Xylem Reports Third Quarter 2021 Results

Third quarter adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) margin decreased 30 basis points to 17.9 percent. Inflation and strategic investments were partially offset by productivity, price realization and cost containment. Xylem generated net income of $114 million, or $0.63 per share, and adjusted net income of $116 million, or $0.63 per share, which excludes the impact of restructuring, realignment and special charges.

“Global demand for water solutions continues to be robust, across our business,” said Patrick Decker, Xylem’s president and CEO. “The team capitalized on that broad-based underlying demand, delivering strong growth in new orders and backlog in all segments. This positions us well to achieve our 2025 growth and strategic milestones, which we outlined at our investor day, last month.”

“The team has done an outstanding job managing inflationary effects with productivity and cost discipline, delivering solid margin and earnings performance,” continued Decker. “Nevertheless, we foresee the global supply challenges continuing – particularly the chip shortages being experienced across the technology sector. While we expect strong demand to continue, nearer term supply constraints have slowed order-to-revenue conversion more than expected, leading us to moderate our view of full-year revenues and, therefore, earnings.”

Updated Outlook
Xylem now expects full-year organic revenue growth to be in the range of 3 to 4 percent, which would be approximately $5.1 to $5.2 billion on a reported basis. This represents a decrease from the Company’s previous full-year organic revenue guidance of 6 to 8 percent, or $5.3 to $5.4 billion on a reported basis. Full-year adjusted earnings per share is now expected to be in the range of $2.40 to $2.50, from $2.55 to $2.70. Full-year free cash flow conversion outlook remains unchanged at 80 to 90 percent. The revised guidance reflects the impact of increased supply chain challenges, partially offset by strong cost discipline.

Third Quarter Segment Results

Water Infrastructure
Xylem’s Water Infrastructure segment consists of its portfolio of businesses serving wastewater transport and treatment, clean water delivery, and dewatering.

• Third quarter 2021 revenue was $547 million, up 4 percent on a reported basis, and up 2 percent organically, compared with the same period in 2020. Strong growth in industrial end markets from broad pandemic recovery and demand in Emerging Markets offset some softness in the utility markets due to timing delays caused by supply chain disruptions.
• Third quarter adjusted EBITDA margin was 21.2 percent, up 100 basis points versus the prior year period. Reported operating income for the segment was $101 million and adjusted operating income, which excludes $1 million of restructuring and realignment costs, was $102 million. The segment reported operating margin was 18.5 percent, up 150 basis points versus the prior year period. Adjusted operating margin rose 10 basis points to 18.6 percent. Strong productivity savings and price realization offset inflation and supply chain constraints.

Applied Water
Xylem’s Applied Water segment consists of its portfolio of businesses in industrial, commercial building, and residential applications.

• Third quarter 2021 revenue was $400 million, up 10 percent on a reported basis, and up 8 percent organically, compared with the same period in 2020. Broad reopening activity drove strong demand in industrial and commercial end markets compared to COVID-19 challenges in the prior year.
• Third quarter adjusted EBITDA margin was 17.0 percent, down 60 basis points from the prior year period. Reported operating income for the segment was $60 million and adjusted operating income, which excludes $2 million of restructuring and realignment costs, was $62 million. The segment reported operating margin was 15.0 percent, down 40 basis points versus the prior year period. Adjusted operating margin decreased 40 basis points to 15.5 percent. Inflation, supply chain disruption and investments more than offset productivity benefits and price realization.

Measurement & Control Solutions
Xylem’s Measurement & Control Solutions segment consists of its portfolio of businesses in smart metering, network technologies, advanced infrastructure analytics and analytic instrumentation.

• Third quarter 2021 revenue was $318 million, down 4 percent on a reported basis, and down 5 percent organically, compared with the same period in 2020. Soft performance in the business was driven by chip supply shortages impacting our smart metering business, partially offset by demand in water quality testing applications and pipeline assessment services businesses.
• Third quarter adjusted EBITDA margin was 14.2 percent, down 60 basis points from the prior year period. Reported operating income for the segment was $7 million and adjusted operating income, with $1 million restructuring and realignment income in the quarter, was $6 million. The segment reported operating margin was 2.2 percent, up 2,090 basis points versus the prior year period. Adjusted operating margin decreased 170 basis points to 1.9 percent. Volume declines from component shortages and higher inflation offset productivity and price realization