Aris Water Solutions, Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2024 Results and Further Increases 2024 Adjusted EBITDA Outlook

Aris Water Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: ARIS) (“Aris,” “Aris Water” or the “Company”) today announced financial and operating results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024.

THIRD QUARTER 2024 HIGHLIGHTS

• Increased produced water volumes 2% sequentially and 6% versus the third quarter of 2023
• Increased recycled water volumes 25% sequentially and 16% versus the third quarter of 2023
• Achieved net income of $16.4 million, a 34% increase versus the third quarter of 2023
• Generated Adjusted EBITDA1 of $54.3 million, up 9% sequentially and up 21% versus the third quarter of 2023
• Achieved Gross Margin per barrel of $0.32 and Adjusted Operating Margin per barrel2 of $0.45, a 13% increase in Adjusted Operating Margin per barrel2 versus the third quarter of 2023
• Maintained a strong balance sheet with quarter-end leverage3 of 2.0X and $292 million of available liquidity under our revolving credit facility
• Increasing our 2024 Adjusted EBITDA1 outlook to $208 to $212 million
• Full year 2024 Capital Expenditure4 guidance of $98 to $105 million, consistent with prior guidance

“Aris had an exceptional third quarter as we continued to grow our produced water volumes, increased our recycled water sales, and maintained our strong margins. As we anticipated, our capital investment to support these increased activity levels was primarily deployed in the first half of the year and our capital spending in the third quarter declined significantly. We continue to experience steady volume growth and increasing cash generation. We anticipate a strong finish to the year and are extremely proud of our team’s efforts and results,” said Amanda Brock, President and CEO of Aris.

“In addition to the great results in our core business, we continue to collaborate with major operators to accelerate the beneficial reuse of treated produced water outside of the oil and gas industry. By year end, Aris and its partners will finish testing the third of three desalination technologies for the treatment of high salinity produced water. The pilot projects thus far have successfully demonstrated the ability over time to lower energy consumption costs and potential capital and operating costs for the treatment of produced water. In 2025, we will be focused on increasing the scale of these promising technologies and confirming costs as we progress to commercialization.

We also continue to evaluate commercial opportunities for mineral extraction from our produced water stream and are currently selecting a site for an iodine extraction facility with a strategic partner. We have also been approached by mineral extraction companies who specialize in magnesium, ammonia, and lithium. In 2025, we expect to have further updates relating to future potential revenues.

We are also progressing other strategic initiatives to further lower our cost structure, deepen our relationships with our existing customers and further diversify our customer base. We are extremely excited about our progress and look forward to sharing more details in the coming quarters.”

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Net income was $16.4 million for the third quarter of 2024 versus net income of $12.2 million in the third quarter of 2023 and net income of $13.1 million in the second quarter of 2024. Adjusted Net Income1 was $21.0 million for the third quarter of 2024 versus $13.9 million for the third quarter of 2023 and $17.3 million in the second quarter of 2024.

Adjusted EBITDA1 was $54.3 million for the third quarter of 2024, up approximately 21% from $44.9 million in the third quarter of 2023, and up approximately 9% from $50.0 million in the second quarter of 2024.

Gross Margin per Barrelfor the third quarter of 2024 was $0.32 per barrel versus $0.26 per barrel in the third quarter of 2023.

Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel2 for the third quarter of 2024 was $0.45 per barrel versus $0.40 per barrel in the third quarter of 2023.

Third quarter 2024 Capital Expenditures4 totaled approximately $8 million versus $40 million in the third quarter of 2023.

STRONG BALANCE SHEET AND LIQUIDITY

As of September 30, 2024, the Company had net debt of approximately $422 million with $33 million in cash and $292 million available under its revolving credit facility. The Company’s leverage ratio3 at the end of the third quarter of 2024 was 2.0X, below the Company’s target leverage of 2.5X – 3.5X.

FOURTH QUARTER 2024 DIVIDEND

Aris’s Board of Directors declared a dividend on its Class A common stock for the fourth quarter of 2024 of $0.105 per share. In conjunction with the dividend payment, a distribution of $0.105 per unit will be paid to unit holders of Solaris Midstream Holdings, LLC. The dividend will be paid on December 19, 2024, to holders of record of the Company’s Class A common stock as of the close of business on December 5, 2024. The distribution to unit holders of Solaris Midstream Holdings, LLC will be subject to the same payment and record dates.

FOURTH QUARTER 2024 FINANCIAL OUTLOOK

“With three quarters now behind us, 2024 is shaping up to be a record year for volumes, performance, and profitability. Based on customers’ projected activity, we anticipate our growth will continue through year-end on our dedicated acreage. Accordingly, we are increasing our full year Adjusted EBITDA range to $208 to $212 million. Additionally, our forecasted capital expenditures for the full year remain unchanged. We expect continued strong cash generation to further enhance our balance sheet and support increased shareholder returns over the long term.

Turning to 2025, we anticipate produced water volume growth in line with our 2024 produced water volume growth and consistent with oil production forecasts for the Delaware Basin. Our customers continue to allocate significant capital to developing our dedicated acreage. Our capital investment plans for next year will depend on the growth rate of our customers as well as incremental commercial opportunities. We currently anticipate, however, that we will be able to grow alongside our existing customers at a similar or lower level of capital investment to 2024.

We have made tremendous improvements in our margins this year due to revenue escalation clauses in our contracts, electrification, and cost reductions. Additionally, our operational focus on skim oil recoveries led to significant increases in skim oil yield in 2024. While there will be variability quarter to quarter, we expect much of those increases to be sustainable in 2025 and beyond.

Consistent volume growth, additional margin progress, and efficient capital investment in 2025 will provide us with increased flexibility to allocate capital to both shareholder returns and incremental growth projects. We are extremely optimistic about next year and beyond.”

For the fourth quarter of 2024, the Company expects:

• Produced Water Handling volumes between 1,080 and 1,110 thousand barrels of water per day
• Water Solutions volumes between 450 and 490 thousand barrels of water per day
• Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel2 between $0.43 and $0.45
• Skim oil recoveries of approximately 1,550 barrels per day
• Adjusted EBITDA1 between $51 and $55 million
• Capital Expenditures4 of $15 to $22 million, consistent with previous full year 2024 guidance

CONFERENCE CALL

Aris will host a conference call to discuss its third quarter 2024 results on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, at 8:00 a.m. Central Time (9:00 a.m. Eastern Time).

Participants should call (877) 407-5792 and refer to Aris Water Solutions, Inc. when dialing in. Participants are encouraged to log in to the webcast or dial in to the conference call approximately ten minutes prior to the start time. To listen via live webcast, please visit the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website, www.ariswater.com.

An audio replay of the conference call will be available shortly after the conclusion of the call and will remain available for approximately fourteen days. It can be accessed by dialing (877) 660-6853 within the United States or (201) 612-7415 outside of the United States. The conference call replay access code is 13749151.

About Aris Water Solutions, Inc.

Aris Water Solutions, Inc. is a leading, growth-oriented environmental infrastructure and solutions company that directly helps its customers reduce their water and carbon footprints. Aris Water delivers full-cycle water handling and recycling solutions that increase the sustainability of energy company operations. Its integrated pipelines and related infrastructure create long-term value by delivering high-capacity, comprehensive produced water management, recycling and supply solutions to operators in the core areas of the Permian Basin.

_______________
1 Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EBITDA, and Diluted Adjusted Net Income per Share are non-GAAP financial measures. See the supplementary schedules in this press release for a discussion of how we define and calculate Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EBITDA, and Diluted Adjusted Net Income per Share and a reconciliation thereof to net income, the most directly comparable GAAP measure.
2 Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel is a non-GAAP financial measure. See the supplementary schedules in this press release for a discussion of how we define and calculate Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel and a reconciliation thereof to gross margin, the most directly comparable GAAP measure.
3 Represents a non-GAAP financial measure. Defined as net debt as of September 30, 2024, divided by trailing twelve months Adjusted EBITDA. Net debt is calculated as total debt less cash and cash equivalents. See the supplementary schedules in this press release for a reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measure.
4 Capital Expenditures is a non-GAAP financial measure. See the supplementary schedules in this press release for a discussion of how we define and calculate Capital Expenditures and a reconciliation thereof to cash paid for property, plant, and equipment, the most directly comparable GAAP measure.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements, information, opinions or beliefs regarding our business strategy, our industry, our future profitability, business and financial performance, including our guidance for 2024, current and potential future long-term contracts, legal and regulatory developments, our ability to identify strategic acquisitions and realize expected benefits therefrom, the development of technologies for the beneficial reuse of produced water and related strategies, plans, objectives and strategic pursuits and other statements that are not historical facts. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “anticipate,” “guidance,” “preliminary,” “project,” “estimate,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “continue,” “sustain,” “will,” “intend,” “strive,” “plan,” “goal,” “target,” “believe,” “forecast,” “outlook,” “future,” “potential,” “opportunity,” “predict,” “may,” “visibility,” “possible,” “should,” “could” and variations of such words or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and assumptions regarding our business, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, by their nature, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. As a result, our actual results may differ materially from those contemplated or implied by the forward-looking statements including our guidance for 2024. Factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the results contemplated by such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, energy prices, the Russia-Ukraine and Middle Eastern conflicts, macroeconomic conditions (such as inflation) and market uncertainty related thereto, legislative and regulatory developments, customer plans and preferences, adverse results from litigation and the use of financial resources for litigation defense, technological innovations and developments, and other events discussed or referenced in our filings made from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including such factors discussed under “Risk Factors” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, and if applicable, our subsequent SEC filings, which are available on our Investor Relations website at https://ir.ariswater.com/sec-filings or on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov/edgar. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. All forward-looking statements, expressed or implied, included in this press release and any oral statements made in connection with this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information

The Company uses financial measures that are not calculated in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), including Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Operating Margin, Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel, Adjusted Net Income, net debt and leverage ratio, and Capital Expenditures. Although these Non-GAAP financial measures are important factors in assessing the Company’s operating results and cash flows, they should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for net income or gross margin or any other measures prepared under GAAP.

The Company calculates Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) plus: interest expense; income taxes; depreciation, amortization and accretion expense; abandoned well costs, asset impairment and abandoned project charges; losses on the sale of assets; transaction costs; research and development expense; change in payables related to the Tax Receivable Agreement liability as a result of state tax rate changes; loss on debt modification; stock-based compensation expense; and other non-recurring or unusual expenses or charges (such as litigation expenses, severance costs and amortization expense related to the implementation costs of our new enterprise resource planning system), less any gains on the sale of assets.

The Company calculates Adjusted Operating Margin as Gross Margin plus depreciation, amortization and accretion. The Company defines Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel as Adjusted Operating Margin divided by total volumes handled, sold or transferred.

The Company calculates Adjusted Net Income as Net Income (Loss) plus the after-tax impacts of stock-based compensation and plus or minus the after-tax impacts of certain items affecting comparability, which are typically noncash and/or nonrecurring items. The Company calculated Diluted Adjusted Net Income Per Share as (i) Net Income (Loss) plus the after-tax impacts of stock-based compensation and plus or minus the after-tax impacts of certain items affecting comparability, which are typically noncash and/or nonrecurring items, divided by (ii) the diluted weighted-average shares of Class A common stock outstanding, assuming the full exchange of all outstanding LLC interests, adjusted for the dilutive effect of outstanding equity-based awards.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, the Company calculates its leverage ratio as net debt as of September 30, 2024, divided by Adjusted EBITDA for the trailing twelve months. Net debt is calculated as the principal amount of total debt outstanding as of September 30, 2024, less cash and cash equivalents as of September 30, 2024.

The Company calculates Capital Expenditures as cash capital expenditures for property, plant, and equipment additions less changes in accrued capital costs.

The Company believes these presentations are used by investors and professional research analysts for the valuation, comparison, rating, and investment recommendations of companies within its industry. Similarly, the Company’s management uses this information for comparative purposes as well. Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Operating Margin, Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel, Adjusted Net Income, and Capital Expenditures are not measures of financial performance under GAAP and should not be considered as measures of liquidity or as alternatives to net income (loss), gross margin, or cash paid for property, plant and equipment. Additionally, these presentations as defined by the Company may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies and should be considered in conjunction with net income (loss) and other measures prepared in accordance with GAAP, such as gross margin, operating income, net income, cash paid for property, plant, and equipment or cash flows from operating activities.

Although we provide forecasts for the non-GAAP measures Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Operating Margin per Barrel, and Capital Expenditures, we are not able to forecast their most directly comparable measures (net income, gross margin, and cash paid for property, plant, and equipment) calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP without unreasonable effort. Certain elements of the composition of forward-looking GAAP metrics are not predictable, making it impractical for us to forecast. Such elements include but are not limited to non-recurring gains or losses, unusual or non-recurring items, income tax benefit or expense, or one-time transaction costs and cost of revenue, which could have a significant impact on the GAAP measures. The variability of the excluded items may have a significant, and potentially unpredictable, impact on our future GAAP results. As a result, no reconciliation of forecasted non-GAAP measures is provided.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241104315934/en/