Winnipeg, Manitoba – December 3, 2018 – Boyd Group Income Fund (TSX: BYD.UN) (“the Fund”, “the Boyd Group” or “Boyd”) recently reported its financial results for the three and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2018 showing the company continues to deliver consistent results including same-store sales and new location growth
According to a company press release, sales increased by 17.3% to $459.6 million from $391.9 million in 2017 (all figures $US), including same-store sales increases of 4.9%. Normalizing for the impact of hurricanes in the comparative period, same-store sales increased 3.6%. Adjusted EBITDA1 increased 15.9% to $41.2 million, compared with $35.6 million in 2017.
Adjusted net earnings increased 63.6% to $20.4 million compared with $12.5 million in 2017 and adjusted net earnings per unit1 increased 54.5% to $1.037 compared with $0.671 in 2017. Lower taxes and lower finance costs due to the redemption of convertible debentures in 2017 were major contributing factors to the higher earnings.
“We continue to make progress executing on our strategy, with strong growth in new locations, as well as very respectable same-store sales growth in the quarter. Continuing strong demand along with solid operational execution in August and September allowed us to outpace our earlier guidance for lower same-store sales growth compared to Q2. Additionally, lower finance costs due primarily to the redemption of convertible debentures last year as well as lower tax expense due to U.S. tax reform also contributed meaningfully to earnings this quarter,” said Brock Bulbuck, Chief Executive Officer of the Boyd Group. “Our investment in enhanced benefit programs for our U.S. employees, which is being funded with part of the savings realized from U.S. tax reform, continues to have a near-term impact on our EBITDA margins. This investment supports continued execution of our growth strategies and complements our technician recruitment and retention programs. Based on our continued performance and the strength of our business, the Board has decided to increase our monthly distributions – the 11th consecutive year we have done so.”
Outlook
“Looking to the rest of 2018 and beyond, we continue to be confident that we will maintain our progress toward our long-term growth targets and operational plans,” added Mr. Bulbuck. “We continue to add locations in new markets and expand in markets where we have a presence today. Our people initiatives as well as the ongoing investments we are making in technology, equipment and training position us well for continued operational execution. In terms of future growth, our strong balance sheet, along with over $400 million in dry powder will allow us to continue to add new locations, grow market share and deliver shareholder value.”
About The Boyd Group Income Fund
The Boyd Group Income Fund is an unincorporated, open-ended mutual fund trust created for the purposes of acquiring and holding certain investments, including a majority interest in The Boyd Group Inc. and its subsidiaries. The Boyd Group Income Fund units trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol BYD.UN. For more information on The Boyd Group Inc. or Boyd Group Income Fund, please visit our website at http://www.boydgroup.com.
About The Boyd Group Inc.
The Boyd Group Inc. (the “Company”), directly and through subsidiaries, is one of the largest operators of non-franchised collision repair centres in North America in terms of number of locations and sales. The Company operates locations in five Canadian provinces under the trade name Boyd Autobody & Glass (http://boydautobody.com) and Assured Automotive (http://www.assuredauto.ca), as well as in 25 U.S. states under the trade name Gerber Collision & Glass (http://www.gerbercollision.com). The Company uses newly acquired brand names during a transition period until acquired locations have been rebranded. The Company is also a major retail auto glass operator in the U.S. with locations across 34 U.S. states under the trade names Gerber Collision & Glass, Glass America, Auto Glass Service, Auto Glass Authority and Autoglassonly.com. The Company also operates a third party administrator, Gerber National Claims Services (“GNCS”), that offers glass, emergency roadside and first notice of loss services. GNCS has approximately 5,500 affiliated glass provider locations and 4,600 affiliated emergency roadside services providers throughout the U.S. For more information on The Boyd Group Inc. or Boyd Group Income Fund, please visit our website at (http://www.boydgroup.com).
