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Essex Rental Corp. Ticker Symbols to Change Effective May 28, 2009
May 27, 2009 6:13:00 PM
Copyright Business Wire 2009
Email Story Discuss on ZenoBank
View Additional ProfilesBUFFALO GROVE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Essex Rental Corp. (OTCBB: HYDQ; HYDQW; HYDQU) ("Essex") today announced that its common stock, common stock purchase warrants, and units will begin trading under the new symbols ERNT, ERNTW, and ERNTU, respectively, beginning Thursday, May 28, 2009. The previous ticker symbols for these securities were HYDQ, HYDQW, and HYDQU. Essex will continue to trade on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board (the "OTCBB") while it continues to pursue listing of its securities on The NASDAQ Capital Market. The new ticker symbols were assigned to Essex's securities by the OTCBB as a result of Essex's name change from "Hyde Park Acquisition Corp." to "Essex Rental Corp."
About Essex Rental Corp.
Headquartered outside of Chicago, Essex, through its subsidiary, Essex Crane, is one of North America's largest providers of lattice-boom crawler crane and attachment rental services. With over 350 cranes and attachments in its fleet, Essex supplies cranes for construction projects related to power generation, petro-chemical, refineries, water treatment & purification, bridges, highways, hospitals, shipbuilding, offshore oil fabrication and industrial plants, and commercial construction.
This press release contains statements which constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Those statements include statements regarding the intent and belief or current expectations of Essex and its management team. These statements may be identified by the use of words like "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "plan", "will", "should", "seek" and similar expressions. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Essex's expectations include, without limitation, the continued ability of Essex to successfully execute its business plan, demand for the products and services Essex provides, general economic conditions, geopolitical events and regulatory changes, as well has other relevant risks detailed in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Essex undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.
Source: Essex Rental Corp.
----------------------------------------------
Essex Rental Corp.
Martin Kroll
847-215-6502
Chief Financial Officer
mkroll@essexcrane.com
or
INVESTOR RELATIONS:
The Equity Group Inc.
Melissa Dixon
212-836-9613
Senior Account Executive
mdixon@equityny.com
or
Devin Sullivan
212-836-9608
Senior Vice President
dsullivan@equityny.com
Essex Rental Corp. Announces 2009 First Quarter Results
Company Reaffirms $0.90 - $1.20 After-Tax Free Cash Flow Per Share in 2009
May 4, 2009 4:03:00 PM
2009 GlobeNewswire, Inc.
Email Story Discuss on ZenoBank
View Additional ProfilesBUFFALO GROVE, Ill., May 4, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Essex Rental Corp. (OTCBB:HYDQ) (OTCBB:HYDQW) (OTCBB:HYDQU) ("Essex") today announced its unaudited consolidated results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2009. The following unaudited results are those of Essex Rental Corp. and its consolidated subsidiaries, including Essex Crane Rental Corp. ("Essex Crane"), its operating subsidiary, and provide a comparison of Essex's results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2009 to the corresponding results of Essex Crane for the three months ended March 31, 2008.
Essex's total rental related revenue for the first quarter of 2009, which included revenue from rentals, repairs and maintenance, and transportation services (but excluded used rental equipment sales), was $15.0 million compared to $17.2 million for Essex Crane's first quarter of 2008. The decrease in total rental related revenue was driven primarily by lower rental revenue of $12.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 as compared to $13.9 million in the prior year period. During the latter portion of the first quarter of 2009, Essex began to see a pick up in quoting activity to a level consistent with the same period last year. Historically, quoting activity has preceded actual bookings.
The average monthly crane rental rate increased 18.9% to $22,794 for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 from $19,163 for the same quarter in 2008. The increase in average rental rate reflected both rental rate increases and Essex's continuing efforts to optimize its fleet mix through the purchase of new, heavier lift cranes. The investment in these new heavier lift cranes is being partially financed through the sale of older lighter lift cranes. In the first quarter of 2009, Essex invested $8.6 million in new heavier lift cranes, replacing older cranes with lighter lift capacity, which typically have lower utilization and rental rates than the new heavier lift capacity cranes.
For the quarter ended March 31, 2009, the total number of crane rental days equaled 57.2% of the total available days, compared to 72.6% in the same period in 2008. The decline in utilization was partially offset by the 18.9% increase in average monthly crane rental rates.
Essex's total cost of revenues (excluding costs associated with used rental equipment sales and depreciation expense) was $4.4 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2009, down from $5.5 million for Essex Crane's first quarter ended March 31, 2008. Total cost of revenues (excluding costs associated with used rental equipment sales and depreciation expense) as a percentage of total revenues (excluding used rental equipment sales) were 29.5% for the first quarter of 2009 compared to 32.0% for the same prior year period.
Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses were $3.1 million or 20.7% of total revenues (excluding depreciation and amortization) for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 compared to $2.5 million, or 14.4% for Essex Crane's first quarter last year. The $600,000 increase in SG&A in the first quarter of 2009 was entirely attributable to public company expenses that did not exist in the prior year period during which Essex Crane was a privately held company.
Total EBITDA for Essex's first quarter ended March 31, 2009 was $7.8 million compared to $10.6 million for Essex Crane's first quarter ended March 31, 2008. Rental EBITDA was $7.7 million for Essex's first quarter ended March 31, 2009, as compared to $9.3 million for Essex Crane's first quarter ended March 31, 2008. Rental EBITDA, which is a non-GAAP financial measure, represents earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization generated in the ordinary course of business, and does not include the gain on sales of rental equipment. A reconciliation of Rental EBITDA to Income from Operations is included in the financial tables accompanying this release.
Rental revenue backlog declined to $20.6 million at March 31, 2009 from $30.3 million at December 31, 2008.
Management Comments on the First Quarter and Remainder of 2009
Ron Schad, President & CEO of Essex, stated, "The sluggish booking activity we experienced towards the end of the fourth quarter of 2008 continued through the first quarter of 2009, stemming from the difficult commercial credit environment and general economic uncertainty that affected our customers across the board. However, in the latter part of the first quarter of 2009, we started to experience a pick up in quoting activity to levels that were experienced in the same period of 2008. We anticipate an increase in bookings in the second half of 2009 as recent inquiry and quoting activity has led us to believe that orders are close to being released for infrastructure projects. This is specifically related to heavy highway work and other projects included in the Federal Stimulus Bill that targets many of our end markets."
Mr. Schad continued, "In the interim, we have slowed our capital expenditure program and implemented several cost cutting initiatives. This included reducing headcount, eliminating discretionary expenses wherever possible, decreasing the use of third party vendors that were performing maintenance on our cranes and reducing overtime and the associated expenses. We believe that these actions are prudent in light of the current macro-economic environment and will not detract from the long-term value of the business."
Mr. Schad concluded, "In order to take full advantage of our strategy to reposition our fleet towards higher lifting capacity cranes that generate higher rental and utilization rates, it is crucial to have access to liquidity when needed. At March 31, 2009, we had approximately $46.3 million of availability on our $190 million credit facility and believe in the predictability and visibility of our earnings stream and Essex's ability to generate strong free cash flow. Based on current market conditions and our rental revenue backlog of $30.3 million at 2008 year end, which was approximately 50% of 2008 rental revenue, we continue to target 15% to 20% after tax free cash flow (computed after deducting all interest, cash taxes, and both maintenance and growth capital expenditures) on invested equity of over $80 million which equates to after tax free cash flow of $0.90 to $1.20 per share."
Conference Call
Essex's management team will conduct a conference call to discuss the operating results tomorrow, May 5, 2009, at 9:00 a.m. ET. Interested parties may participate in the call by dialing 706-902-1803. Please call in 10 minutes before the call is scheduled to begin, and ask for the Essex call (conference ID# 95872107).
The conference call will also be webcast live via the Investor Relations section ("Events and Presentations") of the Essex Rental Corp. website at www.essexcrane.com. To listen to the live call, please go to the website at least 15 minutes early to register, download and install any necessary audio software. If you are unable to listen live, the conference call will be archived on the website.
About Essex Rental Corp.
Headquartered outside of Chicago, Essex Rental Corp. is one of North America's largest providers of lattice-boom crawler crane and attachment rental services. With over 350 cranes and attachments in its fleet, Essex supplies cranes for construction projects related to power generation, petro-chemical, refineries, water treatment & purification, bridges, highways, hospitals, shipbuilding, offshore oil fabrication, industrial plants and commercial construction.
This press release contains statements which constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Those statements include statements regarding the intent and belief or current expectations of Essex and its management team. These statements may be identified by the use of words like "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "plan", "will", "should", "seek" and similar expressions. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Essex expectations include, without limitation, the continued ability of Essex to successfully execute its business plan, demand for the products and services the Essex provides (through its subsidiary, Essex Crane), general economic conditions, geopolitical events and regulatory changes, as well as other relevant risks detailed in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Essex Rental undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.
This press release includes references to Rental EBITDA, an unaudited financial measure of performance which is not calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP. While management believes that the presentation of Rental EBITDA serves to enhance understanding of Essex's and Essex Crane's operating performance, Rental EBITDA should be considered in addition to, but not as substitutes for, or more meaningful than, income from operations, the most directly comparable GAAP measures, as an indicator of Essex's and Essex Crane's operating performance. Rental EBITDA has been presented as a supplemental disclosure because EBITDA is a widely used measure of performance and basis for valuation. A reconciliation of Rental EBITDA to income from operations is included in the financial tables accompanying this release.
Essex Rental Corp.
Consolidated Statements of Operations
(Unaudited)
Successor Predecessor
------------------------ -----------
Three Months
Three months Ended
Ended March 31 March 31,
------------------------ -----------
2009 2008 2008
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Unaudited)
------------------------ -----------
REVENUES
Equipment rentals $12,220,362 $ -- $13,899,920
Used rental equipment sales 2,020,071 -- 2,907,889
Transportation 1,392,675 -- 1,912,342
Equipment repairs and
maintenance 1,405,735 -- 1,341,100
------------------------ -----------
TOTAL REVENUES 17,038,843 -- 20,061,251
COST OF REVENUES
Salaries, payroll taxes and
benefits 1,699,411 -- 1,910,728
Depreciation 2,768,205 -- 2,072,610
Net book value of rental
equipment sold 1,722,235 -- 1,495,233
Transportation 1,048,464 -- 1,642,578
Equipment repair and
maintenance 1,265,411 -- 1,474,379
Yard operating expenses 415,416 -- 455,373
------------------------ -----------
TOTAL COST OF REVENUES 8,919,142 -- 9,050,901
GROSS PROFIT 8,119,701 -- 11,010,350
Selling, general and
administrative expenses 3,105,730 149,157 2,464,189
Other depreciation and
amortization 210,378 -- 31,389
------------------------ -----------
INCOME (LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS 4,803,593 (149,157) 8,514,772
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSES)
Other income, net -
insurance recoveries 191,539 -- 55,519
Interest income 33 505,928 --
Interest expense (1,679,719) -- (2,368,621)
Interest rate swap -- -- (2,925,999)
------------------------ -----------
TOTAL OTHER INCOME (EXPENSES) (1,488,147) 505,928 (5,239,101)
------------------------ -----------
INCOME BEFORE TAXES 3,315,446 356,771 3,275,671
PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES 1,265,423 105,700 1,256,663
------------------------ -----------
NET INCOME $ 2,050,023 $ 251,071 $ 2,019,008
======================== ===========
Weighted average shares
outstanding:
Basic and diluted 14,108,099 15,750,000
========================
Net income per share:
Basic and diluted $ 0.15 $ 0.02
========================
Note:
(1) On October 31, 2008, Essex Rental Corp. consummated the
acquisition of Essex Holdings LLC, and its wholly owned
subsidiary, Essex Crane Rental Corp. (collectively,
"Predecessor").
Three Months Three Months
Ended Ended
March 31, March 31,
------------ ------------
2009 2008
------------ ------------
Average crane rental rate per month $ 22,794 $ 19,163
Utilization Statistics - Cranes
"Days" Method Utilization 57.2% 72.6%
"Hits" Method Utilization 62.5% 76.7%
(See definitions in the proxy
statement filed with SEC)
Reconciliation of Income from Operations
to Total EBITDA and Rental EBITDA
(Unaudited)
Three Months Three Months
Ended Ended
March 31, March 31,
------------ ------------
2009 2008
(Unaudited) (Unaudited)
------------ ------------
Income from Operations $ 4,803,593 $ 8,514,772
Add: Depreciation 2,768,205 2,072,610
Add: Goodwill impairment -- --
Add: Other depreciation and
amortization 210,378 31,389
------------ ------------
Total EBITDA $ 7,782,176 $ 10,618,771
Minus: Used rental equipment
sales (2,020,071) (2,907,889)
Add: Net book value of rental
equipment sold 1,722,235 1,495,233
------------ ------------
Add: Other income net insurance
recoveries 191,539 55,519
------------ ------------
Rental EBITDA $ 7,675,879 $ 9,261,634
Essex Rental Corp.
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Unaudited)
As of As of
March 31, December 31,
------------ ------------
2009 2008
(Unaudited)
------------ ------------
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents $ 204,129 $ 139,000
Accounts receivable, net 8,087,130 11,350,561
Other receivables 3,346,713 3,167,773
Deferred tax assets 2,078,185 1,859,071
Prepaid expenses & other assets 856,459 440,879
------------ ------------
TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS 14,572,656 16,957,284
Rental equipment, net 260,390,943 255,692,116
Property & equipment, net 7,876,865 8,176,143
Spare parts inventory, net 3,479,767 3,276,858
Intangible assets, net 3,087,505 3,518,667
Loan acquisition costs, net 2,268,364 2,377,442
------------ ------------
TOTAL ASSETS $291,676,100 $289,998,510
============ ============
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable $ 2,109,026 $ 2,510,564
Accrued employee compensation and
benefits 697,681 2,160,960
Accrued taxes 5,666,239 5,203,485
Accrued interest 342,840 440,667
Accrued other expenses 2,119,896 1,390,864
Unearned rental revenue 1,447,035 2,176,906
------------ ------------
TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES 12,382,717 13,883,446
LONG-TERM LIABILITIES
Revolving credit facility 137,819,404 137,377,921
Deferred tax liabilities 63,734,115 63,266,773
Interest rate swap 3,713,132 3,424,613
------------ ------------
TOTAL LONG-TERM LIABILITIES 205,266,651 204,069,307
------------ ------------
TOTAL LIABILITIES 217,649,368 217,952,753
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY:
Preferred stock, $.0001 par value,
authorized 1,000,000 shares,
none issued -- --
Common stock, $.0001 par value,
authorized 40,000,000 shares;
issued and outstanding 14,108,186
shares at March 31, 2009 and
14,106,886 shares at December 31,
2008, respectively 1,411 1,410
Paid in capital 84,493,615 84,383,579
Accumulated deficit (8,168,380) (10,218,403)
Accumulated other comprehensive
loss, net of tax (2,299,914) (2,120,829)
------------ ------------
TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY 74,026,732 72,045,757
------------ ------------
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS'
EQUITY $291,676,100 $289,998,510
============ ============
CONTACT: Essex Rental Corp.
Martin Kroll, Chief Financial Officer
(847) 215-6502
mkroll@essexcrane.com
The Equity Group Inc.
Investor Relations:
Melissa Dixon, Senior Account Executive
(212) 836-9613
mdixon@equityny.com
Devin Sullivan, Senior Vice President
(212) 836-9608
dsullivan@equityny.com
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Hyde Park Special Meeting of Stockholders to Approve Essex Acquisition Scheduled for October 31, 2008
NEW YORK, Oct 01, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Hyde Park Acquisition Corp. (OTCBB: HYDQ; HYDQW; HYDQU) ("Hyde Park") announced today that it has scheduled a Special Meeting of Stockholders to approve Hyde Park's acquisition of Essex Crane Rental Corp. for Friday, October 31, 2008 at 10:00 am Eastern Time. The Special Meeting will be held at the offices of Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, 575 Madison Avenue, New York, New York. The full meeting agenda will be detailed in Hyde Park's definitive proxy statement, which is expected to be mailed to Hyde Park stockholders of record on or about October 10, 2008. Stockholders of record as of October 8, 2008, the record date for the Special Meeting, are invited to attend the Special Meeting, or submit a proxy, to vote on Hyde Park's acquisition of Essex Crane as well as the other proposals included in Hyde Park's definitive proxy statement.
Laurence S. Levy, Chairman and CEO of Hyde Park, commented, "The strong operating results, new contract activity, and robust end-market demand that positively impacted Essex's 2008 first half financial results have continued into the company's current third quarter. As a result, Essex remains on track to exceed its previously projected 2008 Total EBITDA of $40.2 million, due primarily to as much as an 8% increase in predicted full year Rental EBITDA. Also as previously announced, we have secured a fully committed debt facility to close this transaction and provide us with ample liquidity for future growth and investment."
About Hyde Park Acquisition Corp. and Essex Crane Rental Corp.
Hyde Park Acquisition Corp. was incorporated in Delaware on August 21, 2006 as a blank check company whose objective is to effect a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition or other similar business combination with an operating business. Hyde Park's initial public offering was declared effective March 5, 2007 and was consummated on March 13, 2007. Upon closing of the Essex acquisition, Hyde Park will change its name to Essex Crane Rental Corp. and seek a NASDAQ listing.
Headquartered in Chicago, Essex Crane Rental Corp. is one of North America's largest providers of lattice-boom crawler crane and attachment rental services. With over 350 cranes and attachments in its fleet, Essex supplies cranes for construction projects related to power generation, petro-chemical, refineries, water treatment & purification, bridges, highways, hospitals, shipbuilding, offshore oil fabrication and industrial plants, and commercial construction.
This press release contains statements which constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Those statements include statements regarding the intent and belief or current expectations of Hyde Park and Essex and their respective management teams. These statements may be identified by the use of words like "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "plan", "will", "should", "seek" and similar expressions. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Hyde Park's and Essex's expectations include, without limitation, the failure of Hyde Park's stockholders to approve the acquisition of Essex, the number and percentage of Hyde Park's stockholders voting against the acquisition of Essex and electing to exercise their conversion rights, changing interpretations of generally accepted accounting principles, costs associated with continued compliance with government regulations, legislation and the regulatory environment, the continued ability of Essex to successfully execute its business plan, demand for the products and services Essex provides, general economic conditions, geopolitical events and regulatory changes, as well has other relevant risks detailed in Hyde Park's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.. Hyde Park and Essex undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.
This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Furthermore, this communication is not a solicitation of proxies from the holders of Hyde Park's common stock. Any solicitation of proxies will be made only by Hyde Park's definitive proxy statement that will be mailed to all stockholders of record when available.
Hyde Park, Essex, and their respective directors and officers may be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies from Hyde Park stockholders. A list of the names of those directors and officers and descriptions of their interests in Hyde Park is contained in Hyde Park's revised preliminary proxy statement, which was filed with the SEC as of September 12, 2008, and will also be contained in Hyde Park's definitive proxy statement when it becomes available. Hyde Park's stockholders may obtain additional information about the interests of its and Essex's directors and officers in the proposed acquisition by reading Hyde Park's definitive proxy statement when it becomes available.
Stockholders are advised to read Hyde Park's preliminary proxy statement and, when available, definitive proxy statement in connection with the solicitation of proxies for the special meeting because these statements contain, or will contain once available, important information. The definitive proxy statement will be mailed to stockholders as of a record date to be established for voting on the proposed acquisition of Essex. Stockholders will also be able to obtain a copy of the proxy statement, without charge, by directing a request to: Hyde Park Acquisition Corp., 461 Fifth Avenue, 25th Floor, New York, NY 10017. The preliminary proxy statement and definitive proxy statement once available, can also be obtained, without charge, at the Securities and Exchange Commission's internet site (http://www.sec.gov).
SOURCE: Hyde Park Acquisition Corp.
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