Liberty Energy Inc. (LBRT)
SIC breadcrumb: Mining > SIC Major Group 13 > SIC 1389 Oil & Gas Field Services, NEC
SEC company page: https://www.sec.gov/edgar/browse/?CIK=1694028. Latest filing source: 0001694028-26-000006.
Informational only - descriptive public-record data, not investment advice.
Business
Read LBRT's verbatim Item 1 Business section from its latest 10-K: Business.
Risk Factors
Read LBRT's verbatim Item 1A Risk Factors from its latest 10-K: Risk Factors.
Selected Fundamentals
| Metric | Value | Unit | FY | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 4,006,116,000 | USD | 2025 | 2026-02-02 |
| Net income | 147,872,000 | USD | 2025 | 2026-02-02 |
| Assets | 3,558,305,000 | USD | 2025 | 2026-02-02 |
Financials
Annual standardized facts from SEC companyfacts as of latest extracted filing date 2026-02-02. Source: https://data.sec.gov/api/xbrl/companyfacts/CIK0001694028.json. Derived margins, ratios, and free cash flow are computed from the extracted annual SEC facts.
| Metric | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 374,773,000 | 1,489,855,000 | 2,155,136,000 | 1,990,346,000 | 965,787,000 | 2,470,782,000 | 4,149,228,000 | 4,747,928,000 | 4,315,161,000 | 4,006,116,000 |
| Net income | 0.00 | 0.00 | 126,349,000 | 39,003,000 | -115,583,000 | -179,244,000 | 399,602,000 | 556,317,000 | 316,010,000 | 147,872,000 |
| Operating income | -54,434,000 | 181,137,000 | 306,563,000 | 103,597,000 | -177,026,000 | -181,224,000 | 495,890,000 | 760,579,000 | 389,468,000 | 72,708,000 |
| Diluted EPS | 1.81 | 0.53 | -1.36 | -1.03 | 2.11 | 3.15 | 1.87 | 0.89 | ||
| Operating cash flow | -40,708,000 | 195,109,000 | 351,258,000 | 261,100,000 | 85,425,000 | 135,467,000 | 530,364,000 | 1,014,583,000 | 829,374,000 | 609,598,000 |
| Capital expenditures | 102,428,000 | 311,794,000 | 258,835,000 | 195,173,000 | 103,637,000 | 198,794,000 | 451,905,000 | 603,298,000 | 651,034,000 | 595,493,000 |
| Dividends paid | 0.00 | 0.00 | 6,907,000 | 14,776,000 | 4,431,000 | 168,000 | 9,164,000 | 37,684,000 | 48,310,000 | 54,478,000 |
| Share buybacks | 0.00 | 0.00 | 82,903,000 | 18,398,000 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 125,313,000 | 203,100,000 | 129,250,000 | 24,882,000 |
| Assets | 852,103,000 | 1,116,501,000 | 1,283,429,000 | 1,889,942,000 | 2,040,660,000 | 2,575,932,000 | 3,033,557,000 | 3,296,394,000 | 3,558,305,000 | |
| Liabilities | 416,851,000 | 375,687,000 | 501,937,000 | 579,899,000 | 810,221,000 | 1,078,626,000 | 1,192,149,000 | 1,317,525,000 | 1,479,416,000 | |
| Stockholders' equity | 228,972,000 | 392,766,000 | 740,814,000 | 781,492,000 | 1,310,043,000 | 1,230,439,000 | 1,497,306,000 | 1,841,408,000 | 1,978,869,000 | 2,078,889,000 |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 11,484,000 | 16,321,000 | 103,312,000 | 112,690,000 | 68,978,000 | 19,998,000 | 43,676,000 | 36,784,000 | 19,984,000 | 27,554,000 |
| Free cash flow | -143,136,000 | -116,685,000 | 92,423,000 | 65,927,000 | -18,212,000 | -63,327,000 | 78,459,000 | 411,285,000 | 178,340,000 | 14,105,000 |
Ratios
| Metric | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net margin | 0.00% | 0.00% | 5.86% | 1.96% | -11.97% | -7.25% | 9.63% | 11.72% | 7.32% | 3.69% |
| Operating margin | -14.52% | 12.16% | 14.22% | 5.20% | -18.33% | -7.33% | 11.95% | 16.02% | 9.03% | 1.81% |
| Return on equity | 0.00% | 0.00% | 17.06% | 4.99% | -8.82% | -14.57% | 26.69% | 30.21% | 15.97% | 7.11% |
| Return on assets | 0.00% | 11.32% | 3.04% | -6.12% | -8.78% | 15.51% | 18.34% | 9.59% | 4.16% | |
| Liabilities / equity | 1.06 | 0.51 | 0.64 | 0.44 | 0.66 | 0.72 | 0.65 | 0.67 | 0.71 | |
| Current ratio | 1.60 | 2.10 | 1.83 | 1.59 | 1.11 | 1.47 | 1.49 | 1.27 | 1.22 |
Industry Peer Context
Net margin peer context
Operating margin peer context
ROE peer context
ROA peer context
Financial Bridges
Free cash flow = operating cash flow - capital expenditures
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts FY 2025. Operating cash flow: accession 0001694028-26-000006; concept NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities; source concepts us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities | Capital expenditures: accession 0001694028-26-000006; concept PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets; source concepts us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets | Free cash flow: accession 0001694028-26-000006; concept NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities - PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets; source concepts us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities; us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets
Financial Charts
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: Revenues. Source concepts: us-gaap:Revenues.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: NetIncomeLoss. Source concepts: us-gaap:NetIncomeLoss.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: OperatingIncomeLoss. Source concepts: us-gaap:OperatingIncomeLoss.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: EarningsPerShareDiluted. Source concepts: us-gaap:EarningsPerShareDiluted.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities. Source concepts: us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets. Source concepts: us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: PaymentsOfDividends. Source concepts: us-gaap:PaymentsOfDividends.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: PaymentsForRepurchaseOfCommonStock. Source concepts: us-gaap:PaymentsForRepurchaseOfCommonStock.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: Assets. Source concepts: us-gaap:Assets.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: Liabilities. Source concepts: us-gaap:Liabilities.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: StockholdersEquityIncludingPortionAttributableToNoncontrollingInterest. Source concepts: us-gaap:StockholdersEquityIncludingPortionAttributableToNoncontrollingInterest.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue. Source concepts: us-gaap:CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2025 ended 2025-12-31; accession 0001694028-26-000006; filed 2026-02-02. Concept: NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities - PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets. Source concepts: us-gaap:NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities; us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquireProductiveAssets.
Quarterly
Quarterly standardized facts from SEC companyfacts as of latest extracted filing date 2026-07-23. Source: https://data.sec.gov/api/xbrl/companyfacts/CIK0001694028.json.
| Quarter | End Date | Revenue | Net Income | Diluted EPS | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-Q3 | 2022-09-30 | 0.78 | reported discrete quarter | ||
| 2023-Q1 | 2023-03-31 | 0.90 | reported discrete quarter | ||
| 2023-Q2 | 2023-06-30 | 0.87 | reported discrete quarter | ||
| 2023-Q3 | 2023-09-30 | 1,215,905,000 | 148,608,000 | 0.85 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2023-Q4 | 2023-12-31 | 1,074,958,000 | 92,383,000 | derived Q4 = FY annual - nine-month YTD | |
| 2024-Q1 | 2024-03-31 | 1,073,125,000 | 81,892,000 | 0.48 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2024-Q2 | 2024-06-30 | 1,159,884,000 | 108,421,000 | 0.64 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2024-Q3 | 2024-09-30 | 1,138,578,000 | 73,804,000 | 0.44 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2024-Q4 | 2024-12-31 | 943,574,000 | 51,893,000 | derived Q4 = FY annual - nine-month YTD | |
| 2025-Q1 | 2025-03-31 | 977,461,000 | 20,111,000 | 0.12 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2025-Q2 | 2025-06-30 | 1,042,521,000 | 71,016,000 | 0.43 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2025-Q3 | 2025-09-30 | 947,397,000 | 43,055,000 | 0.26 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2025-Q4 | 2025-12-31 | 1,038,737,000 | 13,690,000 | derived Q4 = FY annual - nine-month YTD | |
| 2026-Q1 | 2026-03-31 | 1,021,184,000 | 22,558,000 | 0.14 | reported discrete quarter |
| 2026-Q2 | 2026-06-30 | 1,188,596,000 | 43,121,000 | 0.26 | reported discrete quarter |
Quarterly Charts
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2026 ended 2026-06-30; accession 0001694028-26-000039; filed 2026-07-23. Concept: Revenues. Source concepts: us-gaap:Revenues.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2026 ended 2026-06-30; accession 0001694028-26-000039; filed 2026-07-23. Concept: NetIncomeLoss. Source concepts: us-gaap:NetIncomeLoss.
Figure provenance: SEC companyfacts. Latest point: FY 2026 ended 2026-06-30; accession 0001694028-26-000039; filed 2026-07-23. Concept: EarningsPerShareDiluted. Source concepts: us-gaap:EarningsPerShareDiluted.
Macro Cross-References
- CPIAUCSL - Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items in U.S. City Average
- UNRATE - Unemployment Rate
- FEDFUNDS - Federal Funds Effective Rate
- CES0500000003 - Average Hourly Earnings of All Employees, Total Private
- DFEDTARU - Federal Funds Target Range - Upper Limit
- DFEDTARL - Federal Funds Target Range - Lower Limit
- DGS3MO - Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 3-Month Constant Maturity
- DGS2 - Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 2-Year Constant Maturity
- DGS10 - Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 10-Year Constant Maturity
- DGS30 - Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 30-Year Constant Maturity
- T10Y2Y - 10-Year Treasury Constant Maturity Minus 2-Year Treasury Constant Maturity
- CPILFESL - Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items Less Food and Energy
- CPIUFDSL - Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Food
- CPIENGSL - Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Energy
- CUSR0000SAH1 - Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Shelter
- PCEPI - Personal Consumption Expenditures: Chain-type Price Index
- PCEPILFE - Personal Consumption Expenditures Excluding Food and Energy: Chain-type Price Index
- PPIACO - Producer Price Index by Commodity: All Commodities
- T10YIE - 10-Year Breakeven Inflation Rate
- U6RATE - Total Unemployed, Plus All Marginally Attached Workers Plus Total Employed Part Time for Economic Reasons
- PAYEMS - All Employees, Total Nonfarm
- CIVPART - Labor Force Participation Rate
- EMRATIO - Employment-Population Ratio
- UNEMPLOY - Unemployed
- CE16OV - Employment Level
- ICSA - Initial Claims
- JTSJOL - Job Openings: Total Nonfarm
- JTSQUR - Quits: Total Nonfarm
- GDPC1 - Real Gross Domestic Product
- A191RL1Q225SBEA - Real Gross Domestic Product: Percent Change from Preceding Period
- INDPRO - Industrial Production: Total Index
- TCU - Capacity Utilization: Total Index
- HOUST - New Privately-Owned Housing Units Started: Total Units
- PERMIT - New Privately-Owned Housing Units Authorized in Permit-Issuing Places: Total Units
- RSAFS - Advance Retail Sales: Retail Trade
- PCE - Personal Consumption Expenditures
- DSPIC96 - Real Disposable Personal Income
- PSAVERT - Personal Saving Rate
- M2SL - M2
- BOPGSTB - U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services: Balance
- MSPUS - Median Sales Price of Houses Sold for the United States
- HSN1F - New One Family Houses Sold: United States
- RHORUSQ156N - Homeownership Rate in the United States
- TTLCONS - Total Construction Spending: Total Construction in the United States
- RRVRUSQ156N - Rental Vacancy Rate in the United States
- TOTALSL - Total Consumer Credit Owned and Securitized
- REVOLSL - Revolving Consumer Credit Owned and Securitized
- DRCCLACBS - Delinquency Rate on Credit Card Loans, All Commercial Banks
- GDP - Gross Domestic Product
- GPDI - Gross Private Domestic Investment
- GCE - Government Consumption Expenditures and Gross Investment
- PCEC - Personal Consumption Expenditures
- NETEXP - Net Exports of Goods and Services
- GFDEBTN - Federal Debt: Total Public Debt
- GFDEGDQ188S - Federal Debt: Total Public Debt as Percent of Gross Domestic Product
- FYFSD - Federal Surplus or Deficit
- FGRECPT - Federal Government Current Receipts
- FGEXPND - Federal Government: Current Expenditures
- MANEMP - All Employees, Manufacturing
- USCONS - All Employees, Construction
- USTRADE - All Employees, Retail Trade
- USFIRE - All Employees, Financial Activities
- USGOVT - All Employees, Government
- AWHAETP - Average Weekly Hours of All Employees, Total Private
- DGORDER - Manufacturers' New Orders: Durable Goods
- NEWORDER - Manufacturers' New Orders: Nondefense Capital Goods Excluding Aircraft
- BUSINV - Total Business Inventories
- EXPGS - Exports of Goods and Services
- IMPGS - Imports of Goods and Services
- IR - Import Price Index (End Use): All Commodities
- PPIFIS - Producer Price Index by Commodity: Final Demand
Latest quarter (10-Q)
Latest 10-Q source: 0001694028-26-000039.
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes. The following discussion contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect our future plans, estimates, beliefs, and expected performance. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those described in “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements,” the Annual Report under the heading “Item 1A. Risk Factors,” and in “Part II – Other Information, Item 1A. Risk Factors” included herein. We assume no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements.
Overview
The Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a leading integrated energy services and technology company, and one of the largest providers of innovative completions services and related technologies to onshore oil, natural gas, and enhanced geothermal exploration and production (“E&P”) companies. We offer customers completions services, which include hydraulic fracturing together with complementary services including wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, compressed natural gas (“CNG”) delivery, data analytics, related goods (including our sand mine operations), and technologies to facilitate lower emission completions, thereby helping our customers reduce their emissions profile. We have grown from one active hydraulic fracturing fleet in December 2011 to approximately 40 active fleets as of June 30, 2026. We provide our services primarily in the major oil and gas shale basins in North America and in the Northern Territory of Australia.
We also own and operate LPI, providing advanced distributed power and energy storage solutions, serving the commercial and industrial, data center, energy and mining industries. LPI was formed with the initial focus on supporting Liberty’s transition towards our next generation digiFleets℠ and dual fuel fleets, by providing consistent and reliable power generation solutions and natural gas fueling services, which are critical to maintaining highly efficient well site operations. In January 2025, we announced LPI’s expansion into the distributed power business. On March 3, 2025, we completed the acquisition of IMG Energy Solutions (“the IMG Acquisition”), a leading developer of distributed power systems, for cash consideration of approximately $19.6 million, subject to normal closing adjustments and net of cash received. The IMG Acquisition augmented our portfolio with advanced engineering, design, and development capabilities for the development of power systems, enhanced software control systems, power marketing and utility interconnection experience, and operations and maintenance experience. During 2025, LPI was primarily focused on the planning and development of our power service platform to pursue projects supporting the power demand created by new data center development and other commercial and industrial applications. LPI is actively marketing its integrated power and fuel solutions offering, developing engineered solutions, and, as described in further detail below under "Liquidity and Capital Resources, ordering equipment and long-lead time items for these expected projects. LPI also expanded its natural gas fueling services to support larger scale distributed power installations.
We believe technical innovation and strong relationships with our customer and supplier bases distinguish us from our competitors and are the foundations of our business. We expect that E&P companies will continue to focus on technological innovation as completion complexity and fracture intensity of horizontal wells increases, particularly as customers are increasingly focused on reducing emissions from their completions operations. We remain proactive in developing innovative solutions to industry challenges, including developing: (i) our databases of U.S. unconventional wells to which we apply our proprietary multi-variable statistical analysis technologies to provide differential insight into fracture design optimization; (ii) our Liberty Quiet Fleet® design which significantly reduces noise levels compared to conventional hydraulic fracturing fleets; (iii) hydraulic fracturing fluid systems tailored to the specific reservoir properties in the basins in which we operate; (iv) our dual fuel dynamic gas blending (“DGB”) fleets that allow our engines to run diesel or a combination of diesel and natural gas, to optimize fuel use, reduce emissions and lower costs; (v) our digiFleets℠, comprising of digiFrac℠ and digiPrime℠ pumps and other complementary equipment, including power generation units (together “digiTechnologies℠”), our innovative, purpose-built electric and hybrid frac pumps that have approximately 25% lower CO2e emission profile than the Tier IV DGB; (vi) our wet sand handling technology and piped sand slurry solution which eliminate the need to dry sand, enabling the deployment of mobile mines nearer to wellsites; (vii) the launch of LPI to support the transition to our digiFleets as well as the transition to lower costs and emissions in the oilfield; and (viii) a suite of internally developed software solutions incorporating advanced analytics to support operations, maintenance and logistics management. In addition, our integrated supply chain includes proppant, chemicals, equipment, natural gas fueling services, logistics and integrated software which we believe promotes wellsite efficiency and leads to more pumping hours and higher productivity during completions services jobs to better service our customers.
LPI’s technology platform for distributed power generation includes (a) the ForteSM solution, which uses a modular, standardized construction approach for generation sites to reduce the risk of project execution, (b) the TempoSM power quality management system to manage high-amplitude, cyclical load variations associated with artificial intelligence workloads and (c)
26
Table of Contents
when a grid interconnection is requested by the customer and available, the ChorusSM solution to optimize power costs through the use of a mix of co-located generation and grid power.
In order to achieve our technological objectives, we carefully manage our liquidity and debt position to promote operational flexibility and invest in the business throughout the full commodity cycle in the regions we operate.
Recent Trends and Outlook
The current Middle East conflict with Iran has resulted in damage to regional energy infrastructure and continued uncertainty as to the availability of key energy export corridors. This disruption has increased focus on energy security and supply diversification and reinforced the strategic importance of North American oil and natural gas resources. This focus has the potential to grow international demand for North American petroleum products and LNG in the next several years.
North American frac activity improved modestly during the quarter following a gradual increase in producer activity. Despite these short-term improvements, larger U.S. and Canadian producers remain cautious regarding activity growth due to continued commodity price volatility and broader macroeconomic uncertainty.
Related to power markets, demand is being driven by continued AI data center development and broader industrial power requirements. As power projects increase in scale and complexity, customers are expected to seek infrastructure providers capable of delivering integrated solutions across power supply, site readiness, energy management, and long-term operations.
During the second quarter of 2026, the posted WTI price traded at an average of $95.65 per barrel (“Bbl”), as compared to the second quarter 2025 average of $64.57 per Bbl, and the first quarter of 2026 average of $72.74 per Bbl. In addition, during the second quarter of 2026, the Henry Hub price traded at an average of $2.95 per one million British thermal units (“MMBtu”), as compared to the second quarter of 2025 average of $3.19 per MMBtu, and the first quarter of 2026 average of $4.71 per MMBtu. Subsequent to June 30, 2026, the Henry Hub traded at an average of $2.99 per MMBtu and the WTI price traded at an average of $76.07 per Bbl through July 20, 2026. The average domestic onshore rig count for the United States and Canada was 688 rigs reported in the second quarter of 2026, up from the average in the second quarter 2025 of 686, and down from the first quarter of 2025 of 741, according to a report from Baker Hughes.
27
Table of Contents
Business Developments
Senior Convertible Notes Activity
In February 2026, we issued $770 million aggregate principal amount of 0% convertible senior notes due March 2031 (the “2031 Notes”), and in March 2026, we issued $525 million aggregate principal amount of 0% convertible senior notes due March 2032 (the “2032 Notes”). Net proceeds from the offerings of the 2031 Notes and the 2032 Notes were $746 million and $511.3 million, respectively, after deducting the initial purchasers’ discounts and commissions and offering expenses paid by us. Additionally, we entered into privately negotiated capped call transactions with respect to each of the 2031 Notes and the 2032 Notes with certain of the initial purchasers or their respective affiliates and certain other financial institutions at a cost of approximately $109.3 million and $77.2 million, respectively. For more information on the 2031 Notes and the 2032 Notes, see Note 7—Debt to the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements in Part I, Item 1 of this Quarterly Report.
Supply Contracts for Power Generation Equipment
During the three months ended June 30, 2026, we entered into supply contracts with various global suppliers, including Bergen Engines AS and Wärtsilä North America, Inc., and on July 22, 2026, we entered into a supply contract with Caterpillar Inc. as described in “Part II – Other Information, Item 5. Other Information” for the purchase of power generation equipment, including engines and certain balance of plant equipment, for the Company’s prospective data center and other distributed power projects. For more information regarding these supply contracts, see below under “Liquidity and Capital Resources.”
28
Table of Contents
Results of Operations
Three Months Ended June 30, 2026, Compared to Three Months Ended June 30, 2025
| Three months ended June 30, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2026 | 2025 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 1,188,596 | $ | 1,042,521 | $ | 146,075 | ||||
| Cost of services (exclusive of depreciation, depletion, and amortization shown separately below) | 980,255 | 812,107 | 168,148 | |||||||
| General and administrative | 67,169 | 58,344 | 8,825 | |||||||
| Transaction and other costs | 7,691 | — | 7,691 | |||||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 114,213 | 129,366 | (15,153) | |||||||
| (Gain) loss on disposal of assets, net | 6,552 | 5,631 | 921 | |||||||
| Operating income | 12,716 | 37,073 | (24,357) | |||||||
| Other income, net | (39,559) | (58,080) | 18,521 | |||||||
| Net income before income taxes | 52,275 | 95,153 | (42,878) | |||||||
| Income tax expense | 9,154 | 24,137 | (14,983) | |||||||
| Net income | 43,121 | 71,016 | (27,895) |
Revenue
Our revenue increased $146.1 million, or 14%, to $1.2 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2026 compared to $1.0 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2025. The increase in revenue was predominantly driven by elevated activity levels and corresponding improvement in utilization.
Cost of Serv
[Excerpt truncated for page length; source filing is linked above.]
Latest 10-K MD&A
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report. The following discussion contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect our future plans, estimates, beliefs and expected performance. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those described in this Annual Report under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements. This section of this Annual Report generally discusses 2025 and 2024 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2025 and 2024. For discussion of year ended December 31, 2023, as well as the year ended 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023, refer to Part II, Item 7— Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of our 2024 Annual Report.
Overview
The Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a leading integrated energy services and technology company, and one of the largest providers of innovative completions services and related technologies to onshore oil, natural gas, and enhanced geothermal exploration and production (“E&P”) companies. We offer customers completions services, which include hydraulic fracturing together with complementary services including wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, compressed natural gas (“CNG”) delivery, data analytics, related goods (including our sand mine operations), and technologies to facilitate lower emission completions, thereby helping our customers reduce their emissions profile. We have grown from one active hydraulic fracturing fleet in December 2011 to approximately 40 active fleets as of December 31, 2025. We provide our services primarily in the major oil and gas shale basins in North America and in the Northern Territory of Australia.
We also own and operate Liberty Power Innovations LLC (“LPI”), providing advanced distributed power and energy storage solutions, serving the commercial and industrial, data center, energy and mining industries. LPI was formed with the initial focus on supporting Liberty’s transition towards our next generation digiFleets℠ and dual fuel fleets, by providing consistent and reliable power generation solutions and natural gas fueling services, which are critical to maintaining highly efficient well site operations. In January 2025, we announced LPI’s expansion into the distributed power business. On March 3, 2025, we completed the acquisition of IMG Energy Solutions (“the IMG Acquisition”), a leading developer of distributed power systems, for cash consideration of approximately $19.6 million, subject to normal closing adjustments and net of cash received. The IMG Acquisition augmented our portfolio with advanced engineering, design, and development capabilities for the development of power systems, enhanced software control systems, power marketing and utility interconnection experience, and operations and maintenance experience. During 2025, LPI was primarily focused on the planning and development of our power service platform to pursue projects supporting the power demand created by new data center development and other commercial and industrial applications. LPI is in the process of expanding market awareness of its integrated power and fuel solutions offering, developing engineered solutions, and ordering equipment and long-lead time items for these expected projects. LPI also expanded its natural gas fueling services to support larger scale distributed power installations.
We believe technical innovation and strong relationships with our customer and supplier bases distinguish us from our competitors and are the foundations of our business. We expect that E&P companies will continue to focus on technological innovation as completion complexity and fracture intensity of horizontal wells increases, particularly as customers are increasingly focused on reducing emissions from their completions operations. We remain proactive in developing innovative solutions to industry challenges, including developing: (i) our databases of U.S. unconventional wells to which we apply our proprietary multi-variable statistical analysis technologies to provide differential insight into fracture design optimization; (ii) our Liberty Quiet Fleet® design which significantly reduces noise levels compared to conventional hydraulic fracturing fleets; (iii) hydraulic fracturing fluid systems tailored to the specific reservoir properties in the basins in which we operate; (iv) our dual fuel dynamic gas blending (“DGB”) fleets that allow our engines to run diesel or a combination of diesel and natural gas, to optimize fuel use, reduce emissions and lower costs; (v) our digiFleets℠, comprising of digiFrac℠ and digiPrime℠ pumps and other complementary equipment, including power generation units (together “digiTechnologies℠”), our innovative, purpose-built electric and hybrid frac pumps that have approximately 25% lower CO2e emission profile than the Tier IV DGB; (vi) our wet sand handling technology and piped sand slurry solution which eliminate the need to dry sand, enabling the deployment of mobile mines nearer to wellsites; (vii) the launch of LPI to support the transition to our digiFleets as well as the transition to lower costs and emissions in the oilfield; and (viii) a suite of internally developed software solutions incorporating advanced analytics to support operations, maintenance and logistics management. In addition, our integrated supply chain includes proppant, chemicals, equipment, natural gas fueling services, logistics and integrated software which we believe promotes wellsite efficiency and leads to more pumping hours and higher productivity during completions services jobs to better service our customers.
LPI’s technology platform for distributed power generation includes (a) the ForteSM solution, which uses a modular, standardized construction approach for generation sites to reduce the risk of project execution, (b) the TempoSM power quality management system to manage high-amplitude, cyclical load variations associated with artificial intelligence workloads and (c)
37
when a grid interconnection is requested by the customer and available, the ChorusSM solution to optimize power costs through the use of a mix of co-located generation and grid power.
In order to achieve our technological objectives, we carefully manage our liquidity and debt position to promote operational flexibility and invest in the business throughout the full commodity cycle in the regions we operate.
Recent Trends and Outlook
The convergence of AI-driven data center expansion, the onshoring of domestic manufacturing, and increased industrial electrification has created structural demand growth for power. Underinvestment in grid infrastructure, transmission constraints, and evolving commercial realities and utility reforms, driven in part by public concerns, have catalyzed broader market recognition of the inherent strategic value of distributed power solutions.
Within North American oil and gas markets, conditions appear to have stabilized after a protracted period of softening activity, as the industry has largely adjusted to OPEC+ supply concerns and tariff-related volatility experienced in 2025. Fourth quarter completions activity defied normal seasonal declines, surpassing expectations. Completions demand is projected to hold firm in 2026. We expect North American producers to respond to global oil and gas dynamics with flat oil production and modest growth in gas-directed activity. Global oil markets are currently balancing a structural oil surplus, elevated geopolitical risk, and an OPEC+ production pause, keeping oil prices largely rangebound. Natural gas markets are supported by significant expansion in LNG export capacity and multi-year growth in power consumption.
Industry fundamentals are expected to improve over time as supply-side dynamics gradually rebalance with completions demand. Recent pricing pressures on completions services, combined with the slowdown in activity, have driven an acceleration in equipment cannibalization and attrition, while underinvestment in next generation technology has limited the replacement of lost capacity. As the market recalibrated at the start of the year, fewer crews are available to meet any incremental completions demand.
E&Ps remain focused on harnessing efficiency gains and engineering solutions to lower the total cost per unit of energy, driving the bar higher for technologically superior services and operational success to achieve these results.
During the year 2025, the posted WTI price traded at an average of $65.45 per barrel (“Bbl”), as compared to the 2024 average of $76.63 per Bbl, and the 2023 average of $77.58 per Bbl. In addition, in the year ending December 31, 2025, the Henry Hub price traded at an average of $3.51 per one million British thermal units (“MMBtu”) as compared to the year ending December 31, 2024 and 2023 average of $2.19 and $2.53 per MMBtu, respectively. In addition, the average domestic onshore rig count for the United States and Canada was 709 rigs reported in the fourth quarter of 2025, down from the average in the fourth quarter of 2024 of 765, according to a report from Baker Hughes.
Acquisitions
On March 3, 2025, we completed the acquisition of IMG Energy Solutions (“the IMG Acquisition”), a leading developer of distributed power systems, for cash consideration of approximately $19.6 million, subject to normal closing adjustments and net of cash received. The IMG Acquisition brings integrated capabilities across engineering design and development, construction management, enhanced software and monitoring systems, operations and marketing. We believe the IMG Acquisition will strengthen LPI by incorporating IMG Energy Solutions’s advanced engineering designs, software control systems, utility interconnection experience and power marketing expertise.
Increase in Drilling Efficiency and Service Intensity of Completions
Over the past decade, E&P companies have focused on exploiting the vast resource potential available across many of North America’s unconventional resource plays through the application of horizontal drilling and completion technologies, including the use of multi-stage hydraulic fracturing, in order to increase recovery of oil and natural gas. As E&P companies have improved drilling and completion techniques to maximize return and efficiency, we believe that well economics have improved, and unconventional oil and gas production is globally competitive. Liberty has been a significant partner with our customers in driving these continued improvements.
Improved drilling economics from horizontal drilling and greater rig efficiencies. According to Baker Hughes, as reported on January 23, 2026, horizontal rigs accounted for approximately 87% of all rigs drilling in the United States and Canada, up from 77% as of December 26, 2014. Over the past several years, North American E&P companies have benefited from improved drilling economics driven by technologies that reduce the number of days, and the cost, of drilling wells. North American drilling rigs have incorporated newer technologies, which allow them to drill rock more effectively and quickly, meaning each rig can drill more wells in a given period. These include improved drilling technologies and the incorporation of geosteering techniques which allow better placement of the wellbore. Drilling rigs have also incorporated new technology which allows fully assembled rigs to automatically “walk” from one location to the next without disassembling and reassembling the rig, greatly reducing the time it takes to move from one drilling location to the next. Today the majority of E&P drilling is on multi-well pad development, allowing efficient drilling of multiple horizontal wellbores from the same pad
38
or location. The aggregate effect of these improved techniques and technologies have reduced the average days required to drill a well, which according to Lium Research, has dropped from 28 days in 2014 to 16 days in 2025.
Increased complexity and service intensity of horizontal well completions. In addition to improved rig efficiencies discussed above, E&P companies are also improving the subsurface techniques and technologies used to exploit unconventional resources. These improvements have targeted increasing the exposure of each wellbore to the reservoir by drilling longer horizontal lateral sections of the wellbore. To complete the well, hydraulic fracturing is applied in stages along the wellbore to break-up the resource so that oil and gas can be produced. As wellbores have increased in length, the number of frac stages and/or the number of perforation clusters (frac initiation points) has also increased. Further, E&P companies have improved production from each stage by applying increasing amounts of proppant in each stage, which better connects the well to the resource. The aggregate effect of increased number of stages and the increasing amount of proppant in each stage has greatly increased the total amount of proppant used in each well, according to Liberty’s FracTrends database, from six million pounds per well in 2014 to roughly 25 million pounds per well in 2025. Further efficiency gains are being sought via the “simul-frac,” “trimul-frac,” and other techniques. When compared to typical zipper-frac operations, these methods allow operators to complete a pad of wells quicker, thereby shortening the time from spud to first production.
These industry trends continue to keep our customers as important suppliers to the global oil and natural gas markets, which directly benefit completions services companies like us that have the expertise and innovative technology to effectively service today’s more efficient oilfield drilling activity and the increasing complexity and intensity of well completions. Given the expected returns that E&P companies have reported for new well development activities due to improved rig efficiencies and increasing well completion complexity and intensity, we expect these industry trends to continue.
Recent Leadership Updates
On February 3, 2025, Christopher A. Wright, our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, was confirmed to the position of Secretary of Energy of the United States and resigned from his positions as Chairman of the Board, Director, and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Also, on February 3, 2025, in accordance with the Company’s succession plan, the Board appointed William Kimble as the non-executive Chairman of the Board and Ron Gusek as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Director.
On January 22, 2025, our Board approved an increase to the size of the Board from nine to 10 directors and appointed Arjun Murti to fill the newly created vacancy. Additionally, on August 26, 2025, Audrey Robertson resigned from the Board and was subsequently confirmed to the position of Assistant Secretary of Energy for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the Department of Energy. On October 16, 2025, the Board appointed Ms. Alice Yake to the vacancy created by Ms. Robertson’s resignation.
How We Generate Revenue
We currently generate revenue through the provision of completions services, including hydraulic fracturing, wireline services and goods, including sand from our Permian Basin sand mines, proppant delivery and logistics, and natural gas compression and delivery. These services and goods are provided under a variety of contract structures, primarily master service agreements (“MSAs”) as supplemented by statements of work, pricing agreements and specific quotes. A portion of our statements of work, under MSAs, include provisions that establish pricing arrangements for a period of up to approximately one year in length. However, the majority of those agreements provide for pricing adjustments based on market conditions. The majority of our services are priced based on prevailing market conditions and changing input costs at the time the services are provided, giving consideration to the specific requirements of the customer.
Our hydraulic fracturing services are performed in sections, which we refer to as fracturing stages. The estimated number of fracturing stages to be completed for a particular horizontal well is determined by the customer’s well completion design. We primarily recognize revenue based on pump hours, fracturing stages, or days on location, although total revenue depends on the actual volumes and types of proppants, chemicals, and fluid utilized on each pad. The number of fracturing stages that we are able to complete in a period is directly related to the number and utilization of our deployed fleets and size of stages.
Costs of Conducting Our Business
The principal expenses involved in conducting our business are direct cost of personnel, services, and materials used in the provision of services, general and administrative expenses, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. A large portion of the costs we incur in our business are variable based on the number of hydraulic fracturing jobs and the requirements of services provided to our customers. We manage the level of our fixed costs, except depreciation, depletion, and amortization, based on several factors, including industry conditions and expected demand for our services.
39
How We Evaluate Our Operations
We use a variety of qualitative, operational and financial metrics to assess our performance. First and foremost, of these is a qualitative assessment of customer satisfaction because ensuring we are a valuable partner to our customers is the key to achieving our quantitative business metrics. Among other measures, management considers each of the following:
•Revenue;
•Operating Income;
•Net Income;
•EBITDA; and
•Adjusted EBITDA.
Revenue
We analyze our revenue by comparing actual revenue to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance.
Operating Income
We analyze our operating income, which we define as revenues less direct operating expenses, depreciation, depletion, and amortization and general and administrative expenses, to measure our financial performance. We believe operating income is a meaningful metric because it provides insight on profitability and true operating performance based on the historical cost basis of our assets. We also compare operating income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods.
Net Income
We analyze our net income, which we define as operating income adjusted for other income or expense, net, including interest expense, net, and income tax expense. We analyze net income by comparing actual net income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance.
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, net, provision for credit losses, transaction and other costs, the gain or loss on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments, and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance. See “Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information and a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to net income, the most comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
40
Results of Operations
Year Ended December 31, 2025, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2024
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2025 | 2024 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 4,006,116 | $ | 4,315,161 | $ | (309,045) | ||||
| Costs of services (exclusive of depreciation, depletion, and amortization shown separately below) | 3,168,109 | 3,200,506 | (32,397) | |||||||
| General and administrative | 247,436 | 225,474 | 21,962 | |||||||
| Transaction and other costs | 840 | — | 840 | |||||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 500,332 | 505,050 | (4,718) | |||||||
| Loss (gain) on disposal of assets, net | 16,691 | (5,337) | 22,028 | |||||||
| Operating income | 72,708 | 389,468 | (316,760) | |||||||
| Other income, net | (122,483) | (13,803) | (108,680) | |||||||
| Net income before income taxes | 195,191 | 403,271 | (208,080) | |||||||
| Income tax expense | 47,319 | 87,261 | (39,942) | |||||||
| Net income | 147,872 | 316,010 | (168,138) |
Revenue
Our revenue decreased $309.0 million, or 7%, to $4.0 billion for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $4.3 billion for the year ended December 31, 2024. The decrease in revenue was primarily attributable to a decrease in service and materials pricing, offset by moderately increased activity levels.
Costs of Services
Costs of services (exclusive of depreciation, depletion, and amortization) decreased $32.4 million, or 1%, to $3.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $3.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2024. The decrease in expense was primarily related to decreases in materials costs and lower repairs and maintenance costs, partially offset by increased personnel costs.
General and Administrative
General and administrative expenses increased $22.0 million, or 10%, to $247.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $225.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 primarily attributable to increasing corporate costs and increased stock-based compensation expense recognized during the first quarter of 2025 in connection with the resignation of Christopher A. Wright, the Company’s previous Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, from the Company upon his confirmation to the Secretary of Energy of the United States.
Transaction and Other Costs
Transaction and other costs was $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $0.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The Company incurred costs related to the IMG Acquisition in 2025, see Note 3—Acquisitions to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for further details.
Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization
Depreciation, depletion, and amortization remained relatively flat, decreasing $4.7 million, or 1%, to $500.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $505.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2024.
Loss (Gain) on Disposal of Assets, net
The Company recorded a loss on disposal of assets, net of $16.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to a gain, net of $5.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The loss recognized in the year ended December 31, 2025 was primarily related to the disposal of used older technology field equipment that was no longer operational as well as the write-off related to an insured loss for equipment damaged on location. The gain recognized in the year ended December 31, 2024 was a result of the Company selling used field equipment and light duty trucks in a strong used vehicle and equipment market.
41
Other Income, net
The Company recognized other income, net of $122.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $13.8 million during the year ended December 31, 2024, an increase of $108.7 million. Other (income) expense, net is comprised of gain on investments, net of $162.6 million related to investments in equity securities measured at fair value during the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to $49.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 and gain on remeasurement of liability under the TRAs of $0.1 million during the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to a loss of $3.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, offset by interest expense, net. Interest expense, net increased $7.6 million primarily as a result of the addition of finance lease liabilities, refer to “Liquidity and Capital Resources” below for further discussion of the Company’s finance leases. Additionally, interest income—related party decreased $0.5 million related to a note receivable agreement executed in December 2022, amended in August 2023, and fully collected in March 2024.
Income Tax Expense
The Company recognized income tax expense of $47.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, an effective rate of 24.2%, compared to $87.3 million, for the year ended December 31, 2024, an effective rate of 21.6%. The decrease in income tax expense was primarily attributable to the decrease in net income before income taxes and increased U.S. federal tax credits.
Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, net, bad debt reserves, transaction and other costs, the gain or loss on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments, net, and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance.
Our Board, management, investors, and lenders use EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to assess our financial performance because it allows them to compare our operating performance on a consistent basis across periods by removing the effects of our capital structure (such as varying levels of interest expense), asset base (such as depreciation, depletion, and amortization) and other items that impact the comparability of financial results from period to period. We present EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA because we believe they provide useful information regarding the factors and trends affecting our business in addition to measures calculated under GAAP.
Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP. We believe that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures will provide useful information to investors in assessing our financial performance and results of operations. Net income is the GAAP financial measure most directly comparable to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. Our non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Each of these non-GAAP financial measures has important limitations as an analytical tool due to exclusion of some but not all items that affect the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. You should not consider EBITDA or Adjusted EBITDA in isolation or as substitutes for an analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Because EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies in our industry, our definitions of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility.
42
The following tables present a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to our net income, which is the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure for the periods presented:
Year Ended December 31, 2025, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2024: EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2025 | 2024 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net income | $ | 147,872 | $ | 316,010 | $ | (168,138) | ||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 500,332 | 505,050 | (4,718) | |||||||
| Interest expense, net | 40,306 | 32,214 | 8,092 | |||||||
| Income tax expense | 47,319 | 87,261 | (39,942) | |||||||
| EBITDA | $ | 735,829 | $ | 940,535 | $ | (204,706) | ||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 41,922 | 32,412 | 9,510 | |||||||
| Loss (gain) on disposal of assets, net | 16,691 | (5,337) | 22,028 | |||||||
| Gain on investments, net | (162,642) | (49,227) | (113,415) | |||||||
| (Gain) loss on remeasurement of liability under tax receivable agreements | (147) | 3,210 | (3,357) | |||||||
| Provision for credit losses | 1,653 | — | 1,653 | |||||||
| Transaction and other costs | 840 | — | 840 | |||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 634,146 | $ | 921,593 | $ | (287,447) |
EBITDA was $735.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $940.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. Adjusted EBITDA was $634.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to $921.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The decreases in EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA primarily resulted from lower pricing and changes in activity levels in 2025 as described above under the captions Revenue, Cost of Services, and General and Administrative Expenses for the Year Ended December 31, 2025, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2024.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview
Historically, our primary sources of liquidity consist of cash flows from operations, borrowings under our credit facilities, and finance leases for certain equipment. While we believe that we can fund operations and current organic growth plans for our oilfield services business with these sources, we monitor the availability and cost of capital resources such as equity, debt, and lease financings that could be leveraged for current or future financial obligations including those related to acquisitions, capital expenditures, working capital, and other liquidity requirements. We intend to raise significant funds to support our current planned expansion of our power business which may include debt, project financing including non-recourse debt, and co-investments or equity. We may incur additional indebtedness or issue equity in order to meet our capital expenditure activities and liquidity requirements, as well as to fund organic and other growth opportunities or potential acquisitions that we pursue. Our primary uses of capital have been capital expenditures to support growth, both organic and through acquisitions, and funding ongoing operations, including maintenance and fleet upgrades, as well as the repurchases of, and dividends on, shares of our Class A Common Stock.
Cash and cash equivalents increased by $7.6 million to $27.6 million as of December 31, 2025 compared to $20.0 million as of December 31, 2024, while working capital excluding cash and current liabilities under debt and lease arrangements decreased $5.5 million.
Effective July 24, 2025 (the “Agreement Date”), Liberty Energy Services LLC, Freedom Proppant LLC, Liberty Power Innovations LLC, LOS Leasing Company LLC, Liberty Advanced Equipment Technologies LLC and Proppant Express Solutions, LLC, as borrowers (the “Borrowers”), and the Company, as parent guarantor, entered into a new Credit Agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent, sole book runner and joint lead arranger, and certain other lenders party thereto (the “Credit Agreement”), which provides for, among other things, a revolving credit facility with initial revolving commitments of $750.0 million, subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on a percentage of eligible accounts receivable, inventory, and certain power generation assets. As of December 31, 2025, the Company was party to the Credit Agreement (as defined herein), which provides for a revolving line of credit up to $750.0 million (the “Revolving Credit Facility”). The Credit Agreement is subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on a percentage of eligible accounts receivable, inventory, and certain power generation assets available to finance working capital needs. As of December 31, 2025, the borrowing base was calculated to be $503.0 million, and the Company had $230.0 million outstanding, in addition to letters of credit totaling $19.2 million, with $253.8 million of remaining availability.
43
The Company is seeking an amendment (the “Amendment”) to the Credit Agreement that, among other things, would (i) permit the incurrence of new bridge loan indebtedness in an aggregate principal amount not to exceed $600.0 million (“Permitted Bridge Indebtedness”), which must be incurred on or prior to June 30, 2026 and have a scheduled maturity date not later than 365 days from the date of incurrence, (ii) subject to certain limitations and requirements, permit liens securing the Permitted Bridge Indebtedness, (iii) increase the basket for permitted convertible indebtedness from $300.0 million to $600.0 million, and (iv) amend the maturity date of the Revolving Credit Facility to provide that such maturity date will be accelerated to the date that is 91 days prior to the stated maturity of any outstanding Permitted Bridge Indebtedness if such Permitted Bridge Indebtedness is still outstanding on such date.
The Credit Agreement contains financial covenants that we are required to maintain, in addition to covenants that restrict our ability to take certain actions. As of December 31, 2025, we are in compliance with all debt covenants.
On December 9, 2025, LOS Leasing Company LLC, as borrower, Liberty Energy Services LLC, as guarantor and permitted user, and LPI, as permitted user, entered into a Master Loan and Security Agreement with Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation (“Caterpillar” and such agreement, the “Caterpillar Agreement”). The Caterpillar Agreement provides for term loans to finance costs incurred by LOS Leasing Company LLC in connection with the refurbishment of Caterpillar-manufactured equipment from authorized dealers of Caterpillar equipment. Under the Caterpillar Agreement, LOS Leasing Company LLC and Caterpillar can enter into individual loan schedules (“Note”), which are non-revolving and may not be repaid and reborrowed. Each Note is collateralized by specified units of the Company’s field services equipment, as documented in the applicable Note, will have a maturity date that is typically three years from the inception of the applicable Note, and interest rate that resets periodically based on the applicable base rate plus a spread. As of December 31, 2025 the Company had $16.7 million outstanding under the Caterpillar Agreement with a maturity date of January 01, 2029 and interest rate of 6.6%.
As of December 31, 2024, the Company was party to the ABL Facility. Effective July 24, 2025, (i) the outstanding debt under the ABL Facility was repaid in full, (ii) the outstanding liabilities with respect to obligations under the ABL Facility were released and discharged, (iii) all liens, security interests and guaranties under the ABL Facility were released and terminated and (iv) all letters of credit issued and outstanding under the ABL Facility were continues as letters of credit issued and outstanding under the Revolving Credit Facility.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for further details.
We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2025, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements as disclosed below under Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report. As such, we are not materially exposed to any other financing, liquidity, market, or credit risk that could arise if we had engaged in such financing arrangements.
Share Repurchase Program
Under our share repurchase program, the Company is authorized to repurchase up to $750.0 million of outstanding Class A Common Stock through and including July 31, 2026. Shares may be repurchased from time to time for cash in open market transactions, through block trades, in privately negotiated transactions, through derivative transactions, or by other means in accordance with applicable federal securities laws. The timing and the amount of repurchases will be determined by the Company at its discretion based on an evaluation of market conditions, capital allocation alternatives and other factors. The share repurchase program does not require us to purchase any dollar amount or number of shares of our Class A Common Stock and may be modified, suspended, extended or terminated at any time without prior notice. The Company expects to fund any repurchases by using cash on hand, borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility, and expected free cash flow to be generated through the duration of the share repurchase program. During the year ended December 31, 2025, the Company repurchased and retired shares of Class A Common Stock for $24.0 million, under the share repurchase program.
44
Cash Flows
The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2025 | 2024 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 609,598 | $ | 829,374 | $ | (219,776) | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (435,037) | (643,113) | 208,076 | |||||||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (167,545) | (202,705) | 35,160 |
Analysis of Cash Flow Changes Between the Years Ended December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024
Operating Activities. Net cash provided by operating activities was $609.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to $829.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The $219.8 million decrease in cash from operating activities is primarily attributable to a $309.0 million decrease in revenues, offset by a $77.5 million decrease in cash operating expenses, interest expense, net, and income tax expense, and a $2.4 million increase in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to a $9.4 million decrease in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2024.
Investing Activities. Net cash used in investing activities was $435.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to $643.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. Cash used in investing activities was lower during the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to the year ended December 31, 2024 primarily due to a $134.3 million decrease in new equipment purchases and capitalized maintenance of existing equipment, as well as proceeds of $151.0 million from the sale of shares of Oklo, offset by a $78.8 million increase in deposits on new equipment orders. During the year ended December 31, 2025, the Company acquired IMG Energy Solutions for total cash consideration of approximately $15.2 million, net of cash received, after closing adjustments. Refer to Note 3—Acquisitions to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for additional information related to the IMG Acquisition.
Financing Activities. Net cash used in financing activities was $167.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, compared to $202.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The $35.2 million decrease in cash used in financing activities was primarily due to a $104.4 million decrease in share repurchases year over year, $16.7 million in proceeds under the Caterpillar Agreement compared to none in the prior year and a $3.1 million decrease in tax withholding on restricted stock units. These decreases were offset by a $35.6 million increase in payments pursuant to the TRAs, a $30.6 million increase in cash paid for finance leases, a $11.0 million decrease in net borrowings on the Revolving Credit Facility, a $6.2 million increase in dividends paid, and a $5.7 million increase in debt issuance costs.
45
Cash Requirements
Our material cash commitments consist primarily of obligations under long-term debt on the Revolving Credit Facility, TRAs, finance and operating leases for property and equipment, cash used to pay for repurchases of, and dividends on, shares of our Class A Common Stock, and purchase obligations as part of normal operations and our expansion into the distributed power business. Certain amounts included in our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2025 are based on our estimates and assumptions about these obligations, including pricing, volumes, and duration. We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2025, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements disclosed below.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled maturities of our long-term debt. See Note 6—Leases to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled maturities of finance and operating leases.
During the year ended December 31, 2025, the Company expanded its equipment lease facilities resulting in the addition of $118.7 million in new finance lease obligations. The term on these new leases range from three to five years. As of December 31, 2025, the Company had finance lease obligations of $116.3 million payable within the next twelve months and $231.2 million payable thereafter. Included in those liabilities, the Company had expected cash payments for estimated interest on our finance lease obligations of $17.9 million payable within the next twelve months and $19.9 million payable thereafter.
As of December 31, 2025, the Company has purchase obligations of $11.6 million payable within the next twelve months. See Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled contractual obligations.
As of December 31, 2025, the Company expects to make a $7.9 million payment under the TRAs within the next twelve months. Future amounts payable under the TRAs are dependent upon future events. See Note 12—Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding the TRAs.
There have been no other material changes to cash requirements during the year ended December 31, 2025.
Other Factors Affecting Liquidity
Customer receivables: In line with industry practice, we typically bill our customers for services provided in arrears dependent upon contractual terms. In weak economic environments, we may experience delays in collection from our customers. In the past, we have experienced delays in customer payments and periodically agreed to extended payment terms, however, we have not experienced any material non-payment events.
Tax Receivable Agreements
In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax (computed using simplifying assumptions to address the impact of state and local taxes) that the Company actually recognizes (or is deemed to recognize in certain circumstances) in periods after the IPO as a result, as applicable to each of the TRA Holders, of (i) certain increases in tax basis that occur as a result of the Company’s acquisition (or deemed acquisition for U.S. federal income tax purposes) of all or a portion of such TRA Holders’ Liberty LLC Units in connection with the IPO or pursuant to the exercise of the right of each Liberty Unit Holder (the “Redemption Right”), subject to certain limitations, to cause Liberty LLC to acquire all or a portion of its Liberty LLC Units for, at Liberty LLC’s election, (A) shares of our Class A Common Stock at the specific redemption ratio or (B) an equivalent amount of cash, or, upon the exercise of the Redemption Right, the right of the Company (instead of Liberty LLC) to, for administrative convenience, acquire each tendered Liberty LLC Unit directly from the redeeming Liberty Unit Holder (the “Call Right”) for, at its election, (1) one share of Class A Common Stock or (2) an equivalent amount of cash, (ii) any net operating losses available to the Company as a result of the Corporate Reorganization, and (iii) imputed interest deemed to be paid by the Company as a result of, and additional tax basis arising from, any payments the Company makes under the TRAs. On January 31, 2023, the last redemption of the Liberty LLC Units occurred.
With respect to obligations the Company expects to incur under the TRAs (except in cases where the Company elects to terminate the TRAs early, the TRAs are terminated early due to certain mergers, asset sales, or other changes of control or the Company has available cash but fails to make payments when due), generally the Company may elect to defer payments due under the TRAs if the Company does not have available cash to satisfy its payment obligations under the TRAs or if its contractual obligations limit its ability to make such payments. Any such deferred payments under the TRAs generally will accrue interest. In certain cases, payments under the TRAs may be accelerated and/or significantly exceed the actual benefits, if any, the Company realizes in respect of the tax attributes subject to the TRAs. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with Accounting Standard Codification (“ASC”) Topic 450, Contingencies (“ASC Topic 450”).
If the Company experiences a change of control (as defined under the TRAs) or the TRAs otherwise terminate early, the Company’s obligations under the TRAs could have a substantial negative impact on its liquidity and could have the effect of
46
delaying, deferring or preventing certain mergers, asset sales, or other forms of business combinations or changes of control. There can be no assurance that we will be able to finance our obligations under the TRAs.
Income Taxes
The Company is a corporation and is subject to U.S. federal, state, and local income tax. The Company is also subject to Canada and Australia federal and provincial income tax on its foreign operations.
The effective global income tax rate applicable to the Company for the year ended December 31, 2025 was 24.2% compared to 21.6% for the year ended December 31, 2024. The Company’s effective tax rate for both years is greater than the statutory federal income tax rate of 21.0% due to the Company’s Canadian operations, state income taxes in the states the Company operates, as well as nondeductible executive compensation, partially offset by U.S. federal income tax credits.
The Company recognized income tax expense of $47.3 million and $87.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate can be volatile and may change with, among other things, the amount of jurisdiction pre-tax income or loss, ability to utilize foreign tax credits, excess tax benefits or deficiencies from share-based compensation and changes in tax laws in the jurisdictions that we operate.
Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities, and are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. In the year ended December 31, 2025, the Company’s U.S. net deferred tax liabilities were $195.6 million and Canada and Australia net deferred tax assets were $2.8 million and $1.9 million, respectively. The Company has no valuation allowances recorded against the deferred tax assets for the year ended December 31, 2025 and 2024.
Refer to Note 12— Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for additional information related to income tax expense.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of judgments and estimates. Our critical accounting policies are described below to provide a better understanding of how we develop our assumptions and judgments about future events and related estimates and how they can impact our financial statements. A critical accounting estimate is one that requires our most difficult, subjective or complex estimates and assessments and is fundamental to our results of operations.
We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable according to the current facts and circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We believe the following are the critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements, as well as the significant estimates and judgments affecting the application of these policies. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report.
Revenue Recognition: Revenue from our services is recognized as specific services are provided in accordance with contractual arrangements. If our assessment of performance under a particular contract change, our revenue and / or costs under that contract may change. In connection with ASC Topic 842 - Leases (“Topic 842”), the Company determined that certain of its service revenue contracts contain a lease component. The Company elected to adopt a practical expedient available to lessors, which allows the Company to combine the lease and service component for certain of the Company’s service contracts when the service component is the predominant component and continues to account for the combined component under ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
Inventory: Inventory consists of raw materials used in the completions process, such as proppants, chemicals and field service equipment maintenance parts, and is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value, determined using the weighted average cost method. Net realizable value is determined based on our estimates of selling prices in the ordinary course of business, less reasonably predictable cost of completion, disposal, and transportation, each of which require us to apply judgment.
Property and Equipment: We calculate depreciation and amortization on our assets based on the estimated useful lives and estimated salvage values that we believe are reasonable. The estimated useful lives and salvage values are subject to key assumptions such as maintenance, utilization and job variation. These estimates may change due to a number of factors such as changes in operating conditions or advances in technology.
We incur maintenance costs on our major equipment. The determination of whether an expenditure should be capitalized or expensed requires management judgment in the application of how the costs benefit future periods, relative to our capitalization policy. Costs that either establish or increase the efficiency, productivity, functionality or life of a fixed asset are capitalized and depreciated over the remaining useful life of the asset.
47
Impairment of long-lived assets: Long-lived assets, such as property and equipment, right-of-use lease assets and intangible assets, are evaluated for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable. Possible indicators of impairment may include events or changes in circumstances affecting the manner in which the assets are being used, historical and estimated future profitability measures, and other adverse events or changes that could affect the value of the assets. If a triggering event is identified, recoverability is assessed using undiscounted future net cash flows of assets grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows independent of the cash flows of other groups of assets. When alternative courses of action to recover the carrying amount of the asset group are under consideration, estimates of future undiscounted cash flows take into account possible outcomes and probabilities of their occurrence, which require us to apply judgment. If the carrying amount of the asset is not recoverable based on its estimated undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount by which its carrying amount exceeds its estimated fair value. The inputs used to determine such fair value are primarily based upon internally developed cash flow models. Our cash flow models are based on a number of estimates regarding future operations that may be subject to significant variability, are sensitive to changes in market conditions, and are reasonably likely to change in the future.
Leases: In accordance with ASC Topic 842, Leases, the Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception and evaluates identified leases for operating or finance lease treatment. Operating or finance lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. We use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. Lease terms may include options to renew; however, we typically cannot determine our intent to renew a lease with reasonable certainty at inception.
Equity Investments: The Company may from time to time invest in equity securities of public and private companies. Equity investments are measured and recorded as follows:
Marketable equity investments are equity investments with a readily determinable fair value and are recorded at fair value on a recurring basis with changes in fair value, whether realized or unrealized, recorded through the income statement. Unrealized gains and losses resulting from changes in fair value are recorded in gain on investments, net.
Equity securities without readily determinable fair values are measured at cost minus impairment, if any, plus or minus changes resulting from observable price changes in orderly transactions for identical or similar investments of the same issuer The Company monitors its equity investments without readily determinable fair values to identify potential transactions that may indicate an observable price change in orderly transactions for the identical or a similar investment of the same issuer, requiring adjustment to its carrying amount. Gains and losses resulting from changes in observable prices are recorded in gain on investments, net.
Equity method investments are equity securities in investees we do not control, but over which we have the ability to exercise significant influence. Equity method investments are measured at cost minus impairment, if any, plus or minus the Company’s share of equity method investee income or loss, less distributions received as return on investment.
Tax Receivable Agreements: In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax that the Company actually realizes in periods after the IPO as a result of certain tax attributes applicable to each TRA Holder. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with ASC Topic 450, Contingencies.
Share Repurchases: The Company accounts for the purchase price of repurchased Class A Common Stock in excess of par value ($0.01 per share of Class A Common Stock) as a reduction of additional paid-in capital, and will continue to do so until additional paid-in capital is reduced to zero. Thereafter, any excess purchase price will be recorded as a reduction to retained earnings. All Class A Common Stock shares repurchased to date have been retired upon repurchase.
48
MD&A history
Prior-year 10-K MD&A spans are extracted from SEC filings with the same bounded parser used for the latest filing. The latest 10-K appears above; prior years are below.
FY 2024 10-K MD&A
SEC filing source: 0001694028-25-000056.
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report. The following discussion contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect our future plans, estimates, beliefs and expected performance. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those described in this Annual Report under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements. This section of this Annual Report generally discusses 2024 and 2023 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2024 and 2023. For discussion of year ended December 31, 2022, as well as the year ended 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, refer to Part II, Item 7— Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of our 2023 Annual Report.
Overview
The Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a leading integrated energy services and technology company focused on providing innovative hydraulic fracturing services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas E&P companies. We offer customers hydraulic fracturing services, together with complementary services including wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, CNG delivery, data analytics, related goods (including our sand mine operations), and technologies to facilitate lower emission completions, thereby helping our customers reduce their emissions profile. We have grown from one active hydraulic fracturing fleet in December 2011 to approximately 40 active fleets as of December 31, 2024. We provide our services primarily in the Permian Basin, the Williston Basin, the Haynesville Shale, the Eagle Ford Shale, the Denver-Julesburg Basin (the “DJ Basin”), the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, the Powder River Basin, and the Appalachian Basin (Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale). Our operations also extend to a few smaller shale basins, including the Anadarko Basin, the Uinta Basin, the San Juan Basin, and the Beetaloo Basin in Northern Territory, Australia, as well as to two sand mines in the Permian Basin.
In early 2023, the Company launched Liberty Power Innovations LLC (“LPI”), an integrated alternative fuel and power solutions provider for remote applications. LPI provides CNG supply, field gas processing and treating, and well site fueling and logistics. LPI was formed with the initial focus on supporting the Company’s transition towards our next generation digiFleets℠ and dual fuel fleets, as CNG fueling services can be limited in the market, yet critical to maintaining highly efficient well site operations. Through 2024, LPI was primarily focused on supporting an industry transition to natural gas fueled technologies, serving as a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the oilfield. In January 2025, we announced LPI’s expansion into the distributed power business, where we expect to leverage our experience in providing electric power for our digiFrac pumps into other areas inside and outside of the oilfield.
We believe technical innovation and strong relationships with our customer and supplier bases distinguish us from our competitors and are the foundations of our business. We expect that E&P companies will continue to focus on technological innovation as completion complexity and fracture intensity of horizontal wells increases, particularly as customers are increasingly focused on reducing emissions from their completions operations. We remain proactive in developing innovative solutions to industry challenges, including developing: (i) our databases of U.S. unconventional wells to which we apply our proprietary multi-variable statistical analysis technologies to provide differential insight into fracture design optimization; (ii) our Liberty Quiet Fleet® design which significantly reduces noise levels compared to conventional hydraulic fracturing fleets; (iii) hydraulic fracturing fluid systems tailored to the specific reservoir properties in the basins in which we operate; (iv) our dual fuel dynamic gas blending (“DGB”) fleets that allow our engines to run diesel or a combination of diesel and natural gas, to optimize fuel use, reduce emissions and lower costs; (v) our digiFleets℠, comprising of digiFrac℠ and digiPrime℠ pumps and other complementary equipment, including power generation units (together “digiTechnologies℠”), our innovative, purpose-built electric and hybrid frac pumps that have approximately 25% lower CO2e emission profile than the Tier IV DGB; (vi) our wet sand handling technology which eliminates the need to dry sand, enabling the deployment of mobile mines nearer to wellsites; and (vii) the launch of LPI to support the transition to our digiFleets as well as the transition to lower costs and emissions in the oilfield. In addition, our integrated supply chain includes proppant, chemicals, equipment, natural gas fueling services, logistics and integrated software which we believe promotes wellsite efficiency and leads to more pumping hours and higher productivity throughout the year to better service our customers. In order to achieve our technological objectives, we carefully manage our liquidity and debt position to promote operational flexibility and invest in the business throughout the full commodity cycle in the regions we operate.
34
Recent Trends and Outlook
Moderate declines in frac activity, that started in 2023, continued throughout 2024. However, the market appears to have reached an inflection point in early 2025 as completions activity emerges from 2024 lows. In 2025, E&P operators, especially those with an oil exploration focus, are working to maintain production levels from 2024. Improving natural gas fundamentals are encouraging as well. For the full year, industry-wide lateral footage completed is expected to be approximately flat with 2024.
The slowing pace of activity in late 2024 resulted in near term price pressure to start 2025, most notably impacting conventional fleets. The fundamental outlook for next generation, higher quality fleets remains strong, as operators continue to demand technologies that provide significant emissions reductions, fuel savings, and operational efficiency advantages. The growing complexities of E&P demands and the continued drive for efficiency gains promote continued investment in technology and partnering with high quality service companies.
Global oil markets reflect ongoing uncertainties in geopolitics, Chinese economic growth, OPEC+ production plans, and a change in the domestic political climate, but the resulting commodity price fluctuation has not led to a meaningful change in E&P activity plans. Natural gas demand is supported by LNG export capacity expansion and a large projected multi-year increase in North American power consumption.
During the year 2024, the posted WTI price traded at an average of $76.63 per barrel (“Bbl”), as compared to the 2023 average of $77.58 per Bbl, and the 2022 average of $94.90 per Bbl. In addition, the average domestic onshore rig count for the United States and Canada was 765 rigs reported in the fourth quarter of 2024, down from the average in the fourth quarter of 2023 of 781, according to a report from Baker Hughes.
Acquisitions
On April 6, 2023, LPI accelerated its expansion by acquiring Siren, a Permian focused integrated natural gas compression and CNG delivery business with 16 MMcf per day of natural gas compression capacity at two expandable Permian sites and transportation, logistics, and pressure reduction services, for cash consideration of $75.7 million, after post-closing adjustments and net of cash received. LPI currently delivers fuel to customers in both the drilling and completions markets, and its logistics system is designed to deliver CNG, renewable natural gas, or hydrogen to remote locations. We believe that the added natural gas compression capability is a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the industry.
Increase in Drilling Efficiency and Service Intensity of Completions
Over the past decade, E&P companies have focused on exploiting the vast resource potential available across many of North America’s unconventional resource plays through the application of horizontal drilling and completion technologies, including the use of multi-stage hydraulic fracturing, in order to increase recovery of oil and natural gas. As E&P companies have improved drilling and completion techniques to maximize return and efficiency, we believe that well economics have improved, and unconventional oil and gas production is globally competitive. Liberty has been a significant partner with our customers in driving these continued improvements.
Improved drilling economics from horizontal drilling and greater rig efficiencies. According to Baker Hughes, as reported on January 24, 2025, horizontal rigs accounted for approximately 90% of all rigs drilling in the United States and Canada, up from 77% as of December 26, 2014. Over the past several years, North American E&P companies have benefited from improved drilling economics driven by technologies that reduce the number of days, and the cost, of drilling wells. North American drilling rigs have incorporated newer technologies, which allow them to drill rock more effectively and quickly, meaning each rig can drill more wells in a given period. These include improved drilling technologies and the incorporation of geosteering techniques which allow better placement of the wellbore. Drilling rigs have also incorporated new technology which allows fully assembled rigs to automatically “walk” from one location to the next without disassembling and reassembling the rig, greatly reducing the time it takes to move from one drilling location to the next. Today the majority of E&P drilling is on multi-well pad development, allowing efficient drilling of multiple horizontal wellbores from the same pad or location. The aggregate effect of these improved techniques and technologies have reduced the average days required to drill a well, which according to Lium Research, has dropped from 28 days in 2014 to 16 days in 2024.
Increased complexity and service intensity of horizontal well completions. In addition to improved rig efficiencies discussed above, E&P companies are also improving the subsurface techniques and technologies used to exploit unconventional resources. These improvements have targeted increasing the exposure of each wellbore to the reservoir by drilling longer horizontal lateral sections of the wellbore. To complete the well, hydraulic fracturing is applied in stages along the wellbore to break-up the resource so that oil and gas can be produced. As wellbores have increased in length, the number of frac stages and/or the number of perforation clusters (frac initiation points) has also increased. Further, E&P companies have improved production from each stage by applying increasing amounts of proppant in each stage, which better connects the well to the resource. The aggregate effect of increased number of stages and the increasing amount of proppant in each stage has greatly increased the total amount of proppant used in each well, according to Liberty’s FracTrends database, from six million pounds
35
per well in 2014 to roughly 22 million pounds per well in 2024. Further efficiency gains are being sought via the “simul-frac,” “trimul-frac,” and other techniques. When compared to typical zipper-frac operations, these methods allow operators to complete a pad of wells quicker, thereby shortening the time from spud to first production.
These industry trends continue to keep our customers as important suppliers to the global oil and natural gas markets, which directly benefit hydraulic fracturing companies like us that have the expertise and innovative technology to effectively service today’s more efficient oilfield drilling activity and the increasing complexity and intensity of well completions. Given the expected returns that E&P companies have reported for new well development activities due to improved rig efficiencies and increasing well completion complexity and intensity, we expect these industry trends to continue.
Recent Leadership Updates
On February 3, 2025, Christopher A. Wright, our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, was confirmed to the position of Secretary of Energy of the United States and resigned from his positions as Chairman of the Board, Director, and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Also, on February 3, 2025, in accordance with the Company’s succession plan, the Board appointed William Kimble as the non-executive Chairman of the Board and Ron Gusek as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Director. Lastly, on January 22, 2025, the Board approved an increase to the size of the Board from nine to 10 directors and appointed Arjun Murti to fill the newly created vacancy.
How We Generate Revenue
We currently generate revenue through the provision of hydraulic fracturing, wireline services and goods, including sand from our Permian Basin sand mines, proppant delivery and logistics, and natural gas compression and delivery. These services and goods are provided under a variety of contract structures, primarily master service agreements (“MSAs”) as supplemented by statements of work, pricing agreements and specific quotes. A portion of our statements of work, under MSAs, include provisions that establish pricing arrangements for a period of up to approximately one year in length. However, the majority of those agreements provide for pricing adjustments based on market conditions. The majority of our services are priced based on prevailing market conditions and changing input costs at the time the services are provided, giving consideration to the specific requirements of the customer.
Our hydraulic fracturing and wireline services are performed in sections, which we refer to as fracturing stages. The estimated number of fracturing stages to be completed for a particular horizontal well is determined by the customer’s well completion design. We primarily recognize revenue based on pump hours, fracturing stages, or days on location, although total revenue depends on the actual volumes and types of proppants, chemicals, and fluid utilized on each pad. The number of fracturing stages that we are able to complete in a period is directly related to the number and utilization of our deployed fleets and size of stages.
Costs of Conducting Our Business
The principal expenses involved in conducting our business are direct cost of personnel, services, and materials used in the provision of services, general and administrative expenses, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. A large portion of the costs we incur in our business are variable based on the number of hydraulic fracturing jobs and the requirements of services provided to our customers. We manage the level of our fixed costs, except depreciation, depletion, and amortization, based on several factors, including industry conditions and expected demand for our services.
How We Evaluate Our Operations
We use a variety of qualitative, operational and financial metrics to assess our performance. First and foremost, of these is a qualitative assessment of customer satisfaction because ensuring we are a valuable partner to our customers is the key to achieving our quantitative business metrics. Among other measures, management considers each of the following:
•Revenue;
•Operating Income;
•Net Income;
•EBITDA; and
•Adjusted EBITDA;
Revenue
We analyze our revenue by comparing actual revenue to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance.
36
Operating Income
We analyze our operating income, which we define as revenues less direct operating expenses, depreciation, depletion, and amortization and general and administrative expenses, to measure our financial performance. We believe operating income is a meaningful metric because it provides insight on profitability and true operating performance based on the historical cost basis of our assets. We also compare operating income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods.
Net Income
We analyze our net income, which we define as operating income adjusted for other income or expense, net, including interest expense, net, and income tax expense. We analyze net income by comparing actual net income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance.
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, provision for credit losses, transaction, severance, and other costs, the gain or loss on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments, and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance. See “Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information and a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to net income, the most comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
Results of Operations
Year Ended December 31, 2024, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2023
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2024 | 2023 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 4,315,161 | $ | 4,747,928 | $ | (432,767) | ||||
| Cost of services, excluding depreciation, depletion, and amortization shown separately | 3,200,506 | 3,349,370 | (148,864) | |||||||
| General and administrative | 225,474 | 221,406 | 4,068 | |||||||
| Transaction and other costs | — | 2,053 | (2,053) | |||||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 505,050 | 421,514 | 83,536 | |||||||
| Gain on disposal of assets, net | (5,337) | (6,994) | 1,657 | |||||||
| Operating income | 389,468 | 760,579 | (371,111) | |||||||
| Other (income) expense, net | (13,803) | 25,689 | (39,492) | |||||||
| Net income before income taxes | 403,271 | 734,890 | (331,619) | |||||||
| Income tax expense | 87,261 | 178,482 | (91,221) | |||||||
| Net income | 316,010 | 556,408 | (240,398) | |||||||
| Less: Net income attributable to non-controlling interests | — | 91 | (91) | |||||||
| Net income attributable to Liberty Energy Inc. stockholders | $ | 316,010 | $ | 556,317 | $ | (240,307) |
Revenue
Our revenue decreased $432.8 million, or 9%, to $4.3 billion for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $4.7 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023. The decrease in revenue was primarily attributable to a decrease in service and materials pricing, partially offset by higher activity levels primarily from increased fleet efficiency.
Cost of Services
Cost of services (excluding depreciation, depletion, and amortization) decreased $148.9 million, or 4%, to $3.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $3.3 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023. The decrease in expense was primarily related to decreases in materials costs and lower repairs and maintenance costs, partially offset by increased personnel costs related to higher activity levels discussed above, during the year ended December 31, 2024.
General and Administrative
General and administrative expenses increased $4.1 million, or 2%, to $225.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $221.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily related to increased corporate costs to
37
support our additional service offerings, partially offset by a decrease in cash incentive and stock-based compensation expense due to lower operating results compared to the prior year period.
Transaction and Other Costs
Transaction and other costs decreased $2.1 million, or 100%, as the Company did not incur such costs for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $2.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. The costs incurred during the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily consisted of due diligence and integration costs for the Siren Acquisition. See Note 3—Acquisitions to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for further details.
Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization
Depreciation, depletion, and amortization expense increased $83.5 million, or 20%, to $505.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $421.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. The increase in 2024 was due to additional equipment placed in service since the prior year period, including equipment related to the deployment of our digiTechnologiesSM.
Gain on Disposal of Assets, net
The Company recorded a gain on disposal of assets, net of $5.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $7.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. The gain recognized in the year ended December 31, 2024 was primarily related to the disposal of used older technology field equipment that was no longer operational. The gain recognized in the year ended December 31, 2023 was a result of the Company selling used field equipment and light duty trucks in a strong used vehicle and equipment market.
Other (Income) Expense, net
Other (income) expense, net changed by $39.5 million to $13.8 million income for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $25.7 million expense during the year ended December 31, 2023. Other (income) expense, net is comprised of loss on remeasurement of liability under the TRAs of $3.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to a gain of $1.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. It also includes an unrealized gain on investments, net of $49.2 million related to investments in equity securities measured at fair value during the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to $0 for the year ended December 31, 2023. Interest expense, net increased $3.2 million primarily as a result of the addition of finance lease liabilities, refer to “Liquidity and Capital Resources” below for further discussion of the Company’s finance leases. Additionally, interest income—related party decreased $1.5 million related to a note receivable agreement executed in December 2022, amended in August 2023, and fully collected in March 2024.
Income Tax Expense
The Company recognized income tax expense of $87.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, an effective rate of 21.6%, compared to $178.5 million, for the year ended December 31, 2023, an effective rate of 24.3%. The decrease in income tax expense was primarily attributable to the decrease in net income before income taxes and increased U.S. federal tax credits.
Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, net, bad debt reserves, transaction and other costs, the gain or loss on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the unrealized gain or loss on investments, net, and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance.
Our Board, management, investors, and lenders use EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to assess our financial performance because it allows them to compare our operating performance on a consistent basis across periods by removing the effects of our capital structure (such as varying levels of interest expense), asset base (such as depreciation, depletion, and amortization) and other items that impact the comparability of financial results from period to period. We present EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA because we believe they provide useful information regarding the factors and trends affecting our business in addition to measures calculated under GAAP.
38
Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP. We believe that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures will provide useful information to investors in assessing our financial performance and results of operations. Net income is the GAAP financial measure most directly comparable to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. Our non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Each of these non-GAAP financial measures has important limitations as an analytical tool due to exclusion of some but not all items that affect the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. You should not consider EBITDA or Adjusted EBITDA in isolation or as substitutes for an analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Because EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies in our industry, our definitions of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility.
The following tables present a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to our net income, which is the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure for the periods presented:
Year Ended December 31, 2024, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2023: EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2024 | 2023 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net income | $ | 316,010 | $ | 556,408 | $ | (240,398) | ||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 505,050 | 421,514 | 83,536 | |||||||
| Interest expense, net | 32,214 | 27,506 | 4,708 | |||||||
| Income tax expense | 87,261 | 178,482 | (91,221) | |||||||
| EBITDA | $ | 940,535 | $ | 1,183,910 | $ | (243,375) | ||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 32,412 | 33,026 | (614) | |||||||
| Gain on disposal of assets, net | (5,337) | (6,994) | 1,657 | |||||||
| Unrealized gain on investments, net | (49,227) | — | (49,227) | |||||||
| Loss (gain) on remeasurement of liability under tax receivable agreements | 3,210 | (1,817) | 5,027 | |||||||
| Provision for credit losses | — | 808 | (808) | |||||||
| Transaction and other costs | — | 2,053 | (2,053) | |||||||
| Fleet start-up and lay-down costs | — | 2,082 | (2,082) | |||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 921,593 | $ | 1,213,068 | $ | (291,475) |
EBITDA was $940.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $1.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023. Adjusted EBITDA was $921.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to $1.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023. The decreases in EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA primarily resulted from lower pricing and partially offset by changes in activity levels in 2024 as described above under the captions Revenue, Cost of Services, and General and Administrative Expenses for the Year Ended December 31, 2024, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2023.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview
Our primary sources of liquidity consist of cash flows from operations and borrowings under our ABL Facility (as defined below). We believe that we can fund operations and current organic growth plans with these sources. We monitor the availability and cost of capital resources such as equity, debt, and lease financings that could be leveraged for current or future financial obligations including those related to acquisitions, capital expenditures, working capital, and other liquidity requirements. We may incur additional indebtedness or issue equity in order to meet our capital expenditure activities and liquidity requirements, as well as to fund organic and other growth opportunities that we pursue, including via acquisition. Our primary uses of capital have been capital expenditures to support organic growth and funding ongoing operations, including maintenance and fleet upgrades, as well as the repurchases of, and dividends on, shares of our Class A Common Stock.
Cash and cash equivalents decreased by $16.8 million to $20.0 million as of December 31, 2024 compared to $36.8 million as of December 31, 2023, while working capital excluding cash and current liabilities under debt and lease arrangements decreased $88.2 million.
39
On September 19, 2017, the Company entered into two credit agreements, (i) a revolving line of credit up to $250.0 million, subsequently increased to $525.0 million, see below, (the “ABL Facility”) and (ii) a $175.0 million term loan (the “Term Loan Facility”, and together with the ABL Facility the “Credit Facilities”).
As of December 31, 2024, the Company had $525.0 million committed under the ABL Facility, subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on a percentage of eligible accounts receivable and inventory available to finance working capital needs. As of December 31, 2024, the borrowing base was calculated to be $319.8 million, and the Company had $190.5 million outstanding, in addition to letters of credit totaling $14.0 million, with $115.3 million of remaining availability.
On January 23, 2023, the Company entered into an Eighth Amendment to the ABL Facility (the “Eighth ABL Amendment”). The Eighth ABL Amendment amends certain terms, provisions and covenants of the ABL Facility, including, among other things: (i) increasing the maximum revolver amount from $425.0 million to $525.0 million (the “Upsized Revolver”); (ii) increasing the amount of the accordion feature from $75.0 million to $100.0 million; (iii) extending the maturity date from October 22, 2026 to January 23, 2028; (iv) modifying the dollar amounts of various credit facility triggers and tests proportionally to the Upsized Revolver; (v) permitting repayment under the Term Loan Facility prior to February 10, 2023; and (vi) increasing certain indebtedness, intercompany advance, and investment baskets. The Eighth ABL Amendment also includes an agreement from Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as administrative agent, to release its second priority liens and security interests on all collateral that served as first priority collateral under the Term Loan Facility. This release was completed during the three months ended June 30, 2023.
Additionally, on January 23, 2023, the Company borrowed $106.7 million on the ABL Facility and used the proceeds to pay off and terminate the Term Loan Facility. The amount paid included the balance of the Term Loan Facility upon payoff of $104.7 million, $0.9 million of accrued interest, and a $1.1 million prepayment premium. Additionally, there were $0.2 million in administrative agent and lender legal fees included in the pay off.
The ABL Facility contains covenants that restrict our ability to take certain actions. At December 31, 2024, we were in compliance with all debt covenants.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for further details.
We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2024, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements as disclosed below under Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report. As such, we are not materially exposed to any other financing, liquidity, market, or credit risk that could arise if we had engaged in such financing arrangements.
Share Repurchase Program
Under our share repurchase program, the Company is authorized to repurchase up to $750.0 million of outstanding Class A Common Stock through and including July 31, 2026. Shares may be repurchased from time to time for cash in open market transactions, through block trades, in privately negotiated transactions, through derivative transactions, or by other means in accordance with applicable federal securities laws. The timing and the amount of repurchases will be determined by the Company at its discretion based on an evaluation of market conditions, capital allocation alternatives and other factors. The share repurchase program does not require us to purchase any dollar amount or number of shares of our Class A Common Stock and may be modified, suspended, extended or terminated at any time without prior notice. The Company expects to fund any repurchases by using cash on hand, borrowings under the ABL Facility, and expected free cash flow to be generated through the duration of the share repurchase program. During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company repurchased and retired shares of Class A Common Stock for $127.4 million, under the share repurchase program.
40
Cash Flows
The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2024 | 2023 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 829,374 | $ | 1,014,583 | $ | (185,209) | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (643,113) | (672,328) | 29,215 | |||||||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (202,705) | (349,315) | 146,610 |
Analysis of Cash Flow Changes Between the Years Ended December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023
Operating Activities. Net cash provided by operating activities was $829.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to $1.0 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023. The $185.2 million decrease in cash from operating activities is primarily attributable to a $432.8 million decrease in revenues, offset by a $145.3 million decrease in cash operating expenses, interest expense, net, and income tax expense, and a $9.4 million decrease in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to a $111.7 million decrease in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Investing Activities. Net cash used in investing activities was $643.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to $672.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. Cash used in investing activities was lower during the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily due to the Siren Acquisition and higher equity investments in the prior year period, offset by higher capital spending in the current year period, and lower proceeds from asset sales. The Company purchased Siren Energy for $75.7 million in cash, net of cash received, during the year ended December 31, 2023. Refer to Note 3—Acquisitions to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for additional information related to the Siren Acquisition. Investments in equipment, including the new digiTechnologiesSM suite and capitalized maintenance of existing equipment increased $47.7 million, from $603.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to $651.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. Proceeds from asset sales decreased $2.9 million, from $26.9 million to $24.0 million as the Company benefited from strong used vehicle and equipment markets in the prior period. Finally, during the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company invested $16.1 million for equity investments in Tamboran Resources Corporation, Empire Energy Group Ltd., and Falcon Oil & Gas Ltd, compared to $20.3 million for equity investments in Tamboran Resources Corporation and Oklo Inc. during the year ended December 31, 2023.
Financing Activities. Net cash used in financing activities was $202.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to $349.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. The $146.6 million decrease in cash used in financing activities was primarily due to net borrowings of $50.5 million during the current year period compared to $79.7 million in net repayment of borrowings during the prior year as well as a $73.9 million decrease in share repurchases for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. These decreases in cash used in financing activities were offset by a $32.9 million increase in cash paid for finance leases, a $10.5 million increase in cash tax withholding on restricted stock unit vestings, and a $10.6 million increase in dividends paid.
41
Cash Requirements
Our material cash commitments consist primarily of obligations under long-term debt on the ABL Facility, TRAs, finance and operating leases for property and equipment, cash used to pay for repurchases of, and dividends on, shares of our Class A Common Stock, and purchase obligations as part of normal operations. Certain amounts included in our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2024 are based on our estimates and assumptions about these obligations, including pricing, volumes, and duration. We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2024, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements disclosed below.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled maturities of our long-term debt. See Note 6—Leases to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled maturities of finance and operating leases.
During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company expanded its equipment lease facilities resulting in the addition of $149.0 million in new finance lease obligations. The term on these new leases range from three to five years. As of December 31, 2024, the Company had finance lease obligations of $87.5 million payable within the next twelve months and $222.5 million payable thereafter. Included in those liabilities, the Company had expected cash payments for estimated interest on our finance lease obligations of $17.1 million payable within the next twelve months and $22.4 million payable thereafter.
On January 23, 2023, the Company borrowed $106.7 million on the ABL Facility and used the proceeds to pay off and terminate the Term Loan Facility. The balance of the Term Loan Facility at pay off was $104.7 million and included $0.9 million of accrued interest, and a $1.1 million prepayment premium. As such, the only outstanding debt facility as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 was the ABL Facility.
As of December 31, 2024, the Company has purchase obligations of $26.3 million payable within the next twelve months. See Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled contractual obligations.
As of December 31, 2024, the Company expects to make a $40.8 million payment under the TRAs within the next twelve months. Future amounts payable under the TRAs are dependent upon future events. See Note 12—Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding the TRAs.
There have been no other material changes to cash requirements during the year ended December 31, 2024.
Other Factors Affecting Liquidity
Customer receivables: In line with industry practice, we typically bill our customers for services provided in arrears dependent upon contractual terms. In weak economic environments, we may experience delays in collection from our customers. In the past, we have experienced delays in customer payments and periodically agreed to extended payment terms, however, we have not experienced any material non-payment events.
Tax Receivable Agreements
In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax (computed using simplifying assumptions to address the impact of state and local taxes) that the Company actually recognizes (or is deemed to recognize in certain circumstances) in periods after the IPO as a result, as applicable to each of the TRA Holders, of (i) certain increases in tax basis that occur as a result of the Company’s acquisition (or deemed acquisition for U.S. federal income tax purposes) of all or a portion of such TRA Holders’ Liberty LLC Units in connection with the IPO or pursuant to the exercise of the right of each Liberty Unit Holder (the “Redemption Right”), subject to certain limitations, to cause Liberty LLC to acquire all or a portion of its Liberty LLC Units for, at Liberty LLC’s election, (A) shares of our Class A Common Stock at the specific redemption ratio or (B) an equivalent amount of cash, or, upon the exercise of the Redemption Right, the right of the Company (instead of Liberty LLC) to, for administrative convenience, acquire each tendered Liberty LLC Unit directly from the redeeming Liberty Unit Holder (the “Call Right”) for, at its election, (1) one share of Class A Common Stock or (2) an equivalent amount of cash, (ii) any net operating losses available to the Company as a result of the Corporate Reorganization, and (iii) imputed interest deemed to be paid by the Company as a result of, and additional tax basis arising from, any payments the Company makes under the TRAs. On January 31, 2023, the last redemption of the Liberty LLC Units occurred.
42
With respect to obligations the Company expects to incur under the TRAs (except in cases where the Company elects to terminate the TRAs early, the TRAs are terminated early due to certain mergers, asset sales, or other changes of control or the Company has available cash but fails to make payments when due), generally the Company may elect to defer payments due under the TRAs if the Company does not have available cash to satisfy its payment obligations under the TRAs or if its contractual obligations limit its ability to make such payments. Any such deferred payments under the TRAs generally will accrue interest. In certain cases, payments under the TRAs may be accelerated and/or significantly exceed the actual benefits, if any, the Company realizes in respect of the tax attributes subject to the TRAs. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with Accounting Standard Codification (“ASC”) Topic 450, Contingencies (“ASC Topic 450”).
If the Company experiences a change of control (as defined under the TRAs) or the TRAs otherwise terminate early, the Company’s obligations under the TRAs could have a substantial negative impact on its liquidity and could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing certain mergers, asset sales, or other forms of business combinations or changes of control. There can be no assurance that we will be able to finance our obligations under the TRAs.
Income Taxes
The Company is a corporation and is subject to U.S. federal, state, and local income tax. The Company is also subject to Canada and Australia federal and provincial income tax on its foreign operations.
The effective global income tax rate applicable to the Company for the year ended December 31, 2024 was 21.6% compared to 24.3% for the year ended December 31, 2023. The Company’s effective tax rate for both years is greater than the statutory federal income tax rate of 21.0% due to the Company’s Canadian operations, state income taxes in the states the Company operates, as well as nondeductible executive compensation, partially offset by U.S. federal income tax credits.
The Company recognized income tax expense of $87.3 million and $178.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate can be volatile and may change with, among other things, the amount of jurisdiction pre-tax income or loss, ability to utilize foreign tax credits, excess tax benefits or deficiencies from share-based compensation and changes in tax laws in the jurisdictions that we operate.
Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities, and are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. In the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company’s U.S. net deferred tax liabilities were $137.7 million and Canada net deferred tax assets were $1.5 million. The Company has no valuation allowances recorded against the deferred tax assets for the year ended December 31, 2024 and 2023.
Refer to Note 12— Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for additional information related to income tax expense.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of judgments and estimates. Our critical accounting policies are described below to provide a better understanding of how we develop our assumptions and judgments about future events and related estimates and how they can impact our financial statements. A critical accounting estimate is one that requires our most difficult, subjective or complex estimates and assessments and is fundamental to our results of operations.
We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable according to the current facts and circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We believe the following are the critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements, as well as the significant estimates and judgments affecting the application of these policies. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report.
Revenue Recognition: Revenue from hydraulic fracturing services is recognized as specific services are provided in accordance with contractual arrangements. If our assessment of performance under a particular contract change, our revenue and / or costs under that contract may change. In connection with ASC Topic 842 - Leases (“Topic 842”), the Company determined that certain of its service revenue contracts contain a lease component. The Company elected to adopt a practical expedient available to lessors, which allows the Company to combine the lease and service component for certain of the Company’s service contracts when the service component is the predominant component and continues to account for the combined component under ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
Inventory: Inventory consists of raw materials used in the hydraulic fracturing process, such as proppants, chemicals and field service equipment maintenance parts, and is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value, determined using the weighted average cost method. Net realizable value is determined based on our estimates of selling prices in the ordinary course
43
of business, less reasonably predictable cost of completion, disposal, and transportation, each of which require us to apply judgment.
Property and Equipment: We calculate depreciation and amortization on our assets based on the estimated useful lives and estimated salvage values that we believe are reasonable. The estimated useful lives and salvage values are subject to key assumptions such as maintenance, utilization and job variation. These estimates may change due to a number of factors such as changes in operating conditions or advances in technology.
We incur maintenance costs on our major equipment. The determination of whether an expenditure should be capitalized or expensed requires management judgment in the application of how the costs benefit future periods, relative to our capitalization policy. Costs that either establish or increase the efficiency, productivity, functionality or life of a fixed asset are capitalized and depreciated over the remaining useful life of the asset.
Impairment of long-lived assets: Long-lived assets, such as property and equipment, right-of-use lease assets and intangible assets, are evaluated for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable. Possible indicators of impairment may include events or changes in circumstances affecting the manner in which the assets are being used, historical and estimated future profitability measures, and other adverse events or changes that could affect the value of the assets. If a triggering event is identified, recoverability is assessed using undiscounted future net cash flows of assets grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows independent of the cash flows of other groups of assets. When alternative courses of action to recover the carrying amount of the asset group are under consideration, estimates of future undiscounted cash flows take into account possible outcomes and probabilities of their occurrence, which require us to apply judgment. If the carrying amount of the asset is not recoverable based on its estimated undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount by which its carrying amount exceeds its estimated fair value. The inputs used to determine such fair value are primarily based upon internally developed cash flow models. Our cash flow models are based on a number of estimates regarding future operations that may be subject to significant variability, are sensitive to changes in market conditions, and are reasonably likely to change in the future.
Leases: In accordance with ASC Topic 842, Leases, the Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception and evaluates identified leases for operating or finance lease treatment. Operating or finance lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. We use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. Lease terms may include options to renew; however, we typically cannot determine our intent to renew a lease with reasonable certainty at inception.
Tax Receivable Agreements: In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax that the Company actually realizes in periods after the IPO as a result of certain tax attributes applicable to each TRA Holder. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with ASC Topic 450, Contingencies.
Share Repurchases: The Company accounts for the purchase price of repurchased Class A Common Stock in excess of par value ($0.01 per share of Class A Common Stock) as a reduction of additional paid-in capital, and will continue to do so until additional paid-in capital is reduced to zero. Thereafter, any excess purchase price will be recorded as a reduction to retained earnings. All Class A Common Stock shares repurchased to date have been retired upon repurchase.
44
FY 2023 10-K MD&A
SEC filing source: 0001694028-24-000006.
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report. The following discussion contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect our future plans, estimates, beliefs and expected performance. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those described in this Annual Report under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements. This section of this Annual Report generally discusses 2023 and 2022 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2023 and 2022. For discussion of year ended December 31, 2021, as well as the year ended 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021, refer to Part II, Item 7— Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of our 2022 Annual Report.
Overview
The Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a leading integrated energy services and technology company focused on providing innovative hydraulic fracturing services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas E&P companies in North America. We offer customers hydraulic fracturing services, together with complementary services including wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, CNG delivery, data analytics, related goods (including our sand mine operations), and technologies that will facilitate lower emission completions, thereby helping our customers reduce their emissions profile. We have grown from one active hydraulic fracturing fleet in December 2011 to over 40 active fleets as of December 31, 2023. We provide our services primarily in the Permian Basin, the Williston Basin, the Eagle Ford Shale, the Haynesville Shale, the Appalachian Basin (Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale), the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, the DJ Basin, and the Anadarko Basin. Our operations also extend to a few smaller shale basins, including the Uinta Basin, the Powder River Basin, and the San Juan Basin, as well as to two sand mines in the Permian Basin.
In early 2023, the Company launched Liberty Power Innovations LLC (“LPI”), an integrated alternative fuel and power solutions provider for remote applications. LPI provides CNG supply, field gas processing and treating, and well site fueling and logistics. LPI was formed with the initial focus on supporting Liberty’s transition towards our next generation digiFleets℠ and dual fuel fleets, as CNG fueling services are limited in the market, yet critical to maintaining highly efficient well site operations. Currently, LPI is primarily focused on supporting an industry transition to natural gas fueled technologies, serving as a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the oilfield.
We believe technical innovation and strong relationships with our customer and supplier bases distinguish us from our competitors and are the foundations of our business. We expect that E&P companies will continue to focus on technological innovation as completion complexity and fracture intensity of horizontal wells increases, particularly as customers are increasingly focused on reducing emissions from their completions operations. We remain proactive in developing innovative solutions to industry challenges, including developing: (i) our databases of U.S. unconventional wells to which we apply our proprietary multi-variable statistical analysis technologies to provide differential insight into fracture design optimization; (ii) our Liberty Quiet Fleet® design which significantly reduces noise levels compared to conventional hydraulic fracturing fleets; (iii) hydraulic fracturing fluid systems tailored to the specific reservoir properties in the basins in which we operate; (iv) our dual fuel dynamic gas blending (“DGB”) fleets that allow our engines to run diesel or a combination of diesel and natural gas, to optimize fuel use, reduce emissions and lower costs; (v) our digiFleets℠, comprising of digiFrac℠ and digiPrime℠ pumps, our innovative, purpose-built electric and hybrid frac pumps that have approximately 25% lower CO2e emission profile than the Tier IV DGB; (vi) our wet sand handling technology which eliminates the need to dry sand, enabling the deployment of mobile mines nearer to wellsites; and (vii) the launch of LPI to support the transition to our digiFleets as well as the transition to lower costs and emissions in the oilfield.. In addition, our integrated supply chain includes proppant, chemicals, equipment, natural gas fueling services, logistics and integrated software which we believe promotes wellsite efficiency and leads to more pumping hours and higher productivity throughout the year to better service our customers. In order to achieve our technological objectives, we carefully manage our liquidity and debt position to promote operational flexibility and invest in the business throughout the full commodity cycle in the regions we operate.
Recent Trends and Outlook
Entering 2024, we believe the fundamental outlook for the frac industry is stable. Service prices remain relatively steady as the industry’s supply of marketed fleets was right sized in response to lower completions activity. Many fleets exited the market both from accelerated attrition of older equipment and the deliberate idling of underutilized fleets to match customer demand. Operators continue to demand technologies that provide significant emissions reductions and fuel savings.
We believe E&P operators are now better served with larger, well capitalized integrated frac companies that can meet their technical demands and more complex needs. Engineering and innovation have led to rising shale productivity. Service companies have worked with operators to drive efficiencies, including faster completions, longer laterals and completion design
33
optimization, helping to offset the gradual decline in reservoir quality. The trend toward higher intensity fracs should raise demand for horsepower, which is expected to keep frac assets well utilized and drive service company returns during 2024.
Global oil and gas markets continue to contend with commodity price fluctuations, owing to developments in geopolitics, interest rates, and macroeconomic data. Range bound oil prices have not meaningfully changed E&P operator plans to deliver flat to modest production growth for 2024. Further, as North American oil production continues to reach record levels, more frac activity may be required during 2024 and future years to offset production decline. Near term natural gas markets are under pressure, but domestic power demand growth and increased liquified natural gas exports are currently expected to lead to improved conditions in 2025.
During the year 2023, the posted WTI price traded at an average of $77.58 per barrel (“Bbl”), as compared to the 2022 average of $94.90 per Bbl, and the 2021 average of $68.13 per Bbl. In addition, the average domestic onshore rig count for the United States and Canada was 781 rigs reported in the fourth quarter of 2023, down from the average in the fourth quarter of 2022 of 947, according to a report from Baker Hughes.
Acquisitions
On October 26, 2021, the Company acquired PropX in exchange for $11.9 million in cash, 3,405,526 shares of Class A Common Stock and 2,441,010 shares of Class B Common Stock, and 2,441,010 Liberty LLC Units, for total consideration of $103.0 million, based on the Class A Common Stock closing price of $15.58 on October 26, 2021, subject to customary post-closing adjustments. The Liberty LLC Units were redeemable for an equivalent number of shares of Class A Common Stock at any time, at the election of the shareholder. Founded in 2016, PropX is a leading provider of last-mile proppant delivery solutions including proppant handling equipment and logistics software across North America. PropX offers innovative environmentally friendly technology with optimized dry and wet sand containers and wellsite proppant handling equipment that drive logistics efficiency and reduce noise and emissions. We believe that PropX wet sand handling technology and logistics is a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the proppant industry. PropX also offers customers the latest real-time logistics software, PropConnect, as a hosted software as a service.
On April 6, 2023, LPI accelerated its expansion by acquiring Siren, a Permian focused integrated natural gas compression and CNG delivery business with 16 MMcf per day of natural gas compression capacity at two expandable Permian sites and transportation, logistics, and pressure reduction services, for cash consideration of $75.7 million, after post-closing adjustments and net of cash received. LPI currently delivers fuel to customers in both the drilling and completions markets, and its logistics system is designed to deliver CNG, renewable natural gas, or hydrogen to remote locations. We believe that the added natural gas compression capability is a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the industry.
Increase in Drilling Efficiency and Service Intensity of Completions
Over the past decade, E&P companies have focused on exploiting the vast resource potential available across many of North America’s unconventional resource plays through the application of horizontal drilling and completion technologies, including the use of multi-stage hydraulic fracturing, in order to increase recovery of oil and natural gas. As E&P companies have improved drilling and completion techniques to maximize return and efficiency, we believe that well economics have improved and unconventional oil and gas production is globally competitive. Liberty has been a significant partner with our customers in driving these continued improvements.
Improved drilling economics from horizontal drilling and greater rig efficiencies. Unconventional resources are increasingly being targeted through the use of horizontal drilling. According to Baker Hughes, as reported on January 26, 2024, horizontal rigs accounted for approximately 90% of all rigs drilling in the United States and Canada, up from 77% as of December 26, 2014. Over the past several years, North American E&P companies have benefited from improved drilling economics driven by technologies that reduce the number of days, and the cost, of drilling wells. North American drilling rigs have incorporated newer technologies, which allow them to drill rock more effectively and quickly, meaning each rig can drill more wells in a given period. These include improved drilling technologies and the incorporation of geosteering techniques which allow better placement of the wellbore. Drilling rigs have also incorporated new technology which allows fully assembled rigs to automatically “walk” from one location to the next without disassembling and reassembling the rig, greatly reducing the time it takes to move from one drilling location to the next. Today the majority of E&P drilling is on multi-well pad development, allowing efficient drilling of multiple horizontal wellbores from the same pad or location. The aggregate effect of these improved techniques and technologies have reduced the average days required to drill a well, which according to Lium Research, has dropped from 28 days in 2014 to 18 days in 2023.
Increased complexity and service intensity of horizontal well completions. In addition to improved rig efficiencies discussed above, E&P companies are also improving the subsurface techniques and technologies used to exploit unconventional resources. These improvements have targeted increasing the exposure of each wellbore to the reservoir by drilling longer horizontal lateral sections of the wellbore. To complete the well, hydraulic fracturing is applied in stages along the wellbore to break-up the resource so that oil and gas can be produced. As wellbores have increased in length, the number of frac stages and/
34
or the number of perforation clusters (frac initiation points) has also increased. Further, E&P companies have improved production from each stage by applying increasing amounts of proppant in each stage, which better connects the well to the resource. The aggregate effect of increased number of stages and the increasing amount of proppant in each stage has greatly increased the total amount of proppant used in each well, according to Liberty’s FracTrends database, from six million pounds per well in 2014 to over 20 million pounds per well in 2023. Further efficiency gains are being sought via the “simul-frac,” “trimul-frac,” and other techniques. When compared to typical zipper-frac operations, these methods allow operators to complete a pad of wells quicker, thereby shortening the time from spud to first production.
These industry trends continue to keep our customers as important suppliers to the global oil and natural gas markets, which directly benefit hydraulic fracturing companies like us that have the expertise and innovative technology to effectively service today’s more efficient oilfield drilling activity and the increasing complexity and intensity of well completions. Given the expected returns that E&P companies have reported for new well development activities due to improved rig efficiencies and increasing well completion complexity and intensity, we expect these industry trends to continue.
How We Generate Revenue
We currently generate revenue through the provision of hydraulic fracturing, wireline services and goods, including sand from our Permian Basin sand mines, proppant delivery and logistics, and natural gas compression and delivery. These services and goods are provided under a variety of contract structures, primarily master service agreements (“MSAs”) as supplemented by statements of work, pricing agreements and specific quotes. A portion of our statements of work, under MSAs, include provisions that establish pricing arrangements for a period of up to approximately one year in length. However, the majority of those agreements provide for pricing adjustments based on market conditions. The majority of our services are priced based on prevailing market conditions and changing input costs at the time the services are provided, giving consideration to the specific requirements of the customer.
Our hydraulic fracturing and wireline services are performed in sections, which we refer to as fracturing stages. The estimated number of fracturing stages to be completed for a particular horizontal well is determined by the customer’s well completion design. We recognize revenue for each fracturing stage completed, although our revenue per completed fracturing stage varies depending on the actual volumes and types of proppants, chemicals, and fluid utilized for each fracturing stage. The number of fracturing stages that we are able to complete in a period is directly related to the number and utilization of our deployed fleets and size of stages.
Costs of Conducting Our Business
The principal expenses involved in conducting our business are direct cost of personnel, services, and materials used in the provision of services, general and administrative expenses, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. A large portion of the costs we incur in our business are variable based on the number of hydraulic fracturing jobs and the requirements of services provided to our customers. We manage the level of our fixed costs, except depreciation, depletion, and amortization, based on several factors, including industry conditions and expected demand for our services.
How We Evaluate Our Operations
We use a variety of qualitative, operational and financial metrics to assess our performance. First and foremost, of these is a qualitative assessment of customer satisfaction because ensuring we are a valuable partner to our customers is the key to achieving our quantitative business metrics. Among other measures, management considers each of the following:
•Revenue;
•Operating Income;
•EBITDA;
•Adjusted EBITDA;
•Net Income; and
•Earnings per Share.
Revenue
We analyze our revenue by comparing actual revenue to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance.
Operating Income
We analyze our operating income, which we define as revenues less direct operating expenses, depreciation, depletion, and amortization and general and administrative expenses, to measure our financial performance. We believe operating income is a meaningful metric because it provides insight on profitability and true operating performance based on the historical cost basis of our assets. We also compare operating income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods.
35
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, provision for credit losses, transaction, severance, and other costs, the gain or loss on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments, and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance. See “Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information and a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to net income, the most comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
Results of Operations
Year Ended December 31, 2023, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2022
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2023 | 2022 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 4,747,928 | $ | 4,149,228 | $ | 598,700 | ||||
| Cost of services, excluding depreciation, depletion, and amortization shown separately | 3,349,370 | 3,149,036 | 200,334 | |||||||
| General and administrative | 221,406 | 180,040 | 41,366 | |||||||
| Transaction, severance, and other costs | 2,053 | 5,837 | (3,784) | |||||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 421,514 | 323,028 | 98,486 | |||||||
| Gain on disposal of assets, net | (6,994) | (4,603) | (2,391) | |||||||
| Operating income | 760,579 | 495,890 | 264,689 | |||||||
| Other expense, net | 25,689 | 96,381 | (70,692) | |||||||
| Net income before income taxes | 734,890 | 399,509 | 335,381 | |||||||
| Income tax expense (benefit) | 178,482 | (793) | 179,275 | |||||||
| Net income | 556,408 | 400,302 | 156,106 | |||||||
| Less: Net income attributable to non-controlling interests | 91 | 700 | (609) | |||||||
| Net income attributable to Liberty Energy Inc. stockholders | $ | 556,317 | $ | 399,602 | $ | 156,715 |
Revenue
Our revenue increased $598.7 million, or 14%, to $4.7 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $4.1 billion for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in revenue was primarily attributable to higher service pricing, the reactivation of several fleets not fully reflected in the prior year, and an activity-driven increase in fleet efficiency commensurate with consistent demand for hydraulic fracturing services.
Cost of Services
Cost of services (excluding depreciation, depletion, and amortization) increased $200.3 million, or 6%, to $3.3 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $3.1 billion for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in expense was primarily related to increases in materials and parts consumption and higher labor costs related to reactivated fleets and higher fleet efficiency during the year ended December 31, 2023.
General and Administrative
General and administrative expenses increased $41.4 million, or 23%, to $221.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $180.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 primarily related to increases from labor cost inflation, various corporate costs related to increased levels of activity, and increased share-based compensation expense related to Company performance.
36
Transaction, Severance and Other Costs
Transaction, severance and other costs decreased $3.8 million, or 65%, to $2.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $5.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The costs incurred during the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily related to integration cost, legal, accounting, and other professional services provided in connection with the Siren Acquisition, while costs incurred during the year ended December 31, 2022 related to ongoing integration costs from prior period acquisitions.
Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization
Depreciation, depletion, and amortization expense increased $98.5 million, or 30%, to $421.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $323.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in 2023 was due to additional equipment placed in service not fully reflected in the prior year, including the deployment of our digiTechnologiesSM.
Gain on Disposal of Assets, net
The Company recorded a gain on disposal of assets, net of $7.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $4.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The gain recognized in the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily the result of the Company selling used field equipment and light duty trucks in a strong used vehicle and equipment market. The gain recognized in the year ended December 31, 2022 was a result of the sale of used field equipment and light duty trucks in a strong used vehicle and equipment market offset by a loss on sale of two non-strategic facilities acquired in a previous acquisition and a loss on plan of sale for two other non-strategic facilities.
Operating Income
The Company recorded operating income of $760.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $495.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The change in operating income was primarily due to the $598.7 million, or 14%, increase in total revenue partially offset by a $334.0 million increase in total operating expenses, the significant components of which are discussed above.
Other Expense, net
Other expense, net decreased by $70.7 million to $25.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $96.4 million during the year ended December 31, 2022. Other expense, net is comprised of (gain) loss on remeasurement of liability under the TRAs, gain on investments, interest income—related party, and interest expense, net. As a result of the release of a valuation allowance on the U.S. net deferred tax assets the Company remeasured the liability under the TRAs resulting in a loss of $76.2 million, offset by a $2.5 million gain on investments during the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to a $1.8 million gain on remeasurement of the liability under the TRAs, due to a change in the overall expected effective tax rate, during the year ended December 31, 2023. Interest income—related party increased $2.0 million related to an extension of credit executed in December 2022 and extended in August 2023. These decreases were partially offset by the $6.8 million increase in interest expense, net as a result of new finance leases added and higher interest rates under the ABL Facility during the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022.
Net Income Before Income Taxes
The Company realized net income before income taxes of $734.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $399.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in results was primarily attributable to the increase in revenues and the decrease in other expense, net, as noted above, partially offset by the increase in operating expenses discussed above.
Income Tax Expense (Benefit)
The Company recognized income tax expense of $178.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, an effective rate of 24.3%, compared to an income tax benefit of $0.8 million, an effective rate of (0.2)%, recognized for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in income tax expense was primarily attributable to the Company recording taxes on the Company’s U.S. activity during the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the release of a valuation allowance on its U.S. net deferred tax assets during the year ended December 31, 2022 largely offsetting taxes on 2022 activity.
Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, bad debt reserves, transaction, severance, and other costs, the gain or loss on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments, and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance.
37
Our board of directors, management, investors, and lenders use EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to assess our financial performance because it allows them to compare our operating performance on a consistent basis across periods by removing the effects of our capital structure (such as varying levels of interest expense), asset base (such as depreciation, depletion, and amortization) and other items that impact the comparability of financial results from period to period. We present EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA because we believe they provide useful information regarding the factors and trends affecting our business in addition to measures calculated under GAAP.
Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP. We believe that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures will provide useful information to investors in assessing our financial performance and results of operations. Net income is the GAAP measure most directly comparable to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. Our non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Each of these non-GAAP financial measures has important limitations as an analytical tool due to exclusion of some but not all items that affect the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. You should not consider EBITDA or Adjusted EBITDA in isolation or as substitutes for an analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Because EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies in our industry, our definitions of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility.
The following tables present a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to our net income, which is the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure for the periods presented:
Year Ended December 31, 2023, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2022: EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2023 | 2022 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net income | $ | 556,408 | $ | 400,302 | $ | 156,106 | ||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 421,514 | 323,028 | 98,486 | |||||||
| Interest expense, net | 27,506 | 22,715 | 4,791 | |||||||
| Income tax expense | 178,482 | (793) | 179,275 | |||||||
| EBITDA | $ | 1,183,910 | $ | 745,252 | $ | 438,658 | ||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 33,026 | 23,108 | 9,918 | |||||||
| Fleet start-up and lay-down costs | 2,082 | 17,007 | (14,925) | |||||||
| Transaction, severance, and other costs | 2,053 | 5,837 | (3,784) | |||||||
| Gain on disposal of assets, net | (6,994) | (4,603) | (2,391) | |||||||
| Provision for credit losses | 808 | — | 808 | |||||||
| (Gain) loss on remeasurement of liability under tax receivable agreements | (1,817) | 76,191 | (78,008) | |||||||
| Gain on investments | — | (2,525) | 2,525 | |||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 1,213,068 | $ | 860,267 | $ | 352,801 |
EBITDA was $1.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $745.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Adjusted EBITDA was $1.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $860.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increases in EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA primarily resulted from increased activity levels in 2023 as described above under the captions Revenue, Cost of Services, and General and Administrative Expenses for the Year Ended December 31, 2023, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2022.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview
Our primary sources of liquidity consist of cash flows from operations and borrowings under our ABL Facility. We expect to fund operations and organic growth with these sources. We monitor the availability and cost of capital resources such as equity and debt financings that could be leveraged for current or future financial obligations including those related to acquisitions, capital expenditures, working capital, and other liquidity requirements. We may incur additional indebtedness or issue equity in order to meet our capital expenditure activities and liquidity requirements, as well as to fund growth opportunities that we pursue, including via acquisition. Our primary uses of capital have been capital expenditures to support organic growth and funding ongoing operations, including maintenance and fleet upgrades, as well as the repurchases of, and dividends on, shares of our Class A Common Stock.
38
Cash and cash equivalents decreased by $6.9 million to $36.8 million as of December 31, 2023 compared to $43.7 million as of December 31, 2022, while working capital excluding cash and current liabilities under debt and lease arrangements increased $42.2 million.
On September 19, 2017, the Company entered into two credit agreements, (i) a revolving line of credit up to $250.0 million, subsequently increased to $525.0 million, see below, (the “ABL Facility”) and (ii) a $175.0 million term loan (the “Term Loan Facility”, and together with the ABL Facility the “Credit Facilities”).
As of December 31, 2023, we had $525.0 million committed under the ABL Facility, subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on a percentage of eligible accounts receivable and inventory available to finance working capital needs. As of December 31, 2023, the borrowing base was calculated to be $420.3 million, and the Company had $140.0 million outstanding, in addition to a letter of credit in the amount of $2.6 million, with $277.7 million of remaining availability.
On January 23, 2023, the Company entered into an Eighth Amendment to the ABL Facility (the “Eighth ABL Amendment”). The Eighth ABL Amendment amends certain terms, provisions and covenants of the ABL Facility, including, among other things: (i) increasing the maximum revolver amount from $425.0 million to $525.0 million (the “Upsized Revolver”); (ii) increasing the amount of the accordion feature from $75.0 million to $100.0 million; (iii) extending the maturity date from October 22, 2026 to January 23, 2028; (iv) modifying the dollar amounts of various credit facility triggers and tests proportionally to the Upsized Revolver; (v) permitting repayment under the Term Loan Facility prior to February 10, 2023; and (vi) increasing certain indebtedness, intercompany advance, and investment baskets. The Eighth ABL Amendment also includes an agreement from Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as administrative agent, to release its second priority liens and security interests on all collateral that served as first priority collateral under the Term Loan Facility. This release was completed during the three months ended June 30, 2023.
Additionally, on January 23, 2023, the Company borrowed $106.7 million on the ABL Facility and used the proceeds to pay off and and terminate the Term Loan Facility. The amount paid included the balance of the Term Loan Facility upon payoff of $104.7 million, $0.9 million of accrued interest, and a $1.1 million prepayment premium. Additionally, there were $0.2 million in administrative agent and lender legal fees included in the pay off.
The ABL Facility contains covenants that restrict our ability to take certain actions. At December 31, 2023, we were in compliance with all debt covenants.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for further details.
We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2023, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements as disclosed below under Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report. As such, we are not materially exposed to any other financing, liquidity, market, or credit risk that could arise if we had engaged in such financing arrangements.
Share Repurchase Program
Under our share repurchase program, the Company was initially authorized to repurchase up to $250.0 million of outstanding Class A Common Stock through and including July 31, 2024. On January 24, 2023, the Board authorized and the Company announced an increase to the share repurchase program that increased the Company’s cumulative repurchase authorization to $500.0 million. Furthermore, on January 23, 2024, the Board authorized and the Company announced an increase to the share repurchase program that increased the Company’s cumulative repurchase authorization to $750.0 million and extended the authorization through July 31, 2026. Shares may be repurchased from time to time for cash in the open market transactions, through block trades, in privately negotiated transactions, through derivative transactions or by other means in accordance with applicable federal securities laws. The timing and the amount of repurchases will be determined by the Company at its discretion based on an evaluation of market conditions, capital allocation alternatives and other factors. The share repurchase program does not require us to purchase any dollar amount or number of shares of our Class A Common Stock and may be modified, suspended, extended or terminated at any time without prior notice. The Company expects to fund any repurchases by using cash on hand, borrowings under its revolving credit facility and expected free cash flow to be generated through the duration of the share repurchase program. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company repurchased and retired shares of Class A Common Stock for $203.1 million, under the share repurchase program.
39
Cash Flows
The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2023 | 2022 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 1,014,583 | $ | 530,364 | $ | 484,219 | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (672,328) | (450,656) | (221,672) | |||||||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (349,315) | (55,770) | (293,545) |
Analysis of Cash Flow Changes Between the Years Ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022
Operating Activities. Net cash provided by operating activities was $1.0 billion for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $530.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The $484.2 million increase in cash from operating activities is primarily attributable to a $598.7 million increase in revenues, offset by a $280.7 million increase in cash operating expenses, interest expense, net, and income tax, and a $111.7 million decrease in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to a $277.9 million decrease in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Investing Activities. Net cash used in investing activities was $672.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $450.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Cash used in investing activities was higher during the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022 as the Company continued to invest in equipment, including the new digiTechnologiesSM suite, to support increased customer demand in next generation equipment and technology. Additionally, during the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company acquired Siren for $75.7 million in cash, net of cash received and normal post-closing matters, refer to Note 3—Acquisitions to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for additional information related to the Siren Acquisition.
Financing Activities. Net cash used in financing activities was $349.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to net cash used in financing activities of $55.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The $293.5 million change in cash used in financing activities was primarily due to a $77.8 million increase in cash payments made in connection with share repurchases to $203.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $125.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Additionally, cash paid for quarterly dividends increased $28.5 million to $37.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $9.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Net pay down of $79.7 million on the Credit Facilities during the year ended December 31, 2023, including the $104.7 million pay off and termination of the Term Loan Facility, contributed to the financing cash outflow during the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $95.3 million of net borrowings on the Credit Facilities for the year ended December 31, 2022.
40
Cash Requirements
Our material cash commitments consist primarily of obligations under long-term debt, TRAs, finance and operating leases for property and equipment, cash used to pay for repurchases of, and dividends on, shares of our Class A Common Stock, and purchase obligations as part of normal operations. Certain amounts included in our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2023 are based on our estimates and assumptions about these obligations, including pricing, volumes and duration. We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2023, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements disclosed below.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled maturities of our long-term debt. See Note 6—Leases to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled maturities of finance and operating leases.
As of December 31, 2023, the Company had expected cash payments for estimated interest on our finance lease obligations of $12.2 million payable within the next twelve months and $16.9 million payable thereafter.
On January 23, 2023, the Company borrowed $106.7 million on the ABL Facility and used the proceeds to pay off and terminate the Term Loan Facility. The balance of the Term Loan Facility at pay off was $104.7 million and included $0.9 million of accrued interest, and a $1.1 million prepayment premium. As such, the only outstanding debt facility as of December 31, 2023 was the ABL Facility.
As of December 31, 2023, the Company has purchase obligations of $143.9 million payable within the next twelve months and $13.0 million payable thereafter. See Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding scheduled contractual obligations.
As of December 31, 2023, the Company expects to make a $5.2 million payment under the TRAs within the next twelve months. Future amounts payable under the TRAs are dependent upon future events. See Note 12—Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for information regarding the TRAs.
During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company expanded certain equipment lease facilities and entered into a new equipment lease facility with an additional lessor resulting in new finance lease obligations of $160.5 million. The term on these new leases range from two to five years. The Company had finance lease obligations of $51.1 million payable within the next twelve months and $151.6 million payable thereafter.
There have been no other material changes to cash requirements during the year ended December 31, 2023.
Other Factors Affecting Liquidity
Customer receivables: In line with industry practice, we typically bill our customers for services provided in arrears dependent upon contractual terms. In weak economic environments, we may experience delays in collection from our customers. In the past, we have experienced delays in customer payments and periodically agreed to extended payment terms, however, we have not experienced any material non-payment events.
Tax Receivable Agreements
In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax (computed using simplifying assumptions to address the impact of state and local taxes) that the Company actually recognizes (or is deemed to recognize in certain circumstances) in periods after the IPO as a result, as applicable to each of the TRA Holders, of (i) certain increases in tax basis that occur as a result of the Company’s acquisition (or deemed acquisition for U.S. federal income tax purposes) of all or a portion of such TRA Holders’ Liberty LLC Units in connection with the IPO or pursuant to the exercise of the right of each Liberty Unit Holder (the “Redemption Right”), subject to certain limitations, to cause Liberty LLC to acquire all or a portion of its Liberty LLC Units for, at Liberty LLC’s election, (A) shares of our Class A Common Stock at the specific redemption ratio or (B) an equivalent amount of cash, or, upon the exercise of the Redemption Right, the right of the Company (instead of Liberty LLC) to, for administrative convenience, acquire each tendered Liberty LLC Unit directly from the redeeming Liberty Unit Holder (the “Call Right”) for, at its election, (1) one share of Class A Common Stock or (2) an equivalent amount of cash, (ii) any net operating losses available to the Company as a result of the Corporate Reorganization, and (iii) imputed interest deemed to be paid by the Company as a result of, and additional tax basis arising from, any payments the Company makes under the TRAs. On January 31, 2023, the last redemption of the Liberty LLC Units occurred.
41
With respect to obligations the Company expects to incur under the TRAs (except in cases where the Company elects to terminate the TRAs early, the TRAs are terminated early due to certain mergers, asset sales, or other changes of control or the Company has available cash but fails to make payments when due), generally the Company may elect to defer payments due under the TRAs if the Company does not have available cash to satisfy its payment obligations under the TRAs or if its contractual obligations limit its ability to make such payments. Any such deferred payments under the TRAs generally will accrue interest. In certain cases, payments under the TRAs may be accelerated and/or significantly exceed the actual benefits, if any, the Company realizes in respect of the tax attributes subject to the TRAs. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with Accounting Standard Codification (“ASC”) Topic 450, Contingencies (“ASC Topic 450”).
If the Company experiences a change of control (as defined under the TRAs) or the TRAs otherwise terminate early, the Company’s obligations under the TRAs could have a substantial negative impact on its liquidity and could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing certain mergers, asset sales, or other forms of business combinations or changes of control. There can be no assurance that we will be able to finance our obligations under the TRAs.
Income Taxes
The Company is a corporation and is subject to U.S. federal, state, and local income tax on its share of Liberty LLC’s taxable income. The Company is also subject to Canada federal and provincial income tax on its foreign operations.
The effective global income tax rate applicable to the Company for the year ended December 31, 2023 was 24.3% compared to (0.2)% for the year ended December 31, 2022. The Company’s effective tax rate is greater than the statutory federal income tax rate of 21.0% due to the Company’s Canadian operations, state income taxes in the states the Company operates, as well as nondeductible executive compensation. For 2022, the Company’s effective tax rate was less than the statutory federal income tax rate due to the Company releasing the valuation allowance recorded in a previous year on its U.S. net deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2022, primarily due to entering into a three-year cumulative pre-tax book income position and improved operating results.
The Company recognized income tax expense of $178.5 million and an income tax benefit of $0.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate can be volatile and may change with, among other things, the amount of jurisdiction pre-tax income or loss, ability to utilize foreign tax credits, excess tax benefits or deficiencies from share-based compensation and changes in tax laws in the jurisdictions that we operate.
Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities, and are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. In the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company’s net deferred tax liabilities were $102.3 million. The Company has not recorded a valuation allowance against the deferred tax assets for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Refer to Note 12— Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report for additional information related to income tax expense.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of judgments and estimates. Our critical accounting policies are described below to provide a better understanding of how we develop our assumptions and judgments about future events and related estimates and how they can impact our financial statements. A critical accounting estimate is one that requires our most difficult, subjective or complex estimates and assessments and is fundamental to our results of operations.
We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable according to the current facts and circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We believe the following are the critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements, as well as the significant estimates and judgments affecting the application of these policies. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report.
Revenue Recognition: Revenue from hydraulic fracturing services is recognized as specific services are provided in accordance with contractual arrangements. If our assessment of performance under a particular contract change, our revenue and / or costs under that contract may change. In connection with ASC Topic 842 - Leases (“Topic 842”), the Company determined that certain of its service revenue contracts contain a lease component. The Company elected to adopt a practical expedient available to lessors, which allows the Company to combine the lease and service component for certain of the Company’s service contracts when the service component is the predominant component and continues to account for the combined component under ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
Inventory: Inventory consists of raw materials used in the hydraulic fracturing process, such as proppants, chemicals and field service equipment maintenance parts, and is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value, determined using the
42
weighted average cost method. Net realizable value is determined based on our estimates of selling prices in the ordinary course of business, less reasonably predictable cost of completion, disposal, and transportation, each of which require us to apply judgment.
Property and Equipment: We calculate depreciation and amortization on our assets based on the estimated useful lives and estimated salvage values that we believe are reasonable. The estimated useful lives and salvage values are subject to key assumptions such as maintenance, utilization and job variation. These estimates may change due to a number of factors such as changes in operating conditions or advances in technology.
We incur maintenance costs on our major equipment. The determination of whether an expenditure should be capitalized or expensed requires management judgment in the application of how the costs benefit future periods, relative to our capitalization policy. Costs that either establish or increase the efficiency, productivity, functionality or life of a fixed asset are capitalized and depreciated over the remaining useful life of the asset.
Impairment of long-lived assets: Long-lived assets, such as property and equipment, right-of-use lease assets and intangible assets, are evaluated for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable. Possible indicators of impairment may include events or changes in circumstances affecting the manner in which the assets are being used, historical and estimated future profitability measures, and other adverse events or changes that could affect the value of the assets. If a triggering event is identified, recoverability is assessed using undiscounted future net cash flows of assets grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows independent of the cash flows of other groups of assets. When alternative courses of action to recover the carrying amount of the asset group are under consideration, estimates of future undiscounted cash flows take into account possible outcomes and probabilities of their occurrence, which require us to apply judgment. If the carrying amount of the asset is not recoverable based on its estimated undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount by which its carrying amount exceeds its estimated fair value. The inputs used to determine such fair value are primarily based upon internally developed cash flow models. Our cash flow models are based on a number of estimates regarding future operations that may be subject to significant variability, are sensitive to changes in market conditions, and are reasonably likely to change in the future.
Leases: In accordance with ASC Topic 842, Leases, the Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception and evaluates identified leases for operating or finance lease treatment. Operating or finance lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. We use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. Lease terms may include options to renew; however, we typically cannot determine our intent to renew a lease with reasonable certainty at inception.
Tax Receivable Agreements: In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax that the Company actually realizes in periods after the IPO as a result of certain tax attributes applicable to each TRA Holder. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with ASC Topic 450, Contingencies.
Share Repurchases: The Company accounts for the purchase price of repurchased Class A Common Stock in excess of par value ($0.01 per share of Class A Common Stock) as a reduction of additional paid-in capital, and will continue to do so until additional paid-in capital is reduced to zero. Thereafter, any excess purchase price will be recorded as a reduction to retained earnings. All Class A Common Stock shares repurchased to date have been retired upon repurchase.
43
FY 2022 10-K MD&A
SEC filing source: 0001694028-23-000010.
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report. The following discussion contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect our future plans, estimates, beliefs and expected performance. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those described in this Annual Report under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements. This section of this Annual Report generally discusses 2022 and 2021 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2022 and 2021. For discussion of year ended December 31, 2020, as well as the year ended 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020, refer to Part II, Item 7— “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” of our 2021 Annual Report.
Overview
The Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a leading integrated energy services and technology company focused on providing innovative hydraulic fracturing services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas E&P companies in North America. We offer customers hydraulic fracturing services, together with complementary services including wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, data analytics, related goods (including our sand mine operations), and technologies that will facilitate lower emission completions, thereby helping our customers reduce their emissions profile. We have grown from one active hydraulic fracturing fleet in December 2011 to over 40 active fleets as of December 31, 2022. We provide our services primarily in the Permian Basin, the Eagle Ford Shale, the DJ Basin, the Williston Basin, the San Juan Basin, the Powder River Basin, the Haynesville Shale, the SCOOP/STACK, the Marcellus Shale, Utica Shale, and the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. Additionally, we operate two sand mines in the Permian Basin.
We believe technical innovation and strong relationships with our customer and supplier bases distinguish us from our competitors and are the foundations of our business. We expect that E&P companies will continue to focus on technological innovation as completion complexity and fracture intensity of horizontal wells increases, particularly as customers are increasingly focused on reducing emissions from their completions operations. We remain proactive in developing innovative solutions to industry challenges, including developing: (i) our databases of U.S. unconventional wells to which we apply our proprietary multi-variable statistical analysis technologies to provide differential insight into fracture design optimization; (ii) our Liberty Quiet Fleet® design which significantly reduces noise levels compared to conventional hydraulic fracturing fleets; (iii) hydraulic fracturing fluid systems tailored to the specific reservoir properties in the basins in which we operate; (iv) our dual fuel dynamic gas blending fleets that allow our engines to run diesel or a combination of diesel and natural gas, to optimize fuel use, reduce emissions and lower costs; (v) the successful test of digiFrac™, our innovative, purpose-built electric frac pump that has approximately 25% lower CO2e emission profile than the Tier IV DGB; and (vi) our PropX wet sand handling technology which eliminates the need to dry sand, enabling the deployment of mobile mines nearer to wellsites. In addition, our integrated supply chain includes proppant, chemicals, equipment, logistics and integrated software which we believe promotes wellsite efficiency and leads to more pumping hours and higher productivity throughout the year to better service our customers. In order to achieve our technological objectives, we carefully manage our liquidity and debt position to promote operational flexibility and invest in the business throughout the full commodity cycle in the regions we operate.
Recent Trends and Outlook
We believe the fundamental outlook for North American hydrocarbons remains healthy. E&P customers continue to see attractive drilling returns, particularly in oil, even as breakeven prices have increased from the pandemic lows. Major operators are redirecting capital spending to North America and domestic E&P operators’ pronouncements of returns targets infer a continuation of resource development to at least offset natural production declines. As North American oil and gas production reaches new heights, we expect to experience a rising level of frac demand to simply keep production flat. While some industry pullback in natural gas regions is possible, due to decreasing prices, demand in oilier areas continues to outstrip supply and we do not expect this possible pullback will have an impact on overall frac demand in 2023.
While demand currently remains strong, we acknowledge there is an elevated recession risk looming in global markets. However, we believe the impact of a possible recession on the industry in 2023 would be relatively muted due to disruptions in global oil supply, rather low spare global production capacity, and increased demand from the gradual reopening of China and rising global travel. We believe oil supply growth remains challenged as the release of U.S. strategic petroleum reserves subsides, the impact of the Russian oil products export embargo hits in the first quarter of 2023, and reduced investment across the Russian industry gradually impacts production.
In addition to the overall strong demand for frac supply, E&P operators are also focused on obtaining top tier equipment and service providers. Demand for natural gas powered fleets, in an effort to reduce fuel costs and emissions is strong and the
32
transition to natural gas-powered fleets is happening at a measured pace, which so far is roughly aligned with the attrition of the industry’s older generation diesel frac capacity.
During the year 2022, the posted WTI price traded at an average of $94.90 per barrel (“Bbl”), as compared to the 2021 average of $68.13 per Bbl, and the 2020 average of $39.16 per Bbl. In addition, the average domestic onshore rig count for the United States and Canada was 947 rigs reported in the fourth quarter of 2022, up from the average in the fourth quarter of 2021 of 704, according to a report from Baker Hughes.
Acquisitions
On December 31, 2020, the Company acquired certain assets and liabilities of Schlumberger’s OneStim business, which provides hydraulic fracturing pressure pumping services in onshore United States and Canada, including its pressure pumping, pumpdown perforating and Permian frac sand business, in exchange for consideration resulting in a total of 66,326,134 shares of the Class A Common Stock being issued in connection with the OneStim Acquisition. The combined company delivers best-in-class completion services for the sustainable development of unconventional resource plays in the United States and Canada onshore markets.
On October 26, 2021, the Company acquired PropX in exchange for $11.9 million in cash, 3,405,526 shares of Class A Common Stock and 2,441,010 shares of Class B Common Stock, and 2,441,010 Liberty LLC Units, for total consideration of $103.0 million, based on the Class A Common Stock closing price of $15.58 on October 26, 2021, subject to customary post-closing adjustments. The Liberty LLC Units were redeemable for an equivalent number of shares of Class A Common Stock at any time, at the election of the shareholder. Founded in 2016, PropX is a leading provider of last-mile proppant delivery solutions including proppant handling equipment and logistics software across North America. PropX offers innovative environmentally friendly technology with optimized dry and wet sand containers and wellsite proppant handling equipment that drive logistics efficiency and reduce noise and emissions. We believe that PropX wet sand handling technology is a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the proppant industry. PropX also offers customers the latest real-time logistics software, PropConnect, for sale or as hosted software as a service.
Increase in Drilling Efficiency and Service Intensity of Completions
Over the past decade, E&P companies have focused on exploiting the vast resource potential available across many of North America’s unconventional resource plays through the application of horizontal drilling and completion technologies, including the use of multi-stage hydraulic fracturing, in order to increase recovery of oil and natural gas. As E&P companies have improved drilling and completion techniques to maximize return and efficiency, we believe that their “break-even oil prices” continue to decline. These improvements in well economics have kept U.S. Shale oil and gas production competitive even as oil and gas prices have declined. Liberty has been a significant partner with our customers in driving these continued improvements.
Improved drilling economics from horizontal drilling and greater rig efficiencies. Unconventional resources are increasingly being targeted through the use of horizontal drilling. According to Baker Hughes, as reported on January 27, 2023, horizontal rigs accounted for approximately 91% of all rigs drilling in the United States and Canada, up from 77% as of December 26, 2014. Over the past several years, North American E&P companies have benefited from improved drilling economics driven by technologies that reduce the number of days, and the cost, of drilling wells. North American drilling rigs have incorporated newer technologies, which allow them to drill rock more effectively and quickly, meaning each rig can drill more wells in a given period. These include improved drilling technologies and the incorporation of geosteering techniques which allow better placement of the wellbore. Drilling rigs have also incorporated new technology which allows fully assembled rigs to automatically “walk” from one location to the next without disassembling and reassembling the rig, greatly reducing the time it takes to move from one drilling location to the next. Today the majority of E&P drilling is on multi-well pad development, allowing efficient drilling of multiple horizontal wellbores from the same pad or location. The aggregate effect of these improved techniques and technologies have reduced the average days required to drill a well, which according to Lium Research, has dropped from 28 days in 2014 to 18 days in 2022.
Increased complexity and service intensity of horizontal well completions. In addition to improved rig efficiencies discussed above, E&P companies are also improving the subsurface techniques and technologies used to exploit unconventional resources. These improvements have targeted increasing the exposure of each wellbore to the reservoir by drilling longer horizontal lateral sections of the wellbore. To complete the well, hydraulic fracturing is applied in stages along the wellbore to break-up the resource so that oil and gas can be produced. As wellbores have increased in length, the number of frac stages and/or the number of perforation clusters (frac initiation points) has also increased. Further, E&P companies have improved production from each stage by applying increasing amounts of proppant in each stage, which better connects the well to the resource. The aggregate effect of increased number of stages and the increasing amount of proppant in each stage has greatly increased the total amount of proppant used in each well, according to Liberty’s FracTrends database, from six million pounds per well in 2014 to over 20 million pounds per well in 2022. Further efficiency gains are being sought via the “simul-frac”
33
technique. Utilizing a larger frac fleet (1.25x to 2x the normal horsepower), operators are fracturing stages in two separate wells on a pad simultaneously as a single operation. When compared to typical zipper-frac operations, this new method allows for more lateral feet to be completed in a day. This emerging trend will allow operators to complete a pad of wells quicker, thereby shortening the time from spud to first production.
These industry trends continue to keep our customers as important suppliers to the global oil and natural gas markets, which directly benefit hydraulic fracturing companies like us that have the expertise and innovative technology to effectively service today’s more efficient oilfield drilling activity and the increasing complexity and intensity of well completions. Given the expected returns that E&P companies have reported for new well development activities due to improved rig efficiencies and increasing well completion complexity and intensity, we expect these industry trends to continue.
How We Generate Revenue
We currently generate revenue through the provision of hydraulic fracturing and wireline services and goods, including sand from our Permian Basin sand mines. These services and goods are provided under a variety of contract structures, primarily master service agreements (“MSAs”) as supplemented by statements of work, pricing agreements and specific quotes. A portion of our statements of work, under MSAs, include provisions that establish pricing arrangements for a period of up to approximately one year in length. However, the majority of those agreements provide for pricing adjustments based on market conditions. The majority of our services are priced based on prevailing market conditions and changing input costs at the time the services are provided, giving consideration to the specific requirements of the customer.
Our hydraulic fracturing and wireline services are performed in sections, which we refer to as fracturing stages. The estimated number of fracturing stages to be completed for a particular horizontal well is determined by the customer’s well completion design. We recognize revenue for each fracturing stage completed, although our revenue per completed fracturing stage varies depending on the actual volumes and types of proppants, chemicals, and fluid utilized for each fracturing stage. The number of fracturing stages that we are able to complete in a period is directly related to the number and utilization of our deployed fleets and size of stages.
Costs of Conducting Our Business
The principal expenses involved in conducting our business are direct cost of personnel, services, and materials used in the provision of services, general and administrative expenses, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. A large portion of the costs we incur in our business are variable based on the number of hydraulic fracturing jobs and the requirements of services provided to our customers. We manage the level of our fixed costs, except depreciation, depletion, and amortization, based on several factors, including industry conditions and expected demand for our services.
How We Evaluate Our Operations
We use a variety of qualitative, operational and financial metrics to assess our performance. First and foremost, of these is a qualitative assessment of customer satisfaction because ensuring we are a valuable partner to our customers is the key to achieving our quantitative business metrics. Among other measures, management considers each of the following:
•Revenue;
•Operating Income;
•EBITDA;
•Adjusted EBITDA;
•Net Income Before Taxes; and
•Earnings per Share.
Revenue
We analyze our revenue by comparing actual monthly revenue to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance.
Operating Income
We analyze our operating income, which we define as revenues less direct operating expenses, depreciation and amortization and general and administrative expenses, to measure our financial performance. We believe operating income is a meaningful metric because it provides insight on profitability and true operating performance based on the historical cost basis of our assets. We also compare operating income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods.
34
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest, income taxes, depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, bad debt reserves, transaction, severance, and other costs, the loss or gain on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance. See “Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information and a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to net income (loss), the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
Results of Operations
Year Ended December 31, 2022, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2021
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2022 | 2021 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 4,149,228 | $ | 2,470,782 | $ | 1,678,446 | ||||
| Cost of services, excluding depreciation, depletion, and amortization shown separately | 3,149,036 | 2,249,926 | 899,110 | |||||||
| General and administrative | 180,040 | 123,406 | 56,634 | |||||||
| Transaction, severance and other costs | 5,837 | 15,138 | (9,301) | |||||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 323,028 | 262,757 | 60,271 | |||||||
| (Gain) loss on disposal of assets | (4,603) | 779 | (5,382) | |||||||
| Operating income (loss) | 495,890 | (181,224) | 677,114 | |||||||
| Other expense (income), net | 96,381 | (3,436) | 99,817 | |||||||
| Net income (loss) before income taxes | 399,509 | (177,788) | 577,297 | |||||||
| Income tax (benefit) expense | (793) | 9,216 | (10,009) | |||||||
| Net income (loss) | 400,302 | (187,004) | 587,306 | |||||||
| Less: Net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests | 700 | (7,760) | 8,460 | |||||||
| Net income (loss) attributable to Liberty Energy Inc. stockholders | $ | 399,602 | $ | (179,244) | $ | 578,846 |
Revenue
Our revenue increased $1.7 billion, or 68%, to $4.1 billion for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $2.5 billion for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase in revenue is attributable to higher service pricing, the reactivation of several fleets during the year, and an activity-driven increase in fleet utilization and efficiency commensurate with increased demand for hydraulic fracturing services.
Cost of Services
Cost of services (excluding depreciation, depletion, and amortization) increased $0.9 billion, or 40%, to $3.1 billion for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $2.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase in expense was primarily related to increases in materials and parts consumption and higher labor costs related to additional fleets and higher fleet utilization as well as ongoing inflationary increases impacting costs for materials, labor, and maintenance parts.
General and Administrative
General and administrative expenses increased $56.6 million, or 46%, to $180.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $123.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 primarily related to an increase in performance-based variable compensation, labor cost inflation, and corporate costs related to increased levels of activity.
35
Transaction, Severance and Other Costs
Transaction, severance and other costs of $5.8 million and $15.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively, consist of integration cost, investment banking, legal, accounting, and other professional services provided in connection with the OneStim Acquisition and PropX Acquisition. Such costs were lower during the year ended December 31, 2022 as the integration efforts were completed during the year.
Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization
Depreciation, depletion, and amortization expense increased $60.3 million, or 23%, to $323.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $262.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase in 2022 was due to additional equipment placed in service since the prior year period and additional depreciation from property acquired in the PropX Acquisition.
(Gain) Loss on Disposal of Assets
The Company recorded a gain on disposal of assets of $4.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 due to miscellaneous equipment disposals and sales of facilities in the normal course of business, compared to a loss of $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The gain as of December 31, 2022 was a result of the sale of used field equipment and light duty trucks in a strong used vehicle and equipment market offset by a loss on sale of two non-strategic facilities acquired in the OneStim Acquisition and a loss on plan of sale for two other non-strategic facilities. The loss as of December 31, 2021 related to the sale of three non-strategic facilities acquired in the OneStim Acquisition, which collectively resulted in a small loss on sale, along with regular sales of equipment that was no longer being used.
Operating Income (Loss)
The Company recorded operating income of $495.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to operating loss of $181.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The operating income is primarily due to the $1.7 billion, or 68%, increase in total revenue partially offset by a $1.0 billion increase in total operating expenses, the significant components of which are discussed above.
Other Expense (Income), net
The Company recorded other expense, net of $96.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to other income, net of $3.4 million during the year ended December 31, 2021. Other expense (income), net is comprised of loss on remeasurement of liability under the TRAs, gain on investments, and interest expense, net. As a result of the valuation allowance on the U.S. net deferred tax assets, discussed below, the Company remeasured the liability under the TRAs resulting in a loss of $76.2 million during the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to a gain of $19.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. A $2.5 million gain on investments was recorded during the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to no gain for the year ended December 31, 2021. Additionally, interest expense, net increased between periods, increasing $7.1 million as a result of increased borrowings and higher interest rates under the credit facility during the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021.
Net Income (Loss) Before Income Taxes
The Company realized net income before income taxes of $399.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to a net loss before income taxes of $177.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase in results is primarily attributable to an increase in revenue, as discussed above, related to the fleet deployments and an increase in activity and service pricing.
Income Tax (Benefit) Expense
The Company recognized an income tax benefit of $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, at an effective rate of (0.2)%, compared to income tax expense of $9.2 million, at an effective rate of (5.2)%, recognized for the year ended December 31, 2021. The decrease in income tax expense is primarily attributable to the Company releasing the valuation allowance on its U.S. net deferred tax assets in the current year, compared to the prior year recording of a valuation allowance on its U.S. net deferred tax assets.
36
Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest, income taxes, and depreciation, depletion, and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock-based compensation, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, bad debt reserves, transaction, severance, and other costs, the loss or gain on remeasurement of liability under our tax receivable agreements, the gain or loss on investments and other non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance.
Our board of directors, management, investors, and lenders use EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to assess our financial performance because it allows them to compare our operating performance on a consistent basis across periods by removing the effects of our capital structure (such as varying levels of interest expense), asset base (such as depreciation, depletion, and amortization) and other items that impact the comparability of financial results from period to period. We present EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA because we believe they provide useful information regarding the factors and trends affecting our business in addition to measures calculated under GAAP.
Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP. We believe that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures will provide useful information to investors in assessing our financial performance and results of operations. Net income (loss) is the GAAP measure most directly comparable to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. Our non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Each of these non-GAAP financial measures has important limitations as an analytical tool due to exclusion of some but not all items that affect the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. You should not consider EBITDA or Adjusted EBITDA in isolation or as substitutes for an analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Because EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies in our industry, our definitions of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility.
The following tables present a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to our net income (loss), which is the most directly comparable GAAP measure for the periods presented:
Year Ended December 31, 2022 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2021: EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2022 | 2021 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net income (loss) | $ | 400,302 | $ | (187,004) | $ | 587,306 | ||||
| Depreciation, depletion, and amortization | 323,028 | 262,757 | 60,271 | |||||||
| Interest expense, net | 22,715 | 15,603 | 7,112 | |||||||
| Income tax (benefit) expense | (793) | 9,216 | (10,009) | |||||||
| EBITDA | $ | 745,252 | $ | 100,572 | $ | 644,680 | ||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 23,108 | 19,946 | 3,162 | |||||||
| Fleet start-up and lay-down costs | 17,007 | 2,751 | 14,256 | |||||||
| Transaction, severance and other costs | 5,837 | 15,138 | (9,301) | |||||||
| (Gain) loss on disposal of assets | (4,603) | 779 | (5,382) | |||||||
| Provision for credit losses | — | 745 | (745) | |||||||
| Loss (gain) on remeasurement of liability under tax receivable agreements | 76,191 | (19,039) | 95,230 | |||||||
| Gain on investments | $ | (2,525) | $ | — | $ | (2,525) | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 860,267 | $ | 120,892 | $ | 739,375 |
EBITDA was $745.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $100.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. Adjusted EBITDA was $860.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to $120.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increases in EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA primarily resulted from improved market conditions and increased activity levels as described above under the captions Revenue, Cost of Services, and General and Administrative Expenses for the Year Ended December 31, 2022, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2021.
37
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview
Historically, our primary sources of liquidity to date have been cash flows from operations, proceeds from our IPO, and borrowings under our ABL Facility and Term Loan Facility (collectively, the “Credit Facilities”). We expect to fund operations and organic growth with cash flows from operations and available borrowings under our ABL Facility. We monitor the availability of capital resources such as equity and debt financings that could be leverage for current or future financial obligations including those related to acquisitions, capital expenditures, working capital and other liquidity requirements. We may incur additional indebtedness or issue equity in order to meet our capital expenditure activities and liquidity requirements, as well as to fund growth opportunities that we pursue, including via acquisition, such as with the OneStim Acquisition and the PropX Acquisition. Our primary uses of capital have been capital expenditures to support organic growth and funding ongoing operations, including maintenance and fleet upgrades.
Cash and cash equivalents increased by $23.7 million to $43.7 million as of December 31, 2022 compared to $20.0 million as of December 31, 2021, while working capital excluding cash and current liabilities under debt and lease arrangements increased $221.3 million.
As of December 31, 2022, we had $425.0 million committed under the ABL Facility subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on a percentage of eligible accounts receivable and inventory available to finance working capital needs. As of December 31, 2022, the borrowing base was calculated to be $425.0 million, and the Company had $115.0 million outstanding, in addition to a letter of credit in the amount of $2.6 million, with $307.4 million of remaining availability.
Additionally, as of December 31, 2022, we have $104.7 million borrowings remaining on the Term Loan Facility, which was originally $175.0 million.
The ABL Facility has a maturity date of the earlier of (a) October 22, 2026 and (b) to the extent the debt under the Term Loan Facility remains outstanding 90 days prior to the final maturity of the Term Loan Facility, which matures on September 19, 2024.
On July 18, 2022, the Company entered into an amendment to the ABL Facility (the “Seventh ABL Amendment”). The Seventh ABL Amendment amended certain terms, provisions, and covenants of the ABL Facility, including among other things: (i) increasing the maximum borrowing amount by $75.0 million to $425.0 million, subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on percentage of eligible accounts receivable and inventory, (ii) modifying certain covenant and reporting-related baskets, and (iii) replacing LIBOR with the secured overnight financing rate (“SOFR”) as the interest rate benchmark.
On August 12, 2022, the Company entered into an amendment to the Term Loan Facility (the “Sixth Term Loan Amendment”). The Sixth Term Loan Amendment amended certain terms, provisions and covenants of the Term Loan Facility, including among other things: (i) a waiver of the fixed charge coverage ratio requirements for up to $100.0 million of restricted payments made in connection with the Company’s 2022 stock repurchase program for its common stock; (ii) the addition of a minimum liquidity requirement of $150.0 million in order to make selected restricted payments, including those made under the 2022 stock repurchase program; (iii) the modification of certain covenant and reporting-related terms, including an increase in the allowance for permitted purchase money indebtedness from $50.0 million to $70.0 million; (iv) the addition of a prepayment premium of 1.0% through the first anniversary of the Sixth Term Loan Amendment effective date; and (v) the addition and modification of several provisions to replace LIBOR with SOFR as the interest rate benchmark.
On November 4, 2022, the Company entered into an amendment to the Term Loan Facility (the “Seventh Term Loan Amendment”). The Seventh Term Loan Amendment amended the restricted payments negative covenant of the Term Loan Facility so that the fixed charge coverage ratio requirements for dividend payments are waived, so long as the total of dividends paid and payments made in connection with the Company’s 2022 stock repurchase program does not exceed $100.0 million. During the fourth quarter of 2022 the restricted payments negative covenant pertaining to the fixed charge coverage ratio requirements were satisfied and the $100.0 million limit no longer applied.
Subsequent to the fiscal year end, on January 23, 2023, the Company entered into an Eighth Amendment to the ABL Facility (the “Eighth ABL Amendment”). The Eighth ABL Amendment amends certain terms, provisions and covenants of the ABL Facility, including, among other things: (i) increasing the maximum revolver amount from $425.0 million to $525.0 million (the “Upsized Revolver”); (ii) increasing the amount of the accordion feature from $75.0 million to $100.0 million; (iii) extending the maturity date from October 22, 2026 to January 23, 2028; (iv) modifying the dollar amounts of various credit facility triggers and tests proportionally to the Upsized Revolver; (v) permitting repayment under the Term Loan Facility prior to February 10, 2023; and (vi) increasing certain indebtedness, intercompany advance, and investment baskets. The Eighth ABL Amendment also includes an agreement from the Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as administrative agent, to release its second priority liens and security interests on all collateral that served as first priority collateral under the Term Loan Facility, with such release to occur within 120 days after January 23, 2023.
Additionally, on January 23, 2023 the Company withdrew $106.7 million on the ABL Facility and used the proceeds to pay off the Term Loan Facility. The balance of the Term Loan Facility upon pay off was $104.7 million and included $0.9
38
million of accrued interest and a $1.1 million prepayment premium or 1% of the principal. Additionally, there were $0.2 million in bank and legal fees included in the pay off. As such, the only outstanding debt facility after January 23, 3023 is the ABL Facility. Refer to “Our current and future indebtedness could adversely affect our financial condition” included in “Item 1A. Risk Factors” above for further details on the outstanding balance of the ABL Facility as of the filing date.
The Credit Facilities contain covenants that restrict our ability to take certain actions. At December 31, 2022, we were in compliance with all debt covenants.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for further details.
We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2022, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements as disclosed below under Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.” As such, we are not materially exposed to any other financing, liquidity, market, or credit risk that could arise if we had engaged in such financing arrangements.
Share Repurchase Program
Under our share repurchase program, the Company is authorized to repurchase up to $250.0 million of outstanding Class A Common Stock through and including July 31, 2024. Additionally, on January 24, 2023 the Board authorized and the Company announced an increase to the share repurchase program that increased the Company’s cumulative repurchase authorization to $500.0 million. Shares may be repurchased from time to time for cash in the open market transactions, through block trades, in privately negotiated transactions, through derivative transactions or by other means in accordance with applicable federal securities laws. The timing and the amount of repurchases will be determined by the Company at its discretion based on an evaluation of market conditions, capital allocation alternatives and other factors. The share repurchase program does not require us to purchase any dollar amount or number of shares of our Class A Common Stock and may be modified, suspended, extended or terminated at any time without prior notice. The Company expects to fund the repurchases by using cash on hand, borrowings under its revolving credit facility and expected free cash flow to be generated over the next two years.
Cash Flows
The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2022 | 2021 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 530,364 | $ | 135,467 | $ | 394,897 | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (450,656) | (186,494) | (264,162) | |||||||
| Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities | (55,770) | 2,056 | (57,826) |
Analysis of Cash Flow Changes Between the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021
Operating Activities. Net cash provided by operating activities was $530.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to $135.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The $394.9 million increase in cash from operating activities is primarily attributable to a $1.7 billion increase in revenues, offset by a $0.9 billion increase in cash operating expenses and a $277.9 million decrease in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to a $46.9 million increase in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2021.
Investing Activities. Net cash used in investing activities was $450.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to $186.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. Cash used in investing activities was higher during the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to the year ended December 31, 2021 as the Company continued to invest in equipment, including building new digiFrac™ fleets and deploying additional fleets, to support increased customer demand in next generation equipment and technology.
Financing Activities. Net cash used in financing activities was $55.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to net cash provided by financing activities of $2.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2021. The $57.8 million change in cash used in financing activities was primarily due to $125.3 million of cash payments made in connection with share repurchases for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to none in the year ended December 31, 2021 as the Company reinstated the share buyback program. Additionally, the Company reinstated quarterly dividends during the fourth quarter of 2022 resulting in a $9.0 million increase in dividends and per unit distributions to non-controlling interest unitholders. The increases in cash outflows as a result of reinstated shareholder return programs were offset by net borrowings of $97.0 million
39
on the ABL Facility during the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to $18.0 million net borrowings on the ABL Facility for the year ended December 31, 2021. Other changes in financing activity included a $6.1 million increase in payments made for tax withholding on restricted stock unit vesting as a larger number of units vested at a higher stock price in 2022 compared to 2021, and a slight decrease in other distributions and advance payments received from non-controlling interest holders.
Cash Requirements
Our material cash commitments consist primarily of obligations under long-term debt, TRAs, finance and operating leases for property and equipment, cash used to pay for repurchases of shares of our Class A Common Stock, and purchase obligations as part of normal operations. Certain amounts included in our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2022 are based on our estimates and assumptions about these obligations, including pricing, volumes and duration. We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2022, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements disclosed below.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding scheduled maturities of our long-term debt. See Note 6—Leases to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding scheduled maturities of finance and operating leases.
As of December 31, 2022, we had expected cash payments for estimated interest on our finance lease obligations of $2.3 million payable within the next twelve months and $3.4 million payable thereafter.
Effective January 23, 2023 the Company withdrew $106.7 million on the ABL Facility and used the proceeds to pay off the Term Loan Facility. The balance of the Term Loan Facility upon pay off was $104.7 million and included $0.9 million of accrued interest and a $1.1 million prepayment premium. As such, the only outstanding debt facility after January 23, 3023 is the ABL Facility.
As of December 31, 2022, we had purchase obligations of $158.7 million payable within the next twelve months and $44.8 million payable thereafter. See Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding scheduled contractual obligations.
As of December 31, 2022, we do not expect to make any payments under the TRAs within the next twelve months, future amounts payable under the TRAs are dependent upon future events. See Note 12—Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding the TRAs.
Other Factors Affecting Liquidity
Customer receivables: In line with industry practice, we typically bill our customers for services provided in arrears dependent upon contractual terms. In weak economic environments, we may experience delays in collection from our customers. In the past, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry, we have experienced delays in customer payments and agreed to extended payment terms, however, we have not experienced any material non-payment events.
Tax Receivable Agreements
In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax (computed using simplifying assumptions to address the impact of state and local taxes) that the Company actually recognizes (or is deemed to recognize in certain circumstances) in periods after the IPO as a result, as applicable to each of the TRA Holders, of (i) certain increases in tax basis that occur as a result of the Company’s acquisition (or deemed acquisition for U.S. federal income tax purposes) of all or a portion of such TRA Holders’ Liberty LLC Units in connection with the IPO or pursuant to the exercise of the right of each Liberty Unit Holder (the “Redemption Right”), subject to certain limitations, to cause Liberty LLC to acquire all or a portion of its Liberty LLC Units for, at Liberty LLC’s election, (A) shares of our Class A Common Stock at the specific redemption ratio or (B) an equivalent amount of cash, or, upon the exercise of the Redemption Right, the right of the Company (instead of Liberty LLC) to, for administrative convenience, acquire each tendered Liberty LLC Unit directly from the redeeming Liberty Unit Holder (the “Call Right”) for, at its election, (1) one share of Class A Common Stock or (2) an equivalent amount of cash, (ii) any net operating losses available to the Company as a result of the Corporate Reorganization, and (iii) imputed interest deemed to be paid by the Company as a result of, and additional tax basis arising from, any payments the Company makes under the TRAs. On January 31, 2023, the last redemption of the Liberty LLC Units occurred.
40
With respect to obligations the Company expects to incur under the TRAs (except in cases where the Company elects to terminate the TRAs early, the TRAs are terminated early due to certain mergers, asset sales, or other changes of control or the Company has available cash but fails to make payments when due), generally the Company may elect to defer payments due under the TRAs if the Company does not have available cash to satisfy its payment obligations under the TRAs or if its contractual obligations limit its ability to make such payments. Any such deferred payments under the TRAs generally will accrue interest. In certain cases, payments under the TRAs may be accelerated and/or significantly exceed the actual benefits, if any, the Company realizes in respect of the tax attributes subject to the TRAs. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with Accounting Standard Codification (“ASC”) Topic 450, Contingencies (“ASC Topic 450”).
If the Company experiences a change of control (as defined under the TRAs) or the TRAs otherwise terminate early, the Company’s obligations under the TRAs could have a substantial negative impact on its liquidity and could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing certain mergers, asset sales, or other forms of business combinations or changes of control. There can be no assurance that we will be able to finance our obligations under the TRAs.
Income Taxes
The Company is a corporation and is subject to U.S. federal, state, and local income tax on its share of Liberty LLC’s taxable income. The Company is also subject to Canada federal and provincial income tax on its foreign operations.
The combined effective tax rate applicable to the Company for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 was (0.2)% and (5.2)%, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate is significantly less than the federal statutory income tax rate of 21.0% due to the Company releasing the valuation allowance on its U.S. net deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2022, primarily due to entering into a three-year cumulative pre-tax book income position and improved operating results. For 2021, the Company’s effective tax rate is less than the statutory rate due to the Company recording a valuation allowance on its U.S. net deferred tax assets as well as tax on foreign operations, and the non-controlling interest’s share of Liberty LLC’s pass-through results for federal, state and local income tax reporting, upon which no taxes are payable by the Company.
The Company recognized an income tax benefit of $(0.8) million and income tax expense of $9.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate can be volatile and may change with, among other things, the amount of jurisdiction pre-tax income or loss, ability to utilize foreign tax credits, excess tax benefits or deficiencies from share-based compensation and changes in tax laws in the jurisdictions that we operate.
Per the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act enacted on March 27, 2020, net operating losses (“NOL”) incurred in 2019, and 2020 may be carried back to each of the five preceding taxable years to generate a refund of previously paid income taxes. The Company has previously applied for and expects to receive a NOL carryback refund to recover $5.5 million of cash taxes paid by the Company in 2018. This amount has been reflected as a receivable in the prepaids and other current assets line item in the accompanying audited consolidated balance sheets.
Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities, and are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. In the year ended December 31, 2022, we released a valuation allowance on our U.S. net deferred tax assets. As of December 31, 2021, the Company’s net deferred tax assets were primarily comprised of U.S. NOL, investment in Liberty LLC, and TRA tax attributes of $91.3 million. For the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recorded a tax benefit of $91.3 million related to the release of the valuation allowance on U.S. net deferred tax assets that are more like than not to be recognized. In addition, the release of the valuation allowance resulted in an increase in the tax receivable agreement liability and a loss on remeasurement of liability under tax receivable agreements of $76.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Refer to Note 12— Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements for additional information related to income tax expense.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of judgments and estimates. Our critical accounting policies are described below to provide a better understanding of how we develop our assumptions and judgments about future events and related estimates and how they can impact our financial statements. A critical accounting estimate is one that requires our most difficult, subjective or complex estimates and assessments and is fundamental to our results of operations.
We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable according to the current facts and circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We believe the following are the critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements, as well as the significant estimates and judgments affecting the application of these policies. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”
41
Revenue Recognition: Revenue from hydraulic fracturing services is recognized as specific services are provided in accordance with contractual arrangements. If our assessment of performance under a particular contract change, our revenue and / or costs under that contract may change. In connection with ASC Topic 842 - Leases (“Topic 842”), the Company determined that certain of its service revenue contracts contain a lease component. The Company elected to adopt a practical expedient available to lessors, which allows the Company to combine the lease and service component for certain of the Company’s service contracts when the service component is the predominant component and continues to account for the combined component under ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
Inventory: Inventory consists of raw materials used in the hydraulic fracturing process, such as proppants, chemicals and field service equipment maintenance parts, and is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value, determined using the weighted average cost method. Net realizable value is determined based on our estimates of selling prices in the ordinary course of business, less reasonably predictable cost of completion, disposal, and transportation, each of which require us to apply judgment.
Property and Equipment: We calculate depreciation and amortization on our assets based on the estimated useful lives and estimated salvage values that we believe are reasonable. The estimated useful lives and salvage values are subject to key assumptions such as maintenance, utilization and job variation. These estimates may change due to a number of factors such as changes in operating conditions or advances in technology.
We incur maintenance costs on our major equipment. The determination of whether an expenditure should be capitalized or expensed requires management judgment in the application of how the costs benefit future periods, relative to our capitalization policy. Costs that either establish or increase the efficiency, productivity, functionality or life of a fixed asset are capitalized and depreciated over the remaining useful life of the asset.
Impairment of long-lived and other intangible assets: Long-lived assets, such as property and equipment, right-of-use lease assets and intangible assets, are evaluated for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable. Recoverability is assessed using undiscounted future net cash flows of assets grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows independent of the cash flows of other groups of assets. When alternative courses of action to recover the carrying amount of the asset group are under consideration, estimates of future undiscounted cash flows take into account possible outcomes and probabilities of their occurrence, which require us to apply judgment. If the carrying amount of the asset is not recoverable based on its estimated undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount by which its carrying amount exceeds its estimated fair value. The inputs used to determine such fair value are primarily based upon internally developed cash flow models. Our cash flow models are based on a number of estimates regarding future operations that may be subject to significant variability, are sensitive to changes in market conditions, and are reasonably likely to change in the future.
No impairment was recognized during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.
Leases: In accordance with ASC Topic 842, Leases, the Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception and evaluates identified leases for operating or finance lease treatment. Operating or finance lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. We use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. Lease terms may include options to renew; however, we typically cannot determine our intent to renew a lease with reasonable certainty at inception.
Tax Receivable Agreements: In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax that the Company actually realizes in periods after the IPO as a result of certain tax attributes applicable to each TRA Holder. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with ASC Topic 450, Contingencies.
Share Repurchases: The Company accounts for the purchase price of repurchased Class A Common Stock in excess of par value ($0.01 per share of Class A Common Stock) as a reduction of additional paid-in capital, and will continue to do so until additional paid-in capital is reduced to zero. Thereafter, any excess purchase price will be recorded as a reduction to retained earnings. All Class A Common Stock shares repurchased are retired upon repurchase.
42
FY 2021 10-K MD&A
SEC filing source: 0001694028-22-000006.
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report. The following discussion contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect our future plans, estimates, beliefs and expected performance. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of risks and uncertainties, including those described in this Annual Report under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements. This section of this Annual Report generally discusses 2021 and 2020 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2021 and 2020. For discussion of year ended December 31, 2019, as well as the year ended 2020 compared to the year ended December 31, 2019, refer to Part II, Item 7— “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” of our 2020 Annual Report.
Overview
We are an independent provider of hydraulic fracturing services and wireline services and related goods to onshore oil and natural gas E&P companies in North America. We have grown from one active hydraulic fracturing fleet in December 2011 to over 30 active fleets as of December 31, 2021. We provide our services primarily in the Permian Basin, the Eagle Ford Shale, the DJ Basin, the Williston Basin, the San Juan Basin and the Powder River Basin. Following the completion of the OneStim Acquisition (as defined below) we now also provide services in the Haynesville Shale, the SCOOP/STACK, the Marcellus Shale, Utica Shale, and the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. Additionally, we operate two sand mines in the Permian Basin.
On December 31, 2020, the Company acquired certain assets and liabilities of Schlumberger’s OneStim business, which provides hydraulic fracturing pressure pumping services in onshore United States and Canada, including its pressure pumping, pumpdown perforating and Permian frac sand business, in exchange for consideration resulting in a total of 66,326,134 shares of the Class A Common Stock being issued in connection with the OneStim Acquisition. As of February 18, 2022, Schlumberger owned 30.5% of the issued and outstanding shares of our Common Stock. The combined company delivers best-in-class completion services for the sustainable development of unconventional resource plays in the United States and Canada onshore markets.
On October 26, 2021, the Company acquired PropX in exchange for $11.9 million in cash and 3,405,526 shares of Class A Common Stock and 2,441,010 shares of Class B Common Stock, and 2,441,010 Liberty LLC Units, for total consideration of $103.0 million, based on the Class A Common Stock closing price of $15.58 on October 26, 2021, subject to customary post closing adjustments. The Liberty LLC Units are redeemable for an equivalent number of shares of Class A Common Stock at any time, at the election of the shareholder. Founded in 2016, PropX is a leading provider of last-mile proppant delivery solutions including proppant handling equipment and logistics software across North America. PropX offers innovative environmentally friendly technology with optimized dry and wet sand containers and wellsite proppant handling equipment that drive logistics efficiency and reduce noise and emissions. We believe that PropX wet sand handling technology is a key enabler of the next step of cost and emissions reductions in the proppant industry. PropX also offers customers the latest real-time logistics software, PropConnect, for sale or as hosted software as a service.
We believe technical innovation and strong relationships with our customer and supplier bases distinguish us from our competitors and are the foundations of our business. We expect that E&P companies will continue to focus on technological innovation as completion complexity and fracture intensity of horizontal wells increases, particularly as customers are increasingly focused on reducing emissions from their completions operations. We remain proactive in developing innovative solutions to industry challenges, including developing: (i) our databases of U.S. unconventional wells to which we apply our proprietary multi-variable statistical analysis technologies to provide differential insight into fracture design optimization; (ii) our Liberty Quiet Fleet® design which significantly reduces noise levels compared to conventional hydraulic fracturing fleets; (iii) hydraulic fracturing fluid systems tailored to the specific reservoir properties in the basins in which we operate; (iv) our dual fuel dynamic gas blending fleets that allow our engines to run diesel or a combination of diesel and natural gas, to optimize fuel use, reduce emissions and lower costs; and (v) the successful test of digiFrac™, our innovative, purpose-built electric frac pump that has approximately 25% lower CO2e emission profile than the Tier IV DGB. In addition, our integrated supply chain includes proppant, chemicals, equipment, logistics and integrated software which we believe promotes wellsite efficiency and leads to more pumping hours and higher productivity throughout the year to better service our customers. In order to achieve our technological objectives, we carefully manage our liquidity and debt position to promote operational flexibility and invest in the business throughout the full commodity cycle.
30
Recent Trends and Outlook
During the year 2021, the posted WTI price traded at an average of $68.13 per barrel (“Bbl”), as compared to the 2020 average of $39.16 per Bbl and the 2019 average of $56.99 Bbl. The recovery of energy demand is also reflected in the incremental improvement to rig count, as the average domestic onshore rig count for the United States and Canada was 704 rigs reported in the fourth quarter of 2021, up from the average in the fourth quarter of 2020 of 384, according to a report from Baker Hughes, a GE Company.
E&P operators are responding to oil and gas price signals. The public operators are maintaining discipline and we expect will show only modest production growth this year, while the private operators are likely reacting more robustly to strong commodity prices.
The transformative work our team accomplished in 2021 positions us well as we believe our industry is beginning an upcycle driven by rapidly tightening markets for oil & gas. Years of reduced global investment in upstream oil and gas production is now colliding with record global demand for natural gas and natural gas liquids today, and potential record global demand for oil later this year. Oil and gas are central to the global economy which is well along the way of recovering from the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Within the frac market, two years of supply attrition and cannibalization plus constraints from labor shortages, and a secular shift towards next generation frac fleet technologies has led to tightness in the supply of fleets. Liberty has focused on finding the right long-term customer partnerships for the future and has been very disciplined in holding our active frac fleet count steady until financial returns justify significant additional fleet deployments.
During 2021, we worked on the integration of the OneStim Acquisition into Liberty, which was exacerbated by COVID-impacted supply chain and difficult labor challenges. Integration-related costs are still with us today, impacting our financial results. However, we made improvements in these costs during January 2022, and believe these costs will lessen during 2022. We expect sequential revenue growth in the first quarter of 2022, along with improvement in our margins as integration costs start to fade away. We will also benefit from increased pricing in the first quarter of 2022, driven by a pass-through of inflationary costs and higher net service pricing. We expect modest rises in pricing during subsequent quarters in 2022, along with the opportunity for margin growth associated with lowering our cost of operations and increasing efficiencies.
Increase in Drilling Efficiency and Service Intensity of Completions
Over the past decade, E&P companies have focused on exploiting the vast resource potential available across many of North America’s unconventional resource plays through the application of horizontal drilling and completion technologies, including the use of multi-stage hydraulic fracturing, in order to increase recovery of oil and natural gas. As E&P companies have improved drilling and completion techniques to maximize return and efficiency, we believe that their “break-even oil prices” continue to decline. These improvements in well economics have kept U.S. Shale oil and gas production competitive even as oil and gas prices have declined. Liberty has been a significant partner with our customers in driving these continued improvements.
Improved drilling economics from horizontal drilling and greater rig efficiencies. Unconventional resources are increasingly being targeted through the use of horizontal drilling. According to Baker Hughes, as reported on February 11, 2022, horizontal rigs accounted for approximately 94% of all rigs drilling in the United States and Canada, up from 77% as of December 26, 2014. Over the past several years, North American E&P companies have benefited from improved drilling economics driven by technologies that reduce the number of days, and the cost, of drilling wells. North American drilling rigs have incorporated newer technologies, which allow them to drill rock more effectively and quickly, meaning each rig can drill more wells in a given period. These include improved drilling technologies and the incorporation of geosteering techniques which allow better placement of the wellbore. Drilling rigs have also incorporated new technology which allows fully-assembled rigs to automatically “walk” from one location to the next without disassembling and reassembling the rig, greatly reducing the time it takes to move from one drilling location to the next. Today the majority of E&P drilling is on multi-well pad development, allowing efficient drilling of multiple horizontal wellbores from the same pad or location. The aggregate effect of these improved techniques and technologies have reduced the average days required to drill a well, which according to Lium Research, has dropped from 28 days in 2014 to 17 days in 2021.
Increased complexity and service intensity of horizontal well completions. In addition to improved rig efficiencies discussed above, E&P companies are also improving the subsurface techniques and technologies used to exploit unconventional resources. These improvements have targeted increasing the exposure of each wellbore to the reservoir by drilling longer horizontal lateral sections of the wellbore. To complete the well, hydraulic fracturing is applied in stages along the wellbore to break-up the resource so that oil and gas can be produced. As wellbores have increased in length, the number of frac stages and/or the number of perforation clusters (frac initiation points) has also increased. Further, E&P companies have improved production from each stage by applying increasing amounts of proppant in each stage, which better connects the well to the
31
resource. The aggregate effect of increased number of stages and the increasing amount of proppant in each stage has greatly increased the total amount of proppant used in each well, according to Liberty’s FracTrends database, from six million pounds per well in 2014 to over 18.6 million pounds per well in 2021. Further efficiency gains are being sought via the “simul-frac” technique. Utilizing a larger frac fleet (1.25x to 2x the normal horsepower), operators are fracturing stages in two separate wells on a pad simultaneously as a single operation. When compared to typical zipper-frac operations, this new method allows for more lateral feet to be completed in a day. This emerging trend will allow operators to complete a pad of wells quicker, thereby shortening the time from spud to first production.
These industry trends continue to keep our customers as important suppliers to the global oil and natural gas markets, which directly benefit hydraulic fracturing companies like us that have the expertise and innovative technology to effectively service today’s more efficient oilfield drilling activity and the increasing complexity and intensity of well completions. Given the expected returns that E&P companies have reported for new well development activities due to improved rig efficiencies and increasing well completion complexity and intensity, we expect these industry trends to continue.
How We Generate Revenue
We currently generate revenue through the provision of hydraulic fracturing and wireline services and goods, including sand from our Permian Basin sand mines. These services and goods are provided under a variety of contract structures, primarily master service agreements (“MSAs”) as supplemented by statements of work, pricing agreements and specific quotes. A portion of our statements of work, under MSAs, include provisions that establish pricing arrangements for a period of up to approximately one year in length. However, the majority of those agreements provide for pricing adjustments based on market conditions. The majority of our services are priced based on prevailing market conditions and changing input costs at the time the services are provided, giving consideration to the specific requirements of the customer.
Our hydraulic fracturing and wireline services are performed in sections, which we refer to as fracturing stages. The estimated number of fracturing stages to be completed for a particular horizontal well is determined by the customer’s well completion design. We recognize revenue for each fracturing stage completed, although our revenue per completed fracturing stage varies depending on the actual volumes and types of proppants, chemicals and fluid utilized for each fracturing stage. The number of fracturing stages that we are able to complete in a period is directly related to the number and utilization of our deployed fleets and size of stages.
Costs of Conducting Our Business
The principal expenses involved in conducting our business are direct cost of personnel, services and materials used in the provision of services, general and administrative expenses, and depreciation and amortization. A large portion of the costs we incur in our business are variable based on the number of hydraulic fracturing jobs and the requirements of services provided to our customers. We manage the level of our fixed costs, except depreciation and amortization, based on several factors, including industry conditions and expected demand for our services.
How We Evaluate Our Operations
We use a variety of qualitative, operational and financial metrics to assess our performance. First and foremost of these is a qualitative assessment of customer satisfaction because ensuring we are a valuable partner to our customers is the key to achieving our quantitative business metrics. Among other measures, management considers each of the following:
•Revenue;
•Operating Income;
•EBITDA;
•Adjusted EBITDA;
•Net Income Before Taxes; and
•Earnings per Share.
Revenue
We analyze our revenue by comparing actual monthly revenue to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods to assess our performance. We also assess our revenue in relation to the number of fleets we have deployed (revenue per average active fleet) from period to period.
32
Operating Income
We analyze our operating income, which we define as revenues less direct operating expenses, depreciation and amortization and general and administrative expenses, to measure our financial performance. We believe operating income is a meaningful metric because it provides insight on profitability and true operating performance based on the historical cost basis of our assets. We also compare operating income to our internal projections for a given period and to prior periods.
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock based compensation expense, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisition, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, asset impairment charges, bad debt reserves, and non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing operating performance. See “Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information and a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to net income (loss), the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
Results of Operations
Year Ended December 31, 2021, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2020
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2021 | 2020 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 2,470,782 | $ | 965,787 | $ | 1,504,995 | ||||
| Cost of services, excluding depreciation and amortization shown separately | 2,249,926 | 857,981 | 1,391,945 | |||||||
| General and administrative | 123,406 | 84,098 | 39,308 | |||||||
| Transaction, severance and other costs | 15,138 | 21,061 | (5,923) | |||||||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortization | 262,757 | 180,084 | 82,673 | |||||||
| Loss (gain) on disposal of assets | 779 | (411) | 1,190 | |||||||
| Operating loss | (181,224) | (177,026) | (4,198) | |||||||
| Other (income) expense, net | (3,436) | 14,505 | (17,941) | |||||||
| Net loss before taxes | (177,788) | (191,531) | 13,743 | |||||||
| Income tax expense (benefit) | 9,216 | (30,857) | 40,073 | |||||||
| Net loss | (187,004) | (160,674) | (26,330) | |||||||
| Less: Net loss attributable to non-controlling interests | (7,760) | (45,091) | 37,331 | |||||||
| Net loss attributable to Liberty Oilfield Services Inc. stockholders | $ | (179,244) | $ | (115,583) | $ | (63,661) |
Revenue
Our revenue increased $1.5 billion, or 156%, to $2.5 billion for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $1.0 billion for the year ended December 31, 2020. The increase is attributable to higher fleet utilization and service prices, as well as additional fleets and service lines obtained through the OneStim Acquisition, which drove higher revenue, commensurate with the energy demand recovery.
Cost of Services
Cost of services (excluding depreciation and amortization) increased $1.4 billion, or 162%, to $2.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $0.9 billion for the year ended December 31, 2020. The higher expense was primarily related to the increase in activity, as discussed above, as well as increases in material, personnel, and repairs and maintenance costs related to global supply chain challenges, inflationary pressures and material prices. The Company also reinstated bonus programs and the 401(k) match program, both of which we temporarily suspended during 2020.
General and Administrative Expenses
General and administrative expenses increased $39.3 million, or 47%, to $123.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $84.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2020 primarily related to an increase in personnel benefits due to additional headcount commensurate with the acquisitions of OneStim and PropX. The furlough and flexible cost structure implemented in 2020 also ended prior to 2021. Additionally, during 2021, the Company reinstated bonus programs and the 401(k) match program, both of which we temporarily suspended during 2020.
33
Transaction, Severance and Other Costs
Transaction costs were $15.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $8.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. Such costs incurred primarily relate to investment banking, legal, accounting, other professional services provided and integration costs in connection with the acquisitions of OneStim and PropX.
Severance and other costs were $0 during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $12.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2020 which were related to one time severance costs and insurance and other benefits for furloughed employees. The Company did not lay-off or furlough any employees during 2021.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization
Depreciation, depletion and amortization expense increased $82.7 million, or 45.9%, to $262.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $180.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The increase in 2021 was due to the addition of active fleets and other property from the acquisitions of OneStim and PropX.
Loss (gain) on Disposal of Assets
The Company recorded a loss on disposal of assets of $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to a gain of $0.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. In an effort to consolidate operations in certain basins after the OneStim Acquisition, the Company sold three real estate properties during the fourth quarter of 2021, which collectively resulted in a small loss on sale, along with regular sales of equipment that was no longer being used. During 2020, the Company reduced the number of light duty pick-ups used in fleets based on lower levels of activity; and the Company realized gains upon sale commensurate with lease terminations.
Operating Loss
Operating loss increased $4.2 million, or 2.4%, to $181.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to operating loss of $177.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The increased operating loss is primarily due to the cost of services rising at a slightly higher rate than revenue increases through the rebound in activity levels in 2021.
Other (Income) Expense, net
The Company recorded other income, net of $3.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to other expense, net of $14.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2020. Other (income) expense, net is comprised of gain on remeasurement of liability under the TRAs and interest expense, net. During the second quarter of 2021, the Company entered into a three-year cumulative pre-tax book loss primarily due to COVID-19 related losses and recognized a valuation allowance on a portion of its deferred tax assets in accordance with ASC 740. As a result of the recognition of a valuation allowance, the Company also remeasured the liability under the TRAs resulting in a gain of $19.0 million during the year ended December 31, 2021. Interest expense, net was consistent between periods, increasing $1.1 million as a result of increased borrowings under the credit facility and lower interest income during the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to the year ended December 31, 2020.
Net Loss Before Taxes
Net loss before taxes decreased $13.7 million, or 7.2%, to $177.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared $191.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The decrease in loss is primarily due to the gain recognized upon remeasurement of the TRAs during the year ended December 31, 2021 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2020 partially offset by the increase in operating loss discussed above.
Income Tax Expense (Benefit)
Tax expense of $9.2 million was recognized for the year ended December 31, 2021, an effective rate of (5.2)%, compared to an income tax benefit of $30.9 million, at an effective rate of 16.1%, recognized for the year ended December 31, 2020. The income tax expense is primarily attributable to the full valuation allowance recorded on the net deferred tax assets as of June 30, 2021, and Canada income and provincial taxes.
Comparison of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We view EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as important indicators of performance. We define EBITDA as net income (loss) (the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure) before interest, income taxes, depreciation, depletion and amortization. We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA adjusted to eliminate the effects of items such as non-cash stock based compensation expense, new fleet or new basin start-up costs, fleet lay-down costs, costs of asset acquisitions, gain or loss on the disposal of assets, bad debt reserves and non-recurring expenses that management does not consider in assessing ongoing performance.
34
Our board of directors, management, investors, and lenders use EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to assess our financial performance because it allows them to compare our operating performance on a consistent basis across periods by removing the effects of our capital structure (such as varying levels of interest expense), asset base (such as depreciation, depletion and amortization) and other items that impact the comparability of financial results from period to period. We present EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA because we believe they provide useful information regarding the factors and trends affecting our business in addition to measures calculated under GAAP.
Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP. We believe that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures will provide useful information to investors in assessing our financial performance and results of operations. Net income is the GAAP measure most directly comparable to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. Our non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Each of these non-GAAP financial measures has important limitations as an analytical tool due to exclusion of some but not all items that affect the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. You should not consider EBITDA or Adjusted EBITDA in isolation or as substitutes for an analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Because EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may be defined differently by other companies in our industry, our definitions of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility.
The following tables present a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to our net income, which is the most directly comparable GAAP measure for the periods presented:
Year Ended December 31, 2021 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2020: EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2021 | 2020 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (187,004) | $ | (160,674) | $ | (26,330) | ||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 262,757 | 180,084 | 82,673 | |||||||
| Interest expense, net | 15,603 | 14,505 | 1,098 | |||||||
| Income tax expense (benefit) | 9,216 | (30,857) | 40,073 | |||||||
| EBITDA | $ | 100,572 | $ | 3,058 | $ | 97,514 | ||||
| Stock based compensation expense | 19,946 | 17,139 | 2,807 | |||||||
| Fleet start-up and lay-down costs | 2,751 | 12,175 | (9,424) | |||||||
| Transaction, severance and other costs | 15,138 | 21,061 | (5,923) | |||||||
| Loss (gain) on disposal of assets | 779 | (411) | 1,190 | |||||||
| Provision for credit losses | 745 | 4,877 | (4,132) | |||||||
| Gain on remeasurement of liability under tax receivable agreement | (19,039) | — | (19,039) | |||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 120,892 | $ | 57,899 | $ | 62,993 |
EBITDA was $100.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $3.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. Adjusted EBITDA was $120.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2021 compared to $57.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The increases in EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA primarily resulted from improved market conditions and increased activity levels as described above under the captions Revenue, Cost of Services, and General and Administrative Expenses for the Year Ended December 31, 2021, Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2020.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview
Historically, our primary sources of liquidity to date have been cash flows from operations, proceeds from our IPO, and borrowings under our Credit Facilities. We expect to fund operations and organic growth with cash flows from operations and available borrowings under our Credit Facilities. We monitor the availability of capital resources such as equity and debt financings that could be leverage for current or future financial obligations including those related to acquisitions, capital expenditures, working capital and other liquidity requirements. We may incur additional indebtedness or issue equity in order to meet our capital expenditure activities and liquidity requirements, as well as to fund growth opportunities that we pursue, including via acquisition, such as with the acquisitions of OneStim and PropX. Our primary uses of capital have been capital expenditures to support organic growth and funding ongoing operations, including maintenance and fleet upgrades.
35
Cash and cash equivalents decreased by $49.0 million to $20.0 million as of December 31, 2021 compared to $69.0 million as of December 31, 2020, while working capital excluding cash and current liabilities under debt and lease arrangements decreased $104.5 million.
We have $350.0 million committed under the ABL Facility (net of any outstanding letters of credit), subject to certain borrowing base limitations based on a percentage of eligible accounts receivable and inventory (with the ability to request an increase in the size of the ABL Facility by $75 million) available to finance working capital needs. As of December 31, 2021, the borrowing base was calculated to be $269.0 million, and the Company had $18.0 million outstanding in addition to a letter of credit in the amount of $1.5 million, with $249.5 million of remaining availability.
Additionally, we have $106.5 million borrowings remaining on the Term Loan Facility, which was originally $175.0 million.
On October 22, 2021, the Company entered into an amendment to the ABL Facility (the “Revolving Credit Agreement Amendment”). The Revolving Credit Agreement Amendment further amends the credit agreement and guaranty and security agreement originally entered into by the parties on September 19, 2017, which governs the Company’s ABL Facility. Along with other revisions, the Revolving Credit Agreement Amendment (i) expanded the definition of borrowing base to include certain eligible US investment grade accounts, Canadian accounts solely after a specified event, and both chemical and spare parts inventory; (ii) increased the maximum revolver amount from $250.0 million to $350.0 million (with the ability to request an increase in the size of the ABL Facility by $75 million); (iii) increased certain indebtedness baskets; (iv) provided additional flexibility for a potential future internal structuring; (v) added new lenders to the facility; and (vi) extended the maturity date to the earlier of (a) October 22, 2026 and (b) to the extent the debt under the Term Loan Facility remains outstanding 90 days prior to the final maturity of the Term Loan Facility. The ABL Facility was initially scheduled to mature on the earlier to occur of (i) September 19, 2022 and (ii) to the extent the debt under the Term Loan Facility remains outstanding, 90 days prior to the final maturity of the Term Loan Facility.
On October 22, 2021, the Company entered into a Fifth Amendment to Credit Agreement, Second Amendment to Guaranty and Security Agreement and Termination of Right of First Offer Letter. The Term Loan Credit Agreement Amendment further amends the credit agreement and guaranty and security agreement and terminates the Right of First Offer Letter originally entered into by the parties on September 19, 2017, which governs the Company’s Term Loan Facility. Along with other revisions, the Term Loan Credit Agreement Amendment (i) increased certain indebtedness baskets; (ii) provided additional flexibility for a potential future internal structuring; (iii) extended the maturity date through September 19, 2024; and (iv) terminated a right of first offer in favor of the Term Loan Facility lenders. The Term Loan Facility was initially scheduled to mature on September 19, 2022.
The Credit Facilities contain covenants that restrict our ability to take certain actions. At December 31, 2021, we were in compliance with all debt covenants.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for further details.
Cash Flows
The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 2021 | 2020 | Change | |||||||
| (in thousands) | ||||||||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 135,467 | $ | 85,425 | $ | 50,042 | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (186,494) | (100,269) | (86,225) | |||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities | 2,056 | (28,868) | 30,924 |
Analysis of Cash Flow Changes Between the Years Ended December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020
Operating Activities. Net cash provided by operating activities was $135.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to net cash provided by operating activities of $85.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The $50.0 million increase in cash from operating activities was primarily attributable to a $1.5 billion increase in revenues, offset by a $1.4 billion increase in cash operating expenses and a $46.9 million increase in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to a $63.3 million increase in cash from changes in working capital for the year ended December 31, 2020.
36
Investing Activities. Net cash used in investing activities was $186.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to $100.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The $86.2 million increase in cash used in investment activities related to a decrease in spend in 2020 starting in the second quarter and remaining throughout the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Investing increased during 2021 when the markets recovered to pre-pandemic levels and $11.9 million was used in the fourth quarter for the PropX Acquisition.
Financing Activities. Net cash provided by financing activities was $2.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to net cash used in financing activities of $28.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. The $30.9 million change in financing activities was primarily due to net borrowings of $18.0 million on the ABL Facility during the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to no borrowings on the ABL Facility for the year ended December 31, 2020. Additionally, there was a $5.8 million decrease in dividends and per unit distributions to non-controlling interest unitholders as a result of the suspension of the dividend in April 2020. Other distributions and advance payments to non-controlling interest unitholders was a net receipt of $1.4 million during the year ended December 31, 2021, compared to net payment of $6.8 million during the year ended December 31, 2020 due to a decrease in payments made under the TRAs. These decreases were offset by a $2.6 million increase in payments made for tax withholding on restricted stock unit vesting as a larger number of units vested at a higher stock price in 2021 compared to 2020.
Cash Requirements
Our material cash commitments consists primarily of obligations under long-term debt, TRAs, finance and operating leases for property and equipment, and purchase obligations as part of normal operations. Certain amounts included in our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2021 are based on our estimates and assumptions about these obligations, including pricing, volumes and duration. We have no material off balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2021, except for purchase commitments under supply agreements disclosed below.
See Note 8—Debt to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding scheduled maturities of our long-term debt. See Note 6—Leases to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding scheduled maturities of finance and operating leases.
As of December 31, 2021, we had expected cash payments for estimated interest on our long-term debt and finance lease obligations of $10.6 million payable within the next twelve months and $17.4 million payable thereafter.
As of December 31, 2021, we had purchase obligations of $24.6 million payable within the next twelve months and $1.4 million payable thereafter. See Note 15—Commitments & Contingencies to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding scheduled contractual obligations.
We currently do not expect to make any payments under the TRAs within the next twelve months, future amounts payable under the TRAs are dependent upon future events. See Note 12—Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for information regarding the TRAs.
Other Factors Affecting Liquidity
Customer receivables: In line with industry practice, we typically bill our customers for services provided in arrears dependent upon contractual terms. In weak economic environments, we may experience delays in collection from our customers. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry, we have experienced delays in customer payments and agreed to extended payment terms, however, we have not experienced any material non-payment events.
37
Tax Receivable Agreements
In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax (computed using simplifying assumptions to address the impact of state and local taxes) that the Company actually realizes (or is deemed to realize in certain circumstances) in periods after the IPO as a result, as applicable to each of the TRA Holders, of (i) certain increases in tax basis that occur as a result of the Company’s acquisition (or deemed acquisition for U.S. federal income tax purposes) of all or a portion of such TRA Holders’ Liberty LLC Units in connection with the IPO or pursuant to the exercise of the right of each Liberty Unit Holder (the “Redemption Right”), subject to certain limitations, to cause Liberty LLC to acquire all or a portion of its Liberty LLC Units for, at Liberty LLC’s election, (A) shares of our Class A Common Stock at the specific redemption ratio or (B) an equivalent amount of cash, or, upon the exercise of the Redemption Right, the right of the Company (instead of Liberty LLC) to, for administrative convenience, acquire each tendered Liberty LLC Unit directly from the redeeming Liberty Unit Holder (the “Call Right”) for, at its election, (1) one share of Class A Common Stock or (2) an equivalent amount of cash, (ii) any net operating losses available to the Company as a result of the Corporate Reorganization, and (iii) imputed interest deemed to be paid by the Company as a result of, and additional tax basis arising from, any payments the Company makes under the TRAs.
With respect to obligations the Company expects to incur under the TRAs (except in cases where the Company elects to terminate the TRAs early, the TRAs are terminated early due to certain mergers, asset sales, or other changes of control or the Company has available cash but fails to make payments when due), generally the Company may elect to defer payments due under the TRAs if the Company does not have available cash to satisfy its payment obligations under the TRAs or if its contractual obligations limit its ability to make such payments. Any such deferred payments under the TRAs generally will accrue interest. In certain cases, payments under the TRAs may be accelerated and/or significantly exceed the actual benefits, if any, the Company realizes in respect of the tax attributes subject to the TRAs. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with Accounting Standard Codification (“ASC”) Topic 450, Contingencies (“ASC Topic 450”).
If the Company experiences a change of control (as defined under the TRAs) or the TRAs otherwise terminate early, the Company’s obligations under the TRAs could have a substantial negative impact on its liquidity and could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing certain mergers, asset sales, or other forms of business combinations or changes of control. There can be no assurance that we will be able to finance our obligations under the TRAs.
Income Taxes
The Company is a corporation and is subject to U.S. federal, state and local income tax on its share of Liberty LLC’s taxable income. The Company is also subject to Canada federal and provincial income taxes on its foreign operations.
The combined effective tax rate applicable to the Company for the year ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 was (5.2)% and 16.1%, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate is significantly less than the federal statutory income tax rate of 21.0% due to the Company recording a valuation allowance on its U.S. net deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2021, due to entering into a three year cumulative pre-tax book loss position, primarily as a result of COVID-19 related losses in 2021. The Company’s effective tax rate is also less than the statutory rate because of foreign operations for 2021, and the non-controlling interest’s share of Liberty LLC’s pass-through results for federal, state and local income tax reporting, upon which no taxes are payable by the Company for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020. The Company recognized income tax expense of $9.2 million and an income tax benefit of $30.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Per the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act enacted on March 27, 2020, net operating losses (“NOL”) incurred in 2018, 2019, and 2020 may be carried back to each of the five preceding taxable years to generate a refund of previously paid income taxes. The Company has previously applied for and expects to receive a NOL carryback refund to recover $5.5 million of cash taxes paid by the Company in 2018. This amount has been reflected as a receivable in the prepaids and other current assets line item in the accompanying audited consolidated balance sheets.
Refer to Note 12— Income Taxes to the consolidated financial statements for additional information related to income tax expense.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of judgments and estimates. Our critical accounting policies are described below to provide a better understanding of how we develop our assumptions and judgments about future events and related estimates and how they can impact our financial statements. A critical accounting estimate is one that requires our most difficult, subjective or complex estimates and assessments and is fundamental to our results of operations.
38
We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable according to the current facts and circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We believe the following are the critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements, as well as the significant estimates and judgments affecting the application of these policies. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”
Business Combinations: Business combinations are accounted for using the acquisition method of accounting in accordance with the ASC Topic 805 - Business Combinations, as amended by Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2017-01, Business Combinations (Topic 805), Clarifying the Definition of a Business. The purchase price is allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values. Fair value of the acquired assets and liabilities is measured in accordance with the guidance of ASC 850 - Fair Value Measurements, using discounted cash flows and other applicable valuation techniques. Any acquisitions related costs incurred by the Company are expensed as incurred. Any excess purchase price over the fair value of the net identifiable assets acquired is recorded as goodwill if the definition of a business is met. Operating results of an acquired business are included in our results of operations from the date of acquisition.
Revenue Recognition: Revenue from hydraulic fracturing services is recognized as specific services are provided in accordance with contractual arrangements. If our assessment of performance under a particular contract changes, our revenue and / or costs under that contract may change. In connection with ASC Topic 842 - Leases (“Topic 842”), the Company determined that certain of its service revenue contracts contain a lease component. The Company elected to adopt a practical expedient available to lessors, which allows the Company to combine the lease and service component for certain of the Company’s service contracts when the service component is the predominant component and continues to account for the combined component under ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers.
Accounts Receivable: On January 1, 2020, the Company adopted ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (“ASU 2016-13”), which changes the impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments. Specifically, this new guidance requires using a forward looking, expected loss model for trade and other receivables, held-to-maturity debt securities, loans, and other instruments. Under ASU 2016-13, a company recognizes as an allowance, the estimate of lifetime expected credit losses, which is expected to result in more timely recognition of such losses.
The Company applies historic loss factors to its receivable portfolio segments that were not expected to be further impacted by current economic developments, and an additional economic conditions factor to portfolio segments anticipated to experience greater losses in the current economic environment. The Company continuously evaluates customers based on risk characteristics, such as historical losses and current economic conditions. Due to the cyclical nature of the oil and gas industry, the Company often evaluates its customers’ estimated losses on a case-by-case basis. It is reasonably possible that our estimates of the allowance for doubtful accounts will change and that losses ultimately incurred could differ materially from the amounts estimated in determining the allowance.
Inventory: Inventory consists of raw materials used in the hydraulic fracturing process, such as proppants, chemicals and field service equipment maintenance parts, and is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value, determined using the weighted average cost method. Net realizable value is determined based on our estimates of selling prices in the ordinary course of business, less reasonably predictable cost of completion, disposal, and transportation, each of which require us to apply judgment.
Property and Equipment: We calculate depreciation and amortization on our assets based on the estimated useful lives and estimated salvage values that we believe are reasonable. The estimated useful lives and salvage values are subject to key assumptions such as maintenance, utilization and job variation. These estimates may change due to a number of factors such as changes in operating conditions or advances in technology.
We incur maintenance costs on our major equipment. The determination of whether an expenditure should be capitalized or expensed requires management judgment in the application of how the costs benefit future periods, relative to our capitalization policy. Costs that either establish or increase the efficiency, productivity, functionality or life of a fixed asset are capitalized and depreciated over the remaining useful life of the asset.
Impairment of long-lived and other intangible assets: Long-lived assets, such as property and equipment, right-of-use lease assets and intangible assets, are evaluated for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable. Recoverability is assessed using undiscounted future net cash flows of assets grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows independent of the cash flows of other groups of assets. When alternative courses of action to recover the carrying amount of the asset group are under consideration, estimates of future undiscounted cash flows take into account possible outcomes and probabilities of their occurrence, which require us to apply judgment. If the carrying amount of the asset is not recoverable based on its estimated undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount by which its carrying amount
39
exceeds its estimated fair value. The inputs used to determine such fair value are primarily based upon internally developed cash flow models. Our cash flow models are based on a number of estimates regarding future operations that may be subject to significant variability, are sensitive to changes in market conditions, and are reasonably likely to change in the future.
During the year ended December 31, 2020, as a result of negative market indicators including the COVID-19 pandemic, the increased supply of low-priced oil, and customer cancellations, the Company concluded these triggering events could indicate possible impairment of property and equipment. The Company performed a quantitative and qualitative impairment analysis and determined that no impairment had occurred as of March 31, 2020. As of December 31, 2020, the Company concluded that no additional triggering events occurred and the conclusion reached at March 31, 2020 is still appropriate. Such analysis required management to make estimates and assumptions based on historical data and consideration of future market conditions. Given the uncertainty inherent in any projection, heightened by the possibility of unforeseen additional effects of COVID-19, actual results may differ from the estimates and assumptions used, or conditions may change, which could result in impairment charges in the future.
No impairment was recognized during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019.
Leases: The Company adopted Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2016-02, Leases ASC Topic 842 effective January 1, 2019. We elected the modified retrospective transition method under ASC Topic 842 and as such information prior to January 1, 2019 has not been restated and continues to be reported under the accounting standards in effect for the period (ASC Topic 840-Leases). We carried forward the historical lease classifications and assessment of initial direct costs, account for lease and non-lease components as a single component, and exclude leases with an initial term of less than 12 months in the lease assets and liabilities. For leases entered into after January 1, 2019, the Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception and evaluates identified leases for operating or finance lease treatment. Operating or finance lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. We use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. Lease terms may include options to renew; however, we typically cannot determine our intent to renew a lease with reasonable certainty at inception.
Tax Receivable Agreements: In connection with the IPO, on January 17, 2018, the Company entered into two TRAs with the TRA Holders. The TRAs generally provide for the payment by the Company of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, and local income tax and franchise tax that the Company actually realizes in periods after the IPO as a result of certain tax attributes applicable to each TRA Holder. The Company accounts for amounts payable under the TRAs in accordance with ASC Topic 450, Contingencies.
Share Repurchases: The Company accounts for the purchase price of repurchased Class A Common Stock in excess of par value ($0.01 per share of Class A Common Stock) as a reduction of additional paid-in capital, and will continue to do so until additional paid-in capital is reduced to zero. Thereafter, any excess purchase price will be recorded as a reduction to retained earnings.
Foreign Currency Translation: Effective January 1, 2021, the Company commenced operations in Canada and therefore added a critical accounting policy for foreign currency translation. See Note 2―Significant Accounting Policies in the accompanying audited consolidated financial statements included herein and incorporated by reference into this offering memorandum.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
See Note 2—Significant Accounting Policies—Recently Issued Accounting Standards to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” for a discussion of recent accounting pronouncements.
40