SANTA ANA, Calif., Feb. 1, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corinthian Colleges, Inc. (Nasdaq:COCO) reported financial results today for the second quarter ended December 31, 2011. The results for the quarter exceeded previous guidance ranges for earnings per share and were within previous guidance ranges for revenue and new student enrollment.

"In the second quarter we remained focused on student outcomes, balancing expenses with current and projected enrollment, and improving the efficiency of back-end operations," said Jack Massimino, Corinthian Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our student attrition and graduate employment trends continue to make incremental improvement, primarily the result of reducing the risk profile of our students and our ongoing efforts to help students succeed."

"As anticipated, the rate of decline in new student enrollment growth improved significantly in the quarter," Massimino said. "The improvement is the result of several factors, including a less challenging comparable from the second quarter last year, gradual stabilization in ground school new enrollments and continued strong growth at Everest University Online. In the last half of fiscal 2012, we expect new enrollments to be slightly positive."

"To help offset recent declines in student population, over the past 18 months we have reduced annualized operating expenses by approximately $150 million," Massimino said. "We also continue to pursue several growth initiatives, such as introducing new program offerings, opening new campuses, and growing our exclusively online enrollments."

Comparing the second quarter of fiscal 2012 with the same quarter of the prior year:

• Net revenues were $415.5 million versus $481.7 million, a decrease of 13.7%.
   
• The total student population at December 31, 2011 was 94,860 versus 105,210 at December 31, 2010, a decrease of 9.8%.
   
• New student enrollments totaled 25,951 versus 26,758, a decrease of 3.0%.

• Operating income was $10.0 million, excluding severance charges of $2.7 million, compared with operating income of $33.1 million, excluding impairment and severance charges of $206.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2011.
   
• Net income, excluding impairment and severance for both periods, was $3.4 million, compared with $19.1 million in the prior year.
   
• Diluted earnings per share were $0.02 per share versus a diluted loss per share of $(1.94). Excluding impairment and severance charges of $0.02 per share in Q2 12 and $2.17 per share in Q2 11, diluted earnings per share were $0.04 in Q2 12 versus $0.23 in Q2 11.

Financial Review

Educational services expense decreased $33.0 million, or 11.4%, from $288.6 million in Q2 11 to $255.6 million in Q2 12. As a percent of revenue, educational services expense increased from 59.9% in Q2 11 to 61.5% in Q2 12. The increase as a percent of revenue is primarily due to an increase in compensation and facilities expense, reflecting the fixed nature of these expenses against a lower revenue base, partially offset by improvement in bad debt expense.

Bad debt expense decreased to $14.6 million or 3.5% of net revenues for Q2 12 compared to $31.6 million or 6.6% of net revenues for Q2 11. The improvement in bad debt expense is primarily the result of continued efficiencies in packaging students with financial aid as a result of bringing processing in-house.

Marketing and admissions expenses decreased $2.0 million, or 1.9%, from $106.0 million in Q2 11 to $104.0 million in Q2 12. As a percent of revenue, marketing and admissions increased from 22.0% in Q2 11 to 25.0% in Q2 12. The increase as a percent of revenue is primarily attributable to a lower revenue base. 

General and administrative expenses decreased $8.2 million, or 15.2% from $54.0 million in Q2 11 to $45.8 million in Q2 12. As a percent of revenue, G&A decreased from 11.2% in Q2 11 to 11.0% in Q2 12. The decrease reflects the company's cost reduction initiatives.

Impairment and severance charges — During the second quarter, we recorded severance charges of $2.7 million. 

The operating margin, excluding the impairment, facility closing and severance charges in both time periods, was 2.4% in Q2 12 versus 6.9% in Q2 11. The decline is primarily the result of lower enrollment in the ground schools, and fixed compensation and facilities expenses against a lower revenue base.

Cash and cash equivalents totaled $38.4 million at December 31, 2011, compared with $107.4 million at June 30, 2011. The decrease results from the repayment of debt, partially offset by cash flows from operations.

Total debt and capital leases were $135.3 million at December 31, 2011, compared with $331.8 million at June 30, 2011.

Cash flow from operations was $137.2 million in the first six months of fiscal 2012, versus $4.0 million in the same period last year. The increase in cash flow is primarily related to the timing of cash payments and receipts related to working capital.

Capital expenditures were $20.1 million for the first six months of fiscal 2012, versus $65.8 million in the same period last year. The decrease is primarily the result of opening fewer new campuses.    

Other

The company has signed a definitive agreement for the sale-leaseback of five of its Heald College facilities. The transaction is expected to generate proceeds of approximately $40 million, and close in mid-February, subject to customary closing conditions.

Guidance

The following guidance excludes one-time charges:  

Conference Call Today

We will host a conference call today at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time (9:00 a.m. PT), to discuss second quarter results. The call will be open to all interested investors through a live audio web cast at www.cci.edu (Investor Relations/Events & Presentations.) The call will be archived on www.cci.edu after the call. A telephonic playback of the conference call will also be available through 11:00 p.m. PT, Wednesday, February 8. The playback can be reached by dialing (800) 585-8367 and using pass code 35917278.

About Corinthian

Corinthian is one of the largest post-secondary education companies in North America. Our mission is to change students' lives. We offer diploma and degree programs that prepare students for careers in demand or for advancement in their fields. Our program areas include health care, business, criminal justice, transportation technology and maintenance, construction trades and information technology. We have 123 Everest, Heald and WyoTech campuses, and also offer degrees exclusively online. For more information, go to http://www.cci.edu/.

The Corinthian Colleges, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8848

Certain statements in this press release may be deemed to be forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The company intends that all such statements be subject to the "safe-harbor" provisions of that Act. Such statements include, but are not limited to, those regarding our beliefs and expectations regarding student outcomes; new student enrollment growth or declines in future periods; expected savings from our decision to align organizational expenses with lower enrollments; the success of our initiatives to increase new enrollments now and in the future, including the introduction of new programs, opening new campuses, and growing our exclusively online enrollments; the statements regarding future operational performance, including the statements under the heading "Guidance" above, and the expected closing of the sale-leaseback of five Heald College facilities. Many factors may cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those discussed in any such forward-looking statements or elsewhere, including: the effect of new Department of Education rules; the company's effectiveness in its regulatory and accreditation compliance efforts; the outcome of ongoing reviews and inquiries by accrediting, state and federal agencies, including state attorneys general, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of the Inspector General, and the U.S. Attorney's office in Georgia; the outcome of pending litigation against the company; the possible non-satisfaction of the conditions to closing of the company's sale-leaseback transaction for its five Heald College facilities; risks associated with variability in the expense and effectiveness of the company's advertising and promotional efforts; potential increased competition; bad debt expense or reduced revenue associated with requesting students to pay more of their educational expenses while in school; risks associated with the company's new student lending program through ASFG; changes in general macroeconomic and market conditions (including credit and labor market conditions, the unemployment rate and the rates of change of each such item); and the other risks and uncertainties described in the company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The historical results achieved by the company are not necessarily indicative of its future prospects. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

CONTACT: Investors:

         Anna Marie Dunlap

         SVP Investor Relations

         714-424-2678

         

         Media:

         Kent Jenkins

         VP Public Affairs Communications

         202-682-9494

SANTA ANA, Calif., Jan. 3, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corinthian Colleges, Inc. (Nasdaq:COCO) will report financial results for the second quarter ended December 31, 2011, on Wednesday, February 1 prior to market open. The company will host a conference call at 12:00 p.m. ET (9:00 a.m. PT) to review its performance and outlook.

The conference call will be open to all interested investors through a live audio webcast via the internet at www.cci.edu (Investor Relations/Webcasts & Presentations). The call will be archived on www.cci.edu. A telephonic playback of the conference call will also be available through 5:00 p.m. ET, Wednesday, February 8th. The playback can be reached by dialing (855) 859-2056, passcode 35917278.

About Corinthian Colleges, Inc.

Corinthian is one of the largest post-secondary education companies in North America. Our mission is to change students' lives. We offer diploma and degree programs that prepare students for careers in demand or for advancement in their chosen fields. Our program areas include health care, business, criminal justice, transportation technology and maintenance, construction trades and information technology. We have 123 Everest, Heald and WyoTech campuses, and also offer a variety of degrees online. For more information, go to http://www.cci.edu/.

The Corinthian Colleges, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8848

CONTACT: Investors:

         Anna Marie Dunlap

         SVP, Investor Relations

         (714) 424-2678

         

         Media:

         Kent Jenkins

         VP, Public Affairs Communications

         (202) 682-9494

SANTA ANA, Calif., Nov. 17, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Only one of every 25 Americans served by federal job training programs actually receives classroom-based skills training, according to a research report prepared by The Parthenon Group and commissioned by Corinthian Colleges, Inc. (Nasdaq:COCO). The report further indicated that instruction is almost always delivered by local community colleges or private sector career colleges.

"Filling America's Workforce 'Skills Gap': The Role of Private Sector Education in Job Training" explores whether and how the federal government's nearly 50 job training programs, which cost taxpayers upwards of $18 billion annually, meet the current and future needs of the U.S. workforce. It also examines the role of the higher education sector — particularly private-sector career colleges — in addressing those needs.

"The Parthenon Group research clearly demonstrates that private-sector career colleges and community colleges play an indispensable, though largely unacknowledged role in preparing American workers for the 21^st century economy," said Jack Massimino, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Corinthian Colleges, Inc. He continued, "The federal government should recognize and support the sector as an ally in putting America back to work." 

The study's key findings are:

• Of the approximately 26 million U.S. citizens served by federal jobs training programs in 2009, a scant 4 percent actually receive the type of classroom-based skills instruction that leads to lifelong income gains. The Parthenon Group research indicates that the vast majority of participants receive merely short-term, job referral services designed to place people in jobs based on knowledge or experience they already have. 
   
• When classroom-based skills instruction is provided by a federal jobs training program, it almost always is in the form of a subsidy for training that is outsourced to a local community college or private sector career college. The study finds that skills instruction, when received, is usually in the form of a $3,000-$4,000 grant to be used at a local institution. During 2009, about 55 percent of these grants went to community colleges and 45 percent to private sector career colleges.
   
• While graduates of both community and private-sector career colleges realize significant, long-term economic benefits from their classroom-based education, severe fiscal constraints on community colleges mean that private sector institutions play an increasingly critical role in the delivery of classroom-based skills training. Put another way, without the private sector institutions, far fewer beneficiaries would receive any form of classroom-based instruction. A previous Parthenon Group analysis showed that both community colleges and private-sector colleges serve a large number of low-income Americans and help their graduates realize income gains of as much as 54 percent. But the confluence of a number of issues and trends pose significant challenges for community colleges including mid-year budget cuts by more than a quarter of all community colleges, the anticipation of further budget decreases this year by 60 percent, and inadequate capacity to meet current student demand by 23 percent. (University of Alabama's Access and Funding in Public Education 2011 National Survey)

"If we're serious about closing the workforce skills gap and putting more Americans back to work, the federal government should put more people into the kind of true skills-development training programs we provide," Massimino continued. "Corinthian Colleges and other private-sector institutions have demonstrated our ability to meet the training needs of the American workforce of today and tomorrow."

The Parthenon Group conducted its research through a review of public records and published data and information and through a survey of 24 One-Stop Career Centers across the United States. Its report was compiled during September and October, 2011.

A copy of the report is available here: http://parthenon.com/ThoughtLeadership/ParthenonPerspectivesTheRoleofCommunityandPrivateSectorCollegesinJobTraining

About Corinthian

Corinthian is one of the largest post-secondary education companies in North America. Our mission is to change students' lives. We offer diploma and degree programs that prepare students for careers in demand or for advancement in their fields. Our program areas include health care, business, criminal justice, transportation technology and maintenance, construction trades and information technology. We have 123 Everest, Heald and WyoTech campuses, and also offer degrees exclusively online. For more information, go to http://www.cci.edu/.

The Corinthian Colleges, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8848

CONTACT: Investors:

         Anna Marie Dunlap

         SVP, Investor Relations

         (714) 424-2678

         

         Media:

         Kent Jenkins

         VP, Public Affairs Communications

         (202) 682-9494

SANTA ANA, Calif., Nov. 2, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corinthian Colleges, Inc. (Nasdaq:COCO) management will be attending the Wunderlich Securities Education Investor Conference in Boston, MA. Trace Urdan will host a Q&A session with Jack Massimino, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, on Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 9:00 a.m. ET.

To access a live webcast of the session, please visit http://www.wsw.com/webcast/sgnl6/coco/. The webcast will be archived on that website for 90 days.

About Corinthian Colleges, Inc.

Corinthian is one of the largest post-secondary education companies in North America. Our mission is to change students' lives. We offer diploma and degree programs that prepare students for careers in demand or for advancement in their chosen fields. Our program areas include health care, business, criminal justice, transportation technology and maintenance, construction trades and information technology. We have 123 Everest, Heald and WyoTech campuses, and also offer a variety of degrees online. For more information, go to www.cci.edu.

The Corinthian Colleges, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8848

CONTACT: Investors:

         Anna Marie Dunlap

         SVP, Investor Relations

         (714) 424-2678

         

         Media:

         Kent Jenkins

         VP, Public Affairs Communications

         (202) 682-9494

SANTA ANA, Calif., Nov. 1, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corinthian Colleges, Inc. (Nasdaq:COCO) reported financial results today for the first quarter ended September 30, 2011. The results for the quarter were within previous guidance ranges for revenue, earnings per share and new student enrollment. (Guidance excluded impairment and severance charges of which we recorded $9.9 million in the first quarter.)

"As anticipated, the rate of new student enrollment growth declined in the first quarter," Jack Massimino, Corinthian chairman and chief executive officer, said. "The decline is the result of several factors, including our decision to reduce the risk profile of our students, general economic conditions, and tuition increases implemented in the second half of fiscal 2011. We expect the rate of year-over-year new enrollment declines to slow significantly in the second quarter and then turn positive in the last half of fiscal 2012."

"The decline in our student population has reduced revenue and pressured margins," Massimino said. "To help offset the decline, we are aligning expenses with current and projected enrollment. We also continue to pursue several growth initiatives, including the expansion of core program offerings at numerous campuses; opening new campuses; growing our exclusively online enrollments; and continuing to focus on recruiting students just out of high school."

Comparing the first quarter of fiscal 2012 with the same quarter of the prior year:

• Net revenues were $414.0 million versus $500.4 million, a decrease of 17.3%.
   
• Total student population at September 30, 2011 was 94,083 versus 113,452 at September 30, 2010, a decrease of 17.1%.
   
• New student enrollments totaled 31,624 versus 40,939, a decrease of 22.8%.    
   
• The operating loss was $(3.0) million, excluding impairment and severance charges of $9.9 million, compared with operating income of $56.2 million.
   
• The net loss after taxes was $(3.8) million, excluding after tax impairment and severance charges of $5.9 million, compared with net income of $33.1 million. 
   
• The diluted loss per share, excluding impairment and severance charges of $0.07 per share, was $(0.04), versus diluted earnings per share of $0.38. Including the impairment and severance charges and its related tax effect, the diluted loss per share was $(0.11).

Financial Review

Impairment and severance charges — During the first quarter, we recorded impairment and severance charges of $9.9 million. Of the total, $7.7 million was related to the impairment of WyoTech intangibles, and $2.2 million was related to severance charges for reductions in force in the first quarter.

Educational services expense decreased $18.9 million, or 6.6%, from $284.6 million in Q1 11 to $265.7 million in Q1 12, primarily reflecting a decrease in bad debt expense. As a percent of revenue, educational services expense increased from 56.9% in Q1 11 to 64.2% in Q1 12. The increase as a percent of revenue is primarily due to compensation and facilities expenses, which are generally fixed, against lower net revenues. Bad debt expense, which is included in educational services expense, decreased from 5.4% in Q1 11 to 4.4% of revenue in Q1 12. The decrease is primarily the result of continued efficiencies in packaging students with financial aid as a result of bringing processing in-house. 

Marketing and admissions expenses increased $1.3 million, or 1.3%, from $103.9 million in Q1 11 to $105.2 million in Q1 12. As a percent of revenue, marketing and admissions increased from 20.8% in Q1 11 to 25.4% in Q1 12. The increase is primarily the result of higher admission compensation costs against lower net revenues.

General and administrative expenses decreased $9.6 million, or 17.2% from $55.7 million in Q1 11 to $46.1 million in Q1 12. As a percent of revenue, G&A was 11.1% both in Q1 11 and Q1 12.

The operating margin, excluding the impairment and severance charges, was (0.7%) in Q1 12, versus 11.2% in Q1 11. The deterioration is primarily the result of a decline in enrollment in the ground schools, and expenses associated with our new campuses. 

Cash and cash equivalents totaled $38.6 million at September 30, 2011, compared with $107.4 million at June 30, 2011.   

Long term debt and capital leases (including current portion) totaled $208.9 million at September 30, 2011, compared with $331.8 million at June 30, 2011.

Cash flow from operations was $54.1 million in Q1 12, versus $4.5 million in Q1 11. The increase in cash flow is primarily related to the timing of cash payments and receipts related to working capital.

Capital expenditures were $11.2 million in Q1 12, versus $33.9 million in Q1 11. The decrease is primarily the result of opening fewer new campuses.   

Guidance

The following guidance excludes one-time charges:  

Conference Call Today

We will host a conference call today at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time (9:30 a.m. PT), to discuss first quarter results. The call will be open to all interested investors through a live audio web cast at www.cci.edu (Investor Relations/Events & Presentations.) The call will be archived on www.cci.edu after the call. A telephonic playback of the conference call will also be available through 11:00 p.m. PT, Tuesday, November 8. The playback can be reached by dialing (800) 585-8367 and using pass code 15934729. 

About Corinthian

Corinthian is one of the largest post-secondary education companies in North America. Our mission is to change students' lives. We offer diploma and degree programs that prepare students for careers in demand or for advancement in their fields. Our program areas include health care, business, criminal justice, transportation technology and maintenance, construction trades and information technology. We have 123 Everest, Heald and WyoTech campuses, and also offer degrees exclusively online. For more information, go to http://www.cci.edu/.

The Corinthian Colleges, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=8848

Certain statements in this press release may be deemed to be forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The company intends that all such statements be subject to the "safe-harbor" provisions of that Act. Such statements include, but are not limited to, those regarding our beliefs and expectations regarding new student enrollment growth or declines in future periods; expected savings from our decision to align organizational expenses with lower enrollments; the success of our initiatives to increase new enrollments now and in the future, including the expansion of core programs, opening new campuses, growing our exclusively online enrollments, and focusing on recruiting students just out of high school; and the statements under the heading "Guidance" above. Many factors may cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those discussed in any such forward-looking statements or elsewhere, including: the effect of new Department of Education rules; the company's effectiveness in its regulatory and accreditation compliance efforts; the outcome of ongoing reviews and inquiries by accrediting, state and federal agencies, including state attorneys general and the U.S. Department of Education's Office of the Inspector General; the outcome of pending litigation against the company; risks associated with variability in the expense and effectiveness of the company's advertising and promotional efforts; potential increased competition; bad debt expense or reduced revenue associated with requesting students to pay more of their educational expenses while in school; risks associated with the company's new student lending program through ASFG; changes in general macroeconomic and market conditions (including credit and labor market conditions, the unemployment rate and the rates of change of each such item); and the other risks and uncertainties described in the company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The historical results achieved by the company are not necessarily indicative of its future prospects. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

CONTACT: Investors:

         Anna Marie Dunlap

         SVP Investor Relations

         714-424-2678

         

         Media:

         Kent Jenkins

         VP Public Affairs Communications

         202-682-9494