Satnews Daily
September 24th, 2015

Gilat Expectations For 2015 Are Revised... + The Development + Supply Of In-Flight Connectivity Solutions


[Satnews] Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ:GILT) (TASE:GILT), has reported revised management objectives for the company for 2015.

Based on preliminary estimates, revenues for the second half of 2015 are expected to be between $120 million and $130 million and second half EBITDA is expected to be between $8 million and $10 million. As a result, revenues for the full year of 2015 are expected to be between $210 million and $220 million and EBITDA between $6 million to $8 million.

Executive Comment

"I am disappointed that we will not meet our management objectives for 2015. Our revision is due to recent decisions to delay several large-scale projects by our customers, mainly in Mexico and Russia and in our defense-related activities. In addition, although our Fitel project in Peru is progressing well, we have extended the initial planning stage to achieve greater efficiency and improved profitability. These factors will mainly impact the third quarter. Management is in the process of streamlining the operation to achieve greater effectiveness and efficiency, with specific changes scheduled to take positive effect in the fourth quarter of the year," said Dov Baharav, Chairman and interim CEO of Gilat. "Moreover, we continue to see increasing interest in our products and services designed for HTS and Mobility and I remain optimistic about our business outlook for 2016 and beyond."

Additionally, a new, long-term agreement has just been accepted by Gilat Satellite Networks to develop and supply high-performance dual Ku/Ka-band terminals for in-flight connectivity (IFC) on commercial aircraft.

Benefiting from Gilat's longstanding expertise in high-performance and low-profile antenna design, the new Ku/Ka-band in-flight connectivity solution will enable IFC service providers to deliver global and continuous broadband coverage on commercial aircraft. Gilat will develop and provide a dual Ku/Ka-band antenna with its proprietary power amplifiers (KRFU and KANDU). The antenna is also intended to meet the requirements for future line fit installations.

This unique competitive configuration offers a scalable, cost-effective global bandwidth solution to meet growing broadband requirements, to optimize bandwidth allocation and to ensure continuous coverage on more airline routes. Rollout is expected in 2017.

Executive Comment

"The new terminal leverages our proven technological capabilities in both industry-leading Wavestream airborne transceivers and advanced UAV terminals," said Moshe (Chico) Tamir, Corporate Vice President and President of Gilat's Mobility Division. "We are excited to expand our offering and to put the best terminal for high-speed Internet access on board commercial flights."