SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT T0 SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) May 15, 2001
SPRINT CORPORATION
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(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
Kansas 1-04721 48-0457967
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(State of Incorporation) (Commission File Number) (I.R.S. Employer
Identification No.)
2330 Shawnee Mission Parkway, Westwood, Kansas 66205
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code (913) 624-3000
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(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
P. O. Box 11315, Kansas City, Missouri 64112
(Mailing address of principal executive offices)
Item 5. Other Events.
1. Press Release. On May 15, 2001, the registrant ("Sprint") announced
revised performance expectations for the quarter ending June 30, 2001 and for
the year ending December 31, 2001 for its FON Group operations. The press
release was as follows:
SPRINT FON GROUP UPDATES EXPECTATIONS
FOR YEAR 2001 PERFORMANCE
Kansas City, Mo., - May 15, 2001 - Sprint today updated performance expectations
for the second quarter and for the full year 2001 for its FON Group operations.
Sprint continues to expect that its local telephone operations and product
distribution and directory publishing businesses will perform in line with
previous guidance.
Sprint continues to expect that total revenues for the FON Group in the second
quarter will be similar to the year-ago period and revenues for the full year
will grow at a very low single digit rate.
FON Group operating cash flow (EBITDA) and earnings forecasts are below the
company's previous outlook due to lower-than-expected profit contributions from
the Global Markets segment. This is largely due to several distinct factors in
the company's long distance business. Global Markets is experiencing higher bad
debt expense caused by bankruptcies by wholesale customers, and it expects to
see continued higher bad debt from wholesale customers and reduced wholesale
demand. Due to a near-term deceleration in overall market demand, the profit
contribution from the recently launched Web hosting and related professional
services businesses is expected to increase at a slower pace than previously
expected.
As a result of the updated Global Markets forecast, Sprint expects that full
year FON Group EBITDA, will be in the range of $4.3 to $4.4 billion. Sprint
currently expects FON Group diluted earnings per share to be in the 28 to 30
cent range in the second quarter and between $1.13 and $1.18 for the full year
2001.
Sprint also announced that it now expects full-year FON Group capital
expenditures to be approximately $5.9 billion or about $300 million below the
previous forecast of $6.2 billion. The company will continue to assess capital
spending on an ongoing basis to balance capital expenditures with growth.
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This press release includes certain estimates, projections and other
forward-looking statements. Future performance cannot be ensured. Actual results
may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Some factors
that could cause actual results to differ include:
o the effects of vigorous competition in the markets in which Sprint operates;
o the costs and business risks related to entering new markets necessary to
provide nationwide or global services and providing new services;
o the ability of the PCS Group to continue to grow a significant market
presence;
o the effects of mergers and consolidations within the telecommunications
industry;
o the uncertainties related to Sprint's strategic investments;
o the impact of any unusual items resulting from ongoing evaluations of
Sprint's business strategies;
o unexpected results of litigation filed against Sprint;
o the possibility of one or more of the markets in which Sprint competes being
impacted by changes in political, economic or other factors such as monetary
policy, legal and regulatory changes including the impact of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, or other external factors over which Sprint
has no control; and
o other risks referenced from time to time in Sprint's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC").
The words "estimate," "project," "intend," "expect," "believe" and similar
expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. You should not
place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the
date of this press release. Sprint is not obligated to publicly release any
revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events after the date of this
press release or unforeseen events. Sprint provides a detailed discussion of
risk factors in periodic SEC filings and you are encouraged to review these
filings.
About Sprint
Sprint is a world-class global communications company - at the forefront of
integrating wireline and wireless communications services. Sprint is a large
carrier of Internet traffic and a leader in broadband communications. The
company built and operates the United States' first nationwide all-digital,
fiber-optic network and provides a portfolio of advanced data communications
services. It operates the largest 100-percent digital, 100-percent nationwide
PCS wireless network in the United States, already serving the majority of the
nation's metropolitan areas including more than 4,000 cities and communities
across the country. Sprint has $23 billion in annual revenues and serves more
than 23 million business and residential customers.
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.
SPRINT CORPORATION
Date: May 16, 2001 By: /s/ Michael T. Hyde
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Michael T. Hyde
Assistant Secretary