Americold Completes First Year as Public Company With Solid Financial Results
Warehouse operator Americold completed its first year as a public company by reporting solid gains in revenue and higher operating profits in the fourth quarter of 2018.
The Atlanta-based company reported net income of $2.7 million, or 2 cents a share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with net income of $673,000, or 1 cent a share, in the same period a year ago. Revenue increased 3.5% to $415.8 million from $401.7 million.
“Our business remains strong and steady,” CEO Fred Boehler said in a statement Feb. 21.
Boehler
Americold completed an initial public stock offering in January 2018 and a follow-on private offering in September with the proceeds being used to pay off debt and bolster its capital structure.
Net income in the fourth quarter of 2018 included $26 million in charges associated with debt repayment and new financing. Excluding those charges, Americold said net income would have been $28.9 million, or 19 cents a share.
The company’s global warehousing segment generated operating income of $100.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2018, a 7% increase from $93.9 million in the prior year. Revenue rose 2.6% to $305.5 million from $297.6 million.
Transportation services generated operating income of $4.4 million in the quarter, an increase of 37% from $3.2 million in the same period in 2017. Revenue was $41.4 million compared with $38.4 million.
Third-party managed warehouses generated operating income of $3.6 million in the quarter, up 13.6% from $3.1 million a year earlier. Revenue climbed to $66.9 million from $63.6 million.
For the year, Americold said net income was $46.2 million, or 31 cents a share, in 2018 versus a net loss of $30 million, or 43 cents a share, in 2017. Revenue was $1.6 billion compared with $1.54 billion.
“We believe we are well-positioned for future growth,” Boehler commented, “as we remain the market leader within a fragmented, high barrier-to-entry industry that requires not only significant capital investment but deep operational and technical expertise and customer relationships.”
Americold ranks No. 9 on the Transport Topics Top 50 list of largest logistics companies in North America. The company operates 155 temperature-controlled warehouses with 918.7 million cubic feet of storage in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Argentina.
