Pls comment on North American Construction Group quarterly earning report and this company going forward, would you be comfortable owning this stock.
Thank you.
In Q4 NOA reported EPS of 87c (down from $1.10 in the year prior) missing analysts expectations of $1.00. Revenue was $326.3M, increasing by nearly 40% from the year prior and beating estimates of $311.5M. NOA guidance for 2024 included EPS of $4.25 to $4.75 on combined revenue of $1.5B to CA$1.7B. Both of these measure were within what analysts expected. The company attributed the decline in profit to increased interest expense, increased general and administrative expenses from one-time acquisition costs, and lower equity earnings from its joint ventures. The MacKellar Group acquisition added $122.5M of revenue at the beginning of the quarter. NOA did see gross profit rise in the quarter so it appears the earnings miss and decline was mainly driven by acquisition costs. We think this was a solid quarter for NOA, and the MacKellar Group acqusition has already started contributing positively. We would be comforable owning NOA and think that at current valuation levels of 7x forward earnings, it is quite attractive.