Genie Energy Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022 Results

Fourth Quarter Operating Income Increased 167% Year-Over-Year

Record Full-Year Operating Income of $77.8 million, Adjusted EBITDA¹ of $83.2 million and EPS of $3.26

NEWARK, N.J., March 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Genie Energy, Ltd. (NYSE: GNE, GNEPRA), a leading retail energy and renewable energy solutions provider, today announced results for its fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2022.

"We completed a record year for gross margin, profits and Adjusted EBITDA on a high note," said Michael Stein, chief executive officer.

"Genie Retail Energy (GRE) capped off a very strong year with robust fourth quarter increases in revenue, gross margin, operating income and Adjusted EBITDA compared to a year ago. We strategically curtailed customer acquisition during a volatile wholesale pricing period allowing us to generate strong financial results. Now that volatility has diminished, we are positioned to return to customer growth. GRE's strong performance this year again demonstrated our ability to manage this business profitably through a wide range of market conditions.

"At Genie Renewables (GREW), we generated strong revenue growth while pursuing our vertically-integrated solar development strategy. We were also excited to receive notice to proceed (NTP) for our first company-owned community solar project and complete a Coordinated Electric Standard Interconnection Review (CESIR) for a second project – a key milestone on the path to NTP.

"Finally, we continued to pay our quarterly dividends while taking steps to simplify our capital structure by redeeming $8.4 million of preferred stock during the quarter."

Fourth Quarter 2022 Highlights (versus 4Q21 unless otherwise noted; excludes discontinued operations of Genie Retail Energy International (GREI) for all periods)

• Revenue increased 17.6% to $81.4 million from $69.2 million;
• Gross profit increased 46.3% to $34.7 million from $23.7 million, and gross margin increased to 42.7% from 34.3%, driven by strength at GRE;
• Operating income increased 166.5% to $15.5 million from $5.8 million;
• Adjusted EBITDA increased 151.2% to $18.4 million from $7.3 million;
• GRE generated operating income and Adjusted EBITDA of $20.6 million and $20.9 million, compared to $8.3 million and $8.8 million, respectively;
• Net income attributable to GNE common stockholders was $16.2 million and diluted income per share (EPS) $0.61;
• Paid a $0.075 quarterly dividend for class A and B common stockholders on March 1, 2023;
• Redeemed $8.4 million of preferred stock.

Full Year 2022 Highlights (versus 2021 unless otherwise noted; excludes discontinued operations of GREI for all periods)

• Revenue decreased 2.4% to $315.5 million from $323.3 million;
• Gross profit increased 68.9% to $154.8 million from $91.6 million, and gross margin increased to 49.1% from 28.3%;
• Operating income increased to $77.8 million from $24.1 million;
• Adjusted EBITDA increased to $83.2 million from $27.8 million;
• GRE generated operating income and Adjusted EBITDA of $92.6 million and $93.8 million, compared to $34.7 million and $36.0 million, respectively;
• Net income attributable to GNE common stockholders was $85.9 million and diluted income per share (EPS) $3.26;
• Repurchased 639,393 shares of GNE Common Stock and redeemed $11.4 million of preferred stock;
• Acquired site rights to 64 MWs of potential solar generation.

Segment Highlights
Genie Retail Energy (GRE)
GRE delivered record fourth quarter gross profit, income from operations, and Adjusted EBITDA, highlighted by strong margins in its retail book. As in prior quarters during 2022, GRE moderated customer acquisition efforts to maximize the value of its portfolio. 

Sequentially, RCEs and meters served increased by 11,000 and 5,000 to 262,000 and 275,000, respectively, as of December 31, 2022. Average monthly churn increased to 5.5% sequentially from 4.7% in the third quarter of 2022.

Genie Renewables (GREW)
GREW's revenue increased significantly in the fourth quarter as it continued building solar projects and providing consultative energy services for large commercial customers. However, margins trended lower year over year primarily due to the timing of certain payments, which are usually included in the cost of goods sold and recognized before revenue.

GREW also made progress towards constructing its first owned and operated projects during the fourth quarter.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Highlights (for the year ended December 31, 2022)
Genie Energy reported $277.6 million in total assets. Liabilities totaled $104.0 million, and working capital (current assets less current liabilities) totaled $128.5 million. Non-current liabilities were $4.8 million.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $80.7 million compared to $68.4 million a year ago.

Strategic Update and Commentary
Stein commented, "In our retail business, we currently see opportunities for retail customer acquisitions with attractive paybacks, and we expect to build our RCE and customer counts during the first quarter. 

"Our solar strategy continues to progress, both in terms of acquiring site rights to new projects and moving existing projects toward operations. We currently expect to complete construction on a few projects in 2023 while beginning construction and/or reaching milestones preceding construction on several others. We have a large pipeline of projects in negotiations, in due diligence, and under review, and we are optimistic that we will continue to increase both our number of projects and aggregate MWs."

Earnings Announcement and Supplemental Information
At 8:30 AM Eastern today, Genie's management will host a conference call to discuss financial and operational results, business outlook, and strategy. The call will begin with management's remarks, followed by Q&A with investors.

To participate in the conference call, dial 1-888-506-0062 (toll-free from the U.S.) or 1-973-528-0011 (international) and provide the following participant access code: 139380.

Approximately three hours after the call, a call replay will be accessible by dialing 1-877-481-4010 (toll-free from the U.S.) or 1-919-882-2331 (international) and providing the replay passcode: 47769. The replay will remain available through March 27, 2023. A recording of the call also will be available for playback on the "Investors" section of the Genie Energy website.

About Genie Energy Ltd.
Genie Energy Ltd., (NYSE: GNE, GNEPRA) is a retail energy and renewable energy solutions provider. The Genie Retail Energy division supplies electricity, including electricity from renewable resources, and natural gas to residential and small business customers in the United States. The Genie Renewables division is a vertically-integrated provider of commercial, community, and utility-scale solar energy solutions. For more information, visit Genie.com.

In this press release, all statements that are not purely about historical facts, including, but not limited to, those in which we use the words "believe," "anticipate," "expect," "plan," "intend," "estimate, "target" and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. While these forward-looking statements represent our current judgment of what may happen in the future, actual results may differ materially from the results expressed or implied by these statements due to numerous important factors, including, but not limited to, those described in our most recent report on SEC Form 10-K (under the headings "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations"), which may be revised or supplemented in subsequent reports on SEC Forms 10-Q and 8-K. We are under no obligation, and expressly disclaim any obligation, to update the forward-looking statements in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measure for the Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022

In addition to disclosing financial results that are determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (GAAP), Genie Energy disclosed Adjusted EBITDA on a consolidated basis and for GRE. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure.

Generally, a non-GAAP financial measure is a numerical measure of a company's performance, financial position, or cash flows that either excludes or includes amounts that are not normally excluded or included in the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.

Genie's measure of consolidated Adjusted EBITDA starts with net income and adds back interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, stock-based compensation and impairment of assets and subtracts out equity in the net loss of equity method investees, net. Genie's measure of segment-level Adjusted EBITDA starts with income (loss) from operations and adds back depreciation, amortization, and stock-based compensation and subtracts out impairment of assets and equity in the net loss of equity method investees, net.

Adjusted EBITDA should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, or superior to, revenue, gross profit, income from operations, cash flow from operating activities, net income, basic and diluted earnings per share or other measures of liquidity and financial performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. In addition, Genie's measurement of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies.

Management believes that Genie's measure of Adjusted EBITDA provides useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain expenses that may not be indicative of Genie's or GRE's core operating results. Management uses Adjusted EBITDA, among other measures, as a relevant indicator of core operational strengths in its financial and operational decision-making.

Management also uses Adjusted EBITDA to evaluate operating performance in relation to Genie's competitors. Disclosure of this non-GAAP financial measure may be useful to investors in evaluating performance and allows for greater transparency to the underlying supplemental information used by management in its financial and operational decision-making. In addition, Genie Energy has historically reported Adjusted EBITDA and believes it is commonly used by readers of financial information in assessing performance. Therefore, the inclusion of comparative numbers provides consistency in financial reporting at this time.

Management refers to Adjusted EBITDA as well as the GAAP measures revenue, gross profit, and income (loss) from operations, as well as net income (loss), on a consolidated level to facilitate internal and external comparisons to Genie's historical operating results, in making operating decisions, for budget and planning purposes, and to form the basis upon which management is compensated.

Although depreciation and amortization are considered operating costs under GAAP, they primarily represent the non-cash current period allocation of costs associated with long-lived assets acquired or constructed in prior periods. Genie's operating results exclusive of depreciation and amortization are therefore useful indicators of its current performance.

Stock-based compensation recognized by Genie Energy and other companies may not be comparable because of the various valuation methodologies, subjective assumptions and the variety of types of awards that are permitted under GAAP. Stock-based compensation is excluded from Genie's calculation of Adjusted EBITDA because management believes this allows investors to make more meaningful comparisons of the operating results of Genie's core business with the results of other companies. However, stock-based compensation will continue to be a significant expense for Genie Energy for the foreseeable future and an important part of employees' compensation that impacts their performance.

Impairment of goodwill is a component of (loss) income from operations that is excluded from the calculation of Adjusted EBITDA. The impairment of goodwill is primarily dictated by events and circumstances outside the control of management that trigger an impairment analysis. While there may be similar charges in other periods, the nature and magnitude of these charges can fluctuate markedly and do not reflect the performance of Genie's continuing operations.

Following are the reconciliations of Adjusted EBITDA on a consolidated basis to its most directly comparable GAAP measure. Adjusted EBITDA is reconciled to net income for Genie Energy on a consolidated basis and for GRE.

SOURCE Genie Energy Ltd.