Aecon reports second quarter 2016 results including record backlog of $4.9 billion

Toronto, Ontario – August 3, 2016: Aecon Group Inc. (TSX: ARE) today reported results for the second quarter of 2016 which included strong growth in both revenue and like for like Adjusted EBITDA.

“Aecon’s strong results for the second quarter of 2016 plus a new record backlog position of $4.9 billion, round out a solid first half of the year,” said Teri McKibbon, President and Chief Executive Officer, Aecon Group Inc.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Revenue for the three and six months ended June 30, 2016 was higher by $172 million, or 26 per cent, and $361 million, or 31 per cent, respectively, compared to the same periods in 2015 with increases reported in each segment.
• Adjusted EBITDA of $29.4 million (margin of 3.5 per cent) for the second quarter of 2016 compared to an Adjusted EBITDA of $18.9 million (margin of 2.8 per cent) on a like for like basis, excluding Aecon’s previous ownership of IST and investment in the Quito airport concession in the prior year. For the first half of 2016, Adjusted EBITDA was $33.6 million (margin of 2.2 per cent), compared to $11.9 million (margin of 1.0 per cent) in the first half of the prior year on a like for like basis.
• New contract awards of $1.1 billion were booked in the second quarter of 2016, compared to $469 million in the second quarter of 2015, including previously disclosed energy contracts valued at $473 million. Also previously disclosed, and in addition to new awards booked into backlog, Aecon was awarded a four-year Master Service Agreement contract in the second quarter for pipeline facilities work in Western Canada.
• Record backlog as at June 30, 2016 of $4.9 billion is 89 per cent higher than backlog of $2.6 billion as at June 30, 2015.

(1)     This press release presents certain non-GAAP and additional GAAP (GAAP refers to Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) financial measures to assist readers in understanding the Company's performance.  Non-GAAP financial measures are measures that either exclude or include amounts that are not excluded or included in the most directly comparable measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP in the consolidated financial statements. Further details on non-GAAP and additional GAAP measures are included in the Company’s Management’s Discussion and Analysis and available through the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval at www.sedar.com .

(2)     “Operating profit (loss)” represents the profit (loss) from operations, before net financing expense, income taxes and non-controlling interests. 

(3)     “Adjusted profit (loss)” represents the profit (loss) adjusted to exclude the after-tax fair value gain (loss) on the embedded derivative portion of convertible debentures.

(4)     “Adjusted EBITDA” represents operating profit (loss) adjusted to exclude depreciation and amortization, the gain (loss) on sales of assets and investments, restructuring costs, gain (loss) on mark-to-mark adjustments related to the Company’s long term incentive plan (“LTIP”) program and net income (loss) from projects accounted for using the equity method, but including “Equity Project EBITDA” from projects accounted for using the equity method.

(5)     “Adjusted earnings (loss) per share” represents earnings (loss) per share calculated using adjusted profit (loss).

OPERATING AND FINANCIAL RESULTS

Revenue for the three months ended June 30, 2016 was higher by $172 million, or 26 per cent, compared to the same period in 2015. Revenue was higher in each segment with the largest increase occurring in the Mining segment, largely due to higher volume of site installation work in the commodity mining sector.

Operating profit of $12.3 million for the three months ended June 30, 2016 declined by $7.5 million compared to an operating profit of $19.8 million in the same period in 2015. However, on a like for like basis, excluding Aecon’s previous ownership of IST and investment in the Quito Airport Concession in the prior year, as well as the $14.1 million one-time gain realized in the second quarter of 2015 as a result of the sale of IST on April 10, 2015, operating profit of $12.3 million in the second quarter of 2016 compared to $0.9 million in 2015, an improvement of $11.4 million. In addition, a one-time charge recorded as a corporate cost in “Other & Eliminations” of $6.7 million reduced consolidated gross profit and operating profit in the second quarter of 2016. This was the result of the resolution of a long outstanding legal dispute that dated back to 2012.

Adjusted EBITDA of $29.4 million (margin of 3.5 per cent) for the second quarter of 2016 compared to $29.9 million (margin of 4.5 per cent) or $18.9 million (margin of 2.8 per cent) on a like for like basis for the second quarter of 2015. Adjusted EBITDA was similarly impacted by the one-time charge of $6.7 million recorded in the second quarter of 2016.

Record reported backlog as at June 30, 2016 of $4,889 million compared to backlog of $2,589 million as at June 30, 2015.

New contract awards of $1,120 million were booked in the second quarter of 2016 compared to $469 million in the same period of 2015. Not included in backlog, but important to Aecon’s prospects due to the significant volume involved, is the expected recurring revenue from alliances and supplier-of-choice arrangements where the amount and/or value of work to be carried out is not specified.

The sale of IST in April 2015 and Aecon’s investment in the Quito airport concession in December 2015, including the classification of the Quito airport concession as “held for sale” from June 8, 2015, have impacted Aecon’s results for the three months ended June 30, 2016 when compared to the same periods in the prior year. A summary of these impacts is included below:

REPORTING SEGMENTS

Aecon reports its financial performance on the basis of four segments: Infrastructure, Energy, Mining, and Concessions.

INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT

The Infrastructure segment includes all aspects of the construction of both public and private infrastructure, primarily in Canada, and on a selected basis, internationally. The Infrastructure segment focuses primarily on the transportation, heavy civil, and water and wastewater treatment markets.

Revenue in the Infrastructure segment of $269 million was $45 million, or 20 per cent, higher than the same period last year. The largest increase occurred in heavy civil operations primarily due to continued ramp up on new projects in Ontario and Western Canada. Revenue was also higher in transportation operations due to a higher volume of road building work in Ontario. These increases were partially offset by lower revenue in water operations in Western Canada.

Operating profit in the Infrastructure segment in the second quarter of $3.5 million decreased by $0.2 million over the same period in the prior year. An improvement in operating profit from higher margin in water operations was offset by lower margin on projects in transportation operations in Ontario. Operating profit in heavy civil was unchanged period-over-period.

Backlog in the Infrastructure segment was $2,121 million, which is $826 million higher than the same time last year. The year-over-year increase in backlog occurred in transportation and heavy civil operations due in large part to the Eglinton Crosstown light rail transit (“LRT”) project award in the third quarter of 2015 to a consortium in which Aecon has a 25 per cent interest.

New contract awards totalled $198 million in the second quarter of 2016 compared to $190 million in the same period in the prior year.

ENERGY SEGMENT

The Energy segment encompasses a full suite of service offerings to the energy market including industrial construction and manufacturing activities such as in-plant construction, site construction and fabrication and module assembly. The Energy segment focuses primarily on the following sectors: power generation, oil and gas, pipelines, utilities, and energy support services.

Revenue in the second quarter of 2016 of $358 million in the Energy segment was $58 million, or 19 per cent, higher than in 2015 driven by higher revenue in both industrial and utilities operations.

Operating profit of $14.0 million decreased by $4.7 million compared to the same period in 2015. The decrease in operating profit was due to a $14.1 million gain on the sale of IST reported in industrial operations in the second quarter of 2015. Excluding the impact of IST, operating profit increased in both industrial and utilities operations. The increase in industrial operating profit occurred mostly in Eastern Canada primarily due to higher volume and margin, while the increase in utilities was primarily driven by higher volume and margin in Ontario, which offset lower margin from industrial operations in Western Canada.

Backlog at June 30, 2016 of $2,540 million in the Energy segment was $1,728 million higher than the same time last year, with increases in both industrial operations and utilities operations. Backlog was higher in industrial operations in Eastern Canada due to new awards in the power generation sector including the execution phase of the Darlington nuclear refurbishment project being awarded in 2016 to a joint venture in which Aecon has a 50 per cent interest.

New contract awards of $688 million in the second quarter of 2016 were $570 million higher than in the same period in 2015.

MINING SEGMENT

The Mining segment offers turnkey services consolidating Aecon’s mining capabilities and services across Canada, including both mine site installations and contract mining. This segment offers construction services that span the scope of a project’s life cycle: from overburden removal and resource extraction, to processing and environmental reclamation.

Revenue in the Mining segment of $220 million in the second quarter of 2016 was $72 million, or 49 per cent, higher compared to revenue of $148 million during the same period in 2015. The majority of the increase was driven by higher volume of site installation work in the commodity mining sector. Revenue was lower in contract mining operations, primarily as a result of the Alberta wildfires, which impacted site development projects and other traditional contract mining work performed in the quarter. Aecon maintains various insurance policies, including business interruption coverage, that are expected to offset much of the impact incurred as a result of the wildfires. No anticipated recovery from insurance claim settlements is included in the operating results in the second quarter.

Operating profit in the Mining segment of $11.8 million increased by $7.4 million when compared to $4.4 million in the same period in the previous year. The majority of the operating profit improvement was due to higher volume and gross profit margin from projects in the commodity mining sector.

Backlog at June 30, 2016 of $228 million was $254 million lower than the same time last year. Backlog decreased in the commodity mining sector primarily as the work off of existing site installation work outpaced new awards in the sector. Civil and foundations backlog also decreased largely due to the work off of backlog related to mining projects in Ontario and Alberta. Backlog in the contract mining sector also decreased year-over-year primarily due to the substantial completion of site development projects in Alberta.

New contract awards of $241 million in the second quarter of 2016 were $77 million higher than in the same period in 2015.

CONCESSIONS SEGMENT

The Concessions segment includes the development, financing, design, construction and operation of infrastructure projects by way of build-operate-transfer, build-own-operate-transfer and other Public-Private Partnership contract structures.

Revenue reported in the Concessions segment for the three months ended June 30, 2016 and 2015, was $1.0 million and $0.7 million.

For the three months ended June 30, 2016, operating loss of $0.7 million compared to an operating profit of $3.6 million in the same period last year. The decrease in operating profit was due to the sale of Aecon’s investment in the Quito airport concession on December 10, 2015.

Aecon does not include in its reported backlog expected revenue from concession agreements. As such, while Aecon expects future revenue from its concession assets, no concession backlog is reported.

OUTLOOK

“While oil and commodity markets across Canada remain challenging in the current resource price environment, Aecon’s strong backlog position and diverse and flexible business model, combined with a strong commitment to increase infrastructure spending by all levels of government across Canada bode well for Aecon’s ability to continue to make progress,” said Teri McKibbon.

CONSOLIDATED RESULTS

The consolidated results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2016 and 2015 are available at the end of this news release.

CONFERENCE CALL

A conference call has been scheduled for Thursday, August 4, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (ET) to discuss Aecon’s second quarter 2016 financial results.  Participants should dial 416-352-0001 or 1-800-695-8859 at least 10 minutes prior to the conference time.  For those unable to attend the call, a replay will be available after 12:30 p.m. at 1-800-558-5253 or 416-626-4100 until midnight on May 11, 2016. The reservation number is 21813573.

ABOUT AECON

Aecon Group Inc. (TSX: ARE) is a Canadian leader and partner-of-choice in construction and infrastructure development.  Aecon provides integrated turnkey services to private and public sector clients in the Infrastructure, Energy and Mining sectors and provides project management, financing and development services through its Concessions segment. Aecon is also pleased to be consistently recognized as one of the Best Employers in Canada. For more information, please visit www.aecon.com and follow us on Twitter at @AeconGroup.