Brookfield Infrastructure (BIP) Lags Q2 Earnings, Revenues

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P.'s (NYSE:BIP) earnings per unit of 59 cents in the second quarter of 2016 lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimates of $1.03 by a wide 42.7%. Reported earnings, however, surged 58% from the year-ago tally of a penny.

The improvement in earnings is primarily attributable to increased contributions from the transport and energy segments.

Revenues

Brookfield Infrastructure posted revenues of $462 million during the quarter, lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $639 million by 27.7%.

Revenues in the reported quarter were marginally lower than the prior-year quarter figure of $466 million.

Highlights of the release

Direct operating costs during the quarter were $198 million, slightly up from $197million in the year-ago quarter.

Interest expenses in the reported quarter were up 8.6% to $101 million.

Fund flow from operations (FFO) in the reported quarter was $230 million, up 10.6% from $208 million in the year-ago period.

Quarterly Segment Highlights

Utilities: The segment witnessed 7.5% year-over-year growth in second-quarter 2016 FFO to $100 million from $93 million owing to robust connection activity at the UK regulated distribution operation.

Transport: The segment generated FFO of $102 million, marginally lower than $104 million in the year-ago quarter.

Energy: The partnership saw an 87% year-over-year increase in second-quarter 2016 FFO to $43 million mainly on the back of higher contribution from Brookfield’s North American natural gas transmission business and organic growth initiatives.

Communications Infrastructure: The segment generated FFO of $19 million in the second quarter, compared to $20 million a year ago.

Corporate and Other: The segment incurred a loss of $34 million in the reported quarter, marginally wider than the prior-year loss of $32 million.

Financial Update

As of Jun 30, 2016, Brookfield Infrastructure’s cash and cash equivalents were $378 million, compared with $199 million at 2015 end.

The partnership has currently total liquidity of almost $2.7 billion. Amid volatile credit market conditions, the company has taken some financial initiatives that improved its debt maturity profile.

Cash from operating activities was $159 million in the second quarter of 2016, up from $131 million in the year-ago quarter.

Other Releases

NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI) reported second-quarter 2016 operating earnings of 8 cents per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 7 cents by 14.3%.

FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) announced second-quarter 2016 operating earnings of 56 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 53 cents by 5.7%.

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) reported second-quarter 2016 adjusted earnings of $1.67 per share, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.58 by 5.7%.

Zacks Rank

Brookfield Infrastructure currently holds a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).