its current operating results with corresponding historical periods and with other companies in the healthcare services industry. The presentation of these additional measures should not be considered a substitute for or superior to GAAP results or as being comparable to results reported or forecasted by other companies. The non-GAAP measures have been reconciled to GAAP measures in the attached financial information.

For more information, please contact:

Concord Medical Services

Mr. Adam J. Sun (Chinese and English)
+86 10 5957 5266
[email protected]

Ms. Fang Liu (Chinese and English)
+86 10 5903 6688 (ext. 639)
[email protected]

ICR Inc.

In China:
Ms. Rene Jiang
+86 10 6583-7521
[email protected]

In the United States:
Mr. William Zima
+1 203-682-8233
[email protected]

SOURCE Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited