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Technology Stocks : Williams Communications Group - WCG -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: James Calladine who wrote (451)	4/28/2000 3:33:00 PM
From: samoyed	Respond to of 609

Jim, very interesting find you made. I would think that Williams would have policy on this type of "bribe", but then maybe that is part of his "compensation package". As a business, one would think that this type of an arrangement would definitely cause a conflict of interest to Williams and ultimately its shareholders. We all know the extremes that companies are going to to obtain and keep good tech people, but this would seem to me that he is calling the shots with Williams upper mgmt and board. Makes him look incredibly smart and Williams a splice short of connecting. In any event, this may be the way this industry operates, but I would tend to think that it could be in violation of fair trade laws and I think that the shareholders of the suppliers would be the ones that should be concerned. Probably a rampant problem and everyone just looks the other way. Maybe Williams needs to address this in their annual statement. Thanks for sharing, õRob

To: James Calladine who wrote (451)	5/2/2000 7:41:00 AM
From: samoyed	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 609

Williams Communications Reports First Quarter 2000 Results Strong Demand for Network Services Leads to Continued Growth In Customer Base and Long-Term Revenue Commitments May 2, 2000 07:17 AM Eastern Time TULSA, Okla., May 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Williams Communications Group, Inc. WCG today reported unaudited first-quarter revenues of $533.4 million, reflecting continued growth in sales of Network capacity. Excluding dark fiber leases accounted for as sales-type leases, Network revenue increased 14 percent versus the fourth quarter of 1999, to $109.9 million. Williams Communications, which is in the final phase of its accelerated national fiber-optic network construction, reported an EBITDA loss of $14.5 million and a loss before a change in accounting principle of $96.2 million or 21 cents per share for the first quarter. Effective Jan. 1, Williams Communications changed its revenue recognition policy within its Solutions segment related to new system sales and upgrades from the percentage of completion method to the completed contract method. The cumulative effect of this change in accounting principle was a one-time charge of $25.4 million, net of tax and minority interest, or 5 cents per share. Williams Communications' net loss for the quarter was $121.6 million or 26 cents per share. "The first quarter continued a trend of significant achievements for our Network business," said Howard Janzen, president and chief executive officer of Williams Communications. "We again met all key construction milestones established as part of our accelerated network build-out; we successfully launched our local access initiative; we entered into several transactions which expand our global footprint, and we signed more than $1.5 billion of long-term revenue commitments with new customers. "We continue to be enthusiastic about the long-term quality of our expanding revenue base," Janzen continued. "During the first quarter, the number of carrier customers increased 34 percent to 110, with more than 75 percent of the revenue base associated with contracts of five years or more. One out of every five of our carrier contracts is for 20 years or more." Operating Highlights for the First Quarter By the end of the first quarter, all remaining segments of the network were under construction. On a completed segment basis, more than 27,000 route miles were in place and in excess of 24,000 route miles of fiber were lit and operational. Additionally, 10 more data centers were completed bringing the total number constructed along the network to 90. Williams Communications' revenue base continued to build, reflecting an expanding market for carrier-class customers. During the quarter, sales agreements with 28 new carrier customers were signed. This added more than $1.5 billion to the company's revenue base, with more than 75 percent of that amount supporting growth in data services. Also announced during the quarter were several strategic transactions focused on expanding the network reach globally. Among these were the securing of undersea cable capacity on a trans-Atlantic cable, the acquisition of dark fiber in Europe and the purchase of interests in undersea cables between the U.S. and China and the U.S. and Japan. Additional capacity agreements connecting Williams Communications' domestic network to key Asian markets were in the works early in the second quarter. Financial Highlights for the Quarter Unaudited Network revenue of $130.3 million rose $5.6 million versus the fourth quarter of 1999, as increased capacity revenues were partially offset by lower dark fiber leases accounted for as sales-type leases. Network EBITDA for the quarter was a loss of $23.5 million. This includes $31.5 million in gains associated with sales of technology investments. As expected, gross margins for the quarter were $36.7 million lower than the fourth quarter of 1999. Contributing to the adverse variance are lower dark fiber leases accounted for as sales-type leases ($10.3 million), the commencement of lease payments associated with the Asset Defeasance Program ($12.2 million) and greater ad valorem tax accruals, reflecting the increased asset base associated with the network build-out ($4 million). Higher off-network costs and operations and maintenance costs contributed to the remainder of the variance. Broadband Media, a new business reporting segment, with Williams Vyvx Services at its core, reported first-quarter revenues of $40.9 million resulting in EBITDA of $1.1 million, a $.9 million EBITDA increase over the fourth quarter of 1999. Solutions reported unaudited revenue of $373.2 million with an EBITDA loss of $11 million. The improvement in EBITDA versus the fourth quarter includes the effect of approximately $6 million as a result of the change in Solutions' revenue recognition policy as well as lower provisions for doubtful accounts. Strategic Investments reported an EBITDA of $18.9 million largely as a result of a $16.5 million gain on the sale of a portion of its investment in Algar Telecom Leste S.A. (ATL), a Brazilian-based cellular telephone company. After the sale, Williams retains an economic interest of approximately 50 percent of ATL. Capital expenditures for the quarter were $661 million, including $646 million related to the network build-out.

To: James Calladine who wrote (451)	5/8/2000 7:58:00 PM
From: samoyed	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 609

TRADE IDEA-Buy Williams Communiations debt on weakness-Lehman May 8, 2000 09:17 AM NEW YORK, May 8 (Reuters) - Williams Communications Group Inc.'s WCG "depth of network" leaves it poised to become a large infrastructure supplier to emerging Internet services markets, and investors should consider buying the company's bonds, Lehman Brothers Inc. said in a recent report. "We rate WCG bonds an Attractive Core Holding and would encourage investors to buy on weakness," Lehman said. Williams's outstanding notes have retained their value better than many junk-rated bonds. Its 10.7 percent notes due Oct. 2007 were recently bid at 102.25 with a yield to worst of 10.25 percent, or 357 basis points more than U.S. Treasuries. Its 10.875 percent notes due Oct. 2009 were recently bid at 101 with a yield to worst of 10.67 percent, or 399 basis points more than Treasuries. On May 2, Williams reported first quarter results. The Tulsa, Okla.-based company said it lost $121.6 million, including a $25.4 million one time charge. Revenues totalled $533.4 million, about $30 million more than Lehman expected. Williams's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) loss totalled $14.5 million, below the $51 million loss in the previous quarter. Excluding investment income, Williams's EBITDA loss was $66.2 million. Still, however measured, Williams's EBITDA loss beat Lehman's expectations. In the first quarter, Williams signed more than $1.5 billion of long-term revenue commitments, or bookings, with new customers. It had a $16 million per month backlog, up from $12 million per month in the previous quarter. On Feb. 29, Williams said it would acquire a 2,200 mile operational long distance fiber-optic network, including rights of way, equipment and facilities, from SBC Communications Inc. SBC , the No. 1 U.S. local telephone company. Lehman said SBC does not yet have certification to enter the long-distance market, but that traffic in the service business is starting to ramp up because of SBC wireless customers' long distance usage and internal SBC traffic. On the network development side, Williams had just over 27,000 of its 33,000 network miles in place. The order backlog, Lehman said "is a concern. However, we believe (Williams's) local build efforts, working closely with local access providers, will prove successful in overcoming a short-term execution issue. Also, remember that this backlog represents healthy and growing demand for (Williams's) services. We look for expanding network services revenue and gross margins." TRADE IDEA reports contain RICs where applicable. To see livequotes, click on the angled brackets < > within the text. To call up charts or perform analysis, point at the RIC and use right mouse click to bring up menu. NEWS News for the fixed income market [D] All debt market reports [D-DBT-MF] Government bond news [GVD] Mortgage and asset-backed news [MTG] U.S. corporate news [USC] Credit rating news [AAA] Emerging markets news [EMRG] For guide to all news on Reuters <NEWS> PRICES/INDICES US Dollar Bond Market Overview <0#USDCOMP> US mortgage-backed 30-year and 15-year overview <USMBS> ** To gain access to a full spectrum of broker research reports, try Reuters Broker Research (RBR). For more information, contact your local help desk <PHONE/HELP> .