The following Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations ("MD&A") is intended to facilitate an understanding of the results of operations and financial condition of ABM. This MD&A is provided as a supplement to, and should be read in conjunction with, our Financial Statements and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year endedOctober 31, 2020 , which has been filed with theSEC . This MD&A contains forward-looking statements about our business, operations, and industry that involve risks and uncertainties, such as statements regarding our plans, objectives, expectations, and intentions. Our future results and financial condition may be materially different from those we currently anticipate. See "Forward-Looking Statements" for more information. Throughout the MD&A, amounts and percentages may not recalculate due to rounding. Unless otherwise indicated, all information in the MD&A and references to years are based on our fiscal years, which end onOctober 31 . Business Overview
ABM is a leading provider of integrated facility solutions, customized by industry, with a mission to make a difference, every person, every day.
COVID-19 Pandemic COVID-19 has resulted in a worldwide health Pandemic. To date, COVID-19 has surfaced in regions all around the world and resulted in business slowdowns and shutdowns, as well as global travel restrictions. We, along with many of our clients, have been impacted by recommendations and/or mandates from federal, state, and local authorities to practice social distancing, to refrain from gathering in groups, and, in some areas, to refrain from non-essential movements outside of homes. The Pandemic has also created unanticipated circumstances and uncertainty, disruption, and significant volatility in the broader economy. These factors have led to lower demand for some of our services in certain end-markets, particularly in our Aviation segment. Refer to "Consolidated Results of Operations" and "Results of Operations by Segment" for additional information related to the impact of the Pandemic on our financial results. Given the unprecedented and uncertain nature and potential duration of this situation, we cannot reasonably estimate the full extent of the impact the Pandemic will have on our financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows. The ultimate extent of the effects of the Pandemic on our company is highly uncertain and will depend on future developments, and we may continue to experience adverse effects on our business, consolidated results of operations, financial position, and cash flows resulting from a recessionary economic environment that may persist. Our priority has been and continues to be the health, safety, and support of our employees, our clients, and the communities that we serve. We have also taken actions to strengthen our liquidity, cash flows, and financial position to help mitigate potential future impacts on our operations and financial performance. These priorities and measures include, but are not limited to, the following: Health and Safety of our Employees and Clients As the Pandemic has developed, we have taken steps to support our employees and clients based on recommendations from various global experts, including theWorld Health Organization , theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention , theOccupational Safety and Health Administration , and theU.K. National Health Service . To help protect our employees and our clients, face masks and other personal protective equipment ("PPE") are being used by our employees. We have also encouraged our employees to practice social distancing and wash hands frequently. Additionally, we transitioned many office-based employees to a remote work environment, suspended non-essential travel, and adopted technologies to allow employees to effectively perform their functions remotely. 24 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Client Focus Over the past few years, we have focused on consolidating purchasing activities to leverage our scale and identify preferred suppliers. While we have seen a reduction in the availability of supplies and an increase in costs, our procurement efforts have helped create a positive supply chain for our company and clients during the Pandemic. We will continue to monitor our supply chain for potential impacts as future developments unfold. The Pandemic continues to create a dynamic client environment, and we are working diligently to ensure our clients' changing staffing and service needs are met. We developed new cleaning initiatives in accordance with various protocols issued by global experts, including deep cleaning services, special project cleaning services, and other work orders. InApril 2020 , we announced our EnhancedCleanTM Program ("EnhancedClean"), an innovative solution that helps provide clients with healthy spaces. We designed EnhancedClean under the guidance of experts on infectious diseases and industrial hygiene to help provide our clients with processes that use hospital-grade disinfectants, specialized equipment, and innovative solutions and technology. These solutions include: hygiene and safety protocols, utilization of disinfecting procedures and products for high-touch surfaces, employment of PPE, and communication and training protocols. Management of Direct Labor As we adapt to the changing demand environment resulting from the Pandemic, we continue to actively manage direct labor and related personnel costs, including furloughs or reduced hours for certain frontline employees in markets significantly impacted by business slowdowns and shutdowns. Liquidity, Cash Flows, and Financial Position As ofJuly 31, 2021 , we had$505.4 million of cash and cash equivalents, and we had net cash provided by operating activities of$258.8 million during the nine months endedJuly 31, 2021 . We have taken and continue to take actions to help preserve cash, increase liquidity, and strengthen our financial position, including: •Amending our Credit Facility onJune 28, 2021 , to increase our borrowing capacity and further enhance our financial flexibility (refer to "Liquidity and Capital Resources" for more information); •Focusing on collection of client receivables and monitoring the adequacy of our reserves; •Extending vendor payment terms where possible; •Utilizing certain governmental relief efforts (as further described below); and •Suspending share repurchases under our share repurchase program. In response to the Pandemic,Congress enacted the CARES Act onMarch 27, 2020 . The CARES Act provides various tax provisions, including payroll tax provisions, which we have evaluated for applicability. ThroughDecember 31, 2020 , we deferred approximately$132 million of payroll tax, which the CARES Act requires to be remitted in equal parts byDecember 31, 2021 , andDecember 31, 2022 . The CARES Act did not have a material impact on our income tax provision. Additionally, we received grants under theUnited Kingdom's job retention scheme to reimburse us for a portion of certain furloughed employees' salaries. As a result of the actions taken above, we were able to strengthen our cash flow during the third quarter. As ofJuly 31, 2021 , this resulted in a borrowing capacity of$1.1 billion , reflecting covenant restrictions, in addition to the cash and cash equivalents amount noted above. As we look to navigate the post-pandemic period and build on our 2020 Vision, we plan to make further investments in our employees, the client experience, and new technologies, which we expect will drive long-term profitable growth through an industry-based go-to-market approach. These investments should provide our employees with opportunities for career growth and development, our clients with client-facing technology, and the Company with industry-leading data, analytics, processes, and tools. 25 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Insurance
We review our self-insurance liabilities on a regular basis and adjust our accruals accordingly. Actual claims activity or development may vary from our assumptions and estimates, which may result in material losses or gains. As we obtain additional information that affects the assumptions and estimates used in our reserve liability calculations, we adjust our self-insurance rates and reserves for future periods and, if appropriate, adjust our reserves for claims incurred in prior accounting periods. During the third quarter of 2021, we performed a comprehensive actuarial review of the majority of our casualty insurance programs to evaluate changes made to claims reserves and claims payment activity for the period ofNovember 1, 2020 , throughApril 30, 2021 . The Actuarial Review was comprehensive in nature and was based on loss development patterns, trend assumptions, and underlying expected loss costs during the period analyzed. The Actuarial Review and other actuarial updates performed earlier in the year demonstrated that the changes we have made to our risk management programs continue to positively impact the frequency and severity of claims. The claims management strategies and programs that we have implemented have resulted in improvements. Furthermore, we continue to adjust our reserves consistent with known fact patterns. Based on the results of the Actuarial Review, we decreased our total reserves related to prior years for known claims as well as our estimate of the loss amounts associated with IBNR claims by$29.7 million during the nine months endedJuly 31, 2021 . During the nine months endedJuly 31, 2020 , we decreased our total reserves related to prior year claims by$15.1 million . We will continue to assess ongoing developments, which may result in further adjustments to reserves. During the fourth quarter of 2021, we expect to perform an update to our Actuarial Review for our significant insurance programs that will use the most recent claims data and consider changes in claims development and claims payment activity for the periods analyzed. This review will be abbreviated in nature based on actual versus expected development during the periods analyzed, will rely on the key assumptions used in the Actuarial Review (most notably loss development patterns, trend assumptions, and underlying expected loss costs), and will include claims related to certain previously acquired businesses. This review may lead to further adjustments to our insurance reserves. Segment Reporting Our current reportable segments consist of B&I, T &M, Education, Aviation, and Technical Solutions, as further described below. 26 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- REPORTABLE SEGMENTS AND
DESCRIPTIONS
B&I, our largest reportable
segment, encompasses janitorial, facilities
engineering, and parking
services for commercial real estate properties,
[[Image Removed: abm-20210731_g4.jpg]] sports and entertainment venues, and traditional hospitals and non-acute
healthcare facilities. B&I
also provides vehicle maintenance and other
services to rental car
providers.
[[Image Removed: abm-20210731_g5.jpg]] T&M provides janitorial, facilities engineering, and parking services to
industrial and high-tech
manufacturing facilities.
Education delivers
janitorial, custodial, landscaping and grounds,
[[Image Removed: abm-20210731_g6.jpg]] facilities engineering, and parking services for public school
districts, private schools,
colleges, and universities.
Aviation supports airlines
and airports with services ranging from
[[Image Removed: abm-20210731_g7.jpg]] parking and janitorial to passenger assistance, catering logistics, air
cabin maintenance, and
transportation.
Technical Solutions
specializes in mechanical and electrical services.
[[Image Removed: abm-20210731_g8.jpg]] These services can also be leveraged for cross-selling across all of our
industry groups, both
domestically and internationally.
27 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Key Financial Highlights •Revenues increased by$149.0 million , or 10.7%, during the three months endedJuly 31, 2021 , as compared to the three months endedJuly 31, 2020 , primarily due to the recovery in volume of our business as Pandemic disruptions eased (primarily in Aviation, B&I, and Technical Solutions), the expansion of certain key clients within B&I, and new business within Aviation and Technical Solutions. •We had an operating loss of$9.4 million during the three months endedJuly 31, 2021 , as compared to an operating profit of$93.6 million during the three months endedJuly 31, 2020 . This decrease was primarily attributed to the accrual of a legal settlement for the Bucio case, the absence of management and staff furloughs that occurred in the prior year in response to the Pandemic, and increased expenditures for certain technology projects and other enterprise initiatives. This decrease was partially offset by a reduction in bad debt expense (primarily associated with higher reserves established for client receivables in the prior year due to increasing credit risk resulting from the Pandemic) and favorable insurance claims reserve adjustments related to prior year claims based on recently completed actuarial assessments. •Our effective tax rate on income from continuing operations was 9.7% for the three months endedJuly 31, 2021 , as compared to 29.9% for the three months endedJuly 31, 2020 . •Net cash provided by operating activities was$258.8 million during the nine months endedJuly 31, 2021 . •Dividends of$38.2 million were paid to shareholders and dividends totaling$0.570 per common share were declared during the nine months endedJuly 31, 2021 . •OnJune 28, 2021 , we amended our Credit Facility, extending the maturity date fromSeptember 1, 2022 toJune 28, 2026 and increasing the capacity of the revolving credit facility from$800.0 million to$1.3 billion and the then-remaining term loan outstanding from$620.0 million to$650.0 million . AtJuly 31, 2021 , total outstanding borrowings under our Amended Credit Facility were$660.0 million . AtJuly 31, 2021 , we had up to$1.1 billion of borrowing capacity, reflecting covenant restrictions. 28
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© Edgar Online, source