Garrett Motion Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Financial Results

Garrett Motion Inc. (NYSE: GTX), a cutting-edge technology provider that enables vehicles to become safer, more connected, efficient and environmentally friendly, today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2019.

“Our fourth quarter and full year 2019 results reflect continued outperformance over global auto production,” said Olivier Rabiller, Garrett President and CEO. “In 2019, our net sales outperformed the overall market by approximately 600 basis points during a time when we accelerated the rebalancing of our portfolio. Net sales from light vehicle Gasoline products exceeded Diesel for the full year as gasoline volumes surged during the fourth quarter, resulting in a 6.2% increase in Q4 net sales at constant currency. We also maintained our focus on strengthening the company’s balance sheet by utilizing our solid cash flow to reduce net debt by $176 million for the year and $292 million since our Spin-Off.”

“With significant financial flexibility combined with the industry’s broadest portfolio for LV, commercial vehicle, hybrid, and fuel cell products, we are well positioned to build upon the progress we achieved during our first full year as an independent company. Although the near-term macro environment remains volatile, particularly given the rapidly evolving outbreak of the coronavirus, we continue to produce strong customer win rates with a robust schedule of new product launches. We also expect the growth in our E-Boosting solutions for hybrid vehicles to outpace global hybrid production by 2023 and we continue to expand the production pipeline for our innovative connected offerings, including cybersecurity. By meeting the needs of an evolving market through our unique capabilities in the mechanical, electrical, and software domains, we intend to drive future performance and create long-term value for shareholders.”

Results of Operations

Net sales for the fourth quarter of 2019 were $830 million compared to $799 million in the fourth quarter of 2018, an increase of 3.9%. Net sales at constant currency increased 6.2%. The performance for the quarter was primarily driven by an increase in reported net sales for light vehicles OEM products of $48 million (despite an unfavorable impact of $15 million due to foreign currency translation). Higher gasoline volumes stemming from increased turbocharger penetration in gasoline engines and new product launches were partially offset by lower diesel volumes. During the fourth quarter of 2019, reported net sales for commercial vehicle OEM products decreased $6 million (including an unfavorable impact of $1 million due to foreign currency translation) and aftermarket products and others declined $11 million (including an unfavorable impact of $2 million due to foreign currency translation).

For the year ended December 31, 2019, reported net sales totaled $3,248 million versus $3,375 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. Net sales at constant currency increased 0.2% for 2019.

Cost of goods sold for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $669 million versus $627 million in the fourth quarter of 2018 primarily due to higher net sales. Research and development expenses in the quarter increased to $37 million from $32 million in Q4 2018.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, cost of goods sold was $2,537 million, compared to $2,599 million for the full year 2018. Research and development expenses were $129 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 versus $128 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2018.

Gross profit percentage for the fourth quarter of 2019 declined to 19.4% from 21.5% in the fourth quarter of 2018 primarily due to the unfavorable impacts from product mix and pricing, partially offset by productivity gains. For the year ended December 31, 2019, gross profit percentage was 21.9% compared to 23.0% for the year ended December 31, 2018.

Selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses for the fourth quarter of 2019 totaled $63 million and were flat compared to the fourth quarter of 2018. As a percentage of net sales, SG&A for the quarter decreased to 7.6% versus 7.9% in the fourth quarter of 2018.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, SG&A totaled $249 million and were flat compared to the full year 2018. As a percentage of net sales, SG&A increased to 7.7% from 7.4% for the year ended December 31, 2018, primarily due to lower reported net sales, an increase in severance-related expense, and costs arising from the Spin-Off from Honeywell on October 1, 2018.

Other expenses – net for the fourth quarter of 2019 was a benefit of $14 million, compared to a benefit of $12 million in the fourth quarter of 2018. During the fourth quarter of 2019, the company recognized a $36 million benefit related to Honeywell indemnity obligation expenses, arising from the recognition of certain insurance gains and a reduction in the estimate of Honeywell’s future unasserted asbestos claims, net of legal fees. During the fourth quarter of 2018, the company recognized a $16 million benefit related to a reduction in the estimate of Honeywell’s future unasserted asbestos claims, net of legal fees, in connection with its Indemnification and Reimbursement Agreement with Honeywell.

Other expenses – net for the year ended December 31, 2019 totaled $40 million versus $120 million for the full year 2018.

Interest expense for both the fourth quarter of 2019 and fourth quarter of 2018 was $16 million. For the year ended December 31, 2019, interest expense totaled $68 million versus $19 million for the full year 2018. Results for the first nine months of 2018 excluded any interest expense related to the debt raised at the time of the Spin-Off from Honeywell.

Net income for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $136 million, or $1.79 per diluted share, compared to net income of $69 million, or $0.92 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2018.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, net income totaled $313 million, or $4.12 per diluted share, versus $1,206 million, or $16.21 per diluted share, for the full year 2018. Net income for the year ended December 31, 2018 included a tax benefit from an internal restructuring of Garrett’s business in advance of the Spin-Off that resulted in an $879 million reduction to withholding taxes on undistributed foreign earnings recorded during the year ended December 31, 2018.

Adjusted net income, which excludes special tax matters, Honeywell indemnity obligation expenses, and litigation fees, for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $62 million, or $0.82 per diluted share, compared to adjusted net income of $53 million, or $0.70 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2018.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, adjusted net income totaled $293 million, or $3.86 per diluted share, versus $399 million, or $5.36 per diluted share, for the full year 2018. Adjusted net income for the full year 2018 includes annualized interest expenses of $42 million.

Expenditures for property, plant and equipment (capital expenditures) for the fourth quarter of 2019 totaled $28 million, or 3.4% of net sales, compared to $29 million, or 3.6% of net sales, in the fourth quarter of 2018.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, capital expenditures were $102 million, or 3.1% of net sales, compared to $95 million, or 2.8% of net sales, for the year ended December 31, 2018.

Additional Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $137 million versus $139 million for the same period in 2018. The Adjusted EBITDA margin decreased to 16.5% in the quarter from 17.4% in the fourth quarter of 2018 primarily due to an unfavorable product mix partially offset by productivity and volumes. Adjusted free cash flow, which excludes Indemnity related payments and MTT payments to Honeywell, was $136 million for the fourth quarter of 2019 versus $164 million for the same period in 2018.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin were $583 million and 17.9%, respectively, compared to $620 million and 18.4% for the full year 2018. For the year ended December 31, 2019, adjusted free cash flow was $318 million versus $466 million for the same period in 2018.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

As of December 31, 2019, Garrett had $664 million in available liquidity, including $187 million in cash and cash equivalents and $480 million available under its revolving credit facility.

As of December 31, 2019, total debt was $1,443 million, a decrease of approximately $68 million compared to September 30, 2019. As of December 31, 2019, net debt totaled $1,256 million, a decrease of approximately $65 million compared to September 30, 2019. Net Debt to Consolidated EBITDA (as defined in Garrett’s Credit Agreement) was lowered to 2.74x as of December 31, 2019 from 2.93x as of September 30, 2019. Garrett’s weighted average stated interest rate was approximately 3.15% as of December 31, 2019, and the company has no significant debt maturities until 2023.

2020 Outlook

Garrett is providing the following initial outlook for the full year 2020, which reflects the current expected effects of the novel coronavirus and further rebalancing of the company’s light vehicle products between Diesel and Gasoline. Additionally, global light vehicle auto production is expected to decline between (5%) and (7%) and global commercial vehicle production is expected to decline between (7%) and (10%) for the year.

^ 2020 outlook as of February 27, 2020 set at current market conditions for FX with an average exchange rate of 1.08 EUR to USD. The company does not provide a reconciliation of the forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures because certain items that are excluded from the non-GAAP financial measures cannot be reasonably predicted or are not in our control. In particular, we are unable to forecast the timing or magnitude of realized and unrealized gains and losses on derivative instruments, taxes and other non-core operating items that could significantly impact, either individually or in the aggregate, net income in the future without unreasonable efforts.

Conference Call

Garrett will host a conference call on Thursday, February 27, 2020 at 8:30 am Eastern Time / 2:30 pm Central European Time. The dial-in number for callers in the U.S. is +1-844-835-9983 and the dial-in number for international callers is +1-412-317-5268. The access code for all callers is 10139169. A live webcast and related slide presentation will also be available at http://investors.garrettmotion.com/.

A replay of the conference call can be accessed through March 12, 2020 by dialing +1-877-344-7529 in the U.S. and +1-412-317-0088 outside the U.S., and then entering the access code 10139169. The webcast will also be archived on Garrett’s website.

Remediation of Material Weakness in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

As previously disclosed, in the course of preparing our 2018 Form 10-K and our Consolidated and Combined Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2018, our management determined that there was a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting relating to the lack of information, documentation and supporting evidence for our liability to Honeywell under the Indemnification and Reimbursement Agreement (the “Indemnification Liability”). Specifically, despite our requests, we did not receive sufficient information, documents and explanations from Honeywell, including with regard to information provided in Honeywell’s actuary report, and the amounts of settlement values and insurance receivables.

Throughout the year ended December 31, 2019, management engaged in an active dialogue with Honeywell that resulted in the Company obtaining access to additional information and documentation from Honeywell, including information regarding historical settlement trends, Honeywell’s claims management and valuation processes for asserted claims and associated legal expenses, and the nature of insurance receivables and likelihood of recoverability. Additionally, as part of the additional information and documentation we received from Honeywell, we gained increased visibility into the methodology behind, and data sources and inputs included in, Honeywell’s actuary report, and engaged our own expert to review and evaluate the report. During the quarter ended December 31, 2019, management completed its remediation activities and tested the design and operational effectiveness of the modified and new controls. As a result of the remediation activities and controls in place as of December 31, 2019, management concluded that we have remediated the material weakness described above. We do not expect the remediation of our material weakness to impact our ongoing litigation with Honeywell commenced on December 2, 2019.

Forward-Looking Statements

This presentation contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of fact, that address activities, events or developments that we or our management intend, expect, project, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements including without limitation our statements regarding our anticipated financial performance, expectations regarding global automotive demand, anticipated growth of our gasoline business, trends in foreign exchange rates, the impact of the novel coronavirus on our financial results, estimated Indemnification Liability payments, and projections regarding our technology solutions. Although we believe forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, which may cause the actual results or performance of the company to be materially different from any future results or performance expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to those described in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as well as our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, under the headings “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements.” You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this document. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results, developments and business decisions may differ from those envisaged by our forward-looking statements.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This presentation includes EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Net Debt, Consolidated Debt, Net Debt to Consolidated EBITDA ratio, Consolidated Debt to Consolidated EBITDA ratio, Adjusted Free Cash Flow, Consolidated EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted Earnings Per Share (“EPS”), Cash flow from operations minus capital expenditures, Free Cash Flow, Adjusted Free Cash Flow Conversion, constant currency sales growth and other financial measures not compliant with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”). The Non-GAAP financial measures provided herein are adjusted for certain items as presented in the Appendix containing Non-GAAP Reconciliations and may not be directly comparable to similar measures used by other companies in our industry, as other companies may define such measures differently. Management believes that, when considered together with reported amounts, these measures are useful to investors and management in understanding our ongoing operations and in analysis of ongoing operating trends. Garrett believes that Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin and Consolidated EBITDA are important indicators of operating performance because they exclude the effects of income taxes and certain other items, as well as the effects of financing and investing activities by eliminating the effects of interest and depreciation expenses and therefore more closely measures our operational performance. These metrics should be considered in addition to, and not as replacements for, the most comparable GAAP measure. For additional information with respect to our Consolidated and Combined Financial Statements, see our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Additional disclaimers

Prior to Garrett’s Spin-Off from Honeywell on October 1, 2018, Garrett’s historical financial statements were prepared on a stand–alone basis and derived from the consolidated financial statements and accounting records of Honeywell. Accordingly, for periods prior to October 1, 2018, our financial statements are presented on a combined basis and for the periods subsequent to October 1, 2018 are presented on a consolidated basis (collectively, the historical financial statements for all periods presented are referred to as “Consolidated and Combined Financial Statements”). The Consolidated and Combined Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). The historical consolidated and combined financial information may not be indicative of our future performance and does not necessarily reflect what our consolidated and combined results of operations, financial condition and cash flows would have been had the business operated as a separate, publicly traded company during the periods presented, particularly because of changes that we have experienced and expect to continue to experience in the future as a result of our separation from Honeywell, including changes in the financing, cash management, operations, cost structure and personnel needs of our business.

About Garrett Motion Inc.

Garrett Motion is a differentiated technology leader, serving customers worldwide for more than 65 years with passenger vehicle, commercial vehicle, aftermarket replacement and performance enhancement solutions. Garrett’s cutting-edge technology enables vehicles to become safer, more connected, efficient and environmentally friendly. Our portfolio of turbocharging, electric boosting and automotive software solutions empowers the transportation industry to redefine and further advance motion. For more information, please visit www.garrettmotion.com.

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