GMS Reports First Quarter Fiscal 2025 Results

Company Reports Volume Gains and Resilient Wallboard Pricing Amid Softening End Market Demands and Continued Steel Price Deflation

Announces Acquisition of R.S. Elliott Specialty Supply, Providing a Platform for Further Complementary Products Expansion Across the Southeast

GMS Inc., a leading North American specialty building products distributor, reported financial results for the fiscal first quarter ended July 31, 2024.

First Quarter Fiscal 2025 Highlights

(Comparisons are to the first quarter of fiscal 2024)

• Net sales of $1.4 billion increased 2.8%; organic net sales decreased 2.2%.
• Volume growth across all four major product categories, inclusive of acquisitions.
• U.S. single-family Wallboard organic volume growth of 4.1% helped offset a 2.3% decline in multi-family and essentially flat year-over-year demand in commercial.
• Net income of $57.2 million, or $1.42 per diluted share, decreased from net income of $86.8 million, or $2.09 per diluted share; Net income margin declined 220 basis points to 4.0%.
• Adjusted net income of $77.6 million, or $1.93 per diluted share, decreased from $103.2 million, or $2.49 per diluted share.
• Adjusted EBITDA of $145.9 million decreased $27.4 million, or 15.8%; Adjusted EBITDA margin was 10.1%, compared to 12.3%.
• Cash provided by operating activities and free cash flow was a use of $22.9 million and a use of $31.9 million, respectively, compared to cash provided by operating activities of $6.6 million and a use from free cash flow of $6.9 million in the prior year period; Net debt leverage was 2.1 times at the end of the quarter, up from 1.5 times a year ago.
• Completed the acquisitions of Howard & Son Building Materials, Inc. and Yvon Building Supply and affiliates. Subsequent to the end of the quarter, acquired R.S. Elliott Specialty Supply (“R.S. Elliott”).

“During our first quarter of fiscal 2025, the GMS team delivered net sales of $1.4 billion, net income of $57.2 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $145.9 million amid what has quickly become a more challenging market environment,” said John C. Turner, Jr., President and CEO of GMS. “We realized volume growth and improved or resilient pricing in most of our major product lines. Nevertheless, steel price deflation partially offset these results, and economic tightening resulted in weaker than expected activity levels across all of our end markets for the quarter, notably in commercial and multi-family, particularly in July.”

“Despite current market pressure, we continued to focus on the execution of our strategic pillars and adapting to shifting end market demand, and are managing costs more firmly across the business. In addition to our recently closed acquisition of Yvon, we are pleased to announce the acquisition of R.S. Elliott, which is another meaningful transaction in the Complementary Products space. With five locations across Florida, R.S. Elliott is a leading distributor of stucco, exterior insulation and finishing systems (“EIFS”) and other exterior finishing and cladding products in that state. This transaction marks an important advancement of our strategy to expand our platform to better serve our customers and grow our Complementary Product offerings, particularly within one of our key focus areas, EIFS and Stucco. Distinguished for their customer service and industry expertise, I am pleased to welcome the R.S. Elliott team to GMS.”

Turner continued, “We believe the market pressures we faced this quarter will likely persist over the next several quarters, at least until the expected reduction in interest rates can positively impact demand for our products. As such, we are taking decisive action at this time to implement a $25 million annualized cost reduction program, made possible by prior investments in technology and efficiency optimization.”

“In spite of near-term headwinds, we remain confident in our model, the resilience of pricing for our major product categories outside of Steel, and our ability to execute and capture the evident growth opportunities ahead, particularly with an improved interest rate environment. Our substantial scale and breadth across the U.S. and Canada, our solid balance sheet and the expectation for significant free cash flow generation provide exceptional operational stability and a foundation for long-term shareholder value.”

First Quarter Fiscal 2025 Results

(Comparisons are to the first quarter of fiscal 2024 unless otherwise noted)

Net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 of $1.4 billion increased 2.8%. Contributions from recent acquisitions, which helped drive volume growth across all four major product categories, and otherwise resilient or improved product pricing were markedly offset by year-over-year price deflation in Steel Framing, which reduced net sales by approximately $40 million for the quarter. Notably, in Wallboard, price increases were realized during the quarter and were up sequentially from our fiscal fourth quarter. With a mix shift toward single-family construction and lower priced board, however, average unit pricing for the category was roughly flat versus prior year, consistent with previously communicated expectations.

Organic net sales were down 2.2%, primarily impacted by price deflation in Steel Framing together with soft Canadian single-family residential activity, which resulted in a year-over-year decline in Complementary Product sales, particularly in roofing and lumber.

Year-over-year quarterly sales changes by product category were as follows:

• Wallboard sales of $587.9 million increased 2.9% (up 1.1% on an organic basis).
• Ceilings sales of $207.2 million increased 18.2% (up 5.7% on an organic basis).
• Steel Framing sales of $209.9 million decreased 11.4% (down 15.3% on an organic basis).
• Complementary Product sales of $443.5 million increased 4.1% (down 2.7% on an organic basis).

Gross profit of $451.6 million increased $1.0 million, or 0.2%. Gross margin was 31.2%, down 80 basis points as compared to 32.0% a year ago, primarily due to the mix impacts of Steel price deflation, price/cost dynamics in Wallboard, and a shift from commercial and multi-family to single-family Wallboard deliveries, all of which were more pronounced than expected.

Selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses were $315.2 million for the quarter, up from $286.8 million. Of the $28.4 million year-over-year difference, approximately $16 million related to recent acquisitions. The remainder of the variance was primarily due to inflationary and activity-based employee compensation and warehouse costs.

SG&A expense as a percentage of net sales increased 150 basis points to 21.8% for the quarter, compared to 20.3%. Operating cost inflation and activity-based increases impacted SG&A leverage by approximately 85 basis points while steel price deflation contributed approximately 55 basis points of deleverage. Costs associated with recent acquisitions and greenfield openings negatively impacted SG&A leverage by an estimated 10 basis points. Adjusted SG&A expense as a percentage of net sales of 21.2% also increased 140 basis points from 19.8%.

Inclusive of a $3.3 million, or 17.4%, increase in interest expense, and a $3.2 million prior year one-time tax benefit, net income decreased 34.1% to $57.2 million, or $1.42 per diluted share, compared to net income of $86.8 million, or $2.09 per diluted share. Net income margin declined 220 basis points from 6.2% to 4.0%.

Adjusted EBITDA decreased $27.4 million, or 15.8%, to $145.9 million compared to the prior year quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 10.1%, compared with 12.3% for the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

New Presentation for Adjusted Net Income

Please note, to make the Company’s financial presentation more consistent with other public building products companies, beginning in the first quarter of fiscal 2025, we are now including adjustments for all non-cash amortization expense related to acquisitions. Past practice included non-cash amortization and depreciation for only certain transactions.

Using the new methodology, Adjusted net income was $77.6 million, or $1.93 per diluted share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2025, compared to $103.2 million, or $2.49 per diluted share. The normalized cash tax rate of 26.0% was consistent with previously communicated expectations for fiscal 2025.

The tables included herein provide both the legacy and new presentations for reference.

Balance Sheet, Liquidity and Cash Flow

As of July 31, 2024, the Company had cash on hand of $53.2 million, total debt of $1.4 billion and $565.3 million of available liquidity under its revolving credit facilities. Net debt leverage was 2.1 times as of the end of the quarter, up from 1.5 times at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

For the first quarter of fiscal 2025, which seasonally represents the highest use of cash for the Company, cash used by operating activities was $22.9 million, compared to a $6.6 million source of cash in the prior year period. Free cash flow was a use of $31.9 million for the quarter ended July 31, 2024, compared to a use of $6.9 million for the quarter ended July 31, 2023.

Share Repurchases

During the quarter, the Company repurchased 538,078 shares of common stock for $46.2 million. As of July 31, 2024, the Company had $154.3 million of share repurchase authorization remaining.

Platform Expansion Activities, Including Subsequent Event: Purchase of R.S. Elliott Specialty Supply

During the first quarter of fiscal 2025, the Company continued the execution of its platform expansion strategy with the closing of its previously announced acquisition of Yvon Building Supply and affiliates, representing a strategic expansion to the Company’s presence in the Ontario, Canada market.

Also, after the end of the quarter, on August 26, 2024, the Company successfully acquired R.S. Elliott Specialty Supply, a leading distributor of exterior building products within the state of Florida.

Headquartered in Orlando, R.S. Elliott is a leading regional distributor of stucco, plaster, siding, EIFS and related construction supplies servicing markets across Florida from five locations in Orlando, Wildwood, Tampa, West Palm Beach and Jacksonville.

For the twelve months ended June 2024, R.S. Elliott generated net revenues of approximately $70 million with EBITDA margins that are expected to be nicely accretive to GMS and to the Company’s Complementary business.

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About GMS, Inc.

Founded in 1971, GMS operates a network of more than 300 distribution centers with extensive product offerings of Wallboard, Ceilings, Steel Framing and Complementary Products. In addition, GMS operates more than 100 tool sales, rental and service centers, providing a comprehensive selection of building products and solutions for its residential and commercial contractor customer base across the United States and Canada. The Company’s unique operating model combines the benefits of a national platform and strategy with a local go-to-market focus, enabling GMS to generate significant economies of scale while maintaining high levels of customer service.

Contact:

Carey Phelps – Investor Relations – ir@gms.com – (770) 723-3369

Source: GMS, Inc.