Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Reports First Quarter 2011 Results

NEW YORK, April 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (NYSE: MSO) today announced its results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2011. The Company reported revenue for the first quarter of $52.7 million.

Charles Koppelman, Executive Chairman and Principal Executive Officer, said: “We believe the transformation of the Company is beginning to take hold as we seek to broaden our portfolio of engaging content and quality products. In the first quarter, our Merchandising segment delivered strong sales growth from our partnerships at The Home Depot and Macy’s. Higher Publishing revenues included strong double-digit growth in digital advertising, while our Broadcasting team is continuing to build an attractive block of programming on Hallmark Channel. We feel we’re positioned to deliver profitable growth as we execute on our business plan in 2011 and beyond.”

Robin Marino, President and Chief Executive Officer of Merchandising, stated: “Merchandising continued to build on our success in 2010, with revenue up 4% on an absolute basis and up 34% when excluding Kmart and a one-time payment in the prior-year quarter. The quarter marks the first anniversary of our launch at The Home Depot and the partnership is thriving. Our Martha Stewart Collection at Macy's also had an excellent quarter, with strong sales in key categories, and our Martha Stewart Crafts and Martha Stewart Pets lines continued to perform. Looking ahead, we see our Merchandising business poised for continued momentum throughout 2011.”

First Quarter 2011 Summary

Revenues were $52.7 million in the first quarter of 2011, compared to $53.2 million in the first quarter of 2010. The first quarter of 2010 included the recognition of an approximately $5.0 million exclusive license fee from Hallmark Channel, $1.2 million in revenue from the Kmart relationship that concluded in that quarter, and a $1.0 million one-time payment from a Merchandising partner.

Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2011 was a loss of $(4.3) million, compared to a loss of $(0.5) million in the prior year period. The first quarter of 2010 included the non-recurring contributions described above.

Operating loss for the first quarter of 2011 was $(6.8) million, compared to $(3.4) million for the first quarter of 2010.

Net loss per share was $(0.13) for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $(0.07) for the first quarter of 2010.

Publishing

As previously announced, and in connection with fourth quarter 2010 organizational and managerial reporting structure changes, results from our former Internet segment are now included in our Publishing segment for all periods presented.

Revenues in the first quarter of 2011 were $34.7 million, up 11% from $31.3 million in the prior year's first quarter. The increase is due to year-over-year gains in print and digital advertising revenue, as well as an 11% increase in circulation revenue over the prior year’s quarter.

Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $(1.5) million in the first quarter of 2011, compared to a loss of $(1.9) million in the prior year's quarter.

Operating loss was $(1.9) million for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $(2.6) million in the first quarter of 2010.

Highlights

• Print advertising revenue was up 2% and digital advertising revenue was up 55% in the first quarter of 2011 versus the prior year quarter.
• According to ComScore unified data, unique visitors across MSLO's websites increased 42% and page views were up 29% over the prior year's period.
• Martha Stewart’s New Pies and Tarts launched on March 22 and quickly became a bestseller.
• Both Martha Stewart Living and Everyday Food magazine apps for the iPad launched in the quarter; both titles are now available in print and digitized formats each month.
• “Egg Dyeing 101 from Martha Stewart Living,” a new egg-decorating app for the iPhone and iPod Touch, has been a top-seller in the lifestyle category for paid apps on the App Store since launching in late March.

Broadcasting

Revenues in the first quarter of 2011 were $7.8 million, compared to $12.1 million in the first quarter of 2010. First quarter 2010 revenues included the recognition of an approximately $5.0 million exclusive license fee from Hallmark Channel.

Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $(1.7) million for the first quarter of 2011, compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $3.4 million in the prior year's first quarter.

Operating loss was $(1.8) million for the first quarter of 2011 compared to operating income of $3.2 million in the first quarter of 2010.

Highlights

• Martha Stewart's Eggcellent Easter special premiered in primetime on Hallmark Channel on April 17.
• Hallmark Channel announced its fourth quarter lineup, which will include the season seven premiere of The Martha Stewart Show, Mad Hungry with Lucinda Scala Quinn, and the debut of Emeril’s Table, a new daily cooking show featuring Chef Emeril Lagasse; Petkeeping with Marc Morrone was also renewed with new episodes expected to air beginning in January 2012.

Merchandising

Revenues were $10.2 million for the first quarter of 2011, an increase from $9.8 million in the prior year's first quarter. The first quarter of 2010 included revenue from Kmart, as well a $1.0 million one-time payment from a Merchandising partner. Excluding these items, revenue increased 34% year-over-year in the first quarter.

Adjusted EBITDA was $5.5 million for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $5.7 million in the prior year's first quarter.

Operating income was $5.2 million for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $5.3 million in the first quarter of 2010.

Highlights

• The Martha Stewart Living line at The Home Depot continued its strong performance with solid contributions from outdoor furniture, wall-to-wall carpet, home decor and kitchen cabinetry.
• The Martha Stewart Collection at Macy's had continued year-over-year sales growth in the quarter, driven by strength in soft home textiles, and high double-digit growth in online sales.
• Martha Stewart Crafts benefited from steady domestic distribution and increased international shipments in the quarter. Martha’s successful appearance on HSN on March 31 also contributed to the quarter.
• Emeril's cookware line with All-Clad performed well in the quarter, driven by increased shipments to key retailers and multiple appearances on HSN.

Corporate

Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $(6.7) million in the first quarter of 2011 compared to a loss of $(7.7) million in the prior year's quarter. Total Corporate expenses were $(8.3) million in the first quarter of 2011 compared to $(9.3) million in the prior year's quarter. The decrease is largely due to lower facility-related expenses.

The Company will host a conference call with analysts and investors on April 27th at 11:00 a.m. EDT that will be broadcast live over the Internet at www.marthastewart.com/ir, and an archived version will be available through May 11, 2011.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information

In addition to using net income to assess the organization's overall financial health, Company management uses consolidated net income/(loss) before interest income or expense, taxes, depreciation and amortization, impairment, non-cash equity compensation expense and other expense (including loss on equity securities) ("adjusted EBITDA"), a non-GAAP financial measure, to evaluate the performance of our businesses on a real-time basis. Adjusted EBITDA is considered an important indicator of operational strength, is a direct component of the Company's annual compensation program, and is a significant factor in helping our management determine how to allocate resources and capital. Adjusted EBITDA is used in addition to and in conjunction with results presented in accordance with GAAP. Management considers adjusted EBITDA to be a critical measure of operational health because it captures all of the revenue and ongoing operating expenses of our businesses without the influence of (i) interest charges, which result from our capital structure, not our ongoing business efforts, (ii) taxes, which relate to the overall organizational financial return, not that of any one business, (iii) the capital expenditure costs associated with depreciation and amortization, which are a function of historical decisions on infrastructure and capacity, (iv) the cost of non-cash equity compensation which, as a function of our stock price, can be highly variable, is not necessarily an indicator of current operating performance for any individual business unit, and is amortized over the appropriate period, and (v) other income/(expense) which may include non-operational items.

Adjusted EBITDA provides a means to directly evaluate the ability of our business operations to generate returns on a real-time basis. We provide disclosure of adjusted EBITDA because we believe it is useful for investors to have means to assess our performance as we do. While adjusted EBITDA is a customized non-GAAP measure, it also provides a means to analyze value and compare our operating capabilities to those of companies with which we compete, many of which have different compensation plans, depreciation and amortization costs, capital structures and tax burdens. But please note that our non-GAAP results may differ from similar measures used by other companies, even if similar terms are used to identify such measures.

A limitation of adjusted EBITDA is that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain capitalized tangible and intangible assets used in generating revenues for our overall organization. Management evaluates the costs of such tangible and intangible assets through other financial measures such as capital expenditures. Management also evaluates the cost of capitalized tangible and intangible assets by analyzing returns provided on the capital dollars deployed. A further limitation of adjusted EBITDA is that it does not include stock compensation expense related to our workforce. Adjusted EBITDA should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, net income or other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP.

About Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (MSLO) is a leading provider of original "how-to" information, inspiring and engaging consumers with unique lifestyle content and high-quality products. MSLO is organized into the following business segments: Publishing, Broadcasting, and Merchandising. MSLO is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol MSO.

Forward-Looking Statements

We have included in this press release certain "forward-looking statements," as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent only our current beliefs regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of our control. These statements include estimates of future financial performance, potential opportunities, expected product line expansions and additions, future acceptability of our content and our businesses, anticipated growth, and other statements that can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "could," "position," "expects," "intends," "plans," "thinks," "believes," "estimates," "potential," "seem," "counting" or "continue" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. The Company's actual results may differ materially from those projected in these statements, and factors that could cause such differences include: adverse reactions to publicity relating to Martha Stewart or Emeril Lagasse by consumers, advertisers and business partners; the failure of national and/or local economies to continue to improve or renewed deterioration of such economies; shifts in our business strategies; a loss of the services of Ms. Stewart or Mr. Lagasse; a loss of the services of other key personnel; a renewed softening of the domestic advertising market; changes in consumer reading, purchasing and/or television viewing patterns to which our offerings are unable to respond; unanticipated increases in paper, postage or printing costs; operational or financial problems at any of our contractual business partners; the receptivity of consumers to our new product introductions; the inability to add to our partnerships or capitalize on existing partnerships; and changes in government regulations affecting the Company's industries.

Certain of these and other factors are discussed in more detail in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, especially under the heading "Risk Factors," which may be accessed through the SEC's World Wide Web site at http://www.sec.gov/. The Company is under no obligation to update any forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

SOURCE Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.