NexCen Brands Inc., which last week announced an agreement with affiliate of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners to sell its franchise business, has reported unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31.
Total revenues in the first quarter of 2010 were down 16 percent to $10.0 million from $12.0 million in the same period last year. The decrease is primarily due to current economic conditions, including continued weak credit markets for franchisees and softness in consumer spending and retail traffic, the company reported.
The company narrowed its net loss for the quarter by 17.8 percent at $0.711 million, compared to $0.865 million in the same period last year. Net loss from continuing operations was $0.728 million, a slight improvement from a net loss of $0.732 million in the same period last year.
"While our revenues reflect continued weakness in the macro environment, we continued to generate positive cash flow from operations," said Kenneth J. Hall, NexCen Brands CEO in a news release. "Additionally, the cost reduction efforts that we implemented in 2009 resulted in our operating income being relatively flat as compared to the prior year. With that said, exploring alternatives to our capital and debt structure remained our priority throughout the quarter."
To that end, NexCen Brands' agreement with LLCP represents the culmination of a strategic review process that the company undertook to identify and evaluate potential alternative approaches to addressing its debt.
Conference call
A replay of the company's conference call will be available through May 24 by dialing (866) 281-6782, access code: 154227. The archived broadcast will be available through the 'Investor Relations' link on the company's website until June 17.
