Wilson Sons Holdings Brasil SA

BOVESPA:PORT3

Earnings Call Analysis

Remarkable Safety and Sustainability Achievements Drive Excellence

Wilson Sons has made impressive strides in safety and sustainability, achieving a 48% improvement in the last time injury frequency rate and earning prestigious recognitions including the gold seal in the Brazilian GHG Protocol program and the Great Place to Work certification. Most notably, the company was added to the Brazilian Stock Exchange Corporate Sustainability Index in January 2024, showcasing their commitment to ESG principles.

Solid Financial Performance with Record EBITDA

The company reported a 10% increase in net revenue for the fourth quarter of 2023, reaching BRL 645 million, attributable to enhanced operations in key divisions. The year witnessed a 7% revenue growth in Brazilian Reals and 11% in U.S. dollars. EBITDA saw a 5% quarterly rise to BRL 262 million and a historical 9% annual growth, surpassing BRL 1 billion. Wilson Sons maintained their net profit for the quarter at BRL 113 million, and for the year, profit soared by 19% in Brazilian Reals and 25% in U.S. dollars.

Business Segments Demonstrating Robust Revenues and EBITDA Growth

The Container Terminal segment boasted a 25% quarterly revenue spike to BRL 249 million, with EBITDA surging by 45% thanks to economies of scale. Towage segment revenue ascended by 7% due to an increase in volume and special operations revenues, resulting in a 12% EBITDA increase. Non-consolidated joint ventures, mainly offshore support vessel operations, also experienced a revenue uptick due to better fleet utilization and higher daily rates.

Strong Liquidity and a Sound Leverage Position

Wilson Sons ended the period with BRL 233 million in cash and cash equivalents. The bank debt remained stable in Brazilian Reals while increasing by 3% in U.S. dollars. The bank leverage ratio held steady at 1.5x EBITDA, with most bank debt being long-term and financed at fixed interest rates. In terms of shareholder remuneration, the company distributed interim dividends totaling BRL 200 million and proposed an annual dividend that will represent a substantial 38% increase in dollars over the prior year's amount.

Continued Operational Excellence into the First Months of 2024

The first two months of 2024 have showcased operational efficiency and resilience, with significant increases in terminal volumes and towage division performance. These promising results reflect the company's expectations to maintain and even grow these levels, driven by a strong Brazilian economy and improved global logistics post-COVID pandemic disruptions.

Pivotal Role in Welcoming the New Generation of Container Ships

February 2024 marked a major milestone for Wilson Sons as their tugs welcomed the largest container ships ever to dock in Brazilian ports. The company's facilities are among the few in Brazil capable of handling these New Panamax vessels, poised to capitalize on their arrival and bolster service offerings. Brazilian ports, including those of Wilson Sons, are emerging as key regional transshipment hubs due to their ability to accommodate larger vessels, which neighboring countries' ports cannot.

Prospects for Growth amid Stable Market Dynamics

Recent developments, including MSC's trials with larger vessels, indicate an imminent shift in transshipment volumes to Wilson Sons' terminals in Brazil. Furthermore, the company's capital budget remains steady, with sustaining CapEx at $55 to $60 million. Despite the early stages of Svitzer's spin-off, no significant short-term changes to their strategies are anticipated. However, the Brazilian market shows potential for consolidation, with Wilson Sons positioned positively within this environment.

Earnings Call Transcript 2023-Q4

[Operator]

Good morning, everyone welcome to Wilson Sons Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Results Conference Call. Joining us today are Mr. Fernando Salek, the company's CEO; Mr. Arnaldo Calbucci, the COO; Mr. Michael Connell, Investor Relations Officer; and [ Mr. Marcelo Torus ], Controller. The call is being recorded. [Operator Instructions].

Financial results are presented in Brazilian Reals and comply with international financial reporting standards unless otherwise stated. Page 2 of the presentation contains the usual disclaimers regarding forward-looking statements.

I would now like to hand the conference over to Mr. Fernando Salek. Go ahead, sir.

[Fernando Salek, executive]

Thank you. We'll start our discussion on Slide 4 focusing on safety and sustainability. In 2023, we recorded a last time injury frequency rate of 0.26 incidents per million hours worked. Once again, outperforming the world-class benchmark and demonstrating a 48% improvement compared to our performance in 2022. Our unwavering commitment to safety continues to be a fundamental aspect of our operations, prioritizing the well-being of our employees above all.

For the third consecutive year, our greenhouse gas emissions inventory was honored with the gold seal in the Brazilian GHG Protocol program. This is the most widely used tool by companies and governments to assess, quantify and manage their emissions. Last year, we also received our second Great Place to Work certification. This is an internationally recognized benchmark of excellence for workplace environments and our offshore support vessel joint venture won first place in PEOTRAM, which is Petrobras' Operational Excellence Program. Also in 2023, we were awarded with the Pro-Ethics Seal, an initiative created by the Controller General's office in partnership with the [ Ethos ] Institute to recognize companies that demonstrate a commitment to ethics and integrity through the voluntary adoption of measures to prevent, detect and remedy acts of corruption and fraud. This is also an unwavering pillar for our organization.

In January 2024, we proudly joined the Brazilian Stock Exchange Corporate Sustainability Index, placing Wilson Sons among a select portfolio of companies recognized for their dedication to ESG principles. We will definitely leverage these achievements as a catalyst for continuous improvement and innovation, while remaining devoted to sustainable development and creating long-term value for our stakeholders.

Turning to Slide 6. Here, we provide an overview of our consolidated results. In the fourth quarter, net revenue increased 10% and to BRL 645 million, mainly due to improved operations across our container terminal, towage, offshore base and shipyard divisions. Over the entire year, revenue saw a 7% increase in Brazilian Reals and an 11% rise in U.S. dollars. EBITDA increased 5% to BRL 262 million in the quarter, driven mainly by excellent results in our Towage and Container Terminal segments coupled with a strong performance in offshore-related -- excuse me, offshore energy-related services.

Throughout the year, EBITDA grew 9% in Brazilian Reais and 13% in U.S. dollars, setting an all-time record for the company and surpassing BRL 1 billion. Net profit for the quarter remained in line with the comparative period coming to a total of BRL 113 million. For the year, profit went up 19% in Brazilian Reals and 25% in U.S. dollars.

We now move to Slide 7. On this slide, we highlight the financial performance of our main businesses. Container terminal revenues rose 25% in the quarter to BRL 249 million. This was driven by enhanced operational activity and an uptick in revenues from ancillary services. EBITDA increased 45% to BRL 135 million due to fixed cost dilution and the realization of economies of scale from higher volumes, resulting in a margin expansion of 7 percentage points.

Container handling increased 29%, driven by gains in all trade flows with transshipment and exports standing out. For the year, revenue was up 12% and EBITDA rose 14%. Towage revenue rose 7% in the quarter to BRL 315 million, benefiting from 8% increase in volume and an uptick in special operations revenues. Despite a notable 5% growth in the average revenue per maneuver in dollar terms, it remained in line with the comparative period in Brazilian Real terms. As the improvement in the revenue mix was offset by the depreciation of the U.S. dollar against the Brazilian Real.

EBITDA increased 12% to BRL 142 million due to fixed cost dilution and the realization of economies of scale from higher volumes. Resulting in a margin expansion of 2 percentage points. For the year, revenue was up 8% and EBITDA rose 9%. In our nonconsolidated joint ventures comprised mainly of the offshore support vessel operations, revenue rose 2% in the quarter. Coming to a total of BRL 147 million, thanks to enhanced fleet utilization and higher daily rates. Operating days rose 4%, driven by new hires and contract renewals. Net profits reflected in the company's results as equity income amounted to BRL 1.2 million.

Moving on to Slide 9. On this slide, we present some of our liquidity and leverage ratios, which remain solid. Bank debt in Brazilian Reals remained unchanged from the balance on September 30, 2023, as new borrowings in the period were largely offset by the depreciation of the U.S. dollar against the Brazilian real, which effectively reduced the value of U.S. dollar-denominated debt when reported in Brazilian Real terms. In U.S. dollars, bank debt increased by 3% in the period.

In the cash flow for the fourth quarter, we highlight BRL 185 million from operating activities. BRL 168 million in investments, primarily allocated to tugboat, construction and container terminal maintenance and BRL 75 million in bank loan amortizations. As a result, we ended the period with BRL 233 million in cash and cash equivalents. The bank leverage ratio remained at 1.5x EBITDA over the last 12 months, in line with the position on September 30, 2023. At quarter end, 78% of our bank debt was long term and 67% was financed by the Merchant Marine Fund at fixed interest rates.

In terms of shareholder remuneration, we have distributed interim dividends in October 2023 and January 2024 and a total of BRL 200 million, equivalent to BRL 0.46 per share. Moreover, we have recommended for shareholder approval, an annual dividend of approximately BRL 0.17 per share equivalent to around BRL 75 million based on outstanding shares to be paid in May 2024 in addition to the interim amounts already distributed.

Total dividends once approved will represent a 38% increase in dollars over the amount paid based on the 2022 results, reflecting our robust cash generation.

Continuing on Slide 11. Here, we would like to comment on our operating performance in the first 2 months of 2024, which we believe adequately reflects a positive trajectory in the efficiency and momentum of our operations underscoring our resilience as a business. Our terminal and towage divisions delivered strong results propelled by the continued expansion of trade flows and I'm very pleased to say that we exceeded our positive expectations for 2023, and we're repeating that performance at the start of this year.

In the year-to-date through February, aggregate terminal volumes increased 26%, driven by gains in export, transshipment, import, empty containers and in-land navigation flows. In Rio Grande, container handling rose 24%, while Salvador registered a 29% rise. The key reinforcement in Salvador was completed in August 2023. And it has greatly improved our service offering there. This was a development highlighted by Maersk's recent decision to reinstate its UCLA line to the terminal.

In Towage, harbor maneuvers increased 8% over the period, and the average size of ships attended rose 4%, driven mainly by the rise in iron ore and bauxite exports. In the Offshore Energy segment, our OSV fleet registered an 8% increase in operating days, while the number of vessel turnarounds at our support basis remained in line with the comparative period.

Moving on to Slide 12. On this highlight, I'd like -- excuse me, on this slide, I'd like to highlight an exciting milestone in Brazilian waters and a major triumph for Wilson Sons. In February 2024, our tugs were instrumental and welcoming the largest container ships ever to dock in Brazilian ports. MSC Natasha VIII and MSC Elisa VIII, both measuring an impressive 366 meters in length and posting a capacity of over 14,000 TEUs. This event underscores the global trend towards larger ships and the arrival of this new generation of new Panamax vessels to Brazil, which represents a significant opportunity for Wilson Sons.

The continued inflow of new giant container ships onto the main east-west routes with capacities exceeding 24,000 TEU is likely to result in a large number of vessels being cascaded onto other traits. We've been seeing this growth in Brazil. For Brazilian ports, this escalation and ship size offers a numeral -- excuse me, numerous potential benefits amid national maritime constraints. The structural limitations of ports in neighboring countries like Argentina and Uruguay due to their shallower drafts and their consequent inability to accommodate the new generation of larger vessels directly affect their connectivity with major markets in Asia, Europe and the U.S. As a result, Brazilian ports boosting deeper drafts are well positioned to emerge as key regional transshipment hubs, consolidating cargo from the plate region.

Notably, MSC's recent trials suggest that this shift is imminent. Among the very few in Brazil equipped to handle 366-meter ships, our terminals in Rio Grande and Salvador are strategically poised to capture significant transshipment volumes, not only from Argentina and Uruguay, but also from smaller Brazilian ports. This advantage should enhance our service offerings, improve our connectivity and strengthen our trade ties with major global markets.

This concludes my presentation, and I'd like to invite you to the Q&A session. Thank you.

[Operator]

Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin the question-and-answer session. [Operator Instructions]. Our first question will be asked by Andre Ferreira from Bradesco BBI.

[Andre Ferreira, analyst]

Hello. Good morning, everyone. Congratulations for your results. I have 2 points to ask about. The first is the capital budget that you have proposed BRL 290 million. I'd just like to understand if you can give us some more details on the assumptions behind this plan. And I'd also like to ask about the Svitzer spin-off. If you could give us some more details if you know about their plans for Brazil and how that will impact your competitive environment?

[Fernando Salek, executive]

Andre, this is Fernando. Thank you for your questions. Let me tell you a little bit about our capital budget and [ Marcelo Tori ] and Michael can add in some more details if they'd like to complement my answer. And then I'll let Arnaldo Calbucci answer about Svitzer.

About our capital budget, we have the sustaining CapEx a maintenance investment of $55 million to $60 million per year. We are coming out of a year in which we reinforced the Salvador terminal key. We've been accelerating construction of tugboats and we're concluding that this year. So it's quite simple.

In the absence of CapEx projects, our investments will remain at the same level. This is what we've been proposing for this year. We don't really have any need for bulk investments on the horizon because as we've said in other opportunities, we have some installed capacity that allows us to receive higher activity levels without requiring further capital investments. So that's the idea behind it. I don't know if [ Marcelo ] or Michael have anything to add to that. If they don't, I'll pass it over to Arnaldo, who will answer your question about Svitzer.

[Arnaldo Calbucci, executive]

Good morning, Andre. Thank you for your question. It's still early to draw any conclusions on what's going to happen strategically with Svitzer's spin-off. We don't really have a clear scenario, but we don't believe that on the short or medium term that there will be any changes -- significant changes to their strategies. Especially considering expansions in Brazil, their operations here have grown at a reasonable rate, but they've been servicing Maersk's ships. So we don't really see any change on the short and medium term. But we will keep an eye on it. We'll see how it develops and what they're communicating.

[Operator]

The next question will be asked by Fernanda Recchia from BTG Pactual.

[Fernanda Recchia, analyst]

I have 2 things to ask. First, I'd like to ask a follow-up question on your capital budget. I'd like to ask about cash generation. In the last 12 months, we've seen that it was quite robust. Your budget has been between $55 million and $60 million, and we believe that this will be repeated in 2024. So to ask about your dividend policy, what are you expecting for this year? I'd also like to ask about what you're expecting for -- in terms of cash generation.

Also looking at container volumes. We've seen in the presentation that it's been very favorable in the first 2 months of the year. I think there were some effects that you've been able to make use of. So for example, the short draft in Uruguay and Argentina. But I'd just like to understand if you believe that in the future, this 20% level will be sustainable for the next months.

[Fernando Salek, executive]

Thank you for your question. This is Fernando. I'll answer your question about dividends and then I'll let others answer on expectations for our business and tell you a little bit about the volumes we've seen in the first few months. So we are preparing our declaration of dividends for this year, and they will represent a leap in comparison to previous years. This proposal is being made because of our significant cash generation, combined to the fact that, again, we don't really see a need for very high investments.

And this high level of cash generation took place because it was a year in which there was some convergence in our portfolio for our biggest businesses that really contributes the most to the company's cash. So we had a positive conversion for all of these markets.

For 2024, what I can tell you, considering our assumptions is this. First, in every plan we have, we try to be aggressive. With that being said, the current world is very dynamic. So it's still early in the year. It's hard to really foresee what's going to happen. And if there will be any kind of external shock that can cause any issues. We've also seen somewhat unstable geopolitical environment. And that, of course, creates some concerns so we've been monitoring that. But considering our business assumptions, what we're seeing is that it's a promising year for our main business units. And again, we see low CapEx levels. We don't really have many cash flow priorities. What we can ensure is that we're not sitting on excess cash without providing a use for it in our plants. So if we confirm that there will be significant cash generation for 2024, we will definitely pay significant dividends for this fiscal year.

Arnaldo, you might want to talk about business growth?

[Arnaldo Calbucci, executive]

Fernanda, this is Arnaldo. To talk about volumes. Our expectation is to maintain the levels we've seen in the first couple of months, and there is ability to grow even further in volume. We've seen that the Brazilian economy is doing well, exports remain strong. We also see significant import movements. We expect to have higher volumes from bigger ships. So this will probably draw in some ships from Argentina and Uruguay to Brazil for transshipment. The chaos that we saw in global logistics during the COVID pandemic is now over. Of course, there are problems in Red Sea, but this does not affect Brazil as much. So we remain optimistic that container volumes will remain at this level, and there is still some opportunity for it to grow.

[Fernando Salek, executive]

Just another comment, Fernanda. The drought in the Panama Canal and also issues in the Red Sea, we don't really expect that these problems will deepen and become more severe. We currently have a lower demand than we had in the previous crisis in logistics. And on the supply side, we also have a higher capacity and availability of ships of our fleet. So we believe that the impact that we had from the bottlenecks in the past will not be repeated.

[Operator]

[Operator Instructions]. The next question will be asked by Alex Andre from MSX Research.

[Unknown Analyst]

Hello. Good morning, everyone. Congratulations on your results. I'd like to ask again about Svitzer. If you can tell us a little bit about your perspective on the market and if you think it will consolidate or if you think it's stabilized. That's all.

[Fernando Salek, executive]

Go ahead, Arnaldo.

[Arnaldo Calbucci, executive]

Alex, we believe that there's is still some space. And there's an intention to consolidate by some of the global players, and that includes Brazil. Now to say if that's a short-term trend, it is a little bit difficult, but we've seen for example, that [ Sun ] is buying tugboats from Starnav, that's very positive for the Brazilian market because instead of seeing fleet expansion, the fleet has remained the same. So with this consolidation, we're seeing a more stable market. So we see that in a good light. We believe that there is some space, but there's no immediate signs. But it can happen on the medium term.

[Operator]

The next question will be asked by Andre Ferreira from Bradesco BBI.

[Andre Ferreira, analyst]

I have one more question, and it's about support vessels. If I'm not mistaken, you have about 4 that will conclude their contracts this year. So I'd just like to understand, based on the last bids, how much do you expect the average price or use rate to be at for these?

[Fernando Salek, executive]

I'll pass it over to Arnaldo, Andre, but I'd just like to say that we've been seeing a very positive trend in 2024. A balance between supply and demand for our vessels, whether they are 3,000 or 4,500. And this trend, obviously, will affect our daily rates, and we believe that this will continue to happen. But I'll let Arnaldo comment on that.

[Arnaldo Calbucci, executive]

Yes, we're very confident that these vessels will be recontracted through bid with Petrobras or an IOC contract, and we'll see that the daily rates will be significantly higher. We've been seeing strong demands and these rates have been going up. It's difficult to say exactly how much but, we've seen significant increases in the last bids that we took part in. So we believe that this trend will continue.

[Operator]

We will now continue with the questions that were submitted in writing. The first question was asked by Alex Paterson, Peel Hunt. Do you need to keep net bank leverage at 1.5x? Or could you increase it? With need for only USD 55 million to USD 60 million in CapEx. If you can increase leverage, would you consider a special dividend?

[Fernando Salek, executive]

So Alex is asking if our leverage needs to be at 1.5x or if it would be possible to increase it. She also says that at these CapEx levels, if we, in order to increase our leverage if we'd consider a special dividend. So what are we considering as a healthy leverage level. We believe that the company's balance is robust enough to take a ratio of up to 3x. With that being said, we're not going to keep our leverage at 3x without any need. That's just the limit.

This is related to our cash generation and the advance of maritime activities businesses, which have a higher level of leverage. And they've been impacted by debt amortization and also a significant change in EBITDA. So this coefficient is being significantly readjusted. We don't have the intention to really increase leverage significantly to pay dividends. But we've been monitoring a number of factors. For example, tax reforms and we are trying to see if there's any need to really make any changes that might be necessary or relevant for the company to maximize shareholder value.

[Operator]

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I'd like to invite Mr. Fernando. I'd like to proceed with his closing remarks. Please go ahead, sir.

[Fernando Salek, executive]

Okay. So I'd just like to say that our outstanding performance in 2023 highlights the significant organic growth across our portfolio. We hold a very optimistic view of the core strengths of our operations, which includes towage, container terminals as well as the invigorated demand for our offshore energy-related services. As we navigate forward charting a course for trade prosperity, we're confident that our firm commitment to safety, asset utilization, prudent cost management and disciplined capital allocation will yield even more remarkable outcomes for our customers, shareholders, employees and the wider community, steering a solve towards broader future. Thank you all for joining our conference call, and I hope you stay well and safe. Have a good day.

[Operator]

This concludes the Wilson Sons conference call. Thank you for participating, and have a good day.