Earnings Labs

Stratus Properties Inc. (STRS)

Q1 2017 Earnings Call· Wed, May 10, 2017

$30.00

+0.23%

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Transcript

Operator

Operator

Welcome to the Stratus Properties First Quarter 2017 Conference Call. Stratus' first quarter 2017 results were released earlier this morning, and a copy of the press release for today's call is available on Stratus' website at stratusproperties.com. Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the call over to Mr. Beau Armstrong, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Stratus Properties.

Beau Armstrong

Management

Thank you, Austin. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for your interest in Stratus Properties. It is my pleasure to welcome you to Stratus Properties' inaugural quarterly earnings call. We are hosting this call because of the ongoing interest in our company and we are excited to share several things with you today. Before we begin our comments, we would like to remind everyone that today's press release and certain of our comments in the call include forward-looking statements and actual results may differ materially. I would like to refer everyone to the cautionary language included in Stratus' press release and to the risk factors described in Stratus 2016 Form 10-K and subsequent SEC filings. Today's press release and certain of our comments on the call also includes certain financial measures, such as net asset value, or NAV, adjusted EBITDA and debt to total asset value, which are not recognized under U.S. GAAP. As required by SEC Regulation G, reconciliations of these measures to match reported in Stratus consolidated financial statements are contained in the supplemental schedules of Stratus' press release, which are also available on Stratus' website at stratusproperties.com. With me this morning is Erin Pickens, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, who will provide an overview of our financial results following my remarks. Then we'll open the call for questions. This call is being recorded and a replay will be available through May 15. During the first quarter of 2017, Stratus Properties completed the sale of The Oaks at Lakeway for $114 million, resulting in a gain of $39.7 million that was deferred and will be recognized in future periods in accordance with accounting rules. We also completed $2.1 million in homesite sales, reduced debt by $91 million and declared a special cash dividend of $1 per…

Erin Pickens

Management

Thank you, Beau. Today Stratus reported a first quarter 2017 net loss attributable to common stockholders of $2.7 million, or $0.33 per share, compared with the first quarter 2016 net loss attributable to common stockholders of $1.7 million, or $0.21 per share. Stratus first quarter 2017 net loss includes a $1.6 million charge for profit participation and a $0.3 million loss on early extinguishment of debt, both related to the sale of The Oaks at Lakeway. These were partly offset by a $0.7 million gain on the sale of a bank building and 4.1 acres of adjacent undeveloped land in Barton Creek. A $39.7 million gain on the sale of The Oaks at Lakeway was required to be deferred under accounting rules, and will be reflected in future earnings, net of future master lease payments after Stratus' continuing involvement ends or substantially all of the risks and rewards of ownership have transferred to the buyer and any remaining obligation for Stratus' is support under the master leases is less than the deferred gain. Stratus closed the quarter with $27 million in cash. The company's special dividend announced in March was paid in April using $8.1 million of cash on hand. Our cash, along with the $18 million available under our revolving line of credit, remain available for operations and funding early stage development projects, prior to obtaining another financing. Our total debt of $199.9 million at quarter end is mostly direct project financing, which reflects the use of proceeds from the sale of The Oaks at Lakeway to pay off the Lakeway construction loan and balances under our Comerica Bank credit facility. Approximately 75% of our debt is fixed-rate and non-recourse, including the $147.8 million loan supported by the cash flows of our Block 21 project. Beau mentioned earlier that Stratus has invested $40 million in infrastructure in Barton Creek. Of this amount, approximately $29.5 million is eligible for reimbursement from Barton Creek MUD. As of March 31, 2017, we have received reimbursements of these costs totaling $17.8 million, including $1.6 million received in first quarter 2017. We expect to receive the remaining $11.7 million in future periods. It is important to note that, as with prior quarters, the timing of our asset sales as well as capital accretion for our real estate activities will directionally drive our earnings and cash flows throughout the year and from year-to-year. This effect is reduced by the stable income in cash flows we received from our hotel and entertainment segments, and expect from our multi-family developments going forward. This concludes my comments. Now I'll turn it back to Beau.

Beau Armstrong

Management

Thank you, Erin. To close, the continued performance of our asset base is driven by a seasoned team, our unique ownership of legacy land assets that include entitlements in Austin, Texas, and our ability to develop residential, multi-family and commercial real estate projects and sell those projects at an opportune time. By aggregating these assets, we have built a business that allows our shareholders to participate in the upside of real estate in this favorable and highly profiled community in Austin and benefit from the stable cash flows produced from our hotel and entertainment segments. We expect growth to continue as we take advantage of the multi-family trend in Austin and the important partnerships and we maintain, which will allow us to continue to expand beyond the boundaries of Austin. We appreciate you listening into our call, and we'll now open the call for a few questions.

Operator

Operator

We will now begin the question-and-answer session. [Operator Instructions]. At this time, we will pause momentarily to assemble our roster. [Operator Instructions]. Our first question comes from Fred Burtner [ph] with - a Private Investor, excuse me. Please go ahead sir.

Unidentified Analyst

Analyst

Hi Beau. Could you discuss your longer term opportunity in grocery store-anchored centers beyond Magnolia?

Beau Armstrong

Management

Thank you, Mr. Burtner [ph]. As you know, we've had a successful relationship with the HEB. They certainly have a number of developers they work with, so I would not want to somehow infer that we have any type of exclusive with them. But we are looking at other opportunities in Central Texas with them. But at this point they are really more speculative and we don't really have anything solid at this point to discuss.

Unidentified Analyst

Analyst

Thank you. I have a question on the W. Knowing how competitive the market is at this time, how are you able to increase revenue per available room?

Beau Armstrong

Management

Well, I'd have to - I guess, I would have to complement the Starwood or Marriott team. Our general manager has been here since we opened the hotel and he has a very good sense of how we compete in this community. He just does a great job. So really it's more hats off and compliments to Drew McQuade and his team. But specifically for the first quarter, our group business was up, and as you know, it's very cyclical and we have - just its business that goes from the transient to the group business. In the first quarter, we just had a good run of group business. But as you pointed out, it's very competitive. Austin continues to attract other developers, more supply. So we were very mindful of that new supply, but for the time being, we feel that we are in a pretty good position to compete.

Unidentified Analyst

Analyst

Okay. Thank you.

Beau Armstrong

Management

Thank you, sir.

Operator

Operator

At this time, I'm showing no further questions, so I would like to conclude today's Q&A, as well as the call. We thank you for attending today's presentations, and you may now disconnect your lines.