Ambow Education Holdings (NYSE:AMBO)

BEIJING, May 16, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Ambow Education Holding Ltd., ("Ambow" or the "Company") (NYSE: AMBO), a leading national provider of educational and career enhancement services in China, today announced that the filing of its 2011 annual report on Form 20-F (the "2011 Annual Report") is delayed beyond the end of the 15 day extension period provided by the rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") because the Company requires additional time to complete the audit of its 2011 financial statements. The Company is working to complete the audit as soon as practicable and expects to file the 2011 Annual Report with the SEC within one month. The Company also announced that it has identified certain preliminary adjustments to the 2011 unaudited financial results included in the Company's press release dated March 5, 2012, which was included as an exhibit to the Company's Form 6-K furnished to the SEC on March 5, 2012 (the "Form 6-K"). In connection with its annual audit, which has yet to be completed, the Company expects to make the following adjustments:

The Company will change the revenue recognition method in respect of sales of the Company's educational services and software products to certain distributors. For those distributors with a proven payment history, the Company will continue to recognize revenue upon delivery of services and products. For those distributors without adequate history of timely payment, the Company will defer the recognition of revenue until cash is collected. Accordingly, the Company expects that between US$13.5 million (RMB85 million) and US$15.1 million (RMB95 million) of revenue previously recognized in 2011 will be reversed and recognized in the future when cash is collected from certain distributors. This adjustment does not impact revenue in 2010. As of the date of this press release, the Company has collected approximately US$12.2 million (RMB77 million) of the cash associated with the revenue to be deferred as of December 31, 2011, which collected revenue (together with any additional collections before June 30, 2012) will be recognized by the Company in the first half of 2012. Any remaining balance will be recognized when collected. All future sales to distributors without adequate history of timely payment will be recognized on the cash basis until such time as a proven payment history is established.

The Company expects to make a bad debt provision of between US$2.1 million (RMB13 million) and US$2.4 million (RMB15 million).

In addition to the 10 new tutoring centers opened in the fourth quarter of 2011 as described in the Form 6-K, an additional 12 centers began operations in late December 2011, bringing the total number of newly opened centers to 22 in the fourth quarter of 2011. As a result, depreciation and other expense is expected to increase by between US$0.5 million (RMB3 million) and US$0.6 million (RMB3.5 million).

The adjustments described above are not expected to have any effect on the Company's cash flow in 2011 or its previously announced cash balance at December 31, 2011.

In addition to the adjustments described above, the Company is evaluating whether it will take a one-time non-cash charge of between US$1.6 million (RMB 10 million) and $3.2 million (RMB20 million) associated with a 2011 acquisition. The Company is also evaluating the need to make an additional tax provision in respect of one of its subsidiaries. The amount being considered for tax provision is between US$3.2 million (RMB20 million) and US$4.8 million (RMB30 million).

In addition to the above, the Company also has identified certain other preliminary adjustments that it expects to make during the completion of the audit; these certain other preliminary adjustments are not expected to impact the Company's net income.

While the Company does not expect further adjustments, the audit is not yet complete and, consequently, the Company cannot assure you that further adjustments may not be identified. Source: PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1bZKH)

BEIJING, March 13, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Ambow Education Holding Ltd. ("Ambow" or the "Company" NYSE: AMBO), a leading national provider of educational and career enhancement services in China, today announced that it has won the bid from the Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), an agency of the State Council which regulates all aspects of the educational system in China, to exclusively design and develop the first national cloud-based education data platform. Ambow will create an entirely new way for over 14 million K-12 school teachers and approximately 4 million teacher candidates(1), who study at the normal universities, or teachers' colleges in China, to take cloud-based classes, share professional experiences, and sharpen their teaching skills. The Normal University and College system focuses on training and preparing school teachers to become eligible in entire accredited school system in China. The system also ensures these teachers maintain good standing by obtaining all necessary certifications and fulfilling continuing education requirements.

Education in the Cloud will be designed to offer a place with rich media content, virtual communities, live discussions, and interactive features that enrich learning experiences. It will provide a means for teachers and teacher candidates to update their knowledge, take refresher courses, and improve their teaching skills through cloud-based certification programs, advanced and joint-degree programs, and peer-to-peer professional social networking that are supported by the best experts, practices, and content. The system will also support a standardized process to pay for online classes, obtain teacher recertification, transfer intercollegiate credits, and leverage the entire Normal University and College system and the database of the hundreds and thousands of K-12 schools across China.

Ambow, as the exclusive designer and developer of China's Education in the Cloud, sees the MOE's cloud initiative as just the beginning of a trend in education and an enormous market opportunity. "The project win from the Ministry of Education is a recognition of our decade-long effort in online education, and positions us to continue to be a leader in innovation and education," commented Dr. Jin Huang, CEO of Ambow Education. "Ambow seeks to provide students the best in choice, the best in opportunities, and the best in education. As such, this project is a win for teachers and students, and a clear win for our cloud capabilities and the huge market opportunities it presents," concluded Dr. Huang.

Financial Highlights for the Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2011:

• Total net revenue from continuing operations increased 58.5% to $89.2 million(2) from $56.2 million for the same period in 2010 and organic growth increased 42.6 % year-over-year.
  • The growth assets from continuing operations, which consists of Tutoring and Career Enhancement, achieved 77.7 % year-over-year revenue growth, of which organic growth was 54.9%.
  • Tutoring revenue from continuing operations increased 47.6% to $35.7 million from $24.2 million for the same period in 2010, of which organic growth was 35.0%.
  • Career Enhancement revenue from continuing operations increased 126.7% to $33.8 million from$14.9 million for the same period in 2010, of which organic growth was 87.2%.
• Non-GAAP operating income(3) from continuing operations increased 41.2% to $21.6 million from $15.3 million for the same period in 2010.
• Non-GAAP net income from continuing operations increased over 54.6% to $18.4 million from $11.9 millionfor the same period in 2010.
• Diluted non-GAAP net income from continuing operations per adjusted ADS attributable to Ambow(4) increased to $0.25 as compared to $0.16 for the same period in 2010.
• Total student enrollments(5) from continuing operations increased 40% to 341,000 from 243,000 for the same period in 2010.
  • The student enrollments from continuing operations for growth assets increased 46.5% to 312,000 from 213,000 for the same period in 2010.

This was a remarkable and the most profitable quarter in our history. Our growth assets, consisting of Tutoringand Career Enhancement, set records in enrollment and revenue. Our total enrollment for growth assets surpassed one million in 2011. Looking at our Tutoring line of business, we opened 10 new tutoring centers in the fourth quarter of 2011 alone, which pushes our total national coverage to 138 centers in 17 provinces. The results of the new centers have exceeded our expectations. The tutoring enrollment from continuing operations organically grew by 20% year-over-year.

Turning to Career Enhancement, we continue to experience explosive growth and demand in this segment. The enrollment increased over 300% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2011, led by our Career Competence Enhancement Program (CCEP)(6), which is designed to teach students soft skills. This soft-skill based college credit course has attracted around 57,000 students since its launch in March 2011. Not factoring in CCEP, revenue from the rest of Career Enhancement organically grew 70% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2011. After the impressive growth in 2011, our results for Q4 show that revenues between Career Enhancement andTutoring were almost evenly split. As both of our growth engines meet and exceed our expectations, we see 2012 ripe for continued organic growth and our leadership position be firmly reinforced in the Chinese education industry.

"To implement our current growth strategy, we reviewed our business portfolios, and subsequently, divested non-strategic assets at the end of 2011," added Ms. Jenny Zhan, Ambow's Chief Strategy Officer. "This strategic move reflects our commitment to business lines with stronger growth potential, greater capital efficiency, and better asset turnover." She continued, "We expect to see substantial improvement of our Return on Equity in 2012."

"It is also worth noting that Campus Holdings, in which both Dr. Jin Huang and Baring Asia have a shared economic interest through October 2015," added Ms. Zhan. "spent approximately $50 million to acquire 5.972 million shares of ADS or its equivalent of common shares, both publicly and privately, from November 2011through January 2012. "She concluded, "This purchase demonstrates the confidence and commitment of our management team, and moreover, the endorsement of our business model from a private equity leader inChina's education sector."

Shedding more light on the financial picture, the Chief Financial Officer of Ambow Education, Mr. Gareth Kungadded, "Turning to operations, I am very pleased to announce that even though we are in the investment phase of our Tutoring and Career Enhancement businesses, we achieved outstanding growth in both top and bottom lines." He continued, "Our non-GAAP operating income from continuing operations grew over 41% year-over-year while 2011 adjusted EBIDTA margin(7) was around 27% which is one of the highest in the industry." Furthermore, "These results show that our resolve to improve the efficiency and scalability of our business remains strong." Mr. Kung concluded by stating, "Though we are still in the early stages of our expansion, it is our goal to maintain sustainable growth in both top and bottom lines."

 BEIJING, January 5, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Ambow Education Holding Ltd. ("Ambow" or the "Company") (NYSE: AMBO), a leading national provider of educational and career enhancement services in China today announced a number of asset divestments that completed before the end of fiscal year 2011 to sharpen the focus on its growth layer, which consists of Tutoring and Career Enhancement. The Company completed the following transactions:

• It sold its Beijing Century College and its 100% owned Beijing Siwa Century Facility Management Co. back to its original owner;
• It returned its 21st Century K-12 school assets to its original owner for a 15-year operating right of the school. It also agrees to jointly fund future capital expenditures through separately negotiable agreements; and
• It sold one career enhancement and three tutoring subdivisions as a package.

Ambow made the above divestments following a recent strategic review of its business portfolios to sharpen the focus on its growth layer. As a result of the above transactions, the revenue of the sold business units excluding 21st Century K-12 School for which the Company has retained a 15-year operating right are estimated to be around US$8.0 million[1] for the fourth quarter of 2011 and US$25.0 million for fiscal year 2011. The aforementioned revenue together with the related expenses will be reclassified and disclosed separately in the income statement as a net result from discontinued operations. Notwithstanding this reclassification, the revenue from continuing operations alone is expected to meet the previous revenue guidance of US$82.6 million (RMB520 million) to US$84.2 million(RMB530 million) for the fourth quarter of 2011, due to the faster than expected ramp up of the Company's growth layer initiatives especially related to the tutoring center expansions.

The Company expects to record a non-cash charge arising from disposals of approximately US$23.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, or 5.0% of net equity value at the end of third quarter of 2011 as a result of the above transactions. These transactions are expected to generate proceeds of US$34.6 million while reducing the Company's liabilities relating to acquisition consideration by approximately US$32.0 million, therefore significantly increasing its financial flexibility to further invest in strategically important growth areas.

Third Quarter 2011 Results

• Total net revenue increased 42.6% to $72.8 million(1) from $51.1 million for the same period in 2010 and organic growth increased 25.0% year-over-year.
• Non-GAAP net income(3) increased to $7.3 million from $6.6 million for the same period in 2010.
• Diluted non-GAAP net income per adjusted ADS attributable to Ambow(4) increased to $0.097 as compared to $0.091 for the same period in 2010.

Commenting on the third quarter results, Ambow's President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Jin Huang said, "I am pleased with Ambow's performance this quarter as we continue to successfully execute our strategy to sustain strong top-line growth and improve operating profit. We remain focused on growing our Tutoring and Career Enhancement services organically and satisfying the immense demand for these services through our diversified offerings. "

"During the quarter we also closed our last acquisition of the year. Due to our strong organic growth, we expect that acquisitions will contribute to less than 10% of our annual revenue in 2011." Dr. Huang concluded.

Ambow's Chief Financial Officer, Paul Chow, added, "In the third quarter, the Growth Layer which consists of Tutoring and Career Enhancement, achieved approximately 27% year-over-year organic growth."

"Turning to operations, I am very pleased to announce that, even though we are in the investment phase of our Tutoring and Career Enhancement businesses, we achieved 27.1% year-over-year non-GAAP operating income growth. Non-GAAP G&A expense(5) as a percentage of sales decreased to 17.9% in the third quarter from 19.8% for the same period of 2010. This decrease is a direct result of our efforts to improve the efficiency and scalability of our business. Though we are still in the early stages of our expansion, it is our goal to maintain sustainable growth in both the top and bottom lines," concluded Mr. Chow.

Financial Outlook for the Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2011

The Company expects total net revenues in the fourth quarter of 2011 to be in the range of $81.5 million (Rmb520 million) to $83.0 million (Rmb530 million).

Financial Highlights for the Quarter Ended June 30, 2011:

• Total net revenues increased 26.1% to $77.8 million(1) from $61.7 million for the same period in 2010.
  • Tutoring revenues increased 20.3% to $33.7 million from $28.0 million for the same period in 2010.
  • Career Enhancement revenues increased 90.0% to $20.8 million from $11.0 million for the same period in 2010.
  • The growth layer, which consists of Tutoring and Career Enhancement, achieved 39.9% year-over-year revenue growth. Excluding revenue of $6.2 million from acquisition, our organic growth is 24.0%.
• EBITDA(2) increased 27.3% to $25.2 million from $19.8 million for the same period in 2010.
• Operating income increased 33.3% to $20.4 million from $15.3 million for the same period in 2010.
• Net income(3) increased 22.2% to $16.7 million from $13.6 million for the same period in 2010.
• Diluted non-GAAP net income per adjusted ADS attributable to Ambow(4) increased to $0.24 as compared to $0.22 for the same period in 2010.
• Total student enrollments increased to 298,000.

Commenting on the second quarter results, Ambow's President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Jin Huang said, "I am pleased with Ambow's performance this quarter as we continue to successfully execute our strategy to sustain strong growth and profitability in our growth layer. We will continue to focus on growing our Tutoring and Career Enhancement services organically and satisfying the immense demand for these services through our diversified offerings. Turning to acquisitions, we are going to continue our disciplined strategy to expand Ambow's footprint and offerings throughout China. We completed one acquisition during the quarter and we are in the process of closing another. We expect our acquisition will contribute less than 10% of our annual revenue."

Financial Outlook for the Third Quarter and Full-Year 2011

• The Company expects total net revenues in the third quarter of 2011 to be in the range of $64 million (Rmb415 million) to $67 million (Rmb430 million).
• The Company expects net revenue for 2011 full-year to be in the estimated range of $276 million (Rmb1,785 million) to $280 million (Rmb1,810 million).

BEIJING, July 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Ambow Education Holding Ltd. ("Ambow" or the "Company") (NYSE: AMBO), a leading national provider of educational and career enhancement services in China, announces that it remains firmly confident in its long-term business outlook, and is comfortable with the revenue guidance previously provided.

The revenue guidance for the second quarter of 2011 is to be in the range of $74.8 million (RMB 490 million) to $76.4 million (RMB 500 million), as provided in the last earnings call on May 18, 2011. This is the Company's current view and is subject to market changes and other future events that may occur.

Financial Highlights for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2011:

• Total net revenues increased 29.6% to $51.5 million(1) from $39.7 million for the same period in 2010. Existing business contributed 24.2% growth, while 5.4% came from acquisitions.  
  • Tutoring revenues increased 24.6% to $25.3 million from $20.3 million for the same period in 2010.
  • Career Enhancement revenues increased 116.2% to $11.8 million from $5.5 million for the same period in 2010.
• Net income(2) increased 151.6% to $1.5 million from $0.6 million for the same period in 2010.
• Operating income increased 86.5% to $2.8 million from $1.5 million for the same period in 2010.
• Adjusted EBITDA(3) increased 28.9% to $8.6 million from $6.7 million for the same period in 2010.
• Total student enrollments increased 16% year-over-year to 234,000.
• Basic and diluted non-GAAP net income per adjusted ADS attributable to Ambow(8) was $0.04 and $0.03, respectively, compared to $0.02 for the same period in 2010.

Commenting on the first quarter results, Ambow's President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Jin Huang said, "We are pleased to report that Ambow started the year with a strong quarter, highlighted by impressive revenue and net income growth.  Ambow is the only listed company in the education sector that is able to address two fundamental market demands in China - the desire to get into a better school and the desire to get a better job.  Our business objective is to acquire more and more students and retain them through Ambow's education services platform."

Financial Outlook for the Second Quarter of Full-Year 2011

Ambow expects total net revenues for the second quarter of 2011 to be in the range of $74.8 million (Rmb490 million) to $76.4 million (Rmb500 million).

We expect that our capital expenditures in 2011 covering existing and newly acquired schools and learning centers will be at a similar level as compared to 2010. In addition, we expect to continue our cooperation with local governments to open a number of service hubs in business concentrated areas in the year 2011 and beyond for providing career enhancements services to students. Capacities of these hubs are expected to range from 3,000 to 5,000 students. We expect to invest considerable capital expenditures in facility upgrades, lab renovation, technology and equipment and similar items to help us provide the best value to our students and to maintain our leading position in this business segment. We currently anticipate that our capital expenditures in 2011 will primarily be funded with the net cash generated from operating activities.

Fourth Quarter Highlights:

• Total net revenues for the fourth quarter of 2010 increased 17.9% to $63.7 million, from $54.0 million for the same period in 2009.  This improvement was primarily the result of strong revenues contribution from Tutoring.
• Gross profit was $40.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2010, increasing 26.1% year-over-year from $31.7 million for the same period in 2009.
• Net income was $13.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2010, increasing 8.6% year-over-year from $12.6 million for the same period in 2009.
• Basic and diluted non-GAAP net income per adjusted ADS attributable to Ambow was $0.21 and $0.20, respectively, compared to $0.21 and $0.20, respectively for the same period in 2009.

Commenting on the fourth quarter and year end results, Ambow's President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Jin Huang said, "We are happy to report that Ambow made significant progress in executing its business strategy during the fourth quarter and full year. Ambow continues to expand across the country through its innovative intelligence systems and service platform, further establishing itself as a market leader and the preeminent provider of education and career enhancement services in China.  We remain dedicated to helping our students achieve their educational goals and improve their ability to contribute meaningfully in the work place; fulfilling our mission to create a better school, better job and better life."

Dr. Huang continued, "It is important to understand that our long-term objectives are sustained revenue growth, acquisition integration and expense control. Throughout the year, each of these goals was achieved to our satisfaction.  Based on the success of these efforts, our strategy in 2011 is to drive positive revenue expansion through strong growth in our Tutoring and Career Enhancement segments."

Ambow expects total net revenues in the first quarter of full-year 2011 to be in the range of $49.7 million (Rmb328.0 million) to $52.7 million (Rmb348.0 million).