Pure Cycle Corporation (NASDAQ:PCYO) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

We can bring that to developer, not only on the multifamily but commercial where they come in, and it doesn’t matter. I mean we’ve got a lot of interest on industrial, where we can get a distribution center out there. And the thinking in on that is we probably need and are going to invest in upgrading the interchange. And so we’re in the middle of that right now with CDOT on expanding, and it has a government acronym. But we’ve got a 1601 study underway which will give us a permit for developing interchange. And we want to be early on that. We have mill levies specifically set aside for that, so that doesn’t have to come off our balance sheet. But distribution center there, where we’ve got higher capacity and more flexibility on truck access, they go vertical on that.

We bring the pad side together with the utilities. They take the vertical investment on the infrastructure they get it fully leased out on major long-term leases, and then we exit together with them on something like that. So we’ve had some of those conversations. That’s kind of the detail of it. That’s kind of our thinking on it, where it’s not that heavy of a lift from our standpoint because of what we’ve already done on the site. And to your point, we do benefit from the increased value. So again, it’s another way for us to vertically integrate without having significant investment in there and investing in ourselves through partnerships with that. We don’t know that business. It may not be something we want to take the hits and bruises on learning that business, but there are those that do understand that business and are very good at it.

Greg Malachowski: Okay, awesome. That’s great to hear. Thanks.

Operator: Thank you very much. [Operator Instructions] We have our next question coming from Elliot Knight of Knight Advisors. Elliot, your line is live.

Elliot Knight: Thank you. Hi, Mark.

Mark Harding: Elliot, good to hear your voice.

Elliot Knight: Well, 88 years old and still going. That’s encouraging.

Mark Harding: Would we all be so lucky?

Elliot Knight: Yeah, true. I’d like to make an observation. You’ve done an excellent job on this call of illustrating how early in the development stage, the various segments of the business are. And you have built a company, this company is extraordinarily well managed. You’ve built a company that has great financial strength. I really think it’s time to get into the early stage of paying a dividend. You and I have talked about this before. It could be an annual dividend. But I think it would substantially broaden your potential stockholder base if you didn’t have to — PCYO didn’t have to have a star after it saying non-dividend paying company. I wish you’d share that thought with the Board and have them do something about it. Great that you’re buying back…

Mark Harding: You bring up a good point. And again, another — that’s another way that we continue to invest in ourselves and our ownership interest of those that own with us. And we do look at that very seriously every year. And as you’ve seen, our capital allocation strategy is pretty conservative, but we are continuing to build a very liquid balance sheet. When you take a look at the cash and the receivables, having a $50 million liquidity position is pretty healthy. We have a disciplined approach and one of those metrics are to make sure that your recurring revenue exceeds your G&A, and we’re very close to that, Elliot. And so it’s easy for us to waiver beyond established and historic metrics like you can declare a dividend once you’re recurring revenue exceeds your G&A.

And when that visual is there, maybe that becomes something of heightened consideration. But I do agree with you that we will be declaring dividends, and we will be paying them. And we’ll have a new access to people who invest in companies that are dividend pay company. So it will broaden our shareholder group. And it may help resolve some of the things that Greg and Bill and others were talking about on getting the market to appreciate and understand the awareness of the company. And so those are all key ways to do that.

Elliot Knight: Well, that’s what we all want — and my comments included the comment of the financial strength to which you are now alluding. And that’s the reason why I think the company is in a position to pay a small dividend. That’s all. I love income.

Mark Harding: Well, at 60, I do too.

Elliot Knight: Good. You’re just a young whippersnapper.

Mark Harding: That’s right. I’m just getting started.

Elliot Knight: Okay. Thanks.