Republic Services, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results; Company Provides 2016 Full Year Guidance

PHOENIX, Feb. 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE: RSG) today reported net income of $172.3 million, or $0.49 per diluted share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2015, versus $50.3 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, for the comparable 2014 period.  Excluding certain benefits and expenses, on an adjusted basis, net income for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2015, was $175.0 million, or $0.50 per diluted share, versus $178.5 million, or $0.50 per diluted share, for the comparable 2014 period.

For the year ended Dec. 31, 2015, net income was $749.9 million, or $2.13 per diluted share, versus $547.6 million, or $1.53 per diluted share, for the comparable 2014 period. On an adjusted basis, net income for the year ended Dec. 31, 2015, was $722.3 million, or $2.06 per diluted share, versus $700.6 million, or $1.96 per diluted share, for the comparable 2014 period.

"I am pleased to report another year of profitable growth. We finished the year strong and delivered results that exceeded our EPS and free cash flow guidance," said Donald W. Slager, president and chief executive officer. "Our performance reflects the positive contribution our multi-year initiatives are having on the business and the successful execution of our strategy. During the course of 2015, the business generated consistent earnings and free cash flow growth while increasing cash returns to shareholders. Importantly, we were able to achieve this while maintaining our strong capital structure."

Fourth Quarter and Full Year Financial Highlights:

• Fourth quarter adjusted diluted EPS was $0.50 per share.
• Full year adjusted diluted EPS was $2.06 and adjusted free cash flow was $813 million; both exceeded our full year guidance primarily due to tax extenders that were signed into law at the end of the year.
• Revenue growth during the fourth quarter from average yield was 2.2 percent and volumes increased 0.9 percent. This continues to reflect our ability to grow price and volume simultaneously.
• Fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA margin was 27.2 percent and full year margin was 28.1 percent. Full year margin improvement of 10 basis points reflects expansion in our solid waste business primarily from lower fuel costs and pricing in excess of cost inflation, partially offset by lower recycling commodity prices and the impact of recent acquisitions.
• Delivered total shareholder return of 12.4 percent during 2015, which exceeded the S&P 500 average by over 8 times.
• Returned $808 million total cash to our shareholders during 2015 through dividends and share repurchases, which represents a cash yield of approximately 5.6 percent.

Fourth Quarter and Full Year Operational Highlights:

• During the fourth quarter we invested $52 million in tuck-in acquisitions, and $193 million for the full year. The transactions completed in 2015 represent annual revenue of approximately $143 million at a post-synergy EBITDA multiple of 4.3 times.
• During 2015 we advanced our revenue enhancing initiatives that are focused on creating a better customer experience and further differentiating our service offerings. For example:
  • We now have over 1.2 million customers active and enrolled in our MyResource^TM customer portal and mobile app. These tools significantly enhance customer interaction and connectivity;
  • We launched click-to-buy capabilities in approximately 50% of our markets with residential subscription business. In these markets, click-to-buy represents approximately 15% of all new subscription sales;
  • We fully implemented our Capture cloud-based pricing tool, which is integrated with our CRM software;
  • We trained our sales force on Priority Based Selling, which is designed to identify and attract customers that value our higher quality service offerings; and
  • We have over 500 contracts with approximately $250 million in annual revenue that now use a waste-related index for the annual price adjustment.
• We continued to make progress on our fleet-based initiatives designed to improve productivity and lower costs. Currently:
  • 16 percent of our fleet operates on natural gas;
  • 72 percent of our residential fleet is automated; and
  • 78 percent of our fleet is certified under our standardized maintenance program.

Fiscal Year 2016 Guidance

Republic's guidance is based on current economic conditions and does not assume any significant changes in the overall economy in 2016. Please refer to the Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements section of this document.

Specific guidance is as follows:

• Adjusted Free Cash Flow:  Republic expects adjusted free cash flow to be $820 million to $840 million. Detail relating to the computation of adjusted free cash flow is contained in the Reconciliation of 2016 Financial Guidance section of this document.
• Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share:  The Company expects adjusted diluted earnings per share to be in the range of $2.13 to $2.17. Detail relating to the computation of adjusted diluted earnings per share is contained in the Reconciliation of 2016 Financial Guidance section of this document.
• Revenue:  Republic expects an increase in revenue of 2.5 to 3.0 percent comprised of the following:

• Property and Equipment:  The Company anticipates receiving $900 million of property and equipment, net of proceeds from sales of property and equipment.
• Margin:  Republic expects EBITDA margin to expand by 40 basis points to approximately 28.5 percent.
• Taxes:  The Company expects an effective tax rate of approximately 39.5 percent. The Company expects cash taxes to equal the tax provision.
• Cash Utilization:  Republic expects to invest approximately $100 million in tuck-in acquisitions. Additionally, the Company expects to return $820 million total cash to shareholders, through $420 million of dividends and $400 million in share repurchases.

Mr. Slager commented, "We remain focused on executing our strategy of profitable growth through differentiation and expect our positive momentum to continue into 2016. We will continue to advance our strategic initiatives and create value for our stakeholders by delivering the highest level of customer service, achieving operational excellence, and creating the Republic Way."

Republic Declares Quarterly Dividend

Republic also announced that its Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share for stockholders of record on April 1, 2016. The dividend will be paid on April 15, 2016.

About Republic Services

Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE: RSG) is an industry leader in U.S. recycling and non-hazardous solid waste. Through its subsidiaries, Republic's collection companies, recycling centers, transfer stations and landfills focus on providing effective solutions to make proper waste disposal effortless for their commercial, industrial, municipal, residential and oilfield customers. We'll handle it from here.^TM_, the brand's tagline, lets customers know they can count on Republic to provide a superior experience while fostering a sustainable Blue Planet^TM for future generations to enjoy a cleaner, safer and healthier world.

For more information, visit the Republic Services website at RepublicServices.com. "Like" Republic on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RepublicServices and follow on Twitter @RepublicService.

You should read the following information in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto appearing in our Annual Report on Form 10-K as of and for the year ended December 31, 2015 (when filed). All amounts below are in millions and as a percentage of our revenue, except per share data.

REVENUE

The following table reflects our total revenue by line of business for the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014:

The following table reflects changes in components of our revenue, as a percentage of total revenue, for the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014:

Average yield is defined as revenue growth from the change in average price per unit of service, expressed as a percentage.  Core price is defined as price increases to our customers and fees, excluding fuel recovery, net of price decreases to retain customers.  We also measure changes in average yield and core price as a percentage of related-business revenue, defined as total revenue excluding recycled commodities and fuel recovery fees, to determine the effectiveness of our pricing strategies.  Average yield as a percentage of related-business revenue was 2.4% and 2.6% for the three months and year ended December 31, 2015, respectively, and 1.8% and 1.5% for the same periods in 2014, respectively.  Core price as a percentage of related-business revenue was 3.7% and 4.0% for the three months and year ended December 31, 2015, respectively, and 3.5% and 3.4% for the same periods in 2014, respectively.

COST OF OPERATIONS

The following table summarizes the major components of our cost of operations for the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014:

These cost categories may change from time to time and may not be comparable to similarly titled categories used by other companies. As such, you should take care when comparing our cost of operations by cost component to that of other companies.

SELLING, GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES

The following table provides the components of our selling, general and administrative expenses for the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014:

These cost categories may change from time to time and may not be comparable to similarly titled categories used by other companies. As such, you should take care when comparing our selling, general and administrative expenses by cost component to those of other companies.

RECONCILIATION OF CERTAIN NON-GAAP MEASURES

EBITDA

The following table calculates EBITDA, which is not a measure determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP), for the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014:

We believe that presenting EBITDA is useful to investors because it provides important information concerning our operating performance exclusive of certain non-cash and other costs. EBITDA demonstrates our ability to execute our financial strategy, which includes reinvesting in existing capital assets to ensure a high level of customer service, investing in capital assets to facilitate growth in our customer base and services provided, maintaining our investment grade credit ratings and minimizing debt, paying cash dividends, repurchasing our common stock, and maintaining and improving our market position through business optimization. This measure has limitations.  Although depreciation, depletion, amortization and accretion are considered operating costs in accordance with U.S. GAAP, they represent the allocation of non-cash costs generally associated with long-lived assets acquired or constructed in prior years. Our definition of EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies.

Adjusted Earnings

Reported diluted earnings per share were $0.49 and $2.13 for the three months and year ended December 31, 2015 versus $0.14 and $1.53 for the comparable 2014 periods.  During the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, we recorded a number of charges, other expenses and benefits that impacted our EBITDA, pre-tax income, net income attributable to Republic Services, Inc. (net income – Republic) and diluted earnings per share.  These items primarily consist of the following:

We believe that presenting adjusted EBITDA, adjusted pre-tax income, adjusted net income - Republic, and adjusted diluted earnings per share, which are not measures determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP, provides an understanding of operational activities before the financial impact of certain items. We use these measures, and believe investors will find them helpful, in understanding the ongoing performance of our operations separate from items that have a disproportionate impact on our results for a particular period. We have incurred comparable charges and costs and have recorded similar recoveries in prior periods, and similar types of adjustments can reasonably be expected to be recorded in future periods. In the case of the Bridgeton remediation charges and insurance recovery, we are adjusting such amounts due to their significant effect on our operating results; however, in the ordinary course of our business, we often incur remediation charges and recoveries that we do not adjust from our operating results. Our definition of adjusted EBITDA, adjusted pre-tax income, adjusted net income - Republic, and adjusted diluted earnings per share may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies.

Adjusted Free Cash Flow

The following table calculates our adjusted free cash flow, which is not a measure determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP, for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014:

We believe that presenting adjusted free cash flow provides useful information regarding our recurring cash provided by operating activities after certain payments. It also demonstrates our ability to execute our financial strategy and is a key metric we use to determine compensation. The presentation of adjusted free cash flow has material limitations. Adjusted free cash flow does not represent our cash flow available for discretionary payments because it excludes certain payments that are required or to which we have committed, such as debt service requirements and dividend payments. Our definition of adjusted free cash flow may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies.

Purchases of property and equipment as reflected on our consolidated statements of cash flows and the adjusted free cash flow presented above represent amounts paid during the period for such expenditures. A reconciliation of property and equipment reflected on our consolidated statements of cash flows to property and equipment received during the period follows for the three months and years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014: