United Rentals (URI) 10-Q2020 Q3 Quarterly report

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

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FORM 10-Q

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Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

This quarterly report on Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “believe,” “expect,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “seek,” “on-track,” “plan,” “project,” “forecast,” “intend” or “anticipate,” or the negative thereof or comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy or outlook. You are cautioned that our business and operations are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and, consequently, our actual results may differ materially from those projected.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected include, but are not limited to, the following:

United Rentals, Inc. (“Holdings,” “URI” or the “Company”) is principally a holding company and conducts its operations primarily through its wholly owned subsidiary, United Rentals (North America), Inc. (“URNA”), and subsidiaries of URNA. Holdings’ primary asset is its sole ownership of all issued and outstanding shares of common stock of URNA. URNA’s various credit agreements and debt instruments place restrictions on its ability to transfer funds to its shareholder.

We rent equipment to a diverse customer base that includes construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners and government entities in the United States, Canada and Europe. In July 2018, we completed the acquisition of BakerCorp International Holdings, Inc. (“BakerCorp”), which allowed for our entry into select European markets. In addition to renting equipment, we sell new and used rental equipment, as well as related contractor supplies, parts and service.

We have prepared the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements in accordance with the accounting policies described in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 (the “2019 Form 10-K”) and the interim reporting requirements of Form 10-Q. Accordingly, certain information and note disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) have been condensed or omitted. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the 2019 Form 10-K.

In our opinion, all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, which are necessary for a fair presentation of financial condition, operating results and cash flows for the interim periods presented have been made. Interim results of operations are not necessarily indicative of the results of the full year.

COVID-19

The novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) was first identified in people in late 2019. COVID-19 spread rapidly throughout the world and, in March 2020, the World Health Organization characterized COVID-19 as a pandemic. COVID-19 is a pandemic of respiratory disease spreading from person-to-person that poses a serious public health risk. It has significantly disrupted supply chains and businesses around the world. The extent and duration of the COVID-19 impact, on the operations and financial position of United Rentals and on the global economy, is uncertain. While visibility into future economic conditions remains limited, based on increased insight into near-term indicators, we reintroduced full-year 2020 guidance in July 2020, after having withdrawn it in April 2020. In October 2020, after reporting third quarter results, we raised our full-year 2020 guidance. The health and safety of our employees and customers remains our top priority, and we have also engaged in extensive contingency planning to manage the business impact of the pandemic.

Prior to mid-March 2020, our results were largely in line with expectations. We began to experience a decline in revenues in March 2020, when rental volume declined in response to shelter-in-place orders and other market restrictions. COVID-19 is discussed in more detail throughout “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

New Accounting Pronouncements

Guidance Adopted in 2020

2. Revenue Recognition

Revenue Recognition Accounting Standards

We recognize revenue in accordance with two different accounting standards: 1) Topic 606 (which addresses revenue from contracts with customers) and 2) Topic 842 (which addresses lease revenue). Under Topic 606, revenue from contracts with customers is measured based on the consideration specified in the contract with the customer, and excludes any sales incentives and amounts collected on behalf of third parties. A performance obligation is a promise in a contract to transfer a distinct good or service to a customer, and is the unit of account under Topic 606. As reflected below, most of our revenue is accounted for under Topic 842. Our contracts with customers generally do not include multiple performance obligations. We recognize revenue when we satisfy a performance obligation by transferring control over a product or service to a customer. The amount of revenue recognized reflects the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for such products or services.

Nature of goods and services

The accounting for the types of revenue that are accounted for under Topic 842 is discussed below.

Owned equipment rentals represent our most significant revenue type (they accounted for 72 percent of total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2020) and are governed by our standard rental contract. We account for such rentals as operating leases. The lease terms are included in our contracts, and the determination of whether our contracts contain leases generally does not require significant assumptions or judgments. Our lease revenues do not include material amounts of variable payments.

We recognize revenues from renting equipment on a straight-line basis. Our rental contract periods are hourly, daily, weekly or monthly. By way of example, if a customer were to rent a piece of equipment and the daily, weekly and monthly rental rates for that particular piece were (in actual dollars) $100, $300 and $900, respectively, we would recognize revenue of $32.14 per day. The daily rate for recognition purposes is calculated by dividing the monthly rate of $900 by the monthly term of 28 days. This daily rate assumes that the equipment will be on rent for the full 28 days, as we are unsure of when the customer will return the equipment and therefore unsure of which rental contract period will apply.

As part of this straight-line methodology, when the equipment is returned, we recognize as incremental revenue the excess, if any, between the amount the customer is contractually required to pay, which is based on the rental contract period applicable to the actual number of days the equipment was out on rent, over the cumulative amount of revenue recognized to date. In any given accounting period, we will have customers return equipment and be contractually required to pay us more than the cumulative amount of revenue recognized to date under the straight-line methodology. For instance, continuing the above example, if the customer rented the above piece of equipment on December 29 and returned it at the close of business on January 1, we would recognize incremental revenue on January 1 of $171.44 (in actual dollars, representing the difference between the amount the customer is contractually required to pay, or $300 at the weekly rate, and the cumulative amount recognized to date on a straight-line basis, or $128.56, which represents four days at $32.14 per day).

We record amounts billed to customers in excess of recognizable revenue as deferred revenue on our balance sheet. We had deferred revenue (associated with both Topic 842 and Topic 606) of $57 and $55 as of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively.

As noted above, we are unsure of when the customer will return rented equipment. As such, we do not know how much the customer will owe us upon return of the equipment and cannot provide a maturity analysis of future lease payments. Our equipment is generally rented for short periods of time. Lessees do not provide residual value guarantees on rented equipment.

We expect to derive significant future benefits from our equipment following the end of the rental term. Our rentals are generally short-term in nature, and our equipment is typically rented for the majority of the time that we own it. We additionally recognize revenue from sales of rental equipment when we dispose of the equipment.

The accounting for the types of revenue that are accounted for under Topic 606 is discussed below. Substantially all of our revenues under Topic 606 are recognized at a point-in-time rather than over time.

Receivables and contract assets and liabilities

As reflected above, most of our equipment rental revenue is accounted for under Topic 842 (such revenue represented 78 percent of our total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2020). The customers that are responsible for the remaining revenue that is accounted for under Topic 606 are generally the same customers that rent our equipment. We manage credit risk associated with our accounts receivables at the customer level. Because the same customers generate the revenues that are accounted for under both Topic 606 and Topic 842, the discussions below on credit risk and our allowances for doubtful accounts address receivables arising from revenues from both Topic 606 and Topic 842.

Concentration of credit risk with respect to our receivables is limited because a large number of geographically diverse customers makes up our customer base. Our largest customer accounted for less than 1 percent of total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2020, and for each of the last three full years. Our customer with the largest receivable balance represented approximately 1 percent of total receivables at September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019. We manage credit risk through credit approvals, credit limits and other monitoring procedures.

Our allowances for doubtful accounts reflect our estimate of the amount of our receivables that we will be unable to collect based on historical write-off experience and, as applicable, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect collectibility. Our estimate could require change based on changing circumstances, including changes in the economy or in the particular circumstances of individual customers. Accordingly, we may be required to increase or decrease our allowances. Trade receivables that have contractual maturities of one year or less are written-off when they are determined to be uncollectible based on the criteria necessary to qualify as a deduction for federal tax purposes. Write-offs of such receivables require management approval based on specified dollar thresholds. See the table below for a rollforward of our allowance for doubtful accounts.

In the first quarter of 2020, we adopted accounting guidance that requires companies to present certain financial assets net of the amount expected to be collected. This guidance requires the measurement of expected credit losses to be based on relevant information from past events, including historical experiences, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect collectibility. Our allowance for doubtful accounts as of September 30, 2020 included an adjustment for the estimated impact of COVID-19 on future collectibility that was not material to our financial statements. Trade receivables are the only material financial asset we have that is impacted by this guidance, which does not apply to receivables arising from operating lease revenues. Substantially all of our non-lease trade receivables are due in one year or less. As discussed above, most of our equipment rental revenue is accounted for as lease revenue (such revenue represented 78 percent of our total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2020, and these revenues account for corresponding portions of the $1.324 billion of net accounts receivable and the associated allowance for doubtful accounts of $114 reported on our condensed consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2020). During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, we recognized total bad debt expenses for our non-lease trade receivables, within selling, general and administrative expenses on our condensed consolidated statement of income, of $2 and $8, respectively, associated with our allowance for doubtful accounts. Adoption of this guidance did not materially impact 1) net accounts receivable or the associated allowance for doubtful accounts as reported on our condensed consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2020 or 2) total bad debt expenses recognized associated with our allowance for doubtful accounts for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.

As discussed above, most of our equipment rental revenue is accounted for under Topic 842. The customers that are responsible for the remaining revenue that is accounted for under Topic 606 are generally the same customers that rent our equipment. We manage credit risk associated with our accounts receivables at the customer level. The rollforward of our allowance for doubtful accounts (in total, and associated with revenues arising from both Topic 606 and Topic 842) is shown below.

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(1)    Reflects bad debt expenses recognized within selling, general and administrative expenses (associated with Topic 606 revenues).

(2)    Primarily reflects doubtful accounts associated with lease revenues that were recognized as a reduction to equipment rentals revenue (primarily associated with Topic 842 revenues).

(3)    Represents write-offs of accounts, net of immaterial recoveries.

We do 0t have material contract assets, or impairment losses associated therewith, or material contract liabilities, associated with contracts with customers. Our contracts with customers do not generally result in material amounts billed to customers in excess of recognizable revenue. We did 0t recognize material revenue during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 or 2019 that was included in the contract liability balance as of the beginning of such periods.

Performance obligations

Most of our Topic 606 revenue is recognized at a point-in-time, rather than over time. Accordingly, in any particular period, we do not generally recognize a significant amount of revenue from performance obligations satisfied (or partially satisfied) in previous periods, and the amounts of such revenue recognized during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019 were 0t material. We also do not expect to recognize material revenue in the future related to performance obligations that were unsatisfied (or partially unsatisfied) as of September 30, 2020.

Payment terms

Our Topic 606 revenues do not include material amounts of variable consideration. Our payment terms vary by the type and location of our customer and the products or services offered. The time between invoicing and when payment is due is not significant. Our contracts do not generally include a significant financing component. For certain products or services and customer types, we require payment before the products or services are delivered to the customer. Our contracts with customers do not generally result in significant obligations associated with returns, refunds or warranties. See above for a discussion of how we manage credit risk.

Revenue is recognized net of taxes collected from customers, which are subsequently remitted to governmental authorities.

Contract costs

We do not recognize any assets associated with the incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer (for example, a sales commission) that we expect to recover. Most of our revenue is recognized at a point-in-time or over a period of one year or less, and we use the practical expedient that allows us to recognize the incremental costs of obtaining a contract as an expense when incurred if the amortization period of the asset that we otherwise would have recognized is one year or less.

Contract estimates and judgments

Our revenues accounted for under Topic 606 generally do not require significant estimates or judgments, primarily for the following reasons:

Our revenues accounted for under Topic 842 also generally do not require significant estimates or judgments. We monitor and review our estimated standalone selling prices on a regular basis.

3. Segment Information

Our reportable segments are i) general rentals and ii) trench, power and fluid solutions. Our regions discussed below, which are our operating segments, are aggregated into our reportable segments. We believe that the regions that are aggregated into our reportable segments have similar economic characteristics, as each region is capital intensive, offers similar products to similar customers, uses similar methods to distribute its products, and is subject to similar competitive risks. The aggregation of our regions also reflects the management structure that we use for making operating decisions and assessing performance. We evaluate segment performance primarily based on segment equipment rentals gross profit.

The general rentals segment includes the rental of i) general construction and industrial equipment, such as backhoes, skid-steer loaders, forklifts, earthmoving equipment and material handling equipment, ii) aerial work platforms, such as boom lifts and scissor lifts and iii) general tools and light equipment, such as pressure washers, water pumps and power tools. The general rentals segment reflects the aggregation of 11 geographic regions—Carolinas, Gulf South, Industrial (which serves the geographic Gulf region and has a strong industrial presence), Mid-Atlantic, Mid Central, Midwest, Northeast, Pacific West, South, Southeast and Western Canada—and operates throughout the United States and Canada.

The trench, power and fluid solutions segment includes the rental of specialty construction products such as i) trench safety equipment, such as trench shields, aluminum hydraulic shoring systems, slide rails, crossing plates, construction lasers and line testing equipment for underground work, ii) power and HVAC equipment, such as portable diesel generators, electrical distribution equipment, and temperature control equipment and iii) fluid solutions equipment primarily used for fluid containment, transfer and treatment. The trench, power and fluid solutions segment is comprised of the following regions, each of which primarily rents the corresponding equipment type described above: i) the Trench Safety region, ii) the Power and HVAC region, iii) the Fluid Solutions region and iv) the Fluid Solutions Europe region. The trench, power and fluid solutions segment’s customers include construction companies involved in infrastructure projects, municipalities and industrial companies. This segment operates throughout the United States and in Canada and Europe.

 

 Equipment rentals gross profit is the primary measure management reviews to make operating decisions and assess segment performance. The following is a reconciliation of equipment rentals gross profit to income before provision for income taxes:

Restructuring charges primarily include severance costs associated with headcount reductions, as well as branch closure charges. We incur severance costs and branch closure charges in the ordinary course of our business. We only include such costs that are part of a restructuring program as restructuring charges. Since the first such program was initiated in 2008, we have completed 5 restructuring programs and have incurred total restructuring charges of $344.

Our closed restructuring programs were initiated either in recognition of a challenging economic environment or following the completion of certain significant acquisitions. As of September 30, 2020, the total liability associated with the closed restructuring programs was $15.

In the fourth quarter of 2019, we initiated a restructuring program associated with the consolidation of certain common functions, the relocation of our shared-service facilities and certain other cost reduction measures. We expect to complete the restructuring program in the first half of 2021. The total costs expected to be incurred in connection with the program are not currently estimable, as we are still identifying the actions that will be undertaken. As of September 30, 2020, we have not recognized material costs under this program, and the liability balance associated with the program is not material.

In addition to the restructuring charges discussed above, during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, we recorded asset impairment charges of $10 and $36, respectively, primarily in our general rentals segment. The asset impairment charges, which were not related to COVID-19, are primarily reflected in depreciation of rental equipment in our condensed consolidated statements of income and principally relate to the discontinuation of certain equipment programs. There were 0 material asset impairment charges during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019.

As of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the amounts of our assets and liabilities that were accounted for at fair value were immaterial.

Fair value measurements are categorized in one of the following three levels based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety:

Level 1- Inputs to the valuation methodology are unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2- Observable inputs other than quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities include:

If the asset or liability has a specified (contractual) term, the Level 2 input must be observable for substantially the full term of the asset or liability.

Level 3- Inputs to the valuation methodology are unobservable (i.e., supported by little or no market activity) and significant to the fair value measure.

 

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

6. Debt

Debt, net of unamortized original issue discounts or premiums, and unamortized debt issuance costs, consists of the following:

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As of September 30, 2020, we were in compliance with the covenants and other provisions of the ABL, accounts receivable securitization and term loan facilities and the senior notes. Any failure to be in compliance with any material provision or covenant of these agreements could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity and operations.

The only financial covenant that currently exists under the ABL facility is the fixed charge coverage ratio. Subject to certain limited exceptions specified in the ABL facility, the fixed charge coverage ratio covenant under the ABL facility will only apply in the future if specified availability under the ABL facility falls below 10 percent of the maximum revolver amount under the ABL facility. When certain conditions are met, cash and cash equivalents and borrowing base collateral in excess of the ABL facility size may be included when calculating specified availability under the ABL facility. As of September 30, 2020, specified availability under the ABL facility exceeded the required threshold and, as a result, this financial covenant was inapplicable. Under our accounts receivable securitization facility, we are required, among other things, to maintain certain financial tests relating to: (i) the default ratio, (ii) the delinquency ratio, (iii) the dilution ratio and (iv) days sales outstanding. The accounts receivable securitization facility also requires us to comply with the fixed charge coverage ratio under the ABL facility, to the extent the ratio is applicable under the ABL facility.

7. Leases

As discussed in note 2 to the condensed consolidated financial statements, most of our equipment rental revenue is accounted for as lease revenue under Topic 842 (such lease revenue represented 78 percent of our total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2020). See note 2 to the condensed consolidated financial statements for a discussion of our revenue accounting (such discussion includes lessor disclosures required under Topic 842).

We determine if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Our material lease contracts are generally for real estate or vehicles, and the determination of whether such contracts contain leases generally does not require significant estimates or judgments. We lease real estate and equipment under operating leases. We lease a significant portion of our branch locations, and also lease other premises used for purposes such as district and regional offices and service centers. Our finance lease obligations consist primarily of rental equipment (primarily vehicles) and building leases.

Operating leases result in the recognition of right-of-use ("ROU") assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet. ROU assets represent our right to use the leased asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized at commencement date based on the present value of lease

Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are not recorded on the balance sheet. Lease expense on such leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The primary leases we enter into with initial terms of 12 months or less are for equipment that we rent from vendors and then rent to our customers. We generate sublease revenue from such leases that we refer to as "re-rent revenue" as discussed in note 2 to the condensed consolidated financial statements. Apart from this re-rent revenue, we do not generate material sublease income.

We have lease agreements with lease and non-lease components, and, for our real estate operating leases, we use the practical expedient that allows us to account for the lease and non-lease components as a single lease component. Our lease agreements do not contain any material residual value guarantees or material restrictive covenants.

The tables below present financial information associated with our leases as of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019, and for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019.