Great Lakes Dredge reports Q1 EPS (5c), consensus (17c)

Reports Q1 revenue $158M, consensus $147.67M. Lasse Petterson, President and Chief Executive Officer commented, "We reported improved results in the first quarter of 2023, showing improvements in gross profit margins and adjusted EBITDA from the prior three quarters. Despite facing continued challenges related to weather delays in the Northeast and a lower-than-normal amount of capital work, we ended the quarter with revenues of $158.0 million and adjusted EBITDA of $10.2 million. The Company’s improved first quarter performance is primarily due to more project work for our vessels and adjustments we have made to the business and operations to improve profitability. We have taken swift and proactive action on cost reductions and fleet adjustments. Last year we retired the 42-year-old hopper dredge, the Terrapin Island, and we currently have cold stacked two major dredges and support equipment as we continue to watch the bid market. Correspondingly, we are adjusting our general and administrative, overhead cost structures and dredging fleet to reflect the changed market conditions, which have already led to substantially reduced costs in 2023. In the first quarter of 2023, Great Lakes’ total bid market reached over $300 million, which is approximately $125 million greater than the first quarter of 2022. The port deepening and widening projects that were delayed in 2022 are starting to enter the market. The first quarter saw one capital project bid, and April 2023 included one more capital project."