Company Website: http://www.OtelcoInc.com
ONEONTA, Ala. -- (Business Wire)

Otelco Inc. (NASDAQ: OTT) (TSX: OTT.un), a wireline telecommunications services provider in Alabama, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, Vermont and West Virginia, today announced results for its third quarter ended September 30, 2011. Key highlights for Otelco include:

• Total revenues of $25.3 million for third quarter 2011.
• Operating income of $6.1 million for third quarter 2011.
• Adjusted EBITDA (as defined below) of $11.1 million for third quarter 2011.

“Third quarter results softened a bit as we completed the expansion of our CLEC market coverage in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and northern Maine,” said Mike Weaver, President and Chief Executive Officer of Otelco. “With all nine of the new collocation sites now operational, our sales and marketing efforts are underway to address each of these new markets. We originally projected these new sites to be operational early in the second quarter and the delay negatively impacted our margins as cost of services increased with little opportunity to increase revenue in these areas for the first nine months of this year.

“We continue to find ways to reduce costs and improve margins in our business,” continued Weaver. “In our CLEC operations, significant changes have been made in our sales and marketing organization this quarter. In addition, we expanded our product offerings with additional hosted IP products. In our RLEC business, we recently consolidated our Alabama business offices resulting in reduced costs and increased efficiencies. There is approximately $150,000 of nonrecurring expense in the third quarter related to these changes.

“The acquisition of Shoreham Telephone Company in Vermont was completed on October 14, adding some 5,000 access line equivalents to the Otelco family,” added Weaver. “Shoreham will anchor our CLEC expansion into the fourth New England state next year.

“In 2004, we indicated our intent to build value at Otelco and return cash to our shareholders. Our twenty-seventh consecutive IDS dividend is evidence of that continuing commitment,” Weaver concluded.

Distribution to Income Deposit Security Holders

Each quarter, the Board will consider the declaration of dividends during its normally scheduled meeting. For this quarter, the Board is meeting on November 15, 2011. The scheduled interest and any dividend declared will be paid on December 30, 2011, to holders of record as of the close of business on December 15, 2011. The interest payment will cover the period from September 30, 2011 through December 29, 2011. Currently, it is anticipated that the Company’s dividends in 2011 will continue to be treated as a return of capital for tax purposes. The Company has made twenty-seven successive quarterly distributions of dividends and interest since its IDSs were originally offered to the public in December 2004.

FINANCIAL DISCUSSION FOR THIRD QUARTER 2011:

Revenues

Total revenues decreased 3.2% in the three months ended September 30, 2011, to $25.3 million from $26.1 million in the three months ended September 30, 2010. Decreases in RLEC voice access line related revenues in 2011 and one-time benefits in 2010 from the resolution of several contingent items accounted for the majority of the difference. The table below provides the components of our revenues for the three months ended September 30, 2011 compared to the same period of 2010.

Local services revenue decreased 5.7% in the third quarter to $11.7 million from $12.4 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2010. RLEC revenue decreased $0.4 million reflecting the decline in RLEC voice access lines. One-time benefits in 2010 from the resolution of several contingent items accounted for the remaining decline. Network access revenue decreased 0.4% in the third quarter to $8.0 million from $8.1 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2010. A small decline in interstate and intrastate switched access revenue was offset by an increase in end user related charges. Cable television revenue in the three months ended September 30, 2011, increased 7.4% to $0.8 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2011 compared to $0.7 million for the same period in 2010. Growth in IPTV subscribers, video on demand and the shift to high-definition packages in Alabama was offset by the decline in basic cable revenue and revenue associated with the conversion of our Missouri cable customers to satellite services during first quarter 2011. Internet revenue for the third quarter 2011 decreased 2.2% to $3.4 million from $3.5 million in the three months ended September 30, 2010. Growth in broadband data lines partially offset the loss of dial-up subscribers. Transport services revenue decreased 5.6% to $1.3 million in the three months ended September 30, 2011 from $1.4 million for the same period in 2010. Market price changes for new and existing customers caused the decline.

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses in the three months ended September 30, 2011, decreased 1.2% to $19.2 million from $19.4 million in the three months ended September 30, 2010. Cost of services and products increased 6.3% to $11.0 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2011, from $10.3 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2010. Higher costs associated with the implementation of new hosted PBX customers and the expanded sales organization were partially offset by reduced RLEC expenses, long distance costs and overhead expenses. Selling, general and administrative expenses decreased 1.8% to $3.2 million in the three months ended September 30, 2011, from $3.3 million in the three months ended September 30, 2010, primarily related to a reduction in employee and benefit costs partially offset by higher legal costs associated with the Shoreham acquisition and uncollectible expenses associated with carrier billing and customer credits. Depreciation and amortization for third quarter 2011 decreased 14.4% to $4.9 million from $5.8 million in third quarter 2010. Amortization of intangible assets associated with the Country Road acquisition decreased $0.3 million, including contract and customer base intangible assets. Amortization of the telephone plant adjustment associated with the Mid-Maine acquisition was completed at the end of second quarter 2011, accounting for a decrease of $0.2 million. The remaining decrease of $0.3 million reflects lower depreciation of plant assets in Otelco’s regulated entities as assets become fully depreciated.

Interest Expense

Interest expense decreased 1.6% to $6.2 million in the three months ended September 30, 2011, from $6.3 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2010. The decrease in interest expense reflects lower senior long-term notes outstanding resulting from voluntary principal prepayments of $6.5 million.

Change in Fair Value of Derivatives

As a requirement of the existing senior debt, the Company has two interest rate swap agreements intended to hedge changes in interest rates on its senior debt. The swap agreements do not qualify for hedge accounting under the technical requirements of Accounting Standards Codification 815. Changes in value for the two swaps are reflected in change in the fair value of derivatives on the income statement and have no impact on cash. Over the life of the swaps, the change in value will be zero, with no impact on Adjusted EBITDA or operations. The liability for the swap decreased $0.7 million in third quarter 2011 compared to an increase in the liability for the swap of $0.4 million in the third quarter of 2010.

Adjusted EBITDA

Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended September 30, 2011, was $11.1 million compared to $12.7 million for the same period in 2010 and $11.9 million in the second quarter of 2011. See financial tables for a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income.

Balance Sheet

As of September 30, 2011, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of $17.8 million compared to $18.2 million at the end of 2010. The third quarter distribution of $5.6 million in interest and dividends to our shareowners, and $0.3 million in interest to our bond holders, occurred on September 30, 2011. This represents the twenty-seventh consecutive quarterly distribution since going public in December 2004. The acquisition of Shoreham Telephone Company on October 14, 2011, while not reflected in the current financial statements, was completed with cash from our balance sheet.

Capital Expenditures

Capital expenditures were $2.1 million for the quarter, reflecting the completion of infrastructure and cost saving projects. Capital expenditures were $2.8 million and $3.5 million, in first and second quarter 2011, respectively.

Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call

Otelco has scheduled a conference call, which will be broadcast live over the internet, on Thursday, November 3, 2011, at 11:00 a.m. ET. To participate in the call, participants should dial (719) 325-2387 and ask for the Otelco call 10 minutes prior to the start time. Investors, analysts and the general public will also have the opportunity to listen to the conference call free over the internet by visiting the Company's website at www.OtelcoInc.com or www.earnings.com. To listen to the live call online, please visit the website at least 15 minutes early to register, download and install any necessary audio software. For those who cannot listen to the live webcast, a replay of the webcast will be available on the Company's website at www.OtelcoInc.com or www.earnings.com for 30 days. A one-week telephonic replay may also be accessed by calling (719) 457-0820 and using the passcode 4640013.

ABOUT OTELCO

Otelco Inc. provides wireline telecommunications services in Alabama, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, Vermont and West Virginia. The Company’s services include local and long distance telephone, network access, transport, digital high-speed data lines and dial-up internet access, cable television and other telephone related services. With more than 102,000 voice and data access lines, which are collectively referred to as access line equivalents, Otelco is among the top 25 largest local exchange carriers in the United States based on number of access lines. Otelco operates eleven incumbent telephone companies serving rural markets, or rural local exchange carriers. It also provides competitive retail and wholesale communications services through several subsidiaries. For more information, visit the Company’s website at www.OtelcoInc.com.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements in this press release that are not statements of historical or current fact constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other unknown factors that could cause the actual results of the Company to be materially different from the historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In addition to statements which explicitly describe such risks and uncertainties, readers are urged to consider statements labeled with the terms “believes”, “belief,” “expects,” ‘intends,” “anticipates,” “plans,” or similar terms to be uncertain and forward-looking. The forward-looking statements contained herein are also subject generally to other risks and uncertainties that are described from time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contacts:

Otelco Inc.
Curtis Garner, 205-625-3571
Chief Financial Officer
Curtis@otelcotel.com

Source: Otelco Inc.