Through its wholly owned subsidiaries and joint ventures, Greenbrier designs, builds and markets freight railcars in North America, Europe and Brazil. It also provides freight railcar wheel services, parts, maintenance and retrofitting services in North America; owns a lease fleet of approximately 14,600 railcars that originate primarily from Greenbrier’s manufacturing operations; and offers railcar management, regulatory compliance services, and leasing services to railroads and other railcar owners in North America.
“Our market-leading position demonstrates the progress on our strategic plan to deliver strong performance, reduce cyclicality, and deliver long-term shareholder value,” Tekorius reported. “Our efforts also led to near-record EBITDA for the fiscal year. Additionally, we are near our long-term target for return on invested capital, which we initially estimated to achieve in 2026. It’s important to note that these results were achieved amid an uncertain macroeconomic backdrop.”
Following are highlights of Greenbrier’s third fiscal-quarter 2024:
- Q4 net earnings were $62 million, or $1.92 per diluted share, on revenue of $1.1 billion.
- Third best annual earnings performance – Fiscal 2024 net earnings were $160 million, or $4.96 per diluted share, on revenue of $3.5 billion.
- Second highest quarterly and annual EBITDA – Q4 and full-year EBITDA were $159 million and $451 million, or 15.1% and 12.7% of revenue, respectively.
- In the quarter, lease fleet grew by 300 units to 15,500 units, with lease fleet utilization of nearly 99%.
- Quarterly new railcar orders for 4,400 units valued at $575 million and deliveries of 7,000 units. Full year new railcar orders of 21,700 units valued at $2.8 billion and deliveries of 23,700 units.
- New railcar backlog is 26,700 units with an estimated value of $3.4 billion.
- Second-highest annual operating cash flow in Greenbrier history – Q4 and Fiscal 2024 operating cash flow reaches $192 million and $330 million, respectively.
- Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, payable on November 27, 2024, to shareholders of record as of November 6, 2024, representing Greenbrier’s 42nd consecutive quarterly dividend.
2025 Outlook
Based on current trends and production schedules, Greenbrier said it is updating guidance for fiscal 2025:
- Deliveries of 22,500-25,000 units.
- Revenue of $3.35 billion-$3.65 billion.
- Capital expenditures of approximately $110 million in Manufacturing and $150 million in Maintenance Services.
- Gross leasing investment of approximately $395 million in Leasing & Management Services.
- Proceeds from equipment sales are expected to be approximately $90 million.
“Looking ahead, we are confident that we will maintain our margin profile and deliver strong bottom-line performance in fiscal 2025. With a leading market position, stable new railcar backlog, and steadily growing recurring revenue from our leasing business, we remain focused on generating sustainable results across a range of market conditions,” Tekorius concluded.
More earnings report details can be found here.
