Finning International Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

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November 7, 2023

There are 8 speakers on the call.

Operator

Welcome to the Finning International Inc. 3rd Quarter 2023 Investor Call and Webcast. As a reminder, all participants are in a listen only mode and the conference is being recorded. After the presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. I would now like to turn the conference over to Greg Palachuk, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

Operator

Please go ahead.

Speaker 1

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Finning's 3rd quarter earnings call. Joining me on today's call is Kevin Parks, our President and CEO. Following our remarks today, we'll open the line to questions. This call is being webcast on the Investor Relations section of finning.com.

Speaker 1

We have also provided a set of slides that we will reference during our prepared remarks. The slides are posted on our website as well. An audio file of this call and the accompanying presentation will be archived. In addition, in September, we hosted our 2023 Investor Day in Antifagasta, Chile, which laid out a refreshed strategy and key objectives going forward. On our website, you can review our slide presentation as well as the full webcast of our Investor Day.

Speaker 1

Before I turn it over to Kevin, I want to remind everyone that some of the statements provided during this call are forward looking. Please refer to slides 1011 for important disclosures about forward looking information as well as currency and specified financial measures, including non GAAP financial measures. Please note that forward looking information is subject to risks, Uncertainties and other factors as discussed in our annual information form under key business risks and in our MD and A under Risk Factors and management in forward looking information disclaimer. Please treat this information with caution as our actual results could differ materially from current expectations. Kevin, over to you.

Speaker 2

Thank you, Greg, and good morning, everyone. At our recent Investor Day in Chile, we presented our refreshed strategic priorities. I'll speak to our quarter through those priorities. And as Greg mentioned, we do have the webcast in the Investors section of our website. And for those of you that haven't had a chance to see and hear the presentation, I'd encourage you to do so.

Speaker 2

Following my remarks, Greg will provide additional details around our Q3 results. Please turn to Slide 2. We delivered another strong quarter in Q3 through strong execution. Driving our product support business remains our primary strategic objective. Product support builds customer loyalty through greater integration with our customers and the performance of their equipment.

Speaker 2

It is our biggest value driver, The largest opportunity for profitable growth and the most resilient part of our business. We are capturing greater share of product support across Full asset lifecycle, growing customer value agreements, expanding our rebuild business and strategically growing our equipment population in our territories. Optimizing our operating model and culture around full cycle resilience is a new explicit strategic objective. This includes building more contracted revenues and costs, finding ways to variabilize our cost structure and increasing working capital velocity. Building greater resilience into our business will provide more security and certainty for our employees, better support for our customers And more reliable and consistent returns for our investors.

Speaker 2

Finally, at Finning, we're building a sustainable growth platform. Addition to driving product support, we are excited about growing our addressable market in used equipment, rental and power systems. Building our used equipment capability is a great way to increase the installed base in our markets, grow aftermarket opportunities, while also helping build full cycle resilience. We plan to grow our rental business and increase our customer base specifically around retail customers. We're also increasing our capabilities in both prime standby power solutions as well as capacity power to support the growing demand for electrification.

Speaker 2

Please turn to Slide 3. Our regions delivered strong performance in Q3 while managing through some unique challenges. In Western Canada, wildfires impacted many of the communities in which we operate. The safety of our employees, their families and their communities became our primary objective at times through this summer. In South America, the team is managing through a very difficult operating and economic environment in Argentina related to the presidential elections.

Speaker 2

I'm really proud of how our teams continue to demonstrate their strength and resilience while providing important support for our customers, Being great colleagues and important members of their communities. We are pleased with our product support growth, Strong operating margins and return on invested capital. Our revenue mix shifted due to the higher proportion of large mining We delivered from our backlog to install our to increase our installed base and product support opportunity. Our product support revenue was up 13% year over year growing across all regions. Since Q3 of last year, we've added 370 technicians globally to support an increased number of product support contracts and strong demand for rebuilds.

Speaker 2

As we highlighted at our Investor Day, We are very focused on improving our invested capital performance to drive ROIC higher and build greater resilience into our business. Initiatives underway in each of our regions are in place to drive more efficiency in our operations, higher velocity in our invested capital, whilst most importantly increasing our customer service levels. Key focus areas include automating our warehouse operations, working closer with customers on planning component exchanges and rebuilds, and increasing velocity in our new equipment preparation. Improving supply chain is a positive for our customers, Our operations and our business performance, and we are pleased with the progress. Our adjusted return on invested capital was 20.2% in Q3, Up 190 basis points from a year ago led by South America.

Speaker 2

Looking ahead, we are excited about sustainable growth at Finning. We're building capabilities and empowering people our people to drive long term customer loyalty. We expect continued momentum in our business to be supported by robust customer activity across our diverse end markets, Healthy equipment backlog stands at $2,300,000,000 and a strong demand for service. From a regional standpoint, Chile is a premium business and mobilizing for growth. Our Canada business is positioned for steady growth and has the largest addressable market in each of rental used equipment and power And our U.

Speaker 2

K. And Ireland business is resilient, sharing best practices to drive innovation and efficiency across our company. I will now hand you back to Greg to provide Greg a level of detail on our Q3 results.

Speaker 1

Thank you, Kevin. I'll talk about our Q3 performance in more detail, including our regional results. Now I'm turning to Slide 4. Q3 was another strong quarter. Net revenue was $2,400,000,000 up 16% from Q3 2022.

Speaker 1

We saw strong new equipment delivery and product support volumes in Q3 led by mining. We're also pleased with the momentum in our Power Systems business across all regions, underpinned by strong demand and effective project execution. EPS of $1.07 was up 9% from EPS of $1.07 was up 9% from Q3 2022. Operating margins were solid and SG and A as a percentage Net revenue was below 17% in the quarter. The proportion of large lower margin mining deliveries in the revenue mix and higher financing costs were the main reasons for to grow at a slower rate than revenue compared to Q3 2022.

Speaker 1

But Q3 2022 was also a very strong quarter and we're pleased with a steady growth in earnings year over year. Q3 free cash flow was at breakeven and our net debt to adjusted EBITDA was at 1.8 times at the end of September. On slide 5, you can see changes in our net revenue by line of business compared to Q3 2022 and the comparison of our backlog by market sector. New equipment sales were up 28%, led by mining deliveries in Canada and Chile, as well as higher power system sales in all regions. Product support revenue was strong in all regions, up 13% on a consolidated basis.

Speaker 1

Our equipment backlog of $2,300,000,000 is down slightly from the end of June. Equipment backlog in South America grew, driven by significant mining orders and was offset by lower equipment backlog in Canada due to strong deliveries And lower equipment backlog in the U. K. And Ireland. Our corning activity remains robust in Mining and Power Systems with customers continuing to increase capital expenditures and operating budgets to support fleet investment and production increases.

Speaker 1

Our Mining and Power Systems equipment backlog continues to grow as a proportion, representing roughly 45% 25 respectively of total equipment backlog as of September 30. We see supply chain improvements as a positive. In our Canadian and Chilean construction businesses, we are seeing core market share improve as a result. Turning to Slide 6, which shows our EBIT performance. Gross profit was up 14% on strong new equipment and product support volumes.

Speaker 1

As a percentage of net revenue, gross profit was down 30 basis points, primarily due to higher proportion of large mining deliveries in the revenue mix. In the Q3, we delivered 26 ultra class trucks, which is highlighted at our Investor Day is great for long term product support growth. SG and A as a percentage of net revenue was 16.9%, up 20 basis points from Q3 2022. EBIT was up 12%. EBIT as a percentage of net revenue was a solid 10.3%.

Speaker 1

Now moving to our Canadian results and outlook, which are summarized on slide 7. New equipment sales were up 57%, led by mining deliveries to oil sands customers. Product support revenue increased by 10% led by mining, including higher rebuild activity. We're also driving strong growth in Power Systems business in Canada, Backlog up significantly from Q3 2022. EBIT was up 10% and EBIT as a percentage of net revenue was 10.8% below Q3 2022, again due to a higher proportion of large mining equipment sales in the revenue mix.

Speaker 1

Canada's adjusted ROIC increased 170 basis points from Q3 2020, driven by improved invested capital turnover and strong operating margins. Western Canada is well positioned for steady growth going forward. Our mining and energy customers are financially healthy and increasing investments into their fleets and production. In the oil sands demand for product support is expected to remain strong and we are in active discussions with customers planning for major rebuilds. Turning to South America on slide 8.

Speaker 1

In functional currency, new equipment sales were up 37%, driven by deliveries of large mining equipment in Chile. Product support sales were up 12%, also led by strong mining activity. EBIT was up 20% and EBIT as a percentage of net revenue was 12.3%, which was comparable to Q3 of 2022. South America generated ROIC of 27.6, up 490 basis points from Q3 2022, Our highest ROIC to date, reflecting both improved profitability and invested capital turns. As reviewed in detail in Antifagasta in September, Our business in Chile is mobilizing for growth.

Speaker 1

The strong outlook for mining supported by growing demand for copper and improved political clarity. We are encouraged by recent government approvals of large scale brownfield expansions and increasing customer confidence to invest in new projects. We We continue to see demand for large contractors supporting mining operations in Chile, while infrastructure construction activity is expected to remain stable. Additionally, power systems activity is growing in industrial and data center markets. In Argentina, we're operating in an environment of high inflation, significant currency and import regulations that are impacting our business.

Speaker 1

While we are actively managing and mitigating these risks, the significant and prolonged import and currency Please turn to Slide 9 for our results in the UK and Ireland. In functional currency, net revenue decreased by 17 percent from Q3 2022 due to lower equipment sales and construction, which is partially offset by higher Power Systems revenues. Product support revenue was up 6%, driven by strong customer activity and equipment utilization and power systems. EBIT as a percentage of net revenue was a solid 5.9%, reflecting our continuous focus on growing the product support business. Product support activity in the U.

Speaker 1

K. And Ireland is expected to be resilient with steady machine utilization and growing contribution from Hydroquip. As HS2 deliveries are now complete, we We continue to expect lower new equipment sales in the U. K. Compared to the record levels of 2022.

Speaker 1

In Power Systems, we continue to expect strong demand for both primary and backup power generation in the data center and utility applications. In summary, we're pleased with the Q3 results and continued momentum. And sustainable growth for the long term. Operator, I'll now turn the call back to you for questions.

Operator

Thank you. We'll now begin the question and answer session. The first question comes from Yuri Lynk with Canaccord Genuity. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Good morning, guys.

Speaker 1

Good morning, Harry.

Speaker 3

Good morning, guys. Greg, can you ring fence for us the potential Lawson, Argentina that you alluded to?

Speaker 1

Yes, sure. So as we've talked about in Previous discussion. So Argentina is a business that's fairly small. We keep it in a box. We've typically focused more on product support.

Speaker 1

What we've seen is pretty unique circumstance really through the election process as they've kept the peg at about 3.50 pesos. In the past, historically, if you had kind of 2 weeks without access to U. S. Dollars, that would be unusual, and we're now more at the 2 month point. So We just have a higher exposure through that period.

Speaker 1

So we'll manage through that as effectively as we can. The election is on the 19th. And so there could be an impact from that. We'll have to see how it plays out. But ultimately, we'll put Argentina back in a box after that process, Probably a tighter box than ever.

Speaker 1

And so while it might be notable in the quarter in the grand scheme of finning, not a huge

Speaker 2

impact. Yes. Yuri, I would just add as well that one of the best ways for Argentina to work through this is develop the resources in country which are gathering more and more momentum. And obviously, we are well placed to For that resource development, which we believe long term will help us through this will help us through this situation in the Short to medium term, but long term is still an exciting opportunity.

Speaker 3

And what about the tax Impact, like what would your effective tax rate be in the 4th quarter?

Speaker 1

Yes. I mean, it will depend on the level of devaluation that occurs post election. So our tax pools would be In pesos, and so it would be directly correlated with whatever level of devaluation occurs post.

Speaker 4

Okay.

Speaker 3

Just last quick one for me on SG and A. What I think it was down Quite nicely as a percent of revenue in South America, but not so much in Canada. Can you just speak to the nature of the expenses that you incurred there, particularly around the fixed variable split between them?

Speaker 1

Yes, sure. So I mean, I think SG and A was down slightly quarter over quarter, but on a bit lower revenue. We're always pleased to keep that below 17% and continue to have that as a key goal. You'd have within the quarter in Canada, you'd have a little bit of nonrecoverable time due to some of the disruption and a couple of branch closures for part of the quarter. And then otherwise, just due to the strong performance, you've got some higher Short term incentive comp numbers within Canada.

Speaker 1

I guess those would be the 2 to call out.

Speaker 3

Okay. I'll turn it over. Thanks, guys.

Speaker 4

Thanks, Yuri.

Operator

The next question is from Steve Hansen with Raymond James. Please go ahead.

Speaker 5

Good morning, guys. Thanks for the time. Just a question on product support. The consolidated number was up quite nicely in the period as you highlighted. The Canadian operations did dip sequentially though quarter over quarter.

Speaker 5

Just curious what's going on in that specific instance and how would you think about the ramp Going forward, given the large set of deliveries you've been doing, just help us through maybe some of the forward cadence on that?

Speaker 2

Yes, sure, Steve. So I mean, the first thing is when you talk about the dip in, I mean, it's on really strong comps on the back of quite a Favorable pricing environment as well. We're very optimistic about product support growth as we mentioned in our Investor Day. In fact, Since our Investor Day, I would say that our outlook over the next period of time or 12 months is probably at the top end of that range. But we did talk about product support growth levels moderating As we move forward, and that's what you're seeing right now.

Speaker 2

The levels that we were growing at will moderate over time. And obviously, just think about the pricing impacts in the last 12 months.

Speaker 5

Okay, helpful. And then just on the used equipment side, I understand the initiatives are relatively new. But maybe just help us understand sort of how we should think about that As well, because we did see some fairly sizable year over year dips certainly in the Canadian business, but also in the UK as well, Canada in particular has been my focal point. How should we think about the growth on the used side there?

Speaker 2

Yes. We're happy with the progress we're making in used equipment. We're super excited about some of the initiatives Excuse me, that we spoke about at the Investor Day and that will come to life in Q4. Specifically around Canada, that was an extremely strong quarter in Q3, some Pretty unrepeatable used equipment Opadigm deliveries in Q3 last year related to the ability to get new product. So we're very creative to get product in the hands of our customers in Q3 last year.

Speaker 2

So that's the biggest comparison. There's no doubt that the used equipment Our market is softening. So that would be an additional factor. But the biggest issue in Canada was the comparisons. And the softness issue would be The same narrative for the UK.

Speaker 5

Okay. Thank you. Appreciate your time.

Operator

The next question is from Jacob Bout with CIBC. Please go ahead.

Speaker 6

Good morning. I had a question on backlog looking for a bit more granularity. Maybe we'll just start specifically with Canada, obviously strong deliveries in the quarter, but Do you expect a relow going into the Q4 2024? And are you seeing any weakness at all in Canada? I know some of your competitors are calling out construction markets.

Speaker 2

Yes. So the first thing to say, I don't think that backlog is the best measure of forward looking activity. I know Some of the people spoke to this over the past few weeks, but obviously, there are things in backlog over the last 2 years that wouldn't typically go into backlog Under a normal free supply or a better supply environment. And so there's definitely an impact in construction because construction is where The supply has improved more so than in the larger engines and larger mining equipment. And so, we are very optimistic about the order intake levels and the activity levels we'll see.

Speaker 2

It's hard to say whether the backlog will continue to build because obviously I just described the improvement supply chain Provides more fluidity in the sales outlook, but we're happy with the growth of the outlook in Canada as it relates to construction. And we're really happy with the market share gains that we're seeing there. So I would not describe our Construction equipment market in Canada is softening.

Speaker 6

Okay. And then how about the UK and Ireland?

Speaker 2

Yes. So the U. K. And Ireland is softer. The market is reducing there for sure.

Speaker 2

And that's on the back of The comparisons with the HS2 deliveries last year, so that is more challenging. Again, we've seen good more recently good Ordering tight levels as some of the larger rental companies look forward into next year and start their reload Reloading their fleets or putting orders in to reload their fleets. I've been pretty encouraged quite recently about the order tight levels, but there's no doubt that there is a little softening in the U. K. As it relates to construction equipment.

Speaker 2

That is compounded as well by The supply chain is improving faster in the U. K. As well because of the mix of products they sell there. So one of the most improved supply chains road excavators, which would be a much greater mix of the U. K.

Speaker 2

Sales compared to Canada or South America. So I think the combination of Slowing market and improved supply means that we're carrying a little too much stock there, but it's healthy, Chung and the team are working through it and we're optimistic with the recent performance.

Speaker 6

And then how much pressure on Pricing is there as a result of the improving supply chain?

Speaker 2

We have to be competitive. Our margins, as you can see in Q3, remain strong. And we're very focused on being competitive in our marketplace. We've been selling acceptable premiums for forever, And we continue to do that. And so we will we are growing share In Canada and Chile.

Speaker 2

And so I think the team are well versed and well they have strong capabilities and they'll be able to sell The premiums and the value proposition that we have. So, we don't see that pressure.

Speaker 6

Okay. Thank you.

Operator

Our next question is from Cherilyn Radbourne with TD Cowen. Please go ahead. Thanks very much and good morning. We've seen a couple of strong equity income pickup in Canada from Pipeline Machinery. So I was hoping you could give us a bit of color on how that business is performing and what kind of forward visibility it has?

Speaker 1

Sure. Yes. No, we've seen a nice pickup. I mean, there were certainly some difficult years in there where a lot of their From the U. S.

Speaker 1

Actually shifted up to Canada. But as you can see, the activity in the U. S. Has picked up quite strongly, and you've seen some M and A activity start to happen and some more activity levels. So some of that gear will shift down to the U.

Speaker 1

S, but it's that business has really picked up, And we expect that to continue into next year.

Operator

And then in terms of the CapEx increase that was telegraphed in the press release. Can you help us understand how much of that is related to the rental fleet and strategic mining truck investments And how much just relates to the timing of planned facility disposals?

Speaker 1

Sure. Yes. So I mean obviously through the year, the growth that we've seen has been healthy as the years progressed. But also as we highlighted at Investor Day, some strategic areas of focus including rental. So some of it would have been higher rental investment, But also fewer disposals than we planned at the beginning of the year.

Speaker 1

And we've got some good value assets in that fleet that we'd like to keep running For longer? As well as some deferred I mean, one deferred real estate sale that will move into next year, As well as some investments in mining truck fleet, some to support product support contracts we've won, Also some to just demonstrate new capabilities with potential conquest customers. So, I'd say that's roughly about a third, a third, a third.

Operator

Our next question is from Devin Dodge with BMO Capital Markets. Please go ahead.

Speaker 4

All right. Thanks. Good morning.

Speaker 2

So a lot of my questions have been

Speaker 4

answered, but just one for me, probably for Greg. But there was a pretty sizable Increase in working capital in the quarter. How should we be thinking about working capital in Q4 and that outlook for full year free cash flow?

Speaker 1

Sure. Yes. So throughout the business, we've got quite a bit of growth across the complex. We've got a lot of backlog that's I'm getting closer to delivery here through the end of the year and into the start of next year. And so you've got that, which is at an elevated level, Also service work in progress, very healthy accounts receivable also up.

Speaker 1

So you've got the working capital use there. The normal seasonality, we would expect strong free cash flow in the Q4. And then as we highlighted at Investor Day, We recognize that there's work to do to increase invested capital turns and velocity, and we've got plans in place In each of the regions and those teams are working away and mobilizing to make that a big priority in 2024 2024 and 2025 as discussed at Investor Day.

Speaker 4

Okay. And just a quick follow-up. When we think about 2024, do you think is it reasonable to assume that you guys could get to that 50 free cash flow conversion you've talked about previously?

Speaker 1

So I think it will depend on The growth trajectory, of course, in a more steady growth environment, that would be the target. We'll see how it ultimately plays out in terms of end markets. As we highlighted at Investor Day, we see mobilization in Chile, steady growth in Canada and resilience in the U. K. So that's overall a pretty steady market.

Speaker 1

Those are the So markets where that conversion makes good sense, but we'll have to ultimately see how that plays out.

Speaker 4

Okay. Thanks. I'll turn it over. Thanks,

Operator

Devin. The next question is from Michael Doumet with Scotiabank. Please go ahead.

Speaker 7

Hi. Good morning, guys. The first question, I guess, just following up on some of the discussion with Jacob and Devin. Just on inventories, you've invested about $1,200,000,000 in inventory since the beginning of 2022. And I understand that unit costs So risen and demand is also strong.

Speaker 7

But just trying to get a sense given supply chains are easing, how far you are from where you think inventory should be to support this level of sales?

Speaker 2

Yes. So I mean as we discussed at the Investor Day, Michael, we put a pretty explicit invested capital target out there, Of which a good proportion of that will come from inventory optimization. And we improved our invested capital turns in the quarter, but the growth we're still growing at a healthier rate than We've described the long term outlook in our Investor Day. So there's no doubt that we would see inventory levels optimizing. We see that already happening in Construction Equipment, but our Power Systems business is up 50% Year over year, it's another key part of our strategic plan.

Speaker 2

There's some long lead time and long In large engines in that. And of course, the mining equipment is very lumpy in terms of how it comes to us and how we get it out to customers. And It's not as fluid as we would have experienced in the past and certainly not as fluid as we aim to be in the future. And I think it's a big part of our strategic objective and you can expect us to focus a lot of that as we move forward And improve the velocity that we're seeing in there. We're more concerned with the velocity than we are with the absolute level because the absolute level supports The growth that we're seeing in the company.

Speaker 7

That's helpful. Thanks, Kevin. And then with the exception of Argentina, I mean, I read your commentary on the regional outlook as largely unchanged. I'm just curious, given how interest rates have moved up in the last few months, whether your visibility into 2024 is better or worse And your visibility into 2023 at this point last year. Just trying to get

Speaker 2

a sense for that, please. Yes, I would say it is definitely, Michael. I would say Our visibility into next year right now in all regions. And I would say, if you think about the main Sector that's impacted by the higher interest rates would be Construction Equipment. And I feel better about Construction Equipment than I did even in the summer.

Speaker 2

It's normalizing. It's competitive. But as I said, we delivered more Large construction equipment in September in South America than we ever had by some considerable distance, I might add. And so the teams are absolutely focused On winning market share regardless of the condition, our market share levels offer us an opportunity Regardless of the market conditions. And so I would say we're optimistic.

Speaker 2

And as we think about the Investor Day commentary, particularly in Canada, our expectations or outlook would

Operator

This concludes the question and answer session. I'd like to turn the conference back over to Greg Palaszczuk for any closing remarks.

Speaker 1

Great. Thank you, operator. This concludes our question and answer session. I'd like to well, and thank you everybody for

Operator

This concludes today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating and have a pleasant day.

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