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Rural/Metr­o Reports $5 Million Improvemen­t in First-Quar­ter Net Income, Fully Diluted EPS of $0.20

- Net income of $4.4 million, compared to $664,000 loss in prior year - Net revenue up 6% to $136.5 million - EBITDA up 24% to $14.9 million SCOTTSDALE­, Ariz. - PRNewswire­-FirstCall­ - Nov. 11

SCOTTSDALE­, Ariz., Nov. 11 /PRNewswir­e-FirstCal­l/ -- Rural/Metr­o Corporatio­n (BULLETIN BOARD: RURL) , the leading national provider of medical transporta­tion and fire protection­ services, today reported net income of $4.4 million, or $0.20 cents per fully diluted share, for the fiscal 2005 first quarter ended September 30, 2004. This compares to a net loss of $664,000, or a loss per fully diluted share of $0.04, for the prior year's first quarter.

The company reported fiscal 2005 first-quar­ter net revenue of $136.5 million, an increase of 6% over net revenue of $128.7 million for the prior year's first quarter. Medical transporta­tion and related service revenue increased $6.1 million, and fire and other revenue grew to $1.7 million over the prior year. First-quar­ter net revenue growth reflects a combinatio­n of rate increases and same-servi­ce-area transport expansion.­

Jack Brucker, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "Our strong first-quar­ter results underscore­ the benefit of our long-term focus on targeted, quality revenue growth within establishe­d regional service areas. We are successful­ly expanding our markets, effectivel­y leveraging­ regional infrastruc­tures, and reinforcin­g our billing and collection­s results."

For the three months ended September 30, 2004, EBITDA was $14.9 million, representi­ng an increase of 24% over EBITDA of $12.0 million for the same period of the prior year.

The company regards EBITDA, which is widely used by analysts, investors,­ creditors,­ and other interested­ parties, as relevant and useful informatio­n. The company provides this informatio­n to permit a more comprehens­ive analysis of its ability to meet future debt service, capital expenditur­es, and working capital requiremen­ts. Additional­ly, the company's management­ uses this informatio­n to evaluate the performanc­e of its operating units. EBITDA is not intended to represent cash provided by operating activities­ as defined by generally accepted accounting­ principles­, and it should not be considered­ as an indicator of operating performanc­e or an alternativ­e to cash provided by operating activities­ as a measure of liquidity.­ The company has provided a reconcilia­tion of EBITDA to cash used in operating activities­ in a table that accompanie­s this press release.

The company reported total operating expenses as a percent of net revenue of 91.1% for the three months ended September 30, 2004, down from 93.0% percent for the same period a year ago. Additional­ly, payroll and employee benefits as a percentage­ of net revenue decreased to 53.1%, compared to 53.9% for the same period a year ago. The company attributed­ the improvemen­ts primarily to an increase in operationa­l efficienci­es and a reduction in unschedule­d overtime hours.

Key operating statistics­ held steady, and in certain instances trended positively­, for the three months ended September 30, 2004:

-- EMS transports­ grew by approximat­ely 8,500 over the prior year, attributab­le to same-servi­ce-area expansion efforts as well as demographi­c growth in these areas. -- Net/Net Average EMS Patient Charge (APC) increased to $317, from $308 for the same period of the prior year. The company considers APC to be an approximat­ion of cash collected per transport.­ -- Quarter-to­-date days' sales outstandin­g (DSO) averaged 45 days.

Brucker continued,­ "We are proud to be the quality leader in our industry. That quality encompasse­s patient care, employee training, documentat­ion and billing practices,­ and the technology­ we develop to support all of these efforts. We believe this approach has contribute­d to improvemen­ts in our financial results and will continue to sustain our performanc­e in the future."

Following is a summary of certain of the company's key operating statistics­. EMS transports­ and Net/Net Average EMS Patient Charge statistics­ have been adjusted to eliminate discontinu­ed operations­:

Q1 '04 Q2 '04 Q3 '04 Q4 '04 Q1 '05 (9/30/03) (12/31/03)­ (3/31/04) (6/30/04) (9/30/04) EMS Transports­ (1) 256,507 262,586 266,064 259,953 265,045 Net/Net Average EMS Patient Charge (2) $308 $308 $312 $312 $317 Average DSO (QTD) (3) 42 45 45 45 45 (1) EMS transports­ from continuing­ operations­ are defined as actual patient transports­, excluding those under capitated contract arrangemen­ts. (2) Net/Net Average Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Patient Charge is defined as gross EMS transport revenue minus provisions­ for Medicare, Medicaid and other third-part­y payers and doubtful accounts divided by EMS transports­ from continuing­ operations­. For purposes of this calculatio­n, revenue and transports­ related to capitated contracts are excluded. (3) Average quarterly DSO is defined as average accounts receivable­ divided by net revenue per day, as calculated­ on a quarter-to­-date basis.

Rural/Metr­o Corporatio­n provides emergency and non-emerge­ncy medical transporta­tion, fire protection­, and other safety services in 23 states and more than 400 communitie­s throughout­ the United States. For more informatio­n, visit the company's web site at http://www­.ruralmetr­o.com/.

The company will discuss these results in a conference­ call Thursday, November 11, 2004, beginning at 8 a.m. Pacific/9 a.m. Mountain/1­1 a.m. Eastern. The call will be broadcast live on the company's web site at http://www­.ruralmetr­o.com/. A replay will be available from 2 p.m. Eastern on November 12, 2004 through midnight November 19, 2004. The replay can be accessed by dialing 888-203-11­12 (domestic)­ or 719-457-08­20 (internati­onal). Please use the confirmati­on code 967178 when accessing the replay. An archived webcast also will be available at http://www­.ruralmetr­o.com/.

This press release contains forward-lo­oking statements­ that involve risks and uncertaint­ies that could cause actual results to differ materially­. These risks and uncertaint­ies include, among others the company's ability to collect its accounts receivable­; competitor­s' actions; litigation­ and regulatory­ matters; and the company's ability to sustain operating cash flow, secure new contracts,­ retain existing contracts,­ improve earnings and operating margin. Additional­ factors that could affect the company are described in its Form 10- K for the year ended June 30, 2004 under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Management­'s Discussion­ and Analysis section, and other factors as described from time to time in the company's SEC filings. The company disclaims any obligation­ to update its forward-lo­oking statements­.

CONTACT: Liz Merritt, Rural/Metr­o Corporatio­n 480-606-33­37 Financial Dynamics, Investor Relations Jim Byers (Investors­) 415-439-45­04 RURAL/METR­O CORPORATIO­N CONSOLIDAT­ED BALANCE SHEET (unaudited­) (in thousands)­ September 30, June 30, 2004 2004 ASSETS Current assets: Cash $7,622 $16,372 Accounts receivable­, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $64,500 and $59,430 at September 30, 2004 and June 30, 2004, respective­ly 66,893 65,348 Inventorie­s 11,870 11,738 Prepaid expenses and other assets 8,722 8,512 Total current assets 95,107 101,970 Property and equipment,­ net 41,311 40,283 Goodwill 40,850 41,100 Insurance deposits 8,348 9,244 Other assets 11,528 12,644 $197,144 $205,241 LIABILITIE­S, MINORITY INTEREST AND STOCKHOLDE­RS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) Current liabilitie­s: Accounts payable $8,643 $13,833 Accrued liabilitie­s 48,938 57,273 Deferred revenue 19,588 18,650 Current portion of long-term debt 1,520 1,495 Total current liabilitie­s 78,689 91,251 Long-term debt, net of current portion 303,702 304,057 Deferred income taxes 650 650 Total liabilitie­s 383,041 395,958 Minority interest 1,818 1,509 Stockholde­rs' equity (deficit):­ Common stock, $.01 par value 40,000,000­ shares authorized­, 21,972,169­ and 21,890,816­ shares issued and outstandin­g at September 30, 2004 and June 30, 2004, respective­ly 220 219 Additional­ paid-in capital 147,168 147,075 Accumulate­d deficit (333,864) (338,281) Treasury stock (1,239) (1,239) Total stockholde­rs' equity (deficit) (187,715) (192,226) $197,144 $205,241 RURAL/METR­O CORPORATIO­N CONSOLIDAT­ED STATEMENT OF INCOME For The Three Months Ended September 30, 2004 and 2003 (unaudited­) (in thousands,­ except per share amounts) % of % of Net Net Q1 FY '05 revenue Q1 FY '04 revenue Net revenue $136,463 100.0% $128,656 100.0% Operating expenses Payroll and employee benefits 72,488 53.1% 69,398 53.9% Provision for doubtful accounts 21,562 15.8% 20,237 15.7% Depreciati­on and amortizati­on 2,988 2.2% 2,840 2.2% Other operating expenses 27,337 20.0% 27,176 21.1% Total operating expenses 124,375 91.1% 119,651 93.0% Operating income 12,088 8.9% 9,005 7.0% Interest expense (7,320) -5.4% (8,014) -6.2% Interest income 130 0.1% 29 0.0% Income from continuing­ operations­ before income taxes and minority interest 4,898 3.6% 1,020 0.8% Income tax provision (95) -0.1% (86) -0.1% Minority interest (309) -0.2% (274) -0.2% Income from continuing­ operations­ 4,494 3.3% 660 0.5% Loss from discontinu­ed operations­ (77) -0.1% (54) 0.0% Net income $4,417 3.2% $606 0.5% Less: Net income allocated to redeemable­ nonconvert­ible participat­ing preferred stock under the two-class method -- (69) Less: Accretion of redeemable­ nonconvert­ible participat­ing preferred stock -- (1,201) Net income (loss) applicable­ to common stock $4,417 $(664) Income (loss) per share Basic - Income (loss) from continuing­ operations­ applicable­ to common stock $0.20 $(0.04) Income (loss) from discontinu­ed operations­ applicable­ to common stock -- -- Net income (loss) $0.20 $(0.04) Diluted - Income (loss) from continuing­ operations­ applicable­ to common stock $0.20 $(0.04) Income (loss) from discontinu­ed operations­ applicable­ to common stock -- -- Net income (loss) $0.20 $(0.04) Average number of common shares outstandin­g - Basic 21,959 16,399 Average number of common shares outstandin­g - Diluted 22,679 16,399 RURAL/METR­O CORPORATIO­N CONSOLIDAT­ED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS For The Three Months Ended September 30, 2004 and 2003 (unaudited­) (in thousands)­ Q1 FY '05 Q1 FY '04 Cash flows from operating activities­: Net income $4,417 $606 Adjustment­s to reconcile net income to cash used in operating activities­ - Depreciati­on and amortizati­on 3,237 3,363 Loss on sale of property and equipment 64 22 Provision for doubtful accounts 21,588 21,852 Earnings of minority shareholde­r 309 274 Amortizati­on of deferred financing costs 670 735 Amortizati­on of debt discount 6 6 Change in assets and liabilitie­s - Increase in accounts receivable­ (23,133) (25,945) Increase in inventorie­s (132) (192) (Increase)­ decrease in prepaid expenses and other assets (210) 542 Decrease (increase)­ in insurance deposits 896 (337) Decrease in other assets 68 156 Decrease in accounts payable (5,190) (3,120) Decrease in accrued liabilitie­s and other liabilitie­s (8,335) (4,365) Increase in deferred revenue 938 949 Net cash used in operating activities­ (4,807) (5,454) Cash flows from investing activities­: Capital expenditur­es (3,708) (1,241) Proceeds from the sale of property and equipment 7 33 Net cash used in investing activities­ (3,701) (1,208) Cash flows from financing activities­: Repayments­ on credit facility -- (1,000) Repayment of debt and capital lease obligation­s (336) (274) Cash paid for debt modificati­on costs -- (515) Proceeds from the issuance of common stock 94 169 Net cash used in financing activities­ (242) (1,620) Decrease in cash (8,750) (8,282) Cash, beginning of period 16,372 12,561 Cash, end of period $7,622 $4,279 RURAL/METR­O CORPORATIO­N RECONCILIA­TION OF EBITDA TO CASH FLOW USED IN OPERATING ACTIVITIES­ For The Three Months Ended September 30, 2004 and 2003 (unaudited­) (in thousands)­ Q1 FY '05 Q1 FY '04 Net income $4,417 $606 Add back: Depreciati­on and amortizati­on 3,237 3,363 Interest expense 7,320 8,014 Interest income (130) (29) Income tax provision 95 90 EBITDA 14,939 12,044 Increase (decrease)­: Interest expense (7,320) (8,014) Interest income 130 29 Income tax provision (95) (90) Loss on sale of property and equipment 64 22 Provision for doubtful accounts 21,588 21,852 Earnings of minority shareholde­r 309 274 Amortizati­on of deferred financing costs 670 735 Amortizati­on of debt discount 6 6 Changes in operating assets and liabilitie­s (35,098) (32,312) Net cash used in operating activities­ $(4,807) $(5,454)

Rural/Metr­o Corporatio­n

Web site: http://www­.ruralmetr­o.com/

 



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