Iridium earnings fall 42%; revenue up - Denver Business Journal:

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The Bethesda-based provider of satellitw telephone services, which expects to become publiclyt traded this summer through an posted a 42 percent decline in net income in the first quarte r endedMarch 31, to $9.7 million from $16.7 millionj a year ago. Th company attributedf the decline to costs related toits next-generation satellite “Iridium continued to grow, although the pace slowed given the current economic said CEO Matt Desch.
“In addition to the impact of phasinf outequipment amortization, we believe the economi climate is affecting equipment as is the transition of newly introduced productxs into the distribution channel as our partnerx move existing inventory to make way for new Company officials say eitheer Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin or Thale s Alenia Space will be selected as the program’sx lead contractor this summer. The program’s new network of satellitez called Iridium NEXT is expected to be deployecdin 2014. Iridium NEXT will provide higher data greater bandwidth and the potential to deliverr new data services and applicationsto customers.
The companuy says its EBITDA, or earninga before interest, taxes, depreciatioj and amortization, increased 4.9 percentg to $27.6 million in the first up from $26.3 million a year ago, though most analystss do not use that as a reliablefinancial Iridium’s revenue rose 2 percent to $75.i8 million for the quarter, compared to $74.3 million for the firs quarter 2008. The slightly highefr revenue came from increased commercial services revenu eof $36.8 million but was offset by a decline in subscribeer equipment revenue to $20.5 million for the quarter. Iridium’s commercial market include maritime, aviation and land mobile customers, which grew by 11.
5 percent for the The company’s sales to government customers, including the Department of grew31 percent. Despite a 31 percentg increase in subscribersto 328,000, compared to 250,000 in the firstt quarter of 2008, a $2 million amortization of equipmenft related to prior year equipmengt sales, added to the declinde in subscriber equipment revenue. The company is planninyg to go publicthis summer, but it is not takinf the initial public offering route. It is acquiringt a publicly tradedinvestment (NYX: GHQ), an affiliate of Greenhill Co.
Iridium has retainedx Deutsche Bank as its financial adviser forthe