FleetCor Corporate Transactions Grew Double Digits In Latest Quarter

FleetCor reported results that topped expectations on the heels of fuel card growth and growth in corporate transactions.

The company stated that it earned $2.57 on an adjusted basis, which beat the Street by four pennies.

Consolidated revenue was $608.3 million, up 12.4 percent on a year over year basis, which in turn beat the Street by $12 million.

The organic growth rate for sales stood at 9 percent, the company said in a release.

In an earnings supplemental document, the company stated that fuel card-related revenues came in at $262 million, versus $249 million last year.

Corporate payments grew to $99 million from $82 million. The organic growth rate for the segment, the company said, came to 21 percent.

Taken as a revenue vertical, processing and program revenues came in at 51 percent of the top line versus 46 percent last year.

Management noted on the conference call that, per CEO Ronald Clarke, these results came despite macro trends that were not “particularly helpful versus our expectations.”  He noted that FX worsened a bit and that interest rates rose during the quarter.

Organic card growth came in at five percent versus one percent in the first quarter, and international card growth was eight percent, management noted. Russia was up 29 percent.  Within North America, he said, trucking was marked by 20 percent gains.

Within the corporate business, construction as a vertical gained 30 percent, and management noted that the virtual card offerings were up 24 percent.

Clarke noted that “lodging rocked in the quarter, driven by SMB room volume, which was up over 30 percent. That was helped by our digital booking tool. The large hotel segment remained healthy.”  Management noted that these trends are taking the company from a fuel card company toward a model as a diversified business payments company.  Management stated that SMB traction in using digital booking offerings increased.

“We’ve entered the corporate payments or general payables space with digital offerings to automate AP and even pay international AP,” said Clarke.  “So, this creates certainly a bigger sandbox that has a larger market potential and gives the company a much, much longer runway. We’re obviously doing well in the new diversified areas, newer categories. Our three non-fuel lines of business are growing over 20 percent year-to-date.”