Loral Reports Third Quarter 2010 Financial Results

NEW YORK, Nov. 4, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Loral Space & Communications Inc. (Nasdaq:LORL) today announced its financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2010. Revenues and Adjusted EBITDA ¹ improved significantly in the quarter and in the first nine months of the year.

Significant highlights include:

• Record Adjusted EBITDA at SS/L for the first nine months of 2010 was nearly double the Adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months of 2009.
• SS/L was awarded six major contracts to date in 2010.
• Telesat EBITDA margin at 77 percent in the current quarter showed improvement.from 69% in the comparable quarter of 2009
• Telesat's debt to EBITDA leverage decreased to less than five times at the end of the current quarter from over eight times at December 31, 2007, soon after our ownership interest in Telesat was acquired.
• Strategic initiatives are being considered at both SS/L and Telesat.
• Due to lower foreign exchange gains at Telesat, Loral's net income for the current quarter decreased to $72 million from $108 million in the third quarter of 2009. Loral's diluted earnings per share for the current quarter was $2.29 compared with $3.61 for the third quarter of 2009.

Combined segment revenues and Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter were $527 million and $207 million, respectively, which were 24 percent and 43 percent greater than combined segment revenues and Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter of 2009 which were $424 million and $145 million, respectively. Combined segment revenues and Adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months of the year were $1.430 billion and $546 million, respectively, which were 14 percent and 40 percent greater than segment revenue and Adjusted EBITDA of $1.254 billion and $391 million, respectively, for the first nine months of 2009. All of Telesat's revenue and Adjusted EBITDA are included in these segment results ². Loral's income statement, however, reflects its 64 percent economic interest in Telesat only under the equity method of accounting.

Loral's revenues and Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter after eliminations are particularly noteworthy, with revenues of $323 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $52 million, up 30 percent and 92 percent, respectively, compared to the third quarter of 2009.  Nine month results also reflect this improvement. Revenues and Adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months of 2010 after eliminations were $832 million and $94 million, respectively, up 14 percent and 150 percent from revenues and Adjusted EBITDA after eliminations for the first nine months of 2009 of $733 million and $38 million respectively. The eliminations include all of Telesat's results, as well as the impact of Loral's portion of the ViaSat-1 construction contract on SS/L's results.