$ABM Industries (ABM.US)$ shares are trading 8% lower after the company reported fourth-quarter FY24 earnings.
Sales grew 4.0% year over year to $2.18 billion, beating the consensus of $2.079 billion. Revenue growth was driven by Technical Solutions (+35% Y/Y) and Aviation (+11%), with Education revenue being flat Y/Y.
Operating expenses increased 5.4% to $1.91 billion, and operating profit declined 81.9% to $19.2 million in the quarter.
Adjusted EBITDA fell 11% to $128.0 million, with the margin stood at 6.1% vs. 7.2% a year ago quarter. Adjusted EPS of $0.90, down 11% Y/Y, beating the consensus of $0.87.
Operating cash flow for the quarter totaled $30.3 million, down from $139.1 million a year ago. As of October-end, ABM held cash and equivalents of $64.6 million.
ABM declared a cash dividend of $0.265 per common share, payable on February 3, 2025, to shareholders of record on January 2, 2025. As previously announced, the dividend represents a 17.8% increase over the prior quarterly cash dividend.
Scott Salmirs, President & Chief Executive Officer, said, "The significant growth of our microgrid service line and the market gains we made in Aviation were critical to overcoming challenges in other parts of the business. These results support our diversification strategy."
"While it is still early and the macro environment is unclear following the recent election, recent data points suggest our key commercial real estate markets are nearing an inflection to growth. Additionally, other parts of our business are continuing to experience generally healthy market conditions."
2025 Outlook: ABM expects FY25 adjusted EPS of $3.60 – $3.80 vs. consensus of $3.66 and adjusted EBITDA margin of 6.3%- 6.5%.
The company expects revenue, margin, and earnings growth in 2025, citing the positive backdrop.