Carriage Services Reports Fourth-Quarter Earnings

On Feb. 27, Carriage Services  reported fourth-quarter diluted earnings per share of 62 cents compared with 75 cents in the year-ago period.

Highlights for the full year included:

• Exceeded full year 2024 guidance for adjusted consolidated EBITDA and adjusted earnings per share, and achieved the high end of the range for total revenue, while divesting certain non-core assets;

• A 26.7% increase in consolidated cemetery preneed sales, and an increase of 3.1% in consolidated funeral average revenue per contract, drove total revenue of $404.2 million, representing growth of 5.7% over the prior year;

• GAAP net income decline of 1.4%, and adjusted consolidated EBITDA growth of 11.5%, over the prior year;

• GAAP diluted EPS of $2.10, a decline of 1.9% over the prior year and adjusted diluted EPS of $2.65, an increase of 21.0% over the prior year;

• Leverage ratio lowered to 4.3x from 5.1x at the same period last year, as the Company paid down $42.1 million of debt on its credit facility during the year; and

  

• The company’s guidance for 2025 is $400-$410 million in total revenue, adjusted consolidated EBITDA of $128-$133 million, adjusted diluted EPS of $3.10-$3.30 and adjusted free cash flow of $40-$50 million, including expected divestitures of non-core assets.

Carlos Quezada, vice chairman and CEO (pictured at top), stated, “We are thrilled to announce that our strategic execution at every level has delivered outstanding financial results for the full year 2024. While the fourth quarter saw reduced funeral home revenue—primarily due to tough year-over-year comparisons and the lower volumes we began experiencing in October—our overall performance remained strong.

As we previously communicated in our third quarter earnings call, we anticipated these trends, yet we remained confident in our trajectory. This confidence led us to raise our full-year guidance, and we not only met the upper range for total revenue but exceeded expectations for adjusted EBITDA and EPS. The decline in volume appears to be linked to a delayed flu season, which impacted the number of at-need funeral services. However, based on current trends, we believe we are well-positioned for continued success in 2025.

These remarkable results are a testament to the dedication, hard work, and excellence of our team at Carriage. We deeply appreciate your continued support and look forward to building on this momentum, driving even greater success in 2025 and beyond.”

Quarterly Highlights

• Total revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2024 decreased $1.1 million compared to the three months ended December 31, 2023. The compamy experienced an anticipated decline in consolidated funeral contract volume against a challenging prior year comparable, resulting in a 7.3% decrease, which was partially offset by a 1.4% increase in the average revenue per funeral contract. Additionally, we experienced an 8.4% increase in preneed interment rights (property) sold and a 4.2% increase in the average price per preneed interment right sold.

• Net income for the three months ended December 31, 2024 decreased $1.8 million compared to the three months ended December 31, 2023 primarily driven by the decrease in funeral revenue. The company experienced a $1.0 million decrease in gross profit contribution from our businesses, a $1.5 million increase in general, administrative and other expenses and a $0.2 million increase in income tax expense, which was partially offset by a $2.0 million decrease in interest expense.

• Total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2024 increased $21.7 million compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. The company achieved continued growth in consolidated cemetery preneed sales as we experienced a 22.9% increase in preneed interment rights (property) sold and a 7.3% increase in the average price per preneed interment right sold. Additionally, we experienced a 3.1% increase in the average revenue per funeral contract, which was offset by a 4.9% decrease in funeral contract volume.

• Net income for the year ended December 31, 2024 decreased $0.5 million compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. The company experienced a $19.1 million increase in gross profit contribution from our businesses and a $4.2 million decrease in interest expense, which was offset by a $16.9 million increase in general, administrative and other expenses, primarily comprised of one-time costs related to executive severance payments and the Company’s review of strategic alternatives, a $4.1 million increase in income tax expense and a $1.4 million increase in loss on divestitures, disposals and impairment charges.

Outlook for 2025