3 months ago
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Conference call on Thursday, February 27, 2025 at 9:30 a.m. Central Time
HOUSTON, Feb. 26, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE: CSV) today announced results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2024.
Company Highlights:
- Exceeded full year 2024 guidance for adjusted consolidated EBITDA and adjusted earnings per share, and achieved the high end of the range for total revenue, while divesting certain non-core assets;
- A 26.7% increase in consolidated cemetery preneed sales, and an increase of 3.1% in consolidated funeral average revenue per contract, drove total revenue of $404.2 million, representing growth of 5.7% over the prior year;
- GAAP net income decline of 1.4%, and adjusted consolidated EBITDA growth of 11.5%, over the prior year;
- GAAP diluted EPS of $2.10, a decline of 1.9% over the prior year and adjusted diluted EPS of $2.65, an increase of 21.0% over the prior year;
- Leverage ratio lowered to 4.3x from 5.1x at the same period last year, as the Company paid down $42.1 million of debt on its credit facility during the year; and
- The Company's guidance for 2025 is $400-$410 million in total revenue, adjusted consolidated EBITDA of $128-$133 million, adjusted diluted EPS of $3.10-$3.30 and adjusted free cash flow of $40-$50 million, including expected divestitures of non-core assets.
Carlos Quezada, Vice Chairman and CEO, stated, "We are thrilled to announce that our strategic execution at every level has delivered outstanding financial results for the full year 2024. While the fourth quarter saw reduced funeral home revenue-primarily due to tough year-over-year comparisons and the lower volumes we began experiencing in October-our overall performance remained strong.
As we previously communicated in our third quarter earnings call, we anticipated these trends, yet we remained confident in our trajectory. This confidence led us to raise our full-year guidance, and we not only met the upper range for total revenue but exceeded expectations for adjusted EBITDA and EPS. The decline in volume appears to be linked to a delayed flu season, which impacted the number of at-need funeral services. However, based on current trends, we believe we are well-positioned for continued success in 2025.
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These remarkable results are a testament to the dedication, hard work, and excellence of our team at Carriage. We deeply appreciate your continued support and look forward to building on this momentum, driving even greater success in 2025 and beyond,” concluded Mr. Quezada.
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
| Three Months Ended December 31, | Years Ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (in millions except volume, average, margins and EPS) | 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||
| GAAP Metrics: | ||||||||||||||||
| Total revenue | $ | 97.7 | $ | 98.8 | $ | 404.2 | $ | 382.5 | ||||||||
| Operating income | $ | 21.1 | $ | 23.9 | $ | 81.8 | $ | 81.0 | ||||||||
| Operating income margin | 21.6 | % | 24.2 | % | 20.2 | % | 21.2 | % | ||||||||
| Net income | $ | 9.9 | $ | 11.6 | $ | 33.0 | $ | 33.4 | ||||||||
| Diluted EPS | $ | 0.62 | $ | 0.75 | $ | 2.10 | $ | 2.14 | ||||||||
| Cash provided by operating activities | $ | 9.3 | $ | 13.7 | $ | 52.0 | $ | 75.6 | ||||||||
| Non-GAAP Metrics(1): | ||||||||||||||||
| Adjusted consolidated EBITDA | $ | 29.3 | $ | 32.4 | $ | 126.2 | $ | 113.2 | ||||||||
| Adjusted consolidated EBITDA margin | 30.0 | % | 32.8 | % | 31.2 | % | 29.6 | % | ||||||||
| Adjusted diluted EPS | $ | 0.62 | $ | 0.77 | $ | 2.65 | $ | 2.19 | ||||||||
| Adjusted free cash flow | $ | 8.9 | $ | 12.8 | $ | 51.5 | $ | 55.1 | ||||||||
| Cemetery Operating Metrics(2): | ||||||||||||||||
| Preneed interment rights (property) sold | 3,396 | 3,099 | 14,503 | 11,620 | ||||||||||||
| Average price per preneed interment right sold | $ | 5,264 | $ | 5,091 | $ | 5,379 | $ | 5,063 | ||||||||
| Funeral Operating Metrics(3): | ||||||||||||||||
| Funeral contracts | 10,620 | 11,211 | 43,881 | 45,340 | ||||||||||||
| Average revenue per funeral contract(4) | $ | 5,524 | $ | 5,471 | $ | 5,554 | $ | 5,401 | ||||||||
| Burial rate | 31.2 | % | 33.1 | % | 32.1 | % | 33.1 | % | ||||||||
| Cremation rate | 61.5 | % | 59.3 | % | 60.2 | % | 59.2 | % | ||||||||
| (1) We present both GAAP and Non-GAAP measures to provide investors with additional information and to allow for the increased comparability of our ongoing performance from period to period. The most comparable GAAP measures to the Non-GAAP measures presented in this table can be found in the Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures section of this earnings release. | ||||||||||||||||
| (2) Metrics calculated using cemetery operating results. | ||||||||||||||||
| (3) Metrics calculated using funeral operating results. | ||||||||||||||||
| (4) Excludes preneed interest earnings reflected in financial revenue. | ||||||||||||||||
- Total revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2024 decreased $1.1 million compared to the three months ended December 31, 2023. We experienced an anticipated decline in consolidated funeral contract volume against a challenging prior year comparable, resulting in a 7.3% decrease, which was partially offset by a 1.4% increase in the average revenue per funeral contract. Additionally, we experienced an 8.4% increase in preneed interment rights (property) sold and a 4.2% increase in the average price per preneed interment right sold.
- Net income for the three months ended December 31, 2024 decreased $1.8 million compared to the three months ended December 31, 2023 primarily driven by the decrease in funeral revenue. We experienced a $1.0 million decrease in gross profit contribution from our businesses, a $1.5 million increase in general, administrative and other expenses and a $0.2 million increase in income tax expense, which was partially offset by a $2.0 million decrease in interest expense.
- Total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2024 increased $21.7 million compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. We achieved continued growth in consolidated cemetery preneed sales as we experienced a 22.9% increase in preneed interment rights (property) sold and a 7.3% increase in the average price per preneed interment right sold. Additionally, we experienced a 3.1% increase in the average revenue per funeral contract, which was offset by a 4.9% decrease in funeral contract volume.
- Net income for the year ended December 31, 2024 decreased $0.5 million compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. We experienced a $19.1 million increase in gross profit contribution from our businesses and a $4.2 million decrease in interest expense, which was offset by a $16.9 million increase in general, administrative and other expenses, primarily comprised of one-time costs related to executive severance payments and the Company's review of strategic alternatives, a $4.1 million increase in income tax expense and a $1.4 million increase in loss on divestitures, disposals and impairment charges.
OUTLOOK FOR 2025
The Company's 2025 outlook incorporates previously stated organic growth initiatives around preneed sales, both in the cemetery and funeral businesses, and expected cost discipline while the Company continues to deleverage the balance sheet. Additionally, in the first half of 2025, the Company expects to divest certain non-core assets, reducing 2025 revenue and field EBITDA by ~$7.9 million and ~$2.3 million, respectively - the 2025 Outlook reflects the expected impact of these divestitures.
| 2025 Outlook(1) | ||
| (in millions - except per share amounts) | ||
| Total revenue | $400 - $410 | |
| Adjusted consolidated EBITDA | $128 - $133 | |
| Adjusted diluted EPS | $3.10 - $3.30 | |
| Adjusted free cash flow(2) | $40 - $50 | |
| (1) Includes the expected impact of divestitures of certain non-core assets. | ||
| (2) Includes the expected impact of total capital expenditures (growth and maintenance). | ||
CALL AND INVESTOR RELATIONS CONTACT
Carriage Services has scheduled a conference call for tomorrow, February 27, 2025 at 9:30 a.m. Central Time. To participate in the call, please dial 888-394-8218 (Conference ID - 3831963) or live over the Internet via webcast click link. An audio archive of the call will be available on demand via the Company's website at www.carriageservices.com. For any investor relations questions, please email [email protected].
| CARRIAGE SERVICES, INC.
CONDENSED OPERATING AND FINANCIAL TREND REPORT (in thousands - except per share amounts) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Funeral operating revenue | $ | 222,392 | $ | 248,117 | $ | 247,160 | $ | 244,893 | $ | 243,709 | |||||||||
| Cemetery operating revenue | 68,391 | 90,502 | 89,045 | 101,150 | 125,095 | ||||||||||||||
| Financial revenue | 19,176 | 22,097 | 21,997 | 25,650 | 29,690 | ||||||||||||||
| Ancillary revenue | 4,661 | 4,437 | 4,193 | 4,588 | 4,322 | ||||||||||||||
| Divested revenue | 14,828 | 10,733 | 7,779 | 6,239 | 1,382 | ||||||||||||||
| Total revenue | $ | 329,448 | $ | 375,886 | $ | 370,174 | $ | 382,520 | $ | 404,198 | |||||||||
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