Fleets and the alt-fuel vehicle supply chain have a number of factors against which they could assess a company such as Westport, including the performance of its products, its support network or the pace of product development and commercialization.
The company's investors, however, might judge Westport against more mundane, black-and-white criteria: the bottom line and profitability.
The latter group likely gained a greater level of comfort with the Vancouver-based natural gas vehicle, engine and system provider's direction upon the announcement that it had achieved positive adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) during the second quarter: $1 million versus an adjusted EBITDA loss of $8.9 million in the second quarter of 2013.
‘In October 2013, we outlined our path to profitability,’ says Westport CEO David Demers. ‘We said that our three operating business units combined – Applied Technologies, On-Road Systems and Off-Road Systems – [were] going to be positive adjusted EBITDA by the end of 2014. The second quarter of 2014 marked a significant milestone for Westport, as we achieved this goal by recording a $1 million positive adjusted EBITDA from those operating business units.’
Company revenue – excluding revenue from joint ventures such as Cummins Westport Inc. – for the second quarter was $40 million, compared to $34.9 million during the second quarter of 2013.
Of course, myriad elements affect a corporation's overall financial performance – ones that are largely beyond the scope of what the average alt-fuels industry stakeholder desires to absorb. (But if you are interested in all those details, click here.)
It is notable, however, that revenue from Westport's ‘On-Road Systems’ business segment increased more than 50% year over year, from $7.4 million in Q2 2013 to $11.6 million in Q2 2014. Westport attributes that revenue growth to sales of products such as the Westport WiNG Power System (light-duty natural gas conversion systems for Ford trucks) and shipments of iCE PACK liquefied natural gas (LNG) tank systems for heavy-duty over-the-road trucks.
Moreover, the Cummins Westport joint venture is doing well. Overall natural gas engine shipments totaled 2,479 units during the second quarter and 4,959 units for the six months ended June 30, 2014.
‘The ISX12 G has been performing to expectations and has been well-received,’ according to the company. ‘Demand for the ISX12 G continues to be strong, as a number of fleets have recently announced their plans to integrate natural gas trucks into their fleet mix.’
‘Despite the macroeconomic headwinds and geopolitical uncertainties, we are reiterating revenue growth to be between $175 million and $185 million for the full year in 2014 based on increased product shipments, particularly in our On-Road Systems business,’ Demers noted.
For more information, see Westport's release.Â
