Liberty Broadband Corp (LBRDK) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to the Liberty Broadband 2024 Q3 earnings call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference will be recorded today, November 7, 2024.

歡迎參加 Liberty Broadband 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）謹此提醒，本次會議將於今天（2024 年 11 月 7 日）進行錄音。

I would now like to turn the call over to Shane Clancy, SVP, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

我現在想將電話轉給投資者關係高級副總裁 Shane Clancy。請繼續。

Thank you and good morning. Before we begin, we'd like to remind everyone that this call includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual events or results could differ materially due to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those mentioned in most recent forms 10-K and 10-Q filed by Liberty Broadband and Liberty TripAdvisor with the SEC. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this call, and Liberty Broadband and Liberty TripAdvisor expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in the Liberty Broadband or Liberty TripAdvisor's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

謝謝你，早安。在開始之前，我們想提醒大家，本次電話會議包含1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的某些前瞻性陳述。包括Liberty Broadband 和 Liberty TripAdvisor 向 SEC 提交的最新表格 10-K 和 10-Q 中提到的內容。這些前瞻性陳述僅代表截至本次電話會議之日的情況，Liberty Broadband 和 Liberty TripAdvisor 明確不承擔任何義務或承諾傳播本文中包含的任何前瞻性陳述的任何更新或修訂，以反映 Liberty Broadband 或自由TripAdvisor對此的期望或任何此類聲明所依據的事件、條件或情況的任何變更。

On today's call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures to Liberty Broadband, including adjusted OIBDA. Information regarding the comparable GAAP metrics, along with required definitions and reconciliations, including preliminary note and Schedules 1 and 2 can be found in the earnings press release issued today as well as earnings releases from prior periods, which are available on Liberty's website.

在今天的電話會議上，我們將討論 Liberty Broadband 的某些非 GAAP 財務措施，包括調整後的 OIBDA。有關可比較GAAP 指標的信息，以及所需的定義和調節，包括初步說明和附表1 和附表2，可以在今天發布的收益新聞稿以及前期收益發布中找到，這些信息可在Liberty 網站上找到。

Now I'd like to turn the call over to Greg Maffei, Liberty's President and CEO.

現在我想將電話轉給 Liberty 總裁兼執行長 Greg Maffei。

Good morning and thank you, Shane. Today speaking on the call, we will have Liberty Broadband's Chief Accounting and Principal Financial Officer, Brian Wendling; Ron Duncan, CEO of GCI; and Pete Pounds, CFO of GCI will also be available to answer questions. Also during Q&A, we will be available to answer questions related to Liberty TripAdvisor.

早安，謝謝你，謝恩。今天，Liberty Broadband 的首席會計兼財務長 Brian Wendling 將在電話會議上發言。羅恩鄧肯 (Ron Duncan)，GCI 執行長； GCI 財務長 Pete Pounds 也將出席並回答問題。此外，在問答期間，我們也將回答與 Liberty TripAdvisor 相關的問題。

So beginning with Liberty Broadband, you may recall we filed a 13D with the SEC on September 23. It noted that Liberty Broadband and Charter were discussing a proposed all-stock transaction. The combination would rationalize the dual corporate structure, provide enhanced trading liquidity, provide clarity to both sets of shareholders with regard to the certainty of future transaction, and continue our strong partnership with Charter in the interim. Additional updates on any potential transaction will only be provided if and when the definitive terms are agreed upon.

因此，從 Liberty Broadband 開始，您可能還記得我們於 9 月 23 日向 SEC 提交了 13D。此次合併將合理化雙重公司結構，增強交易流動性，向雙方股東明確未來交易的確定性，並在此期間繼續我們與 Charter 的牢固合作關係。只有在最終條款達成一致的情況下，才會提供任何潛在交易的額外更新。

I would note that the LBRD NAV discount has tightened considerably and since that filing is now in the mid-teens. Given ongoing discussions between Charter and Liberty Broadband, Charter did pause its buyback, which resulted in a limited amount of proceeds to Liberty Broadband from Charter sales during the period.

我要指出的是，LBRD 資產淨值折扣已大幅收緊，而且該文件目前已處於十幾歲左右。鑑於 Charter 和 Liberty Broadband 之間正在進行的討論，Charter 確實暫停了回購，這導致 Liberty Broadband 在此期間從 Charter 銷售中獲得的收益有限。

Looking now at Charter. Charter experienced strong subscriber results and accelerating financial growth in the third quarter. They experienced a 110,000 broadband -- or 110,000 broadband net loss would have been growth absent the impact of ACP. I think Charter is managing its ACP disruption well and anticipate October will be the last month of meaningful impact. Charter also experienced revenue growth of 1.6% and adjusted OIBDA growth of 3.6% during the quarter. They benefit from prior cost actions and the strong political ad cycle. I would note that residential ARPU was up 1.8%, which is an acceleration versus the recent trend.

現在看憲章。 Charter 在第三季的使用者表現強勁，財務成長加速。他們經歷了 110,000 個寬頻，或者如果沒有 ACP 的影響，寬頻淨損失將增加 110,000 個。我認為 Charter 正在很好地管理其 ACP 中斷，並預計 10 月將是產生有意義影響的最後一個月。 Charter 在本季的營收成長了 1.6%，調整後的 OIBDA 成長了 3.6%。他們受益於先前的成本行動和強大的政治廣告週期。我要指出的是，住宅 ARPU 成長了 1.8%，與近期趨勢相比有所加速。

Mobile continued to perform very well with 545,000 mobile net adds, which puts their base over 9 million lines. ARPU was growing in mobile due to the uptake of the Unlimited Plus tier plus was driven by the anytime upgrade program. Free cash flow was 1.6%, which was up 48% over the prior year. And net leverage was 4.22 times, slightly below the revised target. All of these were driven by high free cash flow generation and limited share repurchase activity.

行動業務繼續表現出色，行動網路新增人數達到 545,000 人，這使得他們的線路數量超過 900 萬條。由於隨時升級計劃推動了 Unlimited Plus 等級的普及，行動裝置的 ARPU 不斷增長。自由現金流為1.6%，較上年成長48%。淨槓桿率為4.22倍，略低於修正目標。所有這些都是由高自由現金流產生和有限的股票回購活動所推動的。

Turning briefly to L Trip. Discussions are progressing with Trip and their special committee remain focused on the rationalization of our capital structure. As Trip mentioned on their call, they did not repurchase shares this quarter given the ongoing discussions with L Trip. We will provide an update on this transaction only when such discussions reach definitive conclusion. Our limited to what we can comment upon at this time. Given discussions, TripAdvisor has also elected not to present at Liberty's Investor Day. I will at that day make some remarks in the business since [Trip] will not be in attendance.

簡單地轉向L Trip。與 Trip 的討論正在取得進展，他們的特別委員會仍將重點放在我們資本結構的合理化上。正如 Trip 在電話會議中提到的那樣，鑑於與 L Trip 的持續討論，他們本季沒有回購股票。只有當此類討論得出最終結論時，我們才會提供有關此交易的最新資訊。目前我們所能發表的評論有限。經過討論，TripAdvisor 也選擇不參加 Liberty 投資者日活動。那天我將就業務發表一些評論，因為[Trip]不會出席。

But looking at TripAdvisor itself now, brand TripAdvisor saw a positive growth from some of its product strategy work. MAUs returned to year-over-year growth year to date. The direct channel monthly active users was up 30% versus the prior year. This reflects Trip's ongoing efforts to increase engagement with updated app experience and engaging product features. For example, unique travel content, AI-powered review summaries, and hotel booking directly in the app.

但現在看看 TripAdvisor 本身，TripAdvisor 品牌從其一些產品策略工作中看到了積極的成長。今年迄今為止，每月活躍用戶數恢復了同比增長。直接通路每月活躍用戶較上年增長 30%。這反映了 Trip 不斷努力透過更新的應用程式體驗和引人入勝的產品功能來提高參與度。例如，獨特的旅行內容、人工智慧驅動的評論摘要以及直接在應用程式中預訂酒店。

Looking at this next segment, Viator experiences continue to balance growth in investment versus profit contribution, adjusted EBITDA was $30 million in the quarter, 11% margin. That was solid growth outside of search -- experienced solid growth outside of search and direct and low-cost channels, and they've continued to see stronger repeat bookings.

展望下一個細分市場，Viator 持續平衡投資成長與利潤貢獻，本季調整後 EBITDA 為 3,000 萬美元，利潤率為 11%。這是搜尋之外的穩健成長——在搜尋以及直接和低成本管道之外經歷了穩健的成長，並且他們繼續看到更強勁的重複預訂。

Turning briefly to the fourth. It was the best financial performance they had on record, with revenue up 17%; adjusted EBITDA of $5 million, which achieved a 10% margin, highest they've ever achieved; and they've had success adding B2B partnerships with MasterCard as well as a prior announcement with Vodafone. Trip has a robust liquidity picture. As of the end of the third quarter, they had approximately $1.1 billion of cash and just under $500 million of unborrowed revolver capacity.

簡單地轉向第四個。這是他們有史以來最好的財務業績，收入成長了 17%；調整後的 EBITDA 為 500 萬美元，利潤率達到 10%，這是他們有史以來達到的最高水準；他們已經成功地與萬事達卡建立了 B2B 合作夥伴關係，並且之前也宣布與沃達豐建立了 B2B 合作夥伴關係。 Trip 擁有強勁的流動性。截至第三季末，他們擁有約 11 億美元的現金和近 5 億美元的未借用左輪手槍產能。

So with that, I'll turn it over to Brian briefly to discuss the financials.

因此，我將把它交給布萊恩簡短地討論財務狀況。

Thank you, Greg. At quarter end, Liberty Broadband had consolidated cash and cash equivalents of $168 million, which includes $47 million of cash at GCI. Value of our Charter investment based on our shares held as of November 1 and Charter share price at yesterday's close was at $18.6 billion. At quarter end, Liberty Broadband had a total principal amount of debt of $3.7 billion. Note that this excludes the preferred stock.

謝謝你，格雷格。截至季末，Liberty Broadband 的合併現金和現金等價物為 1.68 億美元，其中包括 GCI 的 4,700 萬美元現金。根據我們截至 11 月 1 日持有的股票和昨天收盤時的 Charter 股價，我們的 Charter 投資價值為 186 億美元。截至季末，Liberty Broadband 的債務本金總額為 37 億美元。請注意，這不包括優先股。

Looking quickly at GCI's results for the third quarter, revenue was up nicely, a $22 million increase over the prior year, driven by continued strength in data revenue. Business data revenue benefited from strong upgrade cycle in school and healthcare corporations in rural Alaska. Adjusted OIBDA increased $11 million, in line with the increased revenue, partially offset by some higher operating costs and SG&A expenses.

快速瀏覽 GCI 第三季的業績，在數據收入持續強勁的推動下，營收成長良好，比前一年增加了 2,200 萬美元。商業數據收入受益於阿拉斯加農村地區學校和醫療保健公司強勁的升級週期。調整後的 OIBDA 增加了 1,100 萬美元，與收入的增加一致，部分被營運成本和 SG&A 費用的增加所抵消。

Over the last year, adjusted for the reclassification from GCI business, GCI consumer saw a decline of 1,800 revenue-generating wireless subscribers. Cable modem subscribers declined by 3,800, with 3,400 of these losses driven by the expiration of the ACP program. Quarter end, GCI's leverage was 3.1 times with sufficient cushion relative to the 6.5 times maximum leverage covenant threshold stipulated in the credit facility. They had 367 million of undrawn capacity under the revolver, net of letters of credit.

去年，根據 GCI 業務的重新分類進行調整後，GCI 消費者的創收無線用戶減少了 1,800 名。電纜調變解調器用戶減少了 3,800 名，其中 3,400 名是由於 ACP 計劃到期造成的。季末，GCI 的槓桿率為 3.1 倍，相對於信貸額度規定的 6.5 倍最大槓桿門檻有足夠的緩衝。扣除信用證後，他們的左輪手槍有 3.67 億美元的未提取能力。

And with that, I will turn the call back over to Greg.

然後，我會將電話轉回給格雷格。

Thanks, Brian. To our listening audience, we look forward to seeing you on Thursday, November 14 for our annual investor meeting. You can tune in virtually or join us in person at our new location, Jazz at Lincoln Center. If you plan to attend in person, please make sure to register by Monday, November 11, as there will not be on-site registration. The link to register can be found on our website. John Malone and I will be hosting our annual Q&A session. If you'd like to submit questions in advance, you can e-mail investorday@libertymedia.com. We appreciate your continued interest in Liberty Broadband and Liberty TripAdvisor.

謝謝，布萊恩。對於我們的聽眾，我們期待在 11 月 14 日星期四參加我們的年度投資者會議。您可以虛擬收看節目，也可以親自前往我們的新地點林肯中心爵士樂 (Jazz at Lincoln Center) 參加我們的節目。如果您計劃親自參加，請務必在 11 月 11 日星期一之前註冊，因為不會進行現場註冊。註冊連結可以在我們的網站上找到。約翰·馬龍和我將主持我們的年度問答會議。如果您想提前提交問題，可以發送電子郵件至investorday@libertymedia.com。感謝您對 Liberty Broadband 和 Liberty TripAdvisor 的持續關注。

And operator, with that, I'd like to open the line for questions.

接線員，我想開通提問專線。

(Operator Instructions) Ben Swinburne, Morgan Stanley.

（操作員指示）Ben Swinburne，摩根士丹利。

Hey, Greg. On the Charter approach or the proposals, I guess the question I have is sort of why now? Obviously, we're seeing other kind of rationalization in the Liberty universe, but I'd love to just get you to step back and explain the thought processes moving forward. At least discussion-wise with this.

嘿，格雷格。關於憲章的方法或提案，我想我的問題是為什麼現在？顯然，我們在自由宇宙中看到了其他類型的合理化，但我很想讓你退後一步，解釋一下前進的思考過程。至少在討論方面是如此。

And also what kind of has to happen from a process point of view to allow Charter to get back in the market buying back stock, which obviously impacts Liberty and its ability to fund its own buybacks? And then I just want -- I don't know if Ron can comment on this, but is there anything we should be thinking about from a regulatory point of view around change of control in Alaska that's different than what we might see in the typical cable acquisition, telecom acquisition? Thanks a lot.

從流程的角度來看，必須發生什麼樣的情況才能讓 Charter 重返市場回購股票，這顯然會影響 Liberty 及其為自身回購提供資金的能力？然後我只是想——我不知道羅恩是否可以對此發表評論，但是從監管的角度來看，我們是否應該考慮阿拉斯加控制權變更的任何事情，這與我們在典型情況下可能看到的情況有所不同有線電視收購，電信收購？多謝。

Thanks, Ben. I'll start up. Why now, I think we came up with a -- it's been proposed a structure that would work for both Charter and Liberty Broadband in terms of allowing us to tighten the discount, eliminate the dual corporate structure over time, but still provide support and a partnership in the interim until the closing. So I think it was at the meeting of the minds that this was an unattractive time for both parties to construct something that worked to eliminate -- to help both of our set of interests.

謝謝，本。我就開始吧為什麼現在，我認為我們想出了一個——有人提出了一種對 Charter 和 Liberty Broadband 都適用的結構，允許我們收緊折扣，隨著時間的推移消除雙重公司結構，但仍然提供支持和臨時夥伴關係直至結束。因此，我認為，正是在思想的碰撞中，對雙方來說，現在不是一個有吸引力的時機來建立一些旨在消除的東西——以幫助我們雙方的利益。

On the buyback, I think upon either the announcement of a signed deal or the cessation, if they were unable to reach a deal, they would be able to begin their buybacks again. But (inaudible) that would be my understanding. Ron, do you want to comment anything on Glasgow regulatory? I know you guys do have a unique regulator to have to go through approval.

關於回購，我認為無論是宣布簽署協議還是停止回購，如果他們無法達成協議，他們將能夠再次開始回購。但這是我的理解。羅恩，您想對格拉斯哥的監管有何評論嗎？我知道你們確實有一個獨特的監管機構必須經過批准。

We do and that actually makes it fairly simple up here. Our franchises and our certificates come from single-state agencies that are not municipally based. Well, as to a regulatory approval, if there was a change of control, would be small in comparison to the normal slip we'd have to go through at the federal level with the FCC. So not a significant issue on the state side.

我們這樣做了，這實際上使得這裡的事情變得相當簡單。我們的特許經營權和證書來自非市級的單一州機構。好吧，至於監管部門的批准，如果控制權發生變化，與我們必須在聯邦層級與聯邦通訊委員會（FCC）進行的正常審批相比，這會很小。所以對國家來說這不是一個重要的問題。

Anything, Ron, on the trend for -- I actually don't know if you guys had FCC licenses, I apologize. But from a wireless point of view, anything we should be thinking about there?

任何事情，羅恩，關於趨勢 - 我實際上不知道你們是否有 FCC 許可證，我很抱歉。但從無線的角度來看，我們該考慮什麼？

So we have wireless, we have microwave, we have cable-landing licensees. We are flush with FCC stuff so there would be a normal FCC process in several different segments with the FCC.

所以我們有無線，我們有微波爐，我們有線登陸許可證。我們對 FCC 的東西很熟悉，所以在 FCC 的幾個不同部分都會有一個正常的 FCC 流程。

Don Morel, Evercore ISI.

唐·莫雷爾，Evercore ISI。

Good afternoon and thanks for taking the questions. Two quick ones on the Charter negotiations. And then since I assumed you can't share much more, a separate follow-up if I could. So on the negotiations, I wanted to see if you could help us think about where GCI fits into those discussions. Is there a realistic scenario where GCI is not included in a potential transaction or is that unlikely given what might be a desire to potentially avoid complications around? I don't know. Maybe taxes or having a separate drawn out process with another third party.

下午好，感謝您提出問題。關於憲章談判的兩個簡短內容。然後，由於我認為您不能分享更多內容，所以如果可以的話，我會單獨進行後續報導。因此，在談判方面，我想看看您是否可以幫助我們思考 GCI 在這些討論中的定位。是否存在 GCI 不包含在潛在交易中的現實情況，或者考慮到可能希望避免周圍的複雜情況，這種情況不太可能發生？我不知道。也許需要納稅或與另一個第三方進行單獨的漫長流程。

Relatedly, there's some confusion around the mid-2027 closed timeline that both companies referenced. Is there any more context you could provide on that timeline? And assuming GCI is included in the deal, is there any reason why that date can't be moved up? And then I have a follow-up.

與此相關的是，兩家公司提到的 2027 年中期關閉時間表存在一些混亂。您是否可以提供有關該時間表的更多背景資訊？假設 GCI 包含在交易中，是否有任何理由不能提前該日期？然後我有一個後續行動。

Okay. So click on the -- I think I can't comment because you've seen that the two proposals had different use of GCI, and I can't comment until there's a resolution of those publicly.

好的。因此，請點擊 -- 我想我無法發表評論，因為您已經看到這兩個提案對 GCI 的使用不同，並且在公開解決這些問題之前我無法發表評論。

On the question of the timing, I think that was outlined in the some of the letter so that went back and forth. The delayed timing was to accompany -- compensate for the regulatory process, give some opportunity to delever at Liberty Broadband, and to continue the partnership for a period of time where it's known that they'll eventually come together, but we can be supportive.

關於時間安排的問題，我認為這在信中的一些內容中已經概述過，所以我們來來回回。延遲的時間是為了補償監管程序，給自由寬頻提供一些去槓桿化的機會，並在一段時間內繼續合作，眾所周知，他們最終會走到一起，但我們可以提供支援。

Understood. I appreciate that. And maybe switching gears a bit to topic where you might be able to speak a little bit more on. Greg, we've seen a number of announcements and targets over the last few months be announced from the telcos around their fiber and fixed wireless emissions. I assume you'll share a lot more of your views next week, but anything you could touch on in terms of how you see the broadband market and competitive dynamics evolving in the coming years, and where Charter sits within that as arguably we're the most attractive plays on convergence?

明白了。我很欣賞這一點。也許可以稍微轉換一下話題，讓你可以多說一點。格雷格，在過去的幾個月裡，我們看到電信公司圍繞光纖和固定無線發射發布了許多公告和目標。我想您下週將分享更多的觀點，但您可以談談您如何看待未來幾年寬頻市場和競爭動態的發展，以及憲章在其中的地位，因為可以說我們是融合方面最有吸引力的玩法是什麼？

Yes, I think you touched the point as far as convergence. Charter is pursuing aggressively with their mobile offering, Spectrum One and the other offerings like that that they've done, which bring both broadband, video, and mobile together. Bringing that converged network is absolutely one of Charter's goals, to take advantage of the strength of the network they have. The upgrade program that they have with the high split, allowing symmetric broadband up and down is an important part of that. And I think it leverages Charter's strengths and the strength of their [co-act] network -- co-act and fiber network.

是的，我認為您觸及了收斂這一點。 Charter 正在積極開發其行動產品、Spectrum One 以及其他類似的產品，將寬頻、視訊和行動結合在一起。引入融合網路絕對是 Charter 的目標之一，以充分利用他們擁有的網路優勢。他們擁有高分頻的升級計劃，允許上下對稱寬頻，這是其中的重要組成部分。我認為它利用了 Charter 的優勢及其 [co-act] 網路的優勢——co-act 和光纖網路。

The trends in the marketplace suggest that we've seen less growth in FWA and more people looking at fixed plant and being desirous of fixed plant, and Charter believes (inaudible) that their plan, particularly after that high split, is going to be a powerful competitive weapon and make an attractive consumer offering.

市場趨勢表明，我們看到 FWA 的成長放緩，越來越多的人關注固定工廠並渴望固定工廠，而 Charter 相信（聽不清楚）他們的計劃，特別是在高分拆之後，將是一個強大的競爭武器並提供有吸引力的消費者產品。

Barton Crockett, Rosenblatt Securities.

巴頓·克羅克特，羅森布拉特證券公司。

I was curious about your thoughts on just antitrust in a Republican administration. Do you think if there was a relaxation of views on antitrust, would that open opportunities that would be meaningful for M&A around Charter, do you think? Or do you think you can already do what you want to do so that doesn't really matter?

我很好奇你對共和黨政府反壟斷的看法。您認為如果放寬對反壟斷的看法，這是否會為圍繞 Charter 的併購帶來有意義的機會？或者你認為你已經可以做你想做的事情了，所以這並不重要？

Barton, as far as Charter being acquired, there are not that many [subsidize] targets out there. Most of them I suspect could have been accomplished even under the current regulatory regime. As far as other larger combinations, I think it's too soon to tell what would be allowed.

巴頓，就查特被收購而言，沒有那麼多[補貼]目標。我懷疑其中大多數即使在當前的監管制度下也可以實現。至於其他較大的組合，我認為現在判斷允許哪些組合還為時過早。

But could you see more convergence to build national networks? That should -- I think that would be be a competitive strength, could be interesting. Could you see more combinations reflect in that converged network? That would be interesting as well, potentially. But probably, it's more likely than not, just looking as a casual observer, that a new regulatory regime would be more open to that, but it's hard to know for certain.

但你能看到更多的融合來建立全國網路嗎？我認為這應該是一種競爭優勢，可能會很有趣。您能否看到更多組合反映在該融合網絡中？這可能也會很有趣。但作為一個不經意的觀察者，新的監管制度很可能對此更加開放，但很難確定。

I guess, operator, we are through with the questions. Thank you for our listening audience for their interest in Liberty Broadband and Liberty TripAdvisor. As I said, we look forward to seeing some of you in person and some of you virtually next week. And until then, be well.

我想，接線員，我們已經回答完問題了。感謝我們的聽眾對 Liberty Broadband 和 Liberty TripAdvisor 的興趣。正如我所說，我們期待下週與你們中的一些人見面，也期待與你們中的一些人見面。在那之前，祝你一切順利。

Thank you. That does conclude today's teleconference. We appreciate your participation. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Enjoy the rest of your day.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。我們感謝您的參與。此時您可以斷開線路。享受你一天剩下的時間。