Life Time Fitness Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2009 Financial Results

Company Reports Revenue Growth of 5.0% and Earnings Per Share of $0.46 for the Quarter; Full-Year Revenue Grew 8.8% and Earnings Per Share was $1.82

CHANHASSEN, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Life Time Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:LTM) today reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2009.

Fourth quarter 2009 revenue grew 5.0% to $203.7 million from $194.0 million during the same period last year. Revenue for the year totaled $837.0 million, up 8.8% from $769.6 million in 2008.

Net income for the quarter was $18.4 million, or $0.46 per diluted share. This compares to net income of $13.0 million, or $0.33 per diluted share, for 4Q 2008. For the full year, net income was $72.4 million, or $1.82 per diluted share, compared to $71.8 million, or $1.83 per diluted share, for 2008.

"In 2009, we set our minds on winning on a number of fronts and I'm pleased with our progress on many of them, including free cash flow delivery, debt reduction and cost structure improvements," said Bahram Akradi, Life Time Fitness chairman, president and chief executive officer. "At the same time, our same-center revenue and attrition metrics remain key areas of focus, and we saw some improvement during the year, but we are not satisfied. In 2010, we will strive to improve both of these metrics. We also remain highly committed to ongoing growth as a Healthy Way of Life Company in spite of the continuing economic headwind. Overall, I am pleased with the impact we are starting to see on many of our connectivity and growth initiatives, and with our entire team's focus on making significant progress through the course of this year."

In January, the Company opened a new center in Beachwood, Ohio, marking its first location in the Cleveland market and the first of three new, large format centers planned for 2010. In March, the Company expects to open its second new, large format center for the year in Lenexa, Kansas. This represents the second Life Time Fitness location in the Kansas City market. One additional large format center is expected to open in the fourth quarter. This month, the Company also plans to open a new Pilates, yoga and personal training boutique concept center in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Three and Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2009, Financial Highlights:

Total revenue for the fourth quarter grew 5.0% to $203.7 million from $194.0 million. Total revenue for the full year grew 8.8% to $837.0 million from $769.6 million in 2008.


(Period-over-period growth)            4Q 2009 vs. 4Q 2008    2009 vs. 2008

    --  Membership dues                 5.8  %                10.9 %

    --  Enrollment fees                 (1.1 %)               (1.6 %)

    --  In-center revenue               6.6  %                6.7  %

    --  Same-center revenue (13th       0.3  %                (3.1 %)
        month of operation)
    --  Same-center revenue (37th       (4.7 %)               (7.5 %)
        month of operation)
    --  Average center revenue per     $350 - up 1.6%         $1,414 - down 0.9%
        membership
    --  Average in-center revenue per  $95 - up 2.4 %         $400 - down 3.4%
        membership


Memberships grew 2.1% to 578,937 at December 31, 2009, from 567,110 at December 31, 2008.

  • Attrition in 4Q 2009 was 10.8%, the same as the prior-year period.
  • Attrition improved to 40.6% in 2009 compared to 42.3% in 2008.

Total operating expenses during 4Q 2009 totaled $165.6 million compared to $164.6 million for 4Q 2008. Fourth quarter 2008 results included $5.0 million in costs primarily related to slowing the development of new centers. Full-year operating expenses were $688.1 million compared with $622.3 million in 2008.

  • Operating margin was 18.7% for 4Q 2009 compared to 15.1% in the prior-year period.
  • Full-year operating margin was 17.8% compared to 19.1% in 2008.

(Expense as a percent of total revenue)   4Q 2009 vs. 4Q 2008  2009 vs. 2008

    --  Center operations                 60.4% vs. 60.6%      60.5% vs. 59.1%

    --  Advertising and marketing         3.0% vs. 4.1%        3.2% vs. 4.1%

    --  General and administrative        4.8% vs. 6.7%        5.1% vs. 5.7%

    --  Other operating                   2.0% vs. 3.0%        2.6% vs. 2.5%

    --  Depreciation and amortization     11.1% vs. 10.5%      10.8% vs. 9.5%



Net income for 4Q 2009 was $18.4 million compared with $13.0 million in 4Q 2008, and full-year net income was $72.4 million compared with $71.8 million in 2008. The effective income tax rate for 2009 was 39.6% compared with 39.7% in 2008.

EBITDA for 4Q 2009 was $61.1 million compared with $50.0 million in 4Q 2008. Full-year EBITDA was $240.9 million compared with $221.5 million in 2008.

  • As a percentage of total revenue, EBITDA was 30.0% in 4Q 2009 compared to 25.8% in 4Q 2008.
  • EBITDA margin in 2009 was 28.8%, the same as the prior year.

Cash flows from operations for the full year 2009 totaled $186.2 million compared to $183.1 million in 2008.

Weighted average diluted shares for 4Q 2009 totaled 40.3 million compared to 39.2 million in 4Q 2008. For the full year 2009, weighted average diluted shares totaled 39.9 million compared to 39.3 million in 2008.

2010 Business Outlook:

The following statements are based on the Company's current expectations for fiscal year 2010, which incorporate late 2009 operating trends and are subject to the risks and uncertainties described below:

  • Revenue is expected to be up 4-7%, or $870-895 million, driven primarily by membership growth at new and ramping centers.
  • Net income is expected to be up 4-9%, or $75-79 million, driven by revenue growth and cost efficiencies.
  • Diluted earnings per common share is expected to be $1.85-1.95.

As announced on February 11, 2010, the Company will hold a conference call today at 10:00 a.m. ET to discuss its fourth quarter and full-year 2009 results. Bahram Akradi, Michael Robinson, executive vice president and chief financial officer, and Kenneth Cooper, vice president of finance, will host the conference call. The conference call will be Web cast and may be accessed via the Company's Investor Relations section of its Web site at lifetimefitness.com. A replay of the call will be available the same day via the Company's Web site beginning at approximately 1:00 p.m. ET.

About Life Time Fitness, Inc.

Life Time Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:LTM) operates distinctive and large, multi-use sports and athletic, professional fitness, family recreation and resort and spa centers. The Company also provides consumers with personal training consultation, full-service spas and cafes, corporate wellness programs, health and nutrition education, the healthy lifestyle magazine, Experience Life, athletic events and nutritional products. As of February 18, 2010, Life Time Fitness operated 85 centers in 19 states, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Virginia. Life Time Fitness is headquartered in Chanhassen, Minnesota, and can be located on the Web at lifetimefitness.com. LIFE TIME FITNESS, LIFE TIME ATHLETIC, EXPERIENCE LIFE, and the LIFE TIME FITNESS TRIATHLON SERIES are trademarks or service marks of Life Time Fitness, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Risks and Uncertainties

Certain information contained in this press release may be deemed to constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results in the future to differ materially from its historical results and those presently anticipated or projected. Among these factors are attracting and retaining members, risks related to our debt levels and debt covenants, our ability to access existing credit facilities and obtain additional financing, competition from other health and fitness centers, identifying and acquiring suitable sites for new centers, delays in opening new centers and other factors set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Diluted earnings per share could also be affected by the number of shares outstanding, which depends on factors such as the number of shares issued upon exercise of stock options and future grants of awards pursuant to equity-based incentive plans as well as stock offerings. The Company cautions investors not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update such statement to reflect events or circumstances arising after such date. All remarks made during the Company's financial results conference call will be current at the time of the call and the Company undertakes no obligation to update the replay.


LIFE TIME FITNESS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands)

                                            December 31, 2009  December 31, 2008

ASSETS                                      (Unaudited)

CURRENT ASSETS:

 Cash and cash equivalents                  $ 6,282            $ 10,829

 Accounts receivable, net                     4,026              6,114

 Inventories and center operating supplies    14,621             14,632

 Prepaid expenses and other current assets    12,938             10,994

 Deferred membership origination costs        20,278             19,877

 Deferred income taxes                        660                1,365

  Total current assets                        58,805             63,811

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT, net                   1,512,993          1,515,957

RESTRICTED CASH                               2,941              3,936

DEFERRED MEMBERSHIP ORIGINATION COSTS         8,716              14,210

OTHER ASSETS                                  48,070             49,789

  TOTAL ASSETS                              $ 1,631,525        $ 1,647,703

LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY

CURRENT LIABILITIES:

 Current maturities of long-term debt       $ 16,716           $ 10,335

 Accounts payable                             14,429             14,842

 Construction accounts payable                9,882              63,418

 Accrued expenses                             48,235             46,230

 Deferred revenue                             36,939             36,098

  Total current liabilities                   126,201            170,923

LONG-TERM DEBT, net of current portion        643,630            702,569

DEFERRED RENT LIABILITY                       29,048             27,925

DEFERRED INCOME TAXES                         77,189             51,982

DEFERRED REVENUE                              8,819              13,719

OTHER LIABILITIES                             9,207              27,684

  Total liabilities                           894,094            994,802

SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY:

 Common stock                                 829                793

 Additional paid-in capital                   395,121            385,095

 Retained earnings                            344,095            271,711

 Accumulated other comprehensive loss         (2,614    )        (4,698    )

  Total shareholders' equity                  737,431            652,901

  TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS'       $ 1,631,525        $ 1,647,703
  EQUITY




LIFE TIME FITNESS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In thousands except per share data)

                             For the                    For the

                             Three Months Ended         Year Ended

                             December 31,               December 31,

                             2009         2008          2009         2008

                             (Unaudited)  (Unaudited)   (Unaudited)

REVENUE:

 Membership dues             $ 139,535    $ 131,926     $ 564,605    $ 508,927

 Enrollment fees               6,508        6,579         26,138       26,570

 In-center revenue             54,153       50,813        232,834      218,198

  Total center revenue         200,196      189,318       823,577      753,695

 Other revenue                 3,502        4,636         13,424       15,926

  Total revenue                203,698      193,954       837,001      769,621

OPERATING EXPENSES:

 Center operations             123,130      117,506       506,443      454,645

 Advertising and marketing     6,154        7,892         26,299       31,500

 General and administrative    9,604        13,042        42,776       43,749

 Other operating               4,061        5,730         21,852       19,426

 Depreciation and              22,643       20,447        90,770       72,947
 amortization

  Total operating expenses     165,592      164,617       688,140      622,267

  Income from operations       38,106       29,337        148,861      147,354

OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE):

 Interest expense, net         (7,333  )    (8,251  )     (30,338 )    (29,552 )

 Equity in earnings of         317          258           1,302        1,243
 affiliate

  Total other income           (7,016  )    (7,993  )     (29,036 )    (28,309 )
  (expense)

INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES     31,090       21,344        119,825      119,045

PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES     12,713       8,329         47,441       47,224

NET INCOME                   $ 18,377     $ 13,015      $ 72,384     $ 71,821

BASIC EARNINGS PER COMMON    $ 0.47       $ 0.33        $ 1.84       $ 1.84
SHARE

DILUTED EARNINGS PER COMMON  $ 0.46       $ 0.33        $ 1.82       $ 1.83
SHARE

WEIGHTED AVERAGE NUMBER OF
COMMON SHARES

 OUTSTANDING - BASIC           39,444       39,124        39,297       39,002

WEIGHTED AVERAGE NUMBER OF
COMMON SHARES

 OUTSTANDING - DILUTED         40,331       39,172        39,870       39,342




LIFE TIME FITNESS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(In thousands)

                                                     For the

                                                     Year Ended

                                                     December 31,

                                                     2009          2008

                                                     (Unaudited)

CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES:

 Net income                                          $ 72,384      $ 71,821

 Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash
 provided by operating activities:

  Depreciation and amortization                        90,770        72,947

  Deferred income taxes                                23,270        14,815

  Loss on disposal of property and equipment, net      1,229         985

  Gain on sale of land held for sale                   (1,132   )    -

  Amortization of deferred financing costs             2,544         1,663

  Share-based compensation                             8,082         7,456

  Excess tax benefit related to share-based payment    (507     )    (103     )
  arrangements

  Changes in operating assets and liabilities          (10,951  )    13,543

  Other                                                514           (61      )

        Net cash provided by operating activities      186,203       183,066

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES:

 Purchases of property and equipment                   (146,632 )    (463,337 )

 Proceeds from sale of property and equipment          8             161,888

 Proceeds on sale of land held for sale                1,954         -

 Proceeds from property insurance settlement           -             318

 Decrease (increase) in other assets                   390           (7,695   )

 Decrease in restricted cash                           995           2,831

        Net cash used in investing activities          (143,285 )    (305,995 )

CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES:

 Proceeds from long-term borrowings                    18,151        43,272

 Repayments of long-term borrowings                    (11,001  )    (13,143  )

 Proceeds from (repayments of) revolving credit        (56,500  )    101,800
 facility, net

 Increase in deferred financing costs                  (1,092   )    (6,664   )

 Excess tax benefit related to share-based payment     507           103
 arrangements

 Proceeds from exercise of stock options               2,470         3,036

        Net cash provided by (used in) financing       (47,465  )    128,404
        activities

INCREASE (DECREASE) IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS       (4,547   )    5,475

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS - Beginning of period        10,829        5,354

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS - End of period            $ 6,282       $ 10,829



Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This release and the related conference call disclose certain non-GAAP financial measures.

EBITDA. Earnings Before Interest, Income Taxes and Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) is a non-GAAP disclosure consisting of net income plus interest expense, net, provision for income taxes and depreciation and amortization. This term, as the Company defines it, may not be comparable to a similarly titled measure used by other companies and is not a measure of performance presented in accordance with GAAP. The Company uses EBITDA as a measure of operating performance. The funds depicted by EBITDA are not necessarily available for discretionary use if they are reserved for particular capital purposes, to maintain compliance with debt covenants, to service debt or to pay taxes. EBITDA should not be considered as a substitute for net income, net cash provided by operating activities or other income or cash flow data prepared in accordance with GAAP. Additional details related to EBITDA are provided in the Form 8-K that the Company filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date of this press release.

The following table provides a reconciliation of net income, the most directly comparable GAAP measure, to EBITDA:


RECONCILIATION OF NET INCOME TO EBITDA

(In thousands)

(Unaudited)

                               For the              For the

                               Three Months Ended   Year Ended

                               December 31,         December 31,

                               2009      2008       2009       2008

Net income                     $ 18,377  $ 13,015   $ 72,384   $ 71,821

Interest expense, net            7,333     8,251      30,338     29,552

Provision for income taxes       12,713    8,329      47,441     47,224

Depreciation and amortization    22,643    20,447     90,770     72,947

EBITDA                         $ 61,066  $ 50,042   $ 240,933  $ 221,544



Free Cash Flow. Free cash flow is a non-GAAP measure consisting of net cash provided by operating activities, less purchases of property and equipment. This term, as the Company defines it, may not be comparable to a similarly titled measure used by other companies and does not represent the total increase or decrease in the cash balance presented in accordance with GAAP. The Company uses free cash flow as a measure of cash generated after spending on property and equipment. Free cash flow should not be considered as a substitute for net cash provided by operating activities prepared in accordance with GAAP.

The following table provides a reconciliation of net cash provided by operating activities, the most directly comparable GAAP measure, to free cash flow:


RECONCILIATION OF NET CASH PROVIDED BY OPERATING ACTIVITIES TO FREE CASH
FLOW

(In thousands)

(Unaudited)

                                           For the

                                           Year Ended

                                           December 31,

                                           2009          2008

Net cash provided by operating activities  $ 186,203     $ 183,066

Less: Purchases of property and equipment    (146,632 )    (463,337 )

Free cash flow                             $ 39,571      $ (280,271 )




    Source: Life Time Fitness, Inc.