TTEC Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Financial Results

Full Year 2023
Revenue was $2.463 Billion, up 0.8 Percent
Operating Income was $118.0 Million or 4.8 Percent of Revenue
($200.4 Million or 8.1 Percent of Revenue Non-GAAP)
Net Income was $18.3 Million or 0.7 Percent of Revenue
($103.2 Million or 4.2 Percent of Revenue Non-GAAP)
Adjusted EBITDA was $271.5 Million or 11.0 Percent of Revenue
Fully Diluted EPS was $0.39, $2.18 Non-GAAP

 Fourth Quarter 2023
Revenue was $626.2 Million, down 4.9 Percent
Operating Income was 16.9 Million or 2.7 Percent of Revenue
($41.8 Million or 6.7 Percent of Revenue Non-GAAP)
Net Income was ($8.2) Million or (1.3) Percent of Revenue
($17.5 Million or 2.8 Percent of Revenue Non-GAAP)
Adjusted EBITDA was $57.5 Million or 9.2 Percent of Revenue
Fully Diluted EPS was ($0.17), $0.37 Non-GAAP

 Provides Outlook for Full Year 2024

DENVER, Feb. 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TTEC Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTEC), a leading global CX (customer experience) technology and services innovator for AI-enabled CX with solutions from TTEC Engage and TTEC Digital, announced today financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2023.

"As we have previously communicated, 2023 was a dynamic year for TTEC. The macroeconomic factors created a conservative and uncertain business environment that delayed client contracting decisions and lowered forecasts for certain clients in the second half of the year. While these factors moderated our results, we continued to make progress diversifying our business by growing our client base, completing a strategic phase of our geographic expansion, and expanding our AI-enabled solutions," commented Ken Tuchman, chairman and chief executive officer of TTEC.

"Our 2024 outlook reflects three very specific challenges in our TTEC Engage segment. First, client budget constraints and a conservative mindset in the second half of 2023 is carrying forward into our 2024 outlook. Second, a long-tenured client eliminated one of several lines of business that we supported. While our relationship remains strong with this client and we continue to service their customers across multiple other lines of business, the discontinuation of this one line of business contributes to the impact on our top and bottom line in 2024. Third, while we are pleased by the growing demand for our new offshore locations, the timing lag between our recent wins and normalized revenue run rate and margins is weighing on our outlook," Tuchman continued.

"In TTEC Digital, we delivered record bookings in the fourth quarter and the team is off to a strong start this year. Demand for our differentiated CX technology expertise continues to grow as cloud migrations and AI solutions drive our clients' CX digital transformation agendas."

Tuchman further stated, "As we move into 2024, we are laser focused on execution. We will continue to capitalize on our greatly expanded offshore footprint, deepen our relationships with new and existing clients, apply our AI-enabled solutions and accelerate our margin optimization initiatives."

"TTEC's board of directors' decision to reduce the dividend reflects a prudent shift to prioritize our capital deployment towards continued investments in sustainable growth initiatives and debt reduction associated with strategic acquisitions. As revised, the dividend is in line with our stock price and the dividend yield typical for our industry and the broader market. I am confident we are well positioned to emerge stronger as we exit 2024."

FULL YEAR 2023 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS                    

Revenue        

• Full year 2023 GAAP revenue increased 0.8 percent to $2.463 billion compared to $2.444 billion in the prior year. 
• Foreign exchange had a $4.4 million positive impact on revenue for the full year 2023.

Income from Operations

• Full year 2023 GAAP income from operations was $118.0 million, or 4.8 percent of revenue, compared to $168.5 million, or 6.9 percent of revenue in the prior year.
• Non-GAAP income from operations, excluding restructuring and impairment charges, equity-based compensation expenses, amortization of purchased intangibles, and other items, was $200.4 million, or 8.1 percent of revenue, compared to $248.5 million, or 10.2 percent in the prior year.
• Foreign exchange had a $2.2 million negative impact on Non-GAAP income from operations for the full year 2023.

Adjusted EBITDA    

• Full year 2023 Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA was $271.5 million, or 11.0 percent of revenue, compared to $320.1 million, or 13.1 percent of revenue in the prior year.

Earnings Per Share

• Full year 2023 GAAP fully diluted earnings per share was $0.39 compared to $2.48 in the prior year.
• Non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share was $2.18 compared to $3.59 in the prior year.

FOURTH QUARTER 2023 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS                  

Revenue        

• Fourth quarter 2023 GAAP revenue decreased 4.9 percent to $626.2 million compared to $658.3 million in the prior year. 
• Foreign exchange had a $5.5 million positive impact on revenue in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Income from Operations

• Fourth quarter 2023 GAAP income from operations was $16.9 million, or 2.7 percent of revenue, compared to $48.7 million, or 7.4 percent of revenue in the prior year.
• Non-GAAP income from operations, excluding restructuring and impairment charges, equity-based compensation expenses, amortization of purchased intangibles, and other items, was $41.8 million, or 6.7 percent of revenue, compared to $69.9 million, or 10.6 percent for the prior year.
• Foreign exchange had a $2.4 million negative impact on Non-GAAP income from operations in the fourth quarter 2023.

Adjusted EBITDA    

• Fourth quarter 2023 Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA was $57.5 million, or 9.2 percent of revenue, compared to $86.5 million, or 13.1 percent of revenue in the prior year.

Earnings Per Share

• Fourth quarter 2023 GAAP fully diluted earnings per share was ($0.17) compared to $0.54 in the prior year.
• Non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share was $0.37 compared to $0.91 in the prior year.

STRONG CASH FLOW AND BALANCE SHEET FUND INVESTMENTS AND DIVIDENDS

• Cash flow from operations in the fourth quarter 2023 was $31.5 million compared to $18.2 million for the fourth quarter 2022. For the full year 2023, cash flow from operations was $144.8 million compared to $137.0 million for the same period 2022.
• Capital expenditures in the fourth quarter 2023 were $13.1 million compared to $19.4 million for the fourth quarter 2022. For the full year 2023, capital expenditures were $67.8 million compared to $84.0 million for the same period 2022.
• As of December 31, 2023, TTEC had cash and cash equivalents of $172.7 million and debt of $999.3 million, resulting in a net debt position of $826.5 million. This compares to a net debt position of $810.2 million for the same period 2022.
• As of December 31, 2023, TTEC's remaining borrowing capacity under its revolving credit facility was approximately $90 million compared to $335 million for the same period 2022.
• On February 27, 2024, the Board declared the next semi-annual dividend of $0.06 per share, or $2.9 million, payable on April 30, 2024 to shareholders of record as of April 3, 2024. TTEC's board of directors' decision to reduce the dividend reflects a prudent shift to prioritize our capital deployment towards continued investments in sustainable growth initiatives and debt reduction associated with strategic acquisitions.
• TTEC paid a $0.52 per share, or $24.7 million, semi-annual dividend on October 31, 2023.

SEGMENT REPORTING & COMMENTARY

TTEC reports financial results for the following two business segments: TTEC Digital (Digital) and TTEC Engage (Engage). Financial highlights for the two segments are provided below.

TTEC Digital – Design, build and operate tech-enabled, insight-driven CX solutions

• Fourth quarter 2023 GAAP revenue for TTEC Digital decreased 2.1 percent to $119.1 million from $121.7 million for the year ago period. Income from operations was $10.0 million or 8.4 percent of revenue compared to an operating income of $9.9 million or 8.2 percent of revenue in the prior year. 
• Non-GAAP income from operations was $17.7 million, or 14.8 percent of revenue compared to operating income of $18.0 million or 14.8 percent of revenue in the prior year.

TTEC Engage – Digitally-enabled customer care, acquisition, and fraud mitigation services

• Fourth quarter 2023 GAAP revenue for TTEC Engage decreased 5.5 percent to $507.1 million from $536.6 million for the year ago period. Income from operations was $6.9 million or 1.4 percent of revenue compared to operating income of $38.8 million, or 7.2 percent of revenue in the prior year.
• Non-GAAP income from operations was $24.1 million, or 4.8 percent of revenue, compared to operating income of $52.0 million, or 9.7 percent of revenue in the prior year.
• Foreign exchange had a $5.3 million positive impact on revenue and $1.9 million negative impact on income from operations.

BUSINESS OUTLOOK

"We ended 2023 in line with expectations but the recent dynamics in the Engage segment are causing a reduction in our 2024 revenue and margin outlook compared to 2023. We are confident in the initiatives currently in motion that focus on growth and margin improvement," commented Francois Bourret, interim chief financial officer of TTEC. "As digital transformation continues to be a top priority for our clients, we are encouraged by the growing momentum with TTEC Digital. As we move forward, we will navigate this environment to position the company to exit 2024 with a view towards longer-term profitable growth."

The Company has not quantitatively reconciled its guidance for Non-GAAP operating income, Non-GAAP operating income margins, Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA, Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA margins, or Non-GAAP earnings per share to their respective most comparable GAAP measures because certain of the reconciling items that impact these metrics, including restructuring and impairment charges, equity-based compensation expense, changes in acquisition contingent consideration, depreciation and amortization expense, and provision for income taxes are dependent on the timing of future events outside of the Company's control or cannot be reliably predicted. Accordingly, the Company is unable to provide reconciliations to GAAP operating income, operating income margins, EBITDA margins, and diluted earnings per share without unreasonable effort. Please note that the unavailable reconciling items could significantly impact the Company's 2024 financial results as reported under GAAP.

NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

This press release contains a discussion of certain Non-GAAP financial measures that the Company includes to allow investors and analysts to measure, analyze and compare its financial condition and results of operations in a meaningful and consistent manner. A reconciliation of these Non-GAAP financial measures can be found in the tables accompanying this press release.

• GAAP metrics are presented in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
• Non-GAAP - As reflected in the attached reconciliation table, the definition of Non-GAAP may exclude from operating income, EBITDA, net income and earnings per share restructuring and impairment charges, equity-based compensation expenses, amortization of purchased intangibles, among other items.

ABOUT TTEC 

TTEC (pronounced T-TEC) Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTEC) is a leading global CX (customer experience) technology and services innovator for AI-enabled digital CX solutions. Serving iconic and disruptive brands, TTEC's outcome-based solutions span the entire enterprise, touch every virtual interaction channel, and improve each step of the customer journey. Leveraging next-gen digital technology, the Company's TTEC Digital business designs, builds, and operates omnichannel contact center technology, CRM, AI and analytics solutions. The Company's TTEC Engage business delivers AI-enabled customer engagement, customer acquisition and growth, tech support, back office, and fraud prevention services. Founded in 1982, the company's singular obsession with CX excellence has earned it leading client, customer, and employee satisfaction scores across the globe. The Company's over 60,000 employees operate on six continents and bring technology and humanity together to deliver happy customers and differentiated business results. To learn more visit us at https://www.ttec.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Earnings Press Release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995., Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to our operations, expected financial position, results of operation, effective tax rate, cash flow, leverage, liquidity, business strategy, competitive position, demand for our services in international operations, acquisition opportunities and impact of acquisitions, capital allocation and dividends, growth opportunities, spending, capital expenditures and investments, competition and market forecasts, industry trends, our human capital resources, and other business matters that are based on our current expectations, assumptions, and projections with respect to the future, and are not a guarantee of performance.

In this Release when we use words such as "may," "believe," "plan," "will," "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "project," "would," "could," "target," or similar expressions, or when we discuss our strategy, plans, goals, initiatives, or objectives, we are making forward-looking statements. Unless otherwise indicated or except where the context otherwise requires, the terms "TTEC," "the Company," "we," "us" and "our"and other similar terms in this report refer to TTEC Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries. We caution you not to rely unduly on any forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements, and you should review and consider carefully the risks, uncertainties, and other factors that affect our business and may cause such differences as outlined in Item 1A. Risk Factors in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and any subsequent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") which are available on TTEC's website www.ttec.com, and on the SEC's public website at www.sec.gov

Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date that this release is issued. We undertake no obligation to update them, except as may be required by applicable law. Although we believe that our forward-looking statements are reasonable, they depend on many factors outside of our control and we can provide no assurance that they will prove to be correct.

SOURCE TTEC Holdings, Inc.