Boston, MA 05/02/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Since Q42008 until the past two quarters, Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE:LVLT) got used to reporting a loss after loss quarter in quarter out. There was nothing like consecutive positive quarterly reporting. That is what the Chief Financial Officer Sunit Patel calls: taking a while for a business such as Level 3 to get going. Indeed it took quite a while before consecutively quarterly profits could be seen in the company. However, after a long wait, the future looks more promising than ever, at least, going by what the management said at the recent call.
The company reported Q12014 financial results that signaled second consecutive quarter of positive earnings. As if that was not enough, the management led by CFO Patel told investors and analysts that the company was looking to expand its market share, launch new communications solutions and aggressively curb costs and expenses. To expand market share, the company looks at making strategic investments that will ensure consistent and steady revenue stream. Steady revenue and suppressed expenses should produce higher profits, according to the management.
Though the company celebrated a positive quarter, Mr. Patel said that was not a big turning point. That is to mean that the company believes that there is still a big room to improve performance.
Q1 in summary
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE:LVLT) earned a record profit of $112 million, translating to $0.47 per diluted share. That compared with a net loss of $78 million in the corresponding quarter a year ago. The company realized a profit of $14 million in Q42013, marking the first time in five years that the company saw a profit in its books.
Revenue in the latest quarter was $1.46 billion, mostly supported by a surge in the network services business. Otherwise, the voice services business tumbled to just $152 million from $205 million in Q12013.
Improving cash flow position
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE:LVLT) reported cash flow improvement in the latest quarter compared with the previous quarter. Cash flow improvement signals good things for investors in that besides supporting acquisitions and further investments without entering debts. The company can also be returned to shareholders in the form of shares buyback or dividend hike.
