Tuesday, March 21, 2000
Debts cleared, Churchill eyes potential acquisitions
By TIMOTHY LE RICHE, Edmonton Sun
After spending years clearing its debt, the Churchill Corporation says it is prepared to borrow to get bigger.
"We've announced that our forward strategy involves growing the company," said president and CEO Hank Reid. "Internal growth and acquisitions. So we're on the lookout for good companies would make good matches with Churchill's companies."
Edmonton-based Churchill reported Dec. 31 year-end net earnings of $3.4 million, up 27% from $2.6 million the previous year.
"The earnings and increased equity in 1999 give us a good foundation for the growth plans," said Reid. "We're debt-free and we've got a substantial amount of cash. So we have the capacity to finance growth through a combination of internal and external debt."
Churchill would prefer to buy Alberta-based companies, said Reid.
About the middle of last year, Churchill paid off, early, a $4.5-million 1997 loan which was used to finance the repurchase of all its preferred shares and cancellation of half of its common shares.
The company has spent most of a decade cleaning up its balance sheet and getting out of non-profitable, non-construction businesses, he said.
"We're not going to stay debt-free," said Reid. "But we'll incur that debt in some good acquisitions."
Construction contract revenue increased by $17 million to $228 million for Churchill and its subsidiaries Stuart Olson Construction Ltd., Triton Projects Inc., Fuller Austin Insulation Inc. and Northern Industrial Insulation Contractors Inc.
The year-end results do not include numbers from H&H Oilfield Services of Bonnyville, purchased earlier this month for $3.2 million. H&H has annual revenues of $10 million.
Big jobs last year included a Stuart Olson partnership with an American firm on the $80-million Crystal project in Vancouver, including a hotel, condominiums, office and retail space.
"With work in hand of $199 million at the start of 2000, up from $155 million at the start of 1999, we are well-positioned to continue our record of profitable growth this year," said Reid. "With the strength of the resource sector and momentum of the economy in Western Canada, we believe that the construction market will continue to provide good opportunity for us."
Churchill has more than 300 core employees. |
