Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE:BIP) posted fourth-quarter 2018 earnings of 82 cents per unit, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 81 cents by 1.23%.
In 2018, the partnership delivered earnings of $3.11 cents per unit which represents a 5% increase over the prior year.
Better operating performance across segments, contributions from recent acquisitions and benefit from $209 million realized on the sale of investment in an electricity transmission business drove the quarterly figures. However, higher depreciation, one-time charge in the transport segment and the impact of foreign exchange hurt results.
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP Quote
Revenues
Revenues of $1,428 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $937 million by 52.4%. Revenues also improved 45.1% year over year from $984 million.
In 2018, the partnership reported revenues of $4,652 million compared with $3,535 million in 2017.
Highlights
Direct operating costs in the reported quarter were $729 million, up 82.7% from $399 million in the year-ago quarter.
Interest expenses rose 55.7% year over year to $176 million from $113 million in the prior-year quarter.
Fund flow from operations (FFO) in the reported quarter was $326 million, up from $313 million in the prior-year quarter.
Segment Details
Utilities: FFO in the segment was $138 million, down 19.7% year over year.
Transport: The segment generated FFO of $129 million, down from $139 million in the year-ago quarter.
Energy: The segment generated FFO of $90 million, up 600.7% year over year.
Data Infrastructure: The segment generated FFO of $20 million, up from $19 million in the prior-year quarter.
Corporate: This segment incurred a loss of $51 million in the quarter, narrower than a loss of $73 million in the year-ago quarter.
Financial Update
As of Dec 31, 2018, Brookfield Infrastructure’s cash and cash equivalents were $540 million compared with $374 million of Dec 31, 2017.
Cash from operating activities was $376 million at the end of three months ended in Dec 31, 2018, down from $509 million in the year-ago period.
Zacks Rank
Brookfield Infrastructure has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Other Utility Releases
NextEra Energy, Inc (NYSE:NEE) delivered fourth-quarter 2018 adjusted earnings of $1.49 per share, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.51 by 1.3%.
American Electric Power Co., Inc (NYSE:AEP) generated fourth-quarter 2018 operating earnings per share (EPS) of 72 cents, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Xcel Energy Inc (NASDAQ:XEL) posted fourth-quarter 2018 operating earnings of 42 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
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