Fly Leasing Reports Third Quarter 2019 Financial Results

DUBLIN, Nov. 8, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Fly Leasing Limited (NYSE: FLY) ("FLY"), a global leader in aircraft leasing, today announced its financial results for the third quarter of 2019.

Highlights

• Net income of $51.7 million, $1.67 per share
• Adjusted Net Income of $59.8 million, $1.93 per share
• Return on equity of 26.6%, Adjusted Return on Equity of 30.8%
• Sold eight aircraft for a gain of $38.9 million, a 17% premium to book value
• Purchased two aircraft for $53.7 million
• $25.85 book value per share at quarter end, a 20% increase since December 31, 2018
• Net debt to equity ratio of 2.6x

"FLY continued to produce excellent results in the third quarter, with Adjusted Net Income of nearly $60 million, or $1.93 per share," said Colm Barrington, FLY's Chief Executive Officer. "This was our sixth straight quarter of double-digit ROE, with Adjusted Return on Equity of over 30%. In the nine months ended September 30, FLY produced Adjusted Net Income of $168.9 million, or $5.28 per share. Looking ahead, we expect another strong result in the fourth quarter."

"The aircraft sales in the quarter were completed at a 17% premium to book value, again demonstrating the value embedded in FLY's fleet," said Barrington. "Our strong results are also adding significantly to shareholders' equity, which is now nearly $26 per share, an increase of 20% from the beginning of the year."

"Our deleveraging following last year's major fleet acquisition has continued and at quarter end our net debt to equity ratio was 2.6x," added Barrington. "FLY has plentiful financial capacity to acquire the 21 A320neo family aircraft that we contracted in a purchase and leaseback transaction last year, the first of which is scheduled to deliver later this year. We also expect to acquire six more aircraft in the fourth quarter."

Financial Results

FLY is reporting net income of $51.7 million, or $1.67 per share, for the third quarter of 2019. This compares to net income of $20.7 million, or $0.68 per share, for the same period in 2018.

Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 was $150.7 million, or $4.72 per share, compared to net income of $54.7 million, or $1.90 per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2018.

Adjusted Net Income

Adjusted Net Income was $59.8 million for the third quarter of 2019, compared to $22.8 million for the same period in the previous year. On a per share basis, Adjusted Net Income was $1.93 in the third quarter of 2019, compared to $0.75 for the third quarter of 2018.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2019, Adjusted Net Income was $168.9 million, or $5.28 per share, compared to $60.4 million, or $2.10 per share, for the same period last year.

A reconciliation of Adjusted Net Income to net income determined in accordance with GAAP is shown below.

Share Repurchases

During the three months ended September 30, 2019, FLY repurchased 0.3 million shares in the open market at an average price of $16.83 per share, for a total cost of $5.8 million. During the nine months ended September 30, 2019, FLY repurchased 2.0 million shares at an average price of $16.29 per share, for a total cost of $32.8 million. As of September 30, 2019, FLY had 30.9 million shares outstanding and had $50.0 million remaining under its share repurchase authorization.

Financial Position

At September 30, 2019, FLY's total assets were $3.9 billion, including investment in flight equipment totaling $3.2 billion. Total cash at September 30, 2019 was $521.6 million, of which $432.7 million was unrestricted. The book value per share at September 30, 2019 was $25.85, a 20% increase since December 31, 2018. At September 30, 2019, FLY's net debt to equity ratio was 2.6x, reduced from 4.0x at December 31, 2018.

Aircraft Portfolio

At September 30, 2019, FLY had 92 aircraft in its portfolio, six of which were classified as flight equipment held for sale. FLY's aircraft and engines are on lease to 43 airlines in 24 countries. The table below does not include the seven engines that were in FLY's portfolio at September 30, 2019.

At September 30, 2019, the average age of the portfolio, weighted by net book value of each aircraft and engine, was 7.7 years. The average remaining lease term was 5.0 years, also weighted by net book value. At September 30, 2019, FLY's portfolio, excluding aircraft held for sale, was generating annualized rental revenue of approximately $352 million.

Conference Call and Webcast

FLY's senior management will host a conference call and webcast to discuss these results at 9:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time on Friday, November 8, 2019. Participants should call +1 (409) 220-9381 (International) or (866) 438-0730 (North America) and enter confirmation code 7897326. A live webcast with slide presentation will be available on the Events and Presentations page in the Investor Relations section of FLY's website at www.flyleasing.com. A webcast replay will be available on the company's website for one year.

About FLY

FLY is a global aircraft leasing company with a fleet of modern, high-demand, and fuel efficient commercial jet aircraft. FLY leases its aircraft under multi-year lease contracts to a diverse group of airlines throughout the world. FLY is managed and serviced by BBAM LP, a worldwide leader in aircraft lease management and financing. For more information about FLY, please visit our website at www.flyleasing.com.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

FLY provides all financial information in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States (GAAP). To supplement our consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with GAAP, we are also providing with this press release, and on our conference call, certain non-GAAP financial measures, including Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Return on Equity.  In calculating these non-GAAP financial measures, we have excluded certain amounts, as detailed in the reconciliation below.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "will," or words of similar meaning and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the outlook for FLY's future business, operations and financial performance. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and assumptions, which are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially due to global political, economic, business, competitive, market, regulatory and other factors and risks, and the risk that FLY may be unable to achieve its portfolio growth expectations, or to reap the benefits of such growth. Further information on the factors and risks that may affect FLY's business is included in filings FLY makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, including its Annual Report on Form 20-F and its reports on Form 6-K. FLY expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any of these forward-looking statements, whether because of future events, new information, a change in its views or expectations, or otherwise.

Contact:

Matt Dallas
Fly Leasing Limited
+1 203-769-5916

ir@flyleasing.com