Citing strong year-to-date results, Nextel Partners Inc. increased its full-year adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization guidance by approximately 9 percent from $340 million to $370 million. The carrier has already reported $163.5 million in adjusted EBITDA for the first half of the year and said its revised forecast implies a 101-percent year-over-year increase in adjusted EBITDA compared with the $183.8 million it reported last year.
“The preliminary year-to-date results indicate that Nextel Partners is tracking very well with respect to our annual guidance and is meaningfully exceeding previous expectations for adjusted EBITDA in 2004,” said Barry Cowan, Nextel Partners’ vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer.
Nextel Partners’ stock was trading up more than 4 percent early Wednesday at $16.25 per share.
Nextel Partners announced earlier this week that Nextel Communications Inc. purchased more than 5.5 million Class A common shares of Nextel Partners stock from Motorola Inc. The stock automatically converted into Class B common shares and increased Nextel’s holdings in Nextel Partners to more than 84.6 million Class B shares or an approximate 32-percent stake. Motorola maintained 500,000 Class A shares of Nextel Partners stock.
