Ferrellgas ends quarter with $8.43 million cash, $1.05 billion debt

By Lisa Kerner

Charlotte, N.C., Oct. 1 - Ferrellgas Partners LP's previously announced cost savings goal of $20 million will likely be surpassed by the end of fiscal 2013, chief executive officer Steve Wambold said in the company's fiscal fourth-quarter and year-end 2012 earnings release.

The company ended the fiscal quarter and year on July 31 with cash and cash equivalents of $8.43 million, compared with $7.44 million at July 31, 2011, and long-term debt of about $1.05 billion, compared with about the same amount at the end of July 2011.

Despite warmer-than-usual temperatures, gross profit for the quarter rose 3% to a near-record $130 million. Gross profit for the year was down 7% at $641.9 million on lesser sales volumes and margins, the company said.

The partnership's adjusted EBITDA for the period grew 78% to a record $18.1 million from $10.1 million in the year-earlier quarter. For the full year, adjusted EBITDA fell to $193 million from $227.6 million.

Fourth-quarter revenues fell to $341.8 million from $449.7 million a year earlier due primarily to "sharply lower" wholesale propane costs.

Total 2012 revenues were $2.3 billion, compared with $2.4 billion for fiscal 2011.

General and administrative expense for the quarter declined about 35% to $8.4 million from $12.9 million during the prior-year quarter.

For the full-year 2012, general and administrative expense decreased 29% to $37.1 million, which included a $10 million litigation reserve recorded in the prior-year quarter.

Operating expenses remained flat at $100 million on slightly increased sales for the quarter and were down 2% for the year at $399 million.

The fourth-quarter seasonal net loss improved to $35.9 million, or $0.45 per common unit, from $41.3 million, or $0.53 per common unit, in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Ferrellgas reported a net loss for the year of $10.9 million, or $0.14 per unit, an improvement over the $43.8 million, or $0.60 per unit, reported for 2011.

Ferrellgas plans to continue to gain market share through organic growth, Wambold said, while acquisition opportunities seem to be "heating up after a lull."

Ferrellgas strengthened its presence in California with the acquisition of Capitol City Propane in Sacramento in September.

Overland Park, Kan.-based Ferrellgas distributes and sells propane and related equipment.

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