Wilhelmina International (WHLM) 8-KWilhelmina International, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Results

EXHIBIT 99.1

Wilhelmina International, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Results

Annual Financial Highlights

• Annual revenues of $17.2 million for 2023.
• Annual operating income of $0.7 million in 2023.
• Annual net cash flows provided by operating activities were $0.7 million in 2023.
• Annual pre-tax income of $0.7 million, net income of $0.4 million and Pre-Corporate EBITDA of $2.0 million for 2023.
• $12.7 million of combined cash and cash equivalents and short term investments at December 31, 2023 was the highest total at the end of any quarterly or annual period in Company history.
• Annual gross billings of $65.9 million for 2023.

DALLAS, March 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wilhelmina International, Inc. (Nasdaq: WHLM) ("Wilhelmina" or the "Company") today reported revenues of $3.8 million and net loss of $71 thousand for the three months ended December 31, 2023, compared to revenues of $4.1 million and net loss of $18 thousand for the three months ended December 31, 2022.  For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, Wilhelmina reported revenues of $17.2 million and net income of $0.4 million compared to revenue of $17.8 million and net income of $3.5 million for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022. 

Decreased revenues during the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2023 were primarily due to decreased commissions on talent bookings.  In 2022, net income was significantly impacted by the release of a $1.5 million valuation allowance on the Company’s deferred tax assets.

Financial Results

Net loss for the three months ended December 31, 2023 was $71 thousand, or $0.01 per fully diluted share, compared to net loss of $18 thousand, or $0.00 per fully diluted share, for the three months ended December 31, 2022.  Net income for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 was $0.4 million, or $0.08 per fully diluted share, compared to net income of $3.5 million, or $0.68 per fully diluted share, for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.

EBITDA was $0.1 million loss and $0.8 million income for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $0.2 million loss and $2.8 million income for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2022. Adjusted EBITDA was $0.1 million loss and $1.0 million income for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $0.1 million loss and $2.8 million income for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2022. Pre-Corporate EBITDA was $0.2 million and $2.0 million for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $0.3 million and $3.9 million for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.

The following table reconciles the non-GAAP financial measure Gross Billings to GAAP total revenues, for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.

The following table reconciles non-GAAP EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Pre-Corporate EBITDA to GAAP net income for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.

Changes in net income, EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Pre-Corporate EBITDA for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, were primarily the result of the following:

• Revenues for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 decreased 8.0% and 3.2%, respectively, primarily due to lower commissions on talent bookings;
  
• Salaries and service costs for the three months ended December 31, 2023 of $2.8 million was unchanged from the three months ended December 31, 2022.  Salaries and service costs for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 increased by 5.3% primarily due to personnel hires and payroll changes to better align Wilhelmina staffing with the needs of each office and geographical region;
  
• Office and general expenses for the three months ended December 31, 2023 decreased by 20.2% primarily due to decreased legal expense in the fourth quarter.  Office and general expenses for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 increased by 20.9%, primarily due to increased legal expense during the first half of 2023 and higher rent and other office expenses;
  
• Amortization and depreciation expense for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 increased by 2.2% and 7.8%, primarily due to depreciation of new capitalized assets in 2023; and
  
• Corporate overhead decreased by 38.6% and 11.7% for the three months and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, primarily due to costs of two SEC restatement filings in 2022 that did not recur in 2023.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Gross Billings, EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Pre-Corporate EBITDA represent measures of financial performance that are not calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“non-GAAP financial measures”). The Company considers Gross Billings, EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Pre-Corporate EBITDA to be important measures of performance because they:

• are key operating metrics of the Company's business;
• are used by management in its planning and budgeting processes and to monitor and evaluate its financial and operating results; and
• provide stockholders and potential investors with a means to evaluate the Company's financial and operating results against other companies within the Company's industry. 

The Company's calculation of non-GAAP financial measures may not be consistent with similar calculations by other companies in the Company's industry. The Company calculates Gross Billings as the gross amount billed to customers on behalf of its models and talent for services performed.  The Company calculates EBITDA as net income plus interest income, interest expense, income tax expense, and depreciation and amortization expense.  The Company calculates “Adjusted EBITDA” as EBITDA plus foreign exchange gain/loss, share-based payment expense and certain significant non-recurring items that the Company may include from time to time. There were no such non-recurring items during 2023 and 2022.  The Company calculates “Pre-Corporate EBITDA” as Adjusted EBITDA plus corporate overhead expense, which includes director compensation, securities laws compliance costs, audit and professional fees, and other public company costs.

Non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to net and operating income as an indicator of the Company's operating performance or cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity or any other measure of performance derived in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

Form 10-K Filing

Additional information concerning the Company's results of operations and financial position is included in the Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 26, 2024.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain “forward-looking” statements as such term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements relating to the Company are based on the beliefs of the Company’s management as well as information currently available to the Company’s management. When used in this report, the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect” and “intend” and words or phrases of similar import, as they relate to the Company or Company management, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements may include projections about the Company’s future results, statements about its plans, strategies, business prospects, changes and trends in its business and the markets in which it operates. Additionally, statements concerning future matters such as gross billing levels, revenue levels, expense levels, and other statements regarding matters that are not historical are forward-looking statements. Management cautions that these forward-looking statements relate to future events or the Company’s future financial performance and are subject to business, economic, and other risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown, that may cause actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements of its business or its industry to be materially different from those expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements. Should any one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as anticipated, believed, estimated, expected or intended. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update these forward-looking statements. As a result, no person should place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

About Wilhelmina International, Inc. (www.wilhelmina.com):

Wilhelmina, together with its subsidiaries, is an international full-service fashion model and talent management service, specializing in the representation and management of leading models, celebrities, artists, photographers, athletes, and content creators. Established in 1967 by fashion model Wilhelmina Cooper, Wilhelmina is one of the oldest and largest fashion model management companies in the world. Wilhelmina is publicly traded on Nasdaq under the symbol WHLM.  Wilhelmina is headquartered in New York and, since its founding, has grown to include operations in Los Angeles, Miami, and London. Wilhelmina also owns Aperture, a talent and commercial agency located in New York and Los Angeles. For more information, please visit www.wilhelmina.com and follow @WilhelminaModels.