Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR), a global powerhouse in engineering and construction, has unveiled its robust Q4 earnings for the year concluding on December 31, 2023. The company outperformed expectations with earnings of $0.68 per share, surpassing the forecasted $0.57 per share. Despite a revenue increase of 3.0% year-over-year to $3.82 billion, it did not meet the anticipated $4.11 billion. However, Fluor's net income leaped to $139 million, or $0.54 per diluted share, a significant improvement from the previous year's $16 million, or $0.06 per diluted share.
Q4 2023 saw an adjusted EBITDA of $163 million and an adjusted diluted EPS of $0.63, with the company generating an operating cash flow of $212 million for the year.
Breaking it down by segment, Fluor's Energy Solutions showcased a profit of $381 million, thanks to inflation adjustments and heightened execution activities. Urban Solutions reported a $268 million profit, aided by a legacy project settlement and a discretionary fee award, while Mission Solutions faced a slight profit dip to $116 million due to cost overruns and schedule delays on a significant project.
For the entire year, Fluor's revenue ascended to $15.5 billion from $13.7 billion the previous year, with its backlog growing over 10% for the second year in a row, reaching $29.4 billion. The company's consolidated segment profit also saw an increase to $537 million in 2023 from $427 million in 2022.
CEO David Constable remarked on the milestone achievement in 2023, highlighting Fluor's advancement as a leader in technical solutions within the global engineering and construction sector.
Looking ahead, Fluor sets its adjusted EBITDA forecast for 2024 to range from $600 to $700 million and expects adjusted EPS to be between $2.50 and $3.00 per share, while reiterating its 2026 adjusted EBITDA outlook of $800 to $950 million.
However, as management noted in its earnings release, We are not providing forward-looking guidance for U.S. GAAP net earnings or U.S. GAAP earnings per share, or a quantitative reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA or adjusted EPS guidance, because we are unable to predict with reasonable certainty all of the components required to provide such reconciliation without unreasonable efforts, which are uncertain and could have a material impact on GAAP reported results for the guidance period.
That uncertainty has hammered FLR shares on Tuesday, sinking the stock over 12%.