Summit Midstream Partners, LP Provides Updated 2021 Financial Guidance

Rhea-AI Summary

Summit Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: SMLP) has raised its full-year 2021 financial guidance, projecting adjusted EBITDA between $225 million and $240 million, a 5.7% increase from prior estimates. The company also anticipates a reduction in total indebtedness by approximately $82 million by June 30, 2021. Year-to-date results have exceeded expectations due to increased customer activity and robust expense management. Although 2021 may be a trough year for well connect activity, management is optimistic about improving commodity prices and operational performance.

Positive

• Increased full-year 2021 adjusted EBITDA guidance to $225 million - $240 million, up by 5.7%.
• Projected reduction of total indebtedness by approximately $82 million by June 30, 2021.
• Strong year-to-date financial and operational results driven by enhanced customer activity and expense management.

Negative

• Expectations of 2021 being a trough year for new well connect activity across operations.

HOUSTON, June 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Summit Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: SMLP) ("Summit", "SMLP" or the "Partnership") today announced an increase to its full year 2021 financial guidance, including a new adjusted EBITDA range of $225 million to $240 million which, at the midpoint, represents an increase of 5.7% from the original guidance range of $210 million to $230 million.  Management now expects total indebtedness as of June 30, 2021, net of unrestricted cash on hand, to be reduced by approximately $82 million, which is nearly 6% lower than the outstanding net debt balance as of December 31, 2020.

Heath Deneke, President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, commented, "Summit's year to date financial and operational results continue to exceed our original expectations, largely driven by the outperformance from wells turned in line year to date, accelerated customer activity, and continued gains from expense management initiatives that have been implemented across the organization.  While we still expect 2021 to be a trough year for new well connect activity across our footprint, we are encouraged by the strengthening commodity price backdrop and increasing customer activity now expected during the second half of the year.  As a result of year to date outperformance and accelerated well activity, we are increasing our full year 2021 adjusted EBITDA guidance to a new range of $225 million to $240 million.  We are maintaining our 2021 capital expenditure guidance range of $20 million to $35 million."

"The business continues to produce strong free cash flow, which will enable us to reduce outstanding net indebtedness by nearly $82 million by the end of the second quarter and will continue to allow us to reduce our outstanding debt balance for the foreseeable future."

"We continue to make excellent progress with our efforts to refinance our 2022 debt maturities.  We have a number of supportive banks working to facilitate our refinancing plans and a strong capital markets backdrop that we expect will help further optimize our comprehensive refinancing solution.  We look forward to providing additional details on our refinancing plans ahead of our second quarter earnings call."

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We report financial results in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP").  We also present adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure.  We define adjusted EBITDA as net income or loss, plus interest expense, income tax expense, depreciation and amortization, our proportional adjusted EBITDA for equity method investees, adjustments related to MVC shortfall payments, adjustments related to capital reimbursement activity, unit-based and noncash compensation, impairments, items of income or loss that we characterize as unrepresentative of our ongoing operations and other noncash expenses or losses, less interest income, income tax benefit, income (loss) from equity method investees and other noncash income or gains.   Because adjusted EBITDA may be defined differently by other entities in our industry, our definition of this non-GAAP financial measure may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other entities, thereby diminishing its utility.

Management uses adjusted EBITDA in making financial, operating and planning decisions and in evaluating our financial performance. Furthermore, management believes that adjusted EBITDA may provide external users of our financial statements, such as investors, commercial banks, research analysts and others, with additional meaningful comparisons between current results and results of prior periods as they are expected to be reflective of our core ongoing business.

Adjusted EBITDA is used as a supplemental financial measure by external users of our financial statements such as investors, commercial banks, research analysts and others.

Adjusted EBITDA is used to assess:

• the ability of our assets to generate cash sufficient to make future potential cash distributions and support our indebtedness;
• the financial performance of our assets without regard to financing methods, capital structure or historical cost basis;
• our operating performance and return on capital as compared to those of other entities in the midstream energy sector, without regard to financing or capital structure;
• the attractiveness of capital projects and acquisitions and the overall rates of return on alternative investment opportunities; and
• the financial performance of our assets without regard to (i) income or loss from equity method investees, (ii) the impact of the timing of minimum volume commitments shortfall payments under our gathering agreements or (iii) the timing of impairments or other income or expense items that we characterize as unrepresentative of our ongoing operations.

Adjusted EBITDA has limitations as an analytical tool and investors should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our results as reported under GAAP.  For example:

• certain items excluded from adjusted EBITDA are significant components in understanding and assessing an entity's financial performance, such as an entity's cost of capital and tax structure;
• adjusted EBITDA does not reflect our cash expenditures or future requirements for capital expenditures or contractual commitments;
• adjusted EBITDA does not reflect changes in, or cash requirements for, our working capital needs; and
• although depreciation and amortization are noncash charges, the assets being depreciated and amortized will often have to be replaced in the future, and adjusted EBITDA does not reflect any cash requirements for such replacements.

We compensate for the limitations of adjusted EBITDA as an analytical tool by reviewing the comparable GAAP financial measures, understanding the differences between the financial measures and incorporating these data points into our decision-making process.

We do not provide the GAAP financial measures of net income or loss or net cash provided by operating activities on a forward-looking basis because we are unable to predict, without unreasonable effort, certain components thereof including, but not limited to, (i) income or loss from equity method investees and (ii) asset impairments.  These items are inherently uncertain and depend on various factors, many of which are beyond our control.  As such, any associated estimate and its impact on our GAAP performance and cash flow measures could vary materially based on a variety of acceptable management assumptions. 

About Summit Midstream Partners, LP
SMLP is a value-oriented limited partnership focused on developing, owning and operating midstream energy infrastructure assets that are strategically located in the core producing areas of unconventional resource basins, primarily shale formations, in the continental United States.  SMLP provides natural gas, crude oil and produced water gathering, processing and transportation services pursuant to primarily long-term, fee-based agreements with customers and counterparties in six unconventional resource basins: (i) the Appalachian Basin, which includes the Utica and Marcellus shale formations in Ohio and West Virginia; (ii) the Williston Basin, which includes the Bakken and Three Forks shale formations in North Dakota; (iii) the Denver-Julesburg Basin, which includes the Niobrara and Codell shale formations in Colorado and Wyoming; (iv) the Permian Basin, which includes the Bone Spring and Wolfcamp formations in New Mexico; (v) the Fort Worth Basin, which includes the Barnett Shale formation in Texas; and (vi) the Piceance Basin, which includes the Mesaverde formation as well as the Mancos and Niobrara shale formations in Colorado.  SMLP has an equity investment in Double E Pipeline, LLC, which is developing natural gas transmission infrastructure that will provide transportation service from multiple receipt points in the Delaware Basin to various delivery points in and around the Waha Hub in Texas.  SMLP also has an equity investment in Ohio Gathering, which operates extensive natural gas gathering and condensate stabilization infrastructure in the Utica Shale in Ohio.  SMLP is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes certain statements concerning expectations for the future that are forward-looking within the meaning of the federal securities laws.  Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may project, indicate or imply future results, events, performance or achievements and may contain the words "expect," "intend," "plan," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions, or future conditional verbs such as "may," "will," "should," "would," and "could."  In addition, any statement concerning future financial performance (including future revenues, earnings or growth rates), ongoing business strategies and possible actions taken by us or our subsidiaries are also forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements also contain known and unknown risks and uncertainties (many of which are difficult to predict and beyond management's control) that may cause SMLP's actual results in future periods to differ materially from anticipated or projected results.  An extensive list of specific material risks and uncertainties affecting SMLP is contained in its 2020 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on March 4, 2021, as amended and updated from time to time. Any forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and SMLP undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information or events.

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SOURCE Summit Midstream Partners, LP

FAQ

What is Summit Midstream Partners' updated financial guidance for 2021?

Summit Midstream Partners has increased its 2021 adjusted EBITDA guidance to a range of $225 million to $240 million.

How much is Summit Midstream Partners reducing its debt by June 30, 2021?

The company expects to reduce its total indebtedness by approximately $82 million by June 30, 2021.

What factors contributed to the improved financial guidance for SMLP?

The improved guidance is attributed to customer activity, expense management, and better-than-expected operational results.

What does SMLP anticipate for new well connect activity in 2021?

SMLP expects 2021 to be a trough year for new well connect activity across its operational footprint.