In the fourth quarter, adjusted net income was R$107.2 million, up by 27.5% against the same period in 2021

Kepler Weber (KEPL3) closed 2022 with record net revenues of R$1.8 billion. Compared to the previous year, there was an increase of 48.1%, against R$1.2 billion in 2021, consolidating “a year of consistent performance for the company,” as highlighted in an excerpt from the management’s message to the Market.

In the fourth quarter of 2022, net revenues were 20.4% higher than in the last quarter of 2021, growing from R$416.9 million to R$502 million, the highest level in a fourth quarter in history. “In addition to the substantial increase in revenues, we obtained exuberant operating margins, which allowed us to maintain the return on invested capital at a very attractive level,” says the document.

Adjusted EBITDA in the quarter increased by 32.2%, from R$118.5 million to R$156.7 million. In 2022, adjusted EBITDA amounted to R$568.2 million against R$241.2 million in the previous year, a growth of 135.6%. Adjusted net income totaled R$107.2 million in the quarter, or 27.5% higher than R$84.1 million in the same period of 2021. In the year, adjusted net income was R$386.2 million, 141.5% higher than that recorded in 2021, when the company reported R$159.9 million. The annual adjusted net margin was 21.3%, or 8.2 percentage points higher than the previous year.

“The good results in this quarter are a consequence of excellence in project management and the commitment of the entire organization in the search for advances in operational efficiency and commercial excellence, which allowed capturing the opportunities presented, and taking advantage of the excellent moment of the agribusiness sector and the large demand for our products and services in all regions where we operate.”

In the message to the Market, the company also highlights the “strategic moves” to expand business opportunities, and mentions the launch of the Fund for Investment in Agro-industrial Productive Chains (“Fiagro”), which was structured through a partnership between BTG Asset and BNDES. In total, the fund provides R$300 million to finance both Kepler Weber equipment and the client’s infrastructure, with a ten-year payment term.

Business Areas

Post-harvest accounted for 66.5% of revenues in the fourth quarter, totaling R$333.8 million, a 4.4% growth compared to the same period in 2021. According to Kepler Weber, the increase in sales, especially in states such as Goiás, Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí and Mato Grosso, was due to the “portfolio built throughout the year, through assertive movements to access the market.” The company mentions the opening of two new Distribution Centers in the north of the country, “a competitive differential in the sale of post-harvest projects in this region, since customers who are investing know that they will be well assisted in relation to parts and services during harvest periods.”

Compared to the third quarter of 2022, there was a 13.8% reduction “due to the seasonal effect of segment purchases.” Despite this, the balance brings new deals closed in the quarter, including four construction works for farmers, adding up to R$59.5 million, and another two projects for cereal industries, worth R$24.3 million.

Revenues from international business reached R$45.2 million in the fourth quarter, up by 12.7% compared to the same quarter of 2021. In the year, this business area reached R$170.6 million, up by 34.8% compared to the previous year.

“The highlights were the works in South America, and sales made to countries in Southeast Asia, such as Indonesia, which contributed significantly to the accumulated result for 2022,” says the report.

New sales closed in the last quarter of 2022 should boost revenues between January and March of this year. Kepler Weber mentions a R$12.7 million project sold to a cereal producer in Latin America.

Ports and Terminal recorded a 614.3% growth in net revenues, from R$4.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2021 to R$30 million in the last quarter. In the year, this business area earned R$49.6 million, a growth of 183.4%.

“The large volume of billings in the segment was concentrated in 4Q22, due to large projects in the Port of Santos, and other large terminals delivered in this period,” according to the balance sheet, which also informs about the new deals closed in the end of last year, also in Santos, totaling R$9.6 million, which will be accounted for in the second quarter.

The Agroindustries, business area, created in 2022, reached net revenues of R$26.5 million in the quarter, or R$178.5 million in the year. For the period, Kepler Weber highlights the works carried out for a traditional client that operates in the states of Mato Grosso, Rondônia and Roraima. “Kepler’s great differential was to meet the demand of the six works simultaneously, in a short delivery period.”

The balance informs the Market about the delivery of a large project for the corn ethanol industry, in Dourados (State of Mato Grosso do Sul). Also, sales made in the last quarter will be invoiced in the coming months. “Among them, we highlight the expansion of a soybean crushing unit for oil production, located in Goiás, which represents a total of R$21 million.”

With revenues of R$66.5 million in the last quarter, Replacement and Services business grew 25.5% compared to the same period in 2021, when it recorded R$53 million. Over the past year, when this business earned R$211.9 million (+24.7%), the company’s strategy allowed it to carry out renovation and modernization projects for existing processing and storage units.

Kepler Weber highlights the “consolidation of LEAN implementation in the segment,” qualification of the technical and sales team, creation of sales channels, such as exclusive services for key accounts, and entry into marketplaces – with sales already closed in the last quarter. The company also mentions the creation of the “lead qualification cell, with the objective of attracting new customers and facilitating the purchase experience.”

The report highlights an increase in the number of technical evaluations and training actions, which generated new business, such as the sale of Seletron optical sorters in different regions of the country.

Actions

According to Kepler Weber, the company’s shares appreciated by 62% in December, compared to the same month in 2021. “In the same period, the Ibovespa index appreciated by 5% and the Small Caps index decreased by 13%,” says the company, which points out to a 43% increase in the average daily liquidity, from R$9.8 million in December 2021 to R$14 million in financial volume in December last year.