Business Context and Reporting Period
Company: Suburban Propane Partners, L.P.
Filing Type: Form 8-K (Current Report)
Date of Report: May 9, 2019
Reporting Period: Fiscal 2019 Second Quarter
This filing serves as a current report to announce the issuance of a press release detailing the Partnership's financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2019. The registrant operates in the retail propane, fuel oil, natural gas, and electricity sectors.
Key Financial Metrics
The filing text itself does not provide specific numerical values for revenue, profit, cash flow, margins, debt, or liquidity. Instead, it references a press release (Exhibit 99.1) containing these details. The filing highlights the following non-GAAP measures used to evaluate performance:
- EBITDA: Net income before deducting interest expense, income taxes, depreciation, and amortization.
- Adjusted EBITDA: EBITDA excluding unrealized net gain or loss from mark-to-market activity for derivative instruments and certain other items.
- Gross Margins: Computed as revenues less cost of products sold (noted as a non-GAAP measure because cost of products sold excludes depreciation and amortization).
Material Changes
The filing text does not explicitly state material changes in financial metrics compared to the prior comparable period. It notes that profitability in the registrant's business lines is largely dependent on the difference between retail sales prices and product costs, implying that commodity price fluctuations are a primary driver of performance changes.
Guidance, Outlook, and Management Commentary
Management Commentary: Management states that the non-GAAP measures (EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Gross Margins) are provided to offer the investment community and industry analysts supplemental measures of operating performance. These metrics are intended to facilitate understanding of the impact of commodity prices on profitability.
Guidance and Risks: The filing text does not contain specific forward-looking guidance, risk factors, or contingencies beyond the general observation regarding commodity price dependency.
Important Facts for Investor Verification
- Verify the specific numerical results for Fiscal 2019 Second Quarter by reviewing the attached Press Release (Exhibit 99.1), as this 8-K summary does not list the figures.
- Review the reconciliation of non-GAAP measures (EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Gross Margins) to GAAP financial measures in the press release to understand the adjustments made.
- Assess the impact of commodity price fluctuations on the company's gross margins, as this is identified as a key determinant of profitability.
- Note that the information in the press release is not deemed "filed" for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act unless expressly incorporated by reference.