Via Transportation Inc (VIA) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and welcome to Via Renewables first-quarter 2024 earnings call. This call is also being broadcast via webcast, which can be located in the investor relations section of our website at viarenewables.com. With us today from management is our CEO, Keith Maxwell; and our CFO, Mike Barajas.

早安，歡迎參加 Via Renewables 2024 年第一季財報電話會議。此次電話會議也透過網路廣播進行廣播，網路廣播可以位於我們網站 viarenewables.com 的投資者關係部分。今天與我們一起出席的是管理層的首席執行官 Keith Maxwell；和我們的財務長麥克·巴拉哈斯。

Please note that today's discussion may contain forward-looking statements, which are based on assumptions that we believe to be reasonable as of this date. Actual results may differ materially. We urge everyone to review the Safe Harbor statement in yesterday's earnings release as well as the risk factors in our SEC filings. We undertake no obligation to update these statements as a result of future events except as required by law.

請注意，今天的討論可能包含前瞻性陳述，這些陳述是基於我們認為截至目前合理的假設。實際結果可能存在重大差異。我們敦促大家查看昨天財報中的安全港聲明以及我們向 SEC 提交的文件中的風險因素。除法律要求外，我們不承擔因未來事件而更新這些聲明的義務。

In addition, we will refer to both GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures. For information regarding our non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, please refer to yesterday's earnings release.

此外，我們將參考公認會計原則和非公認會計原則財務指標。有關我們的非公認會計原則財務指標以及與最直接可比較的公認會計原則指標的調節的信息，請參閱昨天的收益報告。

With that, I'll turn the call to Keith Maxwell, our CEO.

接下來，我將把電話轉給我們的執行長 Keith Maxwell。

Thank you, Stephen. I want to welcome everyone to today's call. I'll begin by providing a summary of results first quarter, and then our CFO, Mike Barajas will provide more details on the financials.

謝謝你，史蒂芬。我歡迎大家參加今天的電話會議。我將首先提供第一季的業績摘要，然後我們的財務長邁克·巴拉哈斯將提供有關財務狀況的更多詳細資訊。

In the first quarter, we reported adjusted EBITDA of $15.1 million, which is a $3.7 million decrease from the prior year of $18.8 million. Due to lower unit margins compounded by mild weather, which resulted in lower gas volumes.

第一季度，我們報告調整後 EBITDA 為 1,510 萬美元，比前一年的 1,880 萬美元減少了 370 萬美元。由於單位利潤率較低，再加上溫和的天氣，導致天然氣產量減少。

On a positive note, we grew our customer book to 338,000 RCEs compared to 335,000 RCEs at the start of the year. We also increased the percentage of our customer base POR markets, which compared to the first quarter of 2023, which lowers our credit risk and bad debt exposure.

從正面的方面來看，我們的客戶名冊已從年初的 335,000 個 RCE 增加到 338,000 個 RCE。與 2023 年第一季相比，我們還增加了 POR 市場客戶群的百分比，這降低了我們的信用風險和壞帳風險。

Looking forward to our second quarter, we're happy to announce that we entered into an agreement to acquire approximately 12,500 RCEs in our existing markets. This acquisition will be accretive to our bottom line beginning in the second quarter of this year.

展望第二季度，我們很高興地宣布，我們已達成協議，將在現有市場收購約 12,500 個 RCE。此次收購將從今年第二季開始增加我們的利潤。

This marks our first customer (inaudible) acquisition since the end of 2022. And we will continue to be open to any potential future tuck-in acquisitions, and we are committed to growing our customer base in line with our long-term growth strategies.

這標誌著我們自 2022 年底以來首次獲得客戶（聽不清楚）。我們將繼續對未來任何潛在的收購持開放態度，並致力於根據我們的長期成長策略擴大我們的客戶群。

That concludes my prepared remarks. I now turn the call over to Mike for his financial review. Mike?

我準備好的發言就到此結束。我現在將電話轉給麥克進行財務審查。麥克風？

Thanks, Keith. Good morning. In the first quarter, we achieved $15.1 million in adjusted EBITDA compared to last year's first quarter of $18.8 million. Retail gross margin for the quarter was $35.7 million compared with $40.3 million last year.

謝謝，基斯。早安.第一季度，我們實現了 1,510 萬美元的調整後 EBITDA，而去年第一季為 1,880 萬美元。本季零售毛利率為 3,570 萬美元，去年同期為 4,030 萬美元。

And our retail electricity segment, gross margin was $18.9 million compared to $20.5 million in the first quarter last year. The decrease due to lower unit margins, partially offset by higher volumes due to a higher RCE count.

我們的零售電力部門的毛利率為 1,890 萬美元，而去年第一季為 2,050 萬美元。單位利潤率下降導致下降，但 RCE 數量增加導致銷售增加部分抵消了下降。

In our retail natural gas segment, gross margin was $16.2 million compared to $19.9 million in the first quarter last year. This was due to both lower unit margins and volumes year over year. G&A expenses were $17.3 million compared to $17.2 million in the first quarter last year, primarily due to increased sales and marketing expenses and legal fees. This was partially offset by a reduction in bad debt.

在我們的零售天然氣部門，毛利率為 1,620 萬美元，而去年第一季為 1,990 萬美元。這是由於單位利潤率和銷售量較去年同期下降。一般管理費用為 1,730 萬美元，而去年第一季為 1,720 萬美元，主要是由於銷售和行銷費用以及法律費用增加。這被壞帳減少部分抵銷。

We ended the quarter at 338,000 RCEs compared to 339,000 RCEs to end the first quarter of 2023 and up from 335,000 RCEs on December 31, 2023. Our attrition was 3.9%, which remained flat compared to the first quarter of 2023 due to lower attrition in our mass market book, offset by an uptick in commercial attrition.

本季結束時，我們的 RCE 數量為 338,000 個，而 2023 年第一季末的 RCE 數量為 339,000 個，而 2023 年 12 月 31 日的 RCE 數量為 335,000 個。我們的流失率為 3.9%，與 2023 年第一季相比保持持平，因為我們的大眾市場帳簿中的流失率較低，但被商業流失率的上升所抵消。

Our net income for the quarter was $19.1 million or income of $1.81 per fully diluted share compared to a net loss of $6.8 million or a loss of $1.26 per fully diluted share for the first quarter of 2023. The increase is mainly due to an increase in the mark-to-market on our hedges that we put in place to lock in margins on our retail contracts.

我們本季的淨利潤為 1,910 萬美元，或完全稀釋每股收益 1.81 美元，而 2023 年第一季的淨虧損為 680 萬美元，或完全稀釋每股虧損 1.26 美元。這一增長主要是由於我們為鎖定零售合約保證金而採取的對沖按市價計價的增加。

We had a mark-to-market gain this quarter of $11.2 million compared to a mark-to-market loss of $22.6 million a year ago. We also had reductions in net asset optimization, depreciation, and interest expenses of $1.4 million, $1.3 million and $800,000 respectively. The increase in net income was partially offset by a decrease in retail gross margin and increases in income tax and G&A expenses.

本季以市值計算的收益為 1,120 萬美元，而一年前以市值計算的虧損為 2,260 萬美元。我們還在淨資產優化、折舊和利息支出方面分別減少了 140 萬美元、130 萬美元和 80 萬美元。淨利潤的成長被零售毛利率的下降以及所得稅和一般管理費用的增加部分抵消。

Income tax expense increased to $4.8 million in the first quarter of 2024 compared to a benefit of $2 million in 2023. On April 15, we paid the quarterly cash dividends on our Series A preferred stock. On April 17, we declared a dividend in the amount of $0.76051 per share on our preferred stock to be paid on July 15.

2024 年第一季所得稅費用增至 480 萬美元，而 2023 年為 200 萬美元。4月15日，我們支付了A系列優先股的季度現金股利。4 月 17 日，我們宣布將於 7 月 15 日支付優先股每股 0.76051 美元的股息。

That's all I have. Back to Keith.

這就是我所擁有的一切。回到基斯。

Thanks, Mike. I want to thank our employees and the care and the dedication to growing and supporting Via and to our suppliers and their continued support. I want to thank our customers for choosing us as their energy provider. We are excited about the future and look forward to connecting with you soon on our next call.

謝謝，麥克。我要感謝我們的員工以及對 Via 成長和支持的關心和奉獻，以及我們的供應商及其持續的支持。我要感謝我們的客戶選擇我們作為他們的能源供應商。我們對未來感到興奮，並期待在下次通話中盡快與您聯繫。