Noble Iron posted revenue of $18.9 million during the first nine months of 2016, compared to $19.5 million during the same period in 2015. Third quarter revenue was $6.6 million, compared to $7.3 million during the third quarter of 2015, a 9.6-percent drop. Lower equipment revenues were caused by the sluggish economic climate in Texas as well as lower equipment revenue in California after the company’s activities to consolidate its real estate and fulfillment center operations in Los Angeles.
Decrease in revenues can be primarily attributed to lower rental and distribution revenues, offset by increased software revenue and strengthening of the U.S. dollar versus the Canadian dollar.
Adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months was $0.8 million, compared to $0.6 million during the same period in 2015. Third quarter adjusted EBITDA was $1.3 million compared to $0.4 million during Q315. For the first nine months, net loss was $7.7 million compared to a loss of $7.4 million in 2015. Third quarter net loss was $1.5 million, compared to a loss of $2.4 million in Q315, with the company’s high depreciation the primary cause of the losses.
During the third quarter, the company launched Fleet Logic, a mobile and desktop software application for equipment technicians, operators and managers. Noble Iron booked $0.4 million in SaaS revenue for Fleet Logic in the third quarter.
On Nov. 9, Noble Iron announced the sale of its Houston equipment rental and sales operations for $8.3 million, enabling the company to reduce its outstanding debt by $7.5 million. Net proceeds were $0.8 million. The sale is not reflected in the company’s third quarter results.
Noble Iron is committed to becoming the technology driven partner for regional construction professionals and equipment owners. The software group is focused on rolling out new applications such as “Fleet Logic” and “Insight.”
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.