Calumet suffers $84M loss in revised quarterly earnings report

Indianapolis-based Calumet Specialty Products Partners LP suffered a bigger loss in the fourth quarter than the company originally reported almost four weeks ago.

According to a revised quarterly report the company issued Monday, Calumet lost $83.6 million, or $1.06 per share, down from $79.6 million, or $1.01 per share, in the same quarter of $2016.

The company had reported a loss of $64.9 million, or 82 cents per share, when it first released earnings March 8.

Calumet said much of the loss was attributable to $206.9 million in non-cash impairment charges primarily related to the revaluation of the partnership's property, plant and equipment at several facilities.

The fuel products refiner said earnings before adjusted interest, taxes depreciation and amortization, or EBITA, were $41.2 million in the quarter, up from $27.7 million in the same period of 2016.

That was revised down from $60.1 million in the March 8 report.

Calumet said the only significant revisions made to the quarterly results were to net income and EBITA. Company officials attributed the mistake to “the ongoing implementation and associated learning process related to our new enterprise resource planning system.”

Total sales for the period were $111.5 million, compared with $140.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2016.

The company has been on a cost-cutting mission since posting a loss of $329 million in 2016. It recently sold a Wisconsin refinery for $492 million and drilling-services subsidiary for $84 million. Those divestures have lowered the company’s revenue, but improved the firm’s overall financial performance, CEO Tim Go said.

"I am pleased to report that we have successfully turned the corner,” Go said in written remarks. “We have delivered five consecutive quarters of improved [EBITA] results on a year-over-year basis. We called our high-interest senior secured notes last month. We recently extended our corporate revolver to a new five-year term, which is a great sign that our lenders have recognized the positive steps we have taken to improve the partnership's operational and financial performance."

Calumet shares were down 5 cents Tuesday morning, to $6.85 each. The stock is down almost 7 percent for the year.