Stratus Properties Inc.
Q4 2017 Earnings Call Transcript

Published: 16 Mar 2018

[Operator:]

Welcome to the Stratus Properties Full Year 2017 Conference Call. Stratus' financial results were released earlier this morning and are available on its website at stratusproperties.com. Please note, this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the call over to Mr. Beau Armstrong, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Stratus Properties.

[Beau Armstrong:]

Thank you, Austin. And good morning, everyone. Joining me today is our Chief Financial Officer, Erin Pickens. As a reminder, today's press release and certain comments we will make on the call include forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially. I would like to refer everyone to the cautionary language included in Stratus’s pres release and to the risk factors described in Stratus’ Form 10-K and subsequent SEC filings. Today's press release and certain of our comments on the call also include certain financial measures, such as adjusted EBITDA, which is not recognized under US GAAP. As required by SEC Regulation G, reconciliations of these measures to a match reported in Stratus' consolidated financial statements are contained in the supplemental schedules of Stratus' press release, which are also available on our website. This morning we will cover highlights of our 2017 performance and the benefits of our active development plan, a summary of activities in our four operating segments, our financial results which Erin will discuss, and then I will finish with our outlook for 2018. Starting with highlights for 2017, both net income and adjusted EBITDA increased year-over-year. We achieved a substantial gain on the sale of our Oaks at Lakeway project showcasing the value of our full cycle development strategy. We returned capital to shareholders through $1 per share special cash dividend and we reduced our consolidated debt by 24% from year end 2016. These are tangible achievements that positively influenced Stratus’ total shareholder returns which compared favorably to peers as noted in our earnings release. Perhaps less visible but also important, we advanced our real estate portfolio, invested in additional development of projects last year. Capital expenditures for existing properties and development projects increased 13% to 48.5 million in 2017. As we add value and complete these projects for potential future sales, we expect to generate significant cash flows and returns for our shareholders. Our operations are diversified across four segments

[Erin Pickens:]

Thank you, Beau. Today Stratus reported earnings for 2017 as shown in our earnings release. Net income attributable to common stockholders was $3.9 million or $0.47 per share compared with a net loss of $6 million or $0.74 per share in 2016. Factors that influenced the year-over-year comparison include, $2.01 per share in 2017 related to recognizing the majority of the gain on the sale of The Oaks at Lakeway, partially offset by a $0.93 per share non-cash tax charge recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017, related to US tax reform legislation which will benefit Stratus’ tax rate beginning in 2018. Full year adjusted EBITDA increased to $9.7 million in 2017 from $9.3 million a year ago. Turning now to capital management. During 2017, our Board declared and paid $1 per share special cash dividend to shareholders following the sale of The Oaks at Lakeway. Even with the special dividend payment, the company was able to reduce its consolidated debt by 24%. As noted in our press release, we also extended the maturity of our Comerica credit facility by one year to November 2018 and the company continues to have a very manageable debt maturity schedule. We are in the process of negotiating the modification and a longer-term extension of our credit facility to give us even more financial flexibility. Our cash balance on December 31st was $14.6 million and we had $19.2 million available under our credit facility at year end giving us ample liquidity. A key aspect of our disciplined capital management strategy is to secure project financing for our developments before we begin construction. By strengthening our financial position during 2017, we have increased our flexibility to invest further in high growth and high return projects which Beau just described. Through our strategic real estate development and disciplined capital management, we strive to increase shareholder returns. Now I’ll turn it back to Beau.

[Beau Armstrong:]

Thank you, Erin. As we enter 2018, we are fortune to have an economic tailwind in the U.S. and in our Texas markets specifically. For example, the unemployment rate in Austin is just 2.5% well below the national average of 4.1%, which itself is at historic lows. The unemployment rate in Magnolia and College Station are also far below the national average at just 3.7% and 2.6% respectively. These unemployment levels have been achieved even with the strong population growth that we have experienced in these markets. This provides a very favorable backdrop to develop lease and sell our properties. In a nutshell, Stratus is in the right place at the right time, with the right properties and a very strong team. Given demand for Premier real estate, we intend to explore opportunities to sell certain properties later this year including West Killeen market in the 22,366 square foot retail complex in the first phase of Barton Creek Village, subject of course to leasing progress and market conditions. The new tax law is also beneficial, it will have a positive impact on bottom line profit in our net asset value beginning in 2018. We are also hopeful that the new tax law will increased economic activity that drives further demand for our residential retail hotel and entertainment properties. Our confidence to initiate several new development projects, in advance of these macro tailwinds put Stratus in a great position. We intent to leverage our competitive strengths for the benefit of shareholders in 2018 and beyond. Now, we’ll open the call for a few questions.

[Operator:]

[Operator instructions]. And our first question will come from Fred [Buettner] with [Buettner] Investments. Please go ahead.

[Unidentified Analyst:]

Hi Beau and Erin. On your retail business, longer term where do you see it going and you touched on HEB somewhat, is there more you want to say about your HEB relationship versus using other supermarket chains?

[Beau Armstrong:]

Thank you, Fred, it’s a very good question. We have I think a very good relationship with HEB right now and we’ve continue to evaluate projects that involve them and we also feel strongly that they are far and away the leader in the grocery business in Texas and certainly the markets that we operate in, so I don’t see us changing that strategy. We are mindful of some of the trends in the retail world these days and as you know we stay away from the big box tenants that are under a lot of pressure from Amazon. And so, we really don’t invest in that space. Our centers tend to be entertainment and dining focused with health wellness and fitness and medical component and even a housing or multifamily or certainly [for sale] [ph] housing in the immediate area. So again, we stay away from soft goods and things that have a lot of pressure from Amazon and stick to things that really are I wouldn’t ever say internet proof, but certainly internet resistant at this point.

[Unidentified Analyst:]

Thank you. I have one other question. In your press release it showed that you had a big uptick in lot sales in Barton Creek and it looks like indication for future sales this year, what caused the change?

[Beau Armstrong:]

Well I think, when we look at our lot sales historically, they go up and down and we actually have a lot of data to support that, so we were anticipating a bit of an upswing and I guess I would attribute to a couple of factors. We have had some improvements done to the Barton Creek club which I think it been viewed favorably by prospective residents. We had the Lantana Place retail development that we’re building, I think it’s had a positive impact that area has been a little devoid of entertainment options and amenities and having that underway I think has been helpful. Obviously, Austin is a very hot market and unlike many of the other Texas markets, we are supply constrained given our -- the way our city deals with the permitting process. So, a lot of those things contributed to it. And we’ve had a couple of the builders at builder Barton Creek that really had a lot of success and we’ve introduced actually a couple of new products out there. So, I think the culmination of all of those things has really benefited our Barton Creek lot sales activity towards the end of the year and even going into this year.

[Operator:]

[Operator Instructions]. And this will conclude our question-and-answer session as well as today’s conference. We thank you for attending today’s presentation. And at this time, you may disconnect your lines.