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DATE
Thursday, May 7, 2026 at 11 a.m. ET
CALL PARTICIPANTS
- President & Chief Executive Officer — Jeffrey Woosnam
- Chief Financial Officer — Richard Ambury
TAKEAWAYS
- Adjusted EBITDA -- $139 million, up $10.5 million year over year, driven by higher home heating oil and propane per gallon margins and increased volumes.
- Net Income -- $108 million, an increase of $22 million compared to the prior year period, influenced by a $21 million favorable noncash change in derivative fair value and $10.5 million higher adjusted EBITDA, offset by a $10 million rise in income tax expense.
- Home Heating Oil and Propane Volume -- 144.5 million gallons for the quarter, up 600,000 gallons (0.004%) due to colder weather and acquisitions, which offset net customer attrition.
- Product Gross Profit -- $277 million, increasing by $19 million (7%) on slightly higher home heating oil and propane volumes and improved per gallon margins.
- Operating Expenses -- Delivery, branch, and G&A expenses rose by $5.4 million, with delivery expenses up $4 million and insurance costs also increasing by $4 million, both attributed to severe weather and higher claims.
- Customer Attrition -- Net attrition remained low at 0.6% for the period.
- Weather Hedge Impact -- No current quarter benefit or expense recorded versus a $3.1 million expense in the prior year’s comparable quarter; a $5 million expense was previously recognized in the first quarter.
- Acquisition Activity -- One small heating oil acquisition closed during the quarter, with several additional opportunities under review.
- Service-Related Expenses -- Service loss increased by $3.4 million, attributed to heightened demand and costs from colder weather and snow events.
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RISKS
- Extreme weather, including periods with temperatures 25% colder than expected and over 60 inches of snow in some areas, directly increased delivery and service-related expenses and led to higher insurance claims and operational inefficiency.
SUMMARY
Management confirmed total year-to-date home heating oil and propane volume grew by 12 million gallons (5.3%) to 238 million gallons, reflecting colder conditions and completed acquisitions. Net income for the first six months reached $144 million, up $25 million, with gains primarily arising from higher adjusted EBITDA and positive derivative movement. Operating costs year-to-date climbed by over $16 million, with $1.9 million attributed to the weather hedge and $3 million to integration of acquisitions. The company noted a weather hedge of $12.5 million is in place for fiscal 2027. Installation gross profit rose by $1.5 million in the first half, while service gross loss increased by $6.1 million, largely due to increased volume and service demand from severe conditions.
- Management stated, We believe we are well positioned for the remainder of fiscal 2026 and look forward to the opportunities that summer brings to further invest in our people and business development initiatives.
- Recent acquisitions resulted in a $3 million year-to-date increase in delivery, branch, and G&A expenses, while the base business saw a $11.3 million rise, mainly from higher volumes and weather-driven costs.
- Colder-than-normal temperatures of 11% year-to-date and 4.1% below seasonal averages supported strong volume demand but added to service and delivery complexity.
INDUSTRY GLOSSARY
- Weather Hedge: A financial instrument or insurance arrangement designed to mitigate the impact of adverse weather on margins or volumes in seasonal energy businesses.
- Adjusted EBITDA: Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, adjusted for nonrecurring, noncash, or extraordinary items to measure operational performance.
Full Conference Call Transcript
Jeffrey Woosnam: Thanks, Chris, and good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss our second quarter and fiscal year-to-date results. The second quarter was, in many ways, a continuation of conditions experienced in the first. Temperatures across our operating footprint were 6.4% colder than last year and 2.8% colder than normal resulting in slightly higher volumes of products sold. However, the severe weather, including several very large snow events at times impacted our field productivity, thereby raising operating expenses. That said, we were still able to post adjusted EBITDA of $139 million, which represents a year-over-year improvement of $10.5 million. At the same time, we kept net customer attrition to 0.6% both of which are meaningful accomplishments for the company.
Lastly, we closed on one small heating oil acquisition during the quarter and have several other opportunities under various stages of review. I've often talked on this call about the hard work and dedication of our loyal employees. Never has there been a more appropriate time to reflect on their value to our organization. With the added demand brought on by periods of near record low temperatures combined with significant snowfall, our team worked tirelessly, often through very difficult conditions to provide our customers with the level of service and responsiveness they have come to expect. I simply could not be more proud and appreciative of their efforts.
We are also working to contain the impact from recent increases in wholesale product costs through the use of effective inventory controls, supply chain initiatives and active margin management. While higher prices can create certain challenges for us, the immediate impact of this current escalation has been somewhat muted by the fact that we are coming out of the heating season. Although there is still much work to be done, I'm very pleased with how Star has performed as we crossed the midpoint of the year. We believe we are well positioned for the remainder of fiscal 2026 and look forward to the opportunities that summer brings to further invest in our people and business development initiatives.
With that, I'll turn the call over to Rich to provide additional comments on the quarter's results. Rich?
Richard Ambury: Thanks, Jeff, and good morning, everyone. In analyzing our results for the 3- and 6-month periods of fiscal 2026, please keep in mind that service costs and operating expenses were impacted by extreme weather conditions, including at times temperatures that were 25% colder than expected for a 3-week period and in some areas, experienced over 60 inches of snow, which obviously negatively affected our overall operational efficiency. For the second quarter, our home heating oil and propane volume rose by 600,000 gallons or [ 0.004% ] to 144.5 million gallons as the additional volume provided from acquisitions and colder weather more than offset the impact of net customer attrition and other factors.
Temperatures for the fiscal 2026 second quarter were 6.4% colder than last year and 2.8% colder than normal. Our product gross profit increased by $19 million or 7% to $277 million due to a slight increase in home heating oil and propane volumes sold and higher home heating oil and propane per gallon margins. Colder weather conditions and numerous snowstorms increases the demand for service which led to higher service-related expenses, including greater labor and other costs, which increased our service loss by $3.4 million. Delivery, branch and G&A expenses increased by $5.4 million year-over-year.
Delivery-related expenses rose by $4 million, largely due to the extreme weather conditions while insurance expense increased by $4 million as well as claims rose due to the severe weather. During the second quarter of fiscal 2026, the company did not recognize any benefit or expense under its weather hedge versus a $3.1 million expense recorded for the 3 months ending March 31, 2025. We have previously expensed a cap of about $5 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2026 due to the cold weather.
We posted net income of $108 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2026 or $22 million more than the prior year period reflecting a $10.5 million increase in adjusted EBITDA and the impact of a noncash favorable change in the fair value of derivative instruments of $21 million more than offsetting higher income tax expense of about $10 million and certain other factors. Adjusted EBITDA rose by $10.5 million to $139 million as an increase in home heating oil and propane per gallon margins more than offset higher operating expenses I just discussed. Now turning to the results for the first half of fiscal 2026.
Our home heating oil and propane volume increased by 12 million gallons or 5.3% to 238 million gallons, again, reflecting colder temperatures and the additional volume provided from acquisitions, again, more than offsetting net customer attrition and other factors. Temperatures in Star's geographic areas of operations fiscal year-to-date were 11% colder than the prior year comparable period and 4.1% colder than normal. Our product gross profit increased by $48 million or 12% to $457 million due to an increase in the volume of home heating oil and propane sold and higher home heating oil and propane per gallon margins.
As previously mentioned, colder weather conditions and numerous snow storms in the second quarter of fiscal 2026 increased the demand for service, which led to higher service-related expenses while installation gross profit increased by $1.5 million, the service gross loss rose by $6.1 million, again due to higher expenses and an increased demand for service as well as an increase in propane tank sets. Delivery, branch and G&A expenses rose by a little over $16 million year-over-year, of which $1.9 million was attributable to our weather hedging program.
As I previously mentioned, in fiscal 2026, we recorded an expense of $5 million under our weather hedge compared to $3.1 million recorded in fiscal 2025, again, reflecting weather conditions in both periods. Recent acquisitions accounted for an increase of $3 million to delivery, branch and G&A expenses while costs associated with the base business rose by $11.3 million, reflecting a 2.7% increase in volume and the impact of the severe weather conditions on operating expenses, including insurance claims.
We posted net income of $144 million for the first 6 months of fiscal 2026 or $25 million in the prior year period as an increase in adjusted EBITDA of $27 million and the impact of a favorable change in the fair value of derivatives of $10 million, more than offset higher income tax expense of $11 million and other factors. Adjusted EBITDA rose by $27 million to $207 million due to an increase in home heating oil and propane volumes sold in the base business and increase in adjusted EBITDA from acquisitions and higher home heating oil and propane per gallon margins, which more than offset higher operating expenses.
Note that for fiscal 2027, we have put in place a $12.5 million weather hedge. And now I'll turn the call back over to Jeff.
Jeffrey Woosnam: Thanks, Rich. At this time, we're pleased to address any questions you may have. Operator, please open the phone lines for questions.
Operator: [Operator Instructions] At this point, there appear to be no callers in the queue, so I'll hand it back to Mr. Woosnam for any closing remarks.
Jeffrey Woosnam: Okay. Thank you for taking the time to join us today and your ongoing interest in Star Group. We look forward to sharing our 2026 fiscal third quarter results in August. Have a great summer.
Operator: The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may all disconnect.
