Q1 2025 Genie Energy Ltd Earnings Call
Speaker Change: Good morning and welcome to the Genie Energy Ltd's first quarter 2025 earnings call. In today's presentation, Genie Energy Management will discuss Genie's financial and operational results for the three-month period and it merged 31st 2025.
Speaker Change: During prepared remarks by Genie Energy's chief executive officer Michael Stein and chief financial officer Avi Goldin, all participants will be in other sonoma mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star
Speaker Change: After Avi Goldins remarks, Michael and Avi will take questions from investors.
Speaker Change: Any forward looking statements made during this conference call, either in the prepared remarks or in the Q&A session, whether general or specific in nature, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those which the company anticipates.
Speaker Change: These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, specific risks and uncertainties discussed in the reports that Genie Energy files periodically with the SEC.
Speaker Change: In their presentation or in the Q&A session, Genie Energy's management may make reference to non-GAAP measures , including adjusted EBITDA, non-GAAP net income, and non-GAAP earnings
Speaker Change: A schedule provided in the Genie Energy Earnings released, reconciles adjust the divada, non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP earnings per share to the nearest corresponding GAAP measures .
Speaker Change: The earnings release has also been filed on form HK with the SEC.
R. Lowe turned to conference, over to Michael Stein.
Thank you, operator.
Michael Stein: Our first quarter featured strong operational and financial results highlighted by robust increases in revenue, profitability, and cash generation compared to the year ago quarter.
Michael Stein: This quarter is the first quarter we have had in several years where the year-over-year comparative results for our retail energy business reflect what we consider to be normalizer results in both periods.
Michael Stein: In 2022, and to a lesser extent in 2023, our retail energy business was able to achieve exceptional margins by optimizing our commodity market positions during relatively volatile tile energy markets.
Michael Stein: As a result, year-over-year growth rates, while strong, were disadvantaged during much of 2023 and 2024.
Michael Stein: For Q1 2025, GRE is back at a reasonable year-over-year comparative baseline with margins in what we believe to be a sustainable range for both quarters.
Michael Stein: At GRE, the significant investments we made in 2024 to expand our customer base drove a year-over-year increase of over 48,000 net new meters. We ended the quarter with approximately 413,000 meters served, comprising 402,000 RCs.
Michael Stein: The meter increased in combination with a stable commodity pricing environment, enabled GRE to increase both revenue and income from operations by 18% compared to the year ago quarter.
Michael Stein: Our meter growth reflects deep penetration of our existing markets, supplemented by expansion to new states.
Michael Stein: As I mentioned last quarter, we recently began to market in California, and we expected to begin offering gas and Kentucky in the second quarter. Customer churn increase quarter was 5.5%, unchanged from the Irgo quarter, and just a 10 basis point increase from the fourth quarter last year.
Michael Stein: I credit our comprehensive customer retention program for maintaining churn at these levels. Without that focused effort, the strong growth in our customer base over the last year would likely have pressured churn upward.
Michael Stein: At Groot, we continue to advance our pipeline of utility scale development projects.
Michael Stein: The most mature project in our development pipeline, a community solar project in Lansing, New York, is on track for completion as early as the third quarter of this year. We expect it will become even die creative immediately once online.
Michael Stein: Once completed, the Lansing Project will join our operational portfolio, which continues to perform in line with our expectations of our operations.
Michael Stein: Also within GRU, our diversity, energy brokerage business continues to perform very well. A year ago, this business was even done negative, and it is now generating positive cash flow and is on track to become an increasingly important contributor to our bottom line results.
Michael Stein: Before turning the call over to Avi, I want to point out that Genie returned $3.9 million star stockholders during the first quarter through our quarterly dividend and share repurchases.
Michael Stein: At March 31st, we had $210 million cash restricted cash and marketable securities compared to $201 million at the end of 2024. With our strong balance sheet robust cash flows and with the stock at its current levels, we expect to continue to repurchase our shares in the coming quarters.
Now here is Avi.
Avi Goldin: Thank you, Michael, and thanks to everyone on the call for joining us this morning.
Avi Goldin: My remarks today cover financial results for three months and in March 31, 2025.
Avi Goldin: In my commentary on the quarterly results, I will compare the results of the first quarter of 2025 to the first quarter of 2024 to remove from consideration the seasonal factors that impact our results, particularly within our retail energy business.
Avi Goldin: The first quarter is typically characterized by relatively elevated levels of electricity and gas consumption as it includes the majority of the winter's peak heating season within our service areas.
Avi Goldin: A result were quite good, highlighted by strong top line growth and significantly improved bottom line performance.
Avi Goldin: Included review in the quarter increased 14.3 percent, or 17.1 million, to 136.8 million with a large strong performance in Genie Retail Energy.
Avi Goldin: At GRE Revenue Jump 17.8% to 132.5 million As Michael pointed out, the increase is primarily a function of the investments that we made to our customer base last year, boosted by increased per meter consumption of both electricity and natural gas during the quarter.
Avi Goldin: Electricity revenue climbed 16.4% to 104.1 million, contributing 70.6% of GRE's revenues.
Avi Goldin: The impact of that increasing consumption was partially offset by 5.7% decreasing the average revenue per kilowatt hours sold.
Avi Goldin: Revenue from the Sailed Natural Gams increased 26.8% in the first quarter to 28.4 million, reflecting increases in both therms sold and ready for therms sold.
Avi Goldin: Ackaroo, first quarter revenue decreased 40% to 4.3 million. The revenue decline was largely driven by Genie Solar and reflects the impact of our decision to pivot from the commercial projects market.
Avi Goldin: Acro-Diversity achieved another record quarter, achieving 3.9 million reps, a 55% year of a year increase.
Avi Goldin: Consolid growth profit increased 10.6% to 37.4 million. Lubbler's margin decreased 90 basis points.
to 27.3%.
Avi Goldin: The Increasing Gross Profil is driven by the expansion of Jerry's customer base, while the decreasing gross margin was driven by lower margins on electricity sales, specifically the acquisition of profitable or lower margin meters to run from this reliability and
Avi Goldin: Consolid SGNA increased 4.3% or 1 million to 23.9 million, primarily reflecting
Avi Goldin: GRV Strong Quarter Drove of 30.3% year-of-year increase in consolidating confirm operations to 12.8 million and a 22.7% increase in adjusted EBITDA to 42.4 million.
Avi Goldin: At GRE, Inc. Operations increased 18.2% to 16.8 million and adjusted either that increased 17.1% to 17.1 million, reflecting our expanded growth profit partially offset by increased
Avi Goldin: Accrued the first quarter's loss from operations increased to $900,000 from $600,000 a year of row quarter. The increase in losses per melee reflects our investment in building out our solar generation project development pipeline, partially offset by the stronger performance
Avi Goldin: which was a Justin Epidont negative year ago quarter and generated over 400,000 Justin Epidont in the first quarter of this year.
Avi Goldin: In solid net income attribute, the Genie Common Stock Holders increased 10.6 million or 40 cents per share, from 8.1 million or 30 cents per share a year earlier.
Avi Goldin: Turning out of the balance sheet. March 31, 2025, cash, cash equivalence, long and short terminated cash, which includes the cash-held bar of cash, insurance and city area, and marketable equity securities total $210.2 million, an increase of $9.2 million in the
Avi Goldin: 2 Capitals, 121.2 million. Our net current and non-current debt total $9 million, the largest coupon of which is financing for our portfolio of operational arrays that we completed last
Avi Goldin: We repurchased approximately 127,000 shares, our Class B common stop in the first quarter for 1.9 million and paid our regular courier dividends return 2 million directly to our stopholders.
Avi Goldin: To wrap up, this is the solid support of the SCROM Operational and Natural Results of CHRE. Looking ahead, both CHRE and GROOP are well positioned for the remainder of the year, and we are confirming our full-year Justice EBITDA guidance of a 40-50 million operator now back to you for Q&A.
Speaker Change: Thank you. We will now begin our question and answer session. To ask a question you may press star then one on your touch tone phone.
Speaker Change: If you're using a speaker phone, please pick up the handset before pressing the keys.
To withdraw your question, press star, then two [inaudible]
We will now pause momentarily to assemble our roster.
Speaker Change: Once again, ladies and gentlemen, if you do have any questions or comments, please indicate so now by pressing the star key followed by one.
Speaker Change: Okay, as there are no questions in the queue at this time, this will conclude our question in an answer session and conference call.