WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:WSC) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Stanley Elliott: Yes. No, it just would seem like if — down 7% probably is not really down 7%. It’s probably down maybe low single digits and kind of more flattish would be my guess. But switching gears on the VAPS Storage piece. You mentioned the security lighting options, the premium offering. I think it’s very exciting and especially when you think about maybe it was more shelving kind of the way I had originally conceptualized all this. How quickly can you move this premium offering into the VAPS kind of offering as you’re looking at now for the Storage side? I would love to get any color there.

Bradley Soultz: Yes. This is Brad. I’ll take that. First of all, the premium offering is just kind of further enhancement and upside. We’re already offering lighting solutions. We’re already offering shelving solutions, security solutions, et cetera. We do — and we have referred to that as our basic offering. So — and that was just rolled out last year and is just getting started. So I think the basic offering, if you will, is pretty comprehensive. We’ll satisfy most of our customers’ needs. The premium just takes it to another play.

Operator: Our next question comes from Phil Ng with Jefferies.

Phil Ng: Sorry about that. Well, congrats on another strong quarter. I appreciate all the color you provided, Tim. Just to make sure I heard you correctly, Tim. Your guidance to the low end of the sales range, but EBITDA, where do you think we’re going to shake out, close to the low end or you have the ability to kind of get to the midpoint? And implicit in that, are you assuming low single-digit and mid-single-digit units on rent for Modular and Storage, if I heard you correctly? If that’s the case, that’s still pretty solid in the potential recession backdrop in the second half.

Timothy Boswell: I think you got it mostly right there, Phil. I think to start — given the uncertainties in the second half of the year, we were pointing to the lower end of the revenue and EBITDA ranges. But the entire range is in play, right? I said in my prepared remarks, even if we have a macroeconomic disruption this year, we can deliver the low ends. And if things are more favorable than maybe we’re assuming right now, then the top end is definitely in play as well. So I think this is just more of a function of where we are in the year. And the obvious uncertainties that are out there relative to maybe prior approaches to guidance, where we would have been to say, “Hey, just go straight to the midpoint and keep it simple.” In terms of the volume assumptions, yes, low single digit for Modular and a bit higher in the Storage segment.

But again, 3% or 4% organic growth in Storage is not quite the 8% or 9% that we delivered last year organically. So it is a slight moderation.

Phil Ng: Got you. That’s really helpful color. And Brad, you talked about your confidence in kind of sustaining that double-digit AMR growth, I believe, on both businesses. Can you kind of remind us where spot and AMR prices are, what that spread is? And assuming we do head into recession, if that takes a step back, just given your long lease nature, I think you still have a pretty good runway. But just kind of help us think through that dynamic potentially going forward.

Timothy Boswell: Yes. This is Tim. We still have very favorable spreads between spot and in the overall portfolio, average north of 30% in Modular and close to 30% across the ground-level office fleet. And given the massive increase that we just saw in the second half of the year, it’s a little bit tighter, kind of low teens in the Storage business right now, and we’ll see where that kind of stabilizes as the seasonal volume comes off rent, and we move into the busier quarters here. But the spreads are still very powerful tailwinds, which, to your point, allow us to deliver kind of the guidance ranges with confidence.

Operator: Our next question comes from Brent Thielman with D.A. Davidson.

Brent Thielman: Brad, Tim, congrats, great year. Brad, in the past, you’ve talked about your Modular order book typically accelerating around February. And I guess, I’m just wondering how that’s evolving relative to what you’ve seen over the past few years as we’re sort of two third through the month. Are you encouraged by what you’re seeing in any underlying trends as you’ve seen that seasonal uptick in Modular?

Bradley Soultz: Yes. In February, it’s early in the play, right? We’ll see more as we navigate March, April and May into that peak season. I will say there’s nothing about it that’s discouraging. And as I said before, it’s not as robust as it was, let’s say, 1 year ago when we’d actually been investing in the fourth quarter of the prior year at very high levels, right, as we were ramping into what we knew was very, very robust, if not record, demand levels. So nothing I’m seeing is of concern. But as Tim and I have both said, we don’t know in the end where the macro environment lands. We’re highly confident we’ll grow through it. We’ll work within our ranges of guidance. And it’s basically executing the playbook we’ve been executing for 5 to 10 years now.

Brent Thielman: Yes. Okay. And then maybe just a question on the underlying trend you’re seeing in VAPS. I mean, obviously, customers still very much prefer that total solution here, given the traction, penetration you’re seeing. But are you finding customers seeking more ways to sort of minimize their all-in cost just given this macro inflationary environment? Are you having to pivot some of your offerings to support that? Just curious what you’re seeing under the coverage there.

Bradley Soultz: Yes, the inflationary environment and cost is definitely supportive. I still think the prevailing driver here is convenience, right? And I mentioned in the prepared remarks that we had eclipsed the $400 VAPS value per month. That was actually $447, so almost $450, which was just phenomenal. And it was not too long ago, we were at $100, if you will, and thought $400 was extremely aspirational. So we’re $447. We see upside. We’re driving that side of the portfolio towards $600. And as you guys know, if we’re saying $600 to you, we’re driving north of that. And we’re just like probably in the bullpen, if you will, warming up on the Storage play.

Operator: Our next question comes from Manav Patnaik with Barclays.