Good day, everyone, and welcome to today’s Corpay Third Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. Later, you will have the opportunity to ask questions during the question-and-answer session. Please note this call is being recorded, and I will be standing by if you need any assistance. It is now my pleasure to turn today's call over to Head of Investor Relations, Jim Eglseder. Please go ahead.

Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us today for our third quarter 2024 earnings call. With me today are Ron Clarke, our Chairman and CEO; and Tom Panther, our CFO. Following their prepared comments, the operator will announce the queue will open for the Q&A session. Today’s documents, including our earnings release and supplement, can be found under the Investor Relations section of our website at corpay.com. Now, throughout this call, we will be covering several non-GAAP financial metrics, including revenues, net income, and net income per diluted share, all on an adjusted basis. We will also be covering organic revenue growth. This metric neutralizes the impact of year-over-year changes in FX rates, fuel prices, and fuel spreads. It also includes pro forma results for acquisitions and divestitures or scope changes closed during the two years being compared. None of these measures are calculated in accordance with GAAP and may be calculated differently than other companies. Reconciliations of the historical non-GAAP to the most directly comparable GAAP information can be found in today’s press release and on our website. It’s important to understand that part of our discussion today may include forward-looking statements. These statements reflect the best information we have as of today. All statements about our outlook, new products, and expectations regarding business development and future acquisitions are based on that information. They are not guarantees of future performance, and you should not put undue reliance upon them. We undertake no obligation to update any of these statements. These expected results are subject to numerous uncertainties and risks, which could cause actual results to differ materially from what we expect. Some of those risks are mentioned in today’s press release on Form 8-K and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K. These documents are available on our website and at sec.gov. Now, I’ll turn the call over to Ron Clarke, our Chairman and CEO. Ron?

Okay, Jim. Thanks. Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to our Q3 2024 earnings call. Upfront here, I'll plan to cover three subjects. First, I will provide my take on Q3 results, share our Q4 guidance along with a 2025 preview. Second, I'll discuss our U.S.A. opportunity and our recent sales reorganization. And then lastly, I'll provide an update on our M&A activities. Let me begin with our Q3 results, starting with the fact that we surpassed $1 billion in quarterly revenue for the very first time. Quite a big milestone for us. We reported revenue of $1.29 billion, up 7%, excluding Russia, and cash EPS of $5, up 14%, excluding Russia. The results are really in line with our expectations, both revenue and earnings finishing on the high side of our guidance range. EBITDA margins in Q3 were 54.2%, that’s up about 100 basis points sequentially. Our trends in Q3 were quite good. Same-store sales remained essentially flat, consistent with Q2. Retention improved slightly to a bit above 92% for the quarter, returning to record levels. New bookings growth was at 14% with corporate payment sales leading the way with a 28% growth in the quarter. Payables spend monetization levels remained steady sequentially. Organic revenue growth finished at 6% overall. Again, strong growth in corporate payments, Brazil, and international fleet, while showing a continued drag from North America fleet and lodging, although lodging did show signs of improvement in the quarter. Therefore, to wrap up Q3, there were really no surprises; lodging improved slightly, while North America fleet was a bit worse. But more importantly, trends—same-store sales, retention, sales, and spend monetization—were all stable or improving. So, a good result overall. Let me transition to Q4 and full-year 2024 guidance. We anticipate a very strong Q4 finish, expecting organic revenue growth to accelerate to 13%. An early view of our October revenue flash supports this acceleration. We project EBITDA margins of 55.6%, which should be up about another 140 basis points sequentially. Cash EPS is projected at $5.35 at the midpoint, up 21%, and we are hopeful for Q4 sales growth to come in above 20%. So, really firing on all cylinders. A couple of additional positives: we expect lodging revenue growth to turn positive in Q4, and the corporate payments channel segment is expected to grow significantly again in Q4. Both of these developments support our overall revenue growth acceleration. As I mentioned back in August, our expected arrival to a better place is now Q4. For full year 2024, we are staying put with $19 of full-year cash EPS at the midpoint, implying 16% year-over-year EPS growth, excluding Russia. So, this is in line with our 15% to 20% midterm earnings growth target. Moving on to the 2025 preview, although it’s early days, we think it’s setting up quite well. In terms of organic revenue growth, we are looking at 9% to 11%, driven by a recovery in our North America fleet and lodging businesses, both moving into positive territory next year. We expect corporate payments in Brazil to maintain mid- to high-teens growth rates, and we are forecasting our gift business to see double-digit growth next year. Additionally, we anticipate an incremental 3% of print revenue growth, which is above organic from the combination of the two Corporate payments acquisitions. We are planning our 2025 sales growth around 20%, driven by demand for our new products along with incremental investment in sales coverage. Taken together, we are targeting 2025 cash EPS at a ballpark of $22 per share. Of course, we still have a lot to work through. A couple of big assumptions behind the 2025 cash EPS will be FX assumptions, particularly with the Brazil real, alongside the net impact of lower interest rates offset by higher 2025 tax rates. Overall, we are optimistic about the 2025 outlook. Now, making the turn to our USA sales opportunity, alongside the recent decision to reorganize U.S. sales and appoint a new CRO. Our U.S. sales growth has not been as strong as our international sales growth, particularly in North America fleet and lodging solutions. We see an enormous opportunity in the U.S. for all of our lines. For example, in our payables business, we've got about a 2% to 3% share of the mid-market. This market accounts for approximately $500 million in annualized revenue, with a couple hundred thousand prospects to convert. So, it is a big opportunity. To seize this opportunity more urgently, we've established a consolidated U.S. sales organization with the associated marketing and sales support functions reporting into one new CRO executive, Mike Jeffrey. We've also rebranded portions of the vehicle, lodging, and payables lines of business to Corpay to leverage the brand, and established a dedicated cross-sell team that will engage existing clients to drive sales. Therefore, there is a lot of energy, focus, and urgency around increasing our sales in the U.S. Finally, regarding our M&A update, 2024 has been quite busy on that front. We have finalized four deals, with a couple still in the pipeline. To start with, we closed the Paymerang AP automation company deal on July 1st. It is tracking closely to our second half plan, and we are seeing significant synergies projected for Q4. The GPS cross-border business we signed up this summer is still on track to close by the end of the year and is performing according to forecast through Q3. Together, these two Corporate Payment deals should contribute about $0.50 to cash EPS accretion in 2025. Our Zapay Brazil deal, a vehicle car debts company that helps drivers pay for registration renewals and tickets, was acquired in spring and has provided an entry to a new payments TAM, which is approximately five times the size of the toll TAM—quite substantial. The Zapay business, year-to-date, is up 45% in revenue, and we enrolled 90,000 Sem Parar toll users in the first six months. Lastly, we are in the process of selling the Comdata Merchant Solutions business, a POS solutions business for truck stop merchants, to a PE-backed company, with plans to close that sale by year-end. This divestiture ties back to our strategic review conducted last spring to simplify the company. We also have a couple of active small deals we are working on that may close early next year. In conclusion, Q3 results came in on the high side of our guidance range, with stable or improving same-store sales, retention, and spend monetization trends. We have significant revenue growth acceleration expected in Q4, along with record earnings. So, looking ahead to 2025, the outlook for revenue and earnings growth is favorable and fits with our midterm objectives. Additionally, I’m very pleased with our 2024 M&A activity; the two Corporate Payment acquisitions are on track, and the business is well-positioned for faster growth overall. With that, let me turn the call over to Tom for some additional details on the quarter.

Thanks, Ron, and good afternoon, everyone. Here are some additional details related to the quarter. As we announced last week, Q3 revenue was $1.029 billion, which was at the higher end of our guidance despite lower fuel prices. Organic revenue grew 6% versus Q3 last year, led by 18% growth in Corporate Payments. Strong expense discipline and another quarter of lower bad debt resulted in an EBITDA margin of 54.2%. We generated $355 million in free cash flow, translating to $5 per share in cash EPS, $0.05 above the midpoint of our guidance, representing an 11% increase compared to last year, and up 14% when excluding the impact of the sale of the Russia business. Overall, this marks our first $1 billion revenue quarter, reflecting the quality and diversification of our business. Now, turning to our segment performance and the underlying drivers of our organic revenue growth, Corporate Payments revenue increased by 18%, driven by 7% growth in spend volume and stable card penetration rates. We saw strength in our direct business, which grew 21%, led by robust growth in full AP. The Paymerang deal, closed in July, contributed $14 million in revenue for the quarter, and we continue to migrate the business to our platform, with significant synergies expected starting in Q4. From an adjusted EPS perspective, we still expect Paymerang to be EPS neutral in Q4. Cross-border revenue saw a jump of 21%, driven by 40% sales growth. Both new client acquisition and recurring client transaction activity were robust due to our scale, technology, and talent advantages continuing to power share from legacy financial players. Our previously announced acquisition of GPS Capital Markets continues to progress through the approval process, with an expected close in early 2025. Regarding vehicle payments, organic revenue increased by 4% during the quarter. Growth was supported by a 7% rise in transactions and increased revenue per transaction across all businesses and geographies. The ongoing organic revenue growth was mainly driven by strong performance in Brazil and international fleet, both growing in double digits. We're seeing progress related to our sales and marketing investment in the local U.S. fleet business. To remind you, this customer segment services middle market and SMB field services businesses that utilize vehicles daily. During the quarter, transactions and spend volume on a constant fuel price basis demonstrated signs of accelerating growth. In addition, we observed a quarterly trend of improving performance across same-store sales, new sales, and retention. There's still work needed to boost sales, but it's encouraging to see initial progress. In the U.K., we continue to expand the PayByPhone parking app into a multi-point consumer vehicle payment app by leveraging our proprietary networks and partnerships to add relevant products and services. In Q2, we launched the capability to acquire car content insurance while parking and added a search function for nearby fuel stations and EV chargers. This quarter, we introduced two additional services: our first vehicle maintenance and repair product for the U.K.'s mandatory annual vehicle inspection and EV charging payments, allowing app users to directly pay for EV charging through the PayByPhone app. We remain excited about repurposing our B2B networks and payment solutions for a large consumer segment. In Brazil, business performance was robust with revenue growing 18% and sales increasing 22%. Tag growth was at 8%, while toll-related revenue climbed 20%. We're also witnessing success in selling additional payment solutions; both insurance policies sold and car debt payment transactions have risen over 100% in the quarter. Moreover, card debt app users and revenue grew by over 30% compared to last year. These additional offerings are popular and continue to support our cross-sell success. Lodging revenue fell by 5% but improved by 5 points sequentially from Q2. Room nights increased by 10%, partly due to improved same-store sales and storm-related emergency services. The decline seems to have bottomed out, and we are anticipating slight growth in this segment for Q4. Now, looking further down the income statement: operating expenses of $561 million represented a 7% increase compared to Q3 last year, primarily driven by acquisitions. Excluding acquisitions and divestitures, operating expenses were flat. Bad debt expense decreased by 3% year-over-year to $28 million or 5 basis points of spend, indicating controlled credit. The EBITDA margin for the quarter was 54.2%, with a minor year-over-year decline impacted by acquisitions and divestitures over the previous 12 months. Normalizing for these transactions, EBITDA margin increased by 77 basis points. Our positive operating leverage is driven by solid revenue growth and disciplined expense management, both of which are strong suits for us. Interest expenses increased by $21 million compared to Q3 2023 due to higher debt balances from acquisitions and share buybacks. Our effective tax rate for the quarter was 22.9%, down from 26.6% last year due to option exercises during the quarter. Turning to the balance sheet, we concluded the quarter with $1.3 billion in unrestricted cash and had $800 million available on our revolver. As of September 30th, our leverage ratio was 2.82 times trailing 12-month EBITDA. We also acted in September to reduce our interest expense by entering into an additional $500 million 3.19% fixed rate swap and adjusting our Canadian dollar to USD cross-currency swap at a more favorable rate. These transactions are expected to cut interest expenses next year by approximately $7 million. We repurchased 300,000 shares this quarter for $90 million, entirely related to employee stock option exercises. We have over $500 million authorized for share repurchases, and the Board recently cleared an additional $1 billion of share repurchases, giving us over $1.5 billion for buybacks. We will continue to pursue short-term M&A opportunities and buy back shares when beneficial while maintaining our leverage within our target range. Let me now provide some additional insights into our outlook. For the full year, we are keeping our cash EPS guidance at $19 per share and slightly reducing our revenue forecast to $3.995 billion at the midpoint, due to unfavorable fuel prices and FX rates. We expect 13% revenue growth and 21% earnings growth at the midpoint for Q4, with revenue growth acceleration anticipated across all our segments in Q4, driven by new sales, strong retention, and realizing synergies from the Paymerang acquisition. Overall, this outlook aligns closely with our expectations from August. For further details regarding our fourth quarter and full year outlook, please refer to our earnings release. Thank you for your interest in Corpay. And now operator, we would like to open the line for questions.

Certainly. We will take our first question from Ramsey El-Assal with Barclays.

Hi, this is Shyam on behalf of Ramsey. Thanks for taking my question. I was just wondering if you could break down the retention by segment? And how much of the retention improvement that you saw is from Corporate Payments becoming a larger part of the business versus just improving retention trends throughout the remainder of the business?

Yes, Shyam, thanks for the question. We generally don't break down retention by segment. We've discussed how the segments performed relative to the overall line average but our Corporate Payments business is performing much better than the line average, whereas some of the SMB businesses within fleet and vehicle payments are below. In general, we've noticed improving signs of retention on an absolute basis as the mix turns more towards those higher retention businesses that naturally repeat. However, this shift will move at a slow pace, and you won't see a dramatic change in mix from one quarter to the next; you'd need to look at a 12-month period to start observing significant impacts. So, you can assume that the improvement in retention is primarily due to core retention enhancements within the businesses rather than a shift in mix.

Got it. Very helpful. And then just a quick follow-up on lodging from me. I was just curious if you could quantify how much FEMA had contributed to lodging payments in the quarter, given the hurricanes, and if you are expecting any further tailwinds from extended disaster relief efforts?

Hey, it’s Tom. That's a good question. I'd say we probably saw about $1 million above the normalized emergencies we typically see, so maybe $1 million this quarter.

Thank you. We will take our next question from Tien-Tsin Huang with JPMorgan. Please go ahead.

Hey, good afternoon. Good to talk to you. I just want to ask about new sales, if that's okay. I have a couple of questions regarding this area. How did the third quarter align with your plan? And how quickly do you think the new sales reorganization and CRO will start producing results?

Good question. I’d say Corporate Payments had an outstanding Q3, growing in the high 20s compared to the prior year. The NAF business, however, was still a bit soft with a total growth rate of 14%. We're anticipating a low to mid-20s growth outlook for Q4, projecting the full year around 20%. Our preliminary plan for 2025 targets approximately 20% growth as well. We're optimistic about leveraging the reorganization, especially with consolidation on the expense side and greater focus on cross-selling—selling back to existing clients is generally more effective. Mike Jeffrey, our new CRO, has a strong background, previously managing a large team at Paychex, so I have high confidence in this restructure. Overall, I am quite bullish about how this organization will perform next year.

That’s great to hear. And just my follow-up: thinking about visibility into 2025—understanding the election uncertainties and interest rates—what's your level of confidence in achieving double-digit growth at this point compared to 90 days ago or the same time last year?

Yes, I believe our visibility has improved, Tien-Tsin, for a couple of reasons. One is that we are seeing acceleration in this quarter, and I’ve peeked at October, which supports our projections positively. To claim that organic revenue growth will increase from 6% to 13% is significant. Moreover, the product mix has improved as previously lower-performing segments are showing positive trends, particularly in corporate payments and Brazil, which have consistently performed well. This gives us confidence moving forward. The patterns and data from our historical performance over the last 20 years are also very encouraging.

Thank you. We will take our next question from Nate Svensson with Deutsche Bank. Please go ahead.

Hey guys, sorry about that. I wanted to ask about the North American fleet still, which remains a bit of a drag on overall growth. I know another player in the space mentioned some macro-driven softness there. Are you seeing any broader trends in the North American fleet? You mentioned same-store sales were flat in Q3, but do you have observations on trends so far this quarter? Furthermore, your 2025 outlook states North American fleet is expected to return to positive growth; can you elaborate on your confidence regarding this positive inflection, beyond just the sales work changes you mentioned?

Hey Nate, it's Ron. Concerning same-store sales, we currently see no significant deviations, which means they remain essentially flat sequentially but improved from a couple of previous quarters. Additionally, retention in that segment has improved significantly from a year ago. Now that we've fully absorbed the strategic pivot from two years back, it’s simply about driving sales from here on. Retention rates are robust, and same-store sales are stable. We deliberately haven’t set any aggressive targets for overall growth beyond low single digits, so we're not overextending ourselves; but we do expect positive sales growth next year.

That’s helpful. Regarding your 2025 outlook, you mentioned key assumptions about the net impact of lower interest rates and higher taxes. Could you elaborate more on these assumptions?

Sure, I’d be happy to elaborate. Regarding interest rates, we have roughly $3 billion of our debt that remains rate-sensitive. As the Fed continues to decrease rates, we expect to benefit significantly, projecting an average decrease of around 70 basis points. The float revenue doesn’t have a major impact because we’ve already accounted for expected changes in our guidance. So, while we’ll see improved flow from lower rates, we do believe our overall revenue guidance already incorporates these factors. When it comes to overall tax rates, we're preparing for some impacts from the global minimum tax introduced in 2025, but these won’t be overly material. This year, we benefited from some discrete items related to stock option exercises by employees; you can expect this year’s tax rate to be more in line with our historical figures.

That’s quite a loaded question, Nate, but I’ll try to address each part to allow time for other callers. Regarding interest rates, with $3 billion of our debt exposed to rate fluctuations, we anticipate benefits from ongoing rate cuts. We calculated a potential reduction of about 70 basis points based on current market expectations. In terms of float, the impact isn't overly material to our overall revenue unless it sits differently on our balance sheet, but we’ve anticipated this in our guidance. Regarding taxes, we do have some exposure to the global minimum tax with implementation slated for 2025, though it’s not substantial. This year saw a favorable tax rate due to some stock option exercises; however, you can expect next year’s tax rate to trend closer to our recent history.

Thank you. We will take our next question from Dave Koning with Baird. Please go ahead.

Yes, hey guys. Thanks so much. I guess, first of all, the growth is impressive in Q4 and next year as well. However, I'm curious about the 13% growth expected for Q4. If we look to next year at around 10%, that's not entirely sustainable, right? It seems lodging should improve next year rather than worsen. What factors do you think will create the contrast in Q4 versus the remainder of next year?

Ah, yes. It's a valid point. The primary factor is the comparison to last year's performance. Let’s break it down: from Q3 to Q4, we expect sequential growth of approximately $25 million. Several businesses tend to perform significantly better in Q4, notably Brazil due to the corporate payments business and synergies from recent acquisitions. The gift business also tends to peak in Q4, thus driving strong performance. Therefore, while the Q4 expectations are high, some of this is driven by the nature of calendar timing and the performance of specific segments. In addition, while holding strong overall growth, we project segments with existing challenges to show improvements as the year goes on, creating a balanced outlook.

Yeah, just to clarify, the 10% midpoint we project for next year excludes the impact of Paymerang and the GPS acquisitions. In reality, you could see numbers that could be closer to the 13% mentioned when including those contributions.

Thank you. We will take our next question from Sanjay Sakhrani with KBW. Please go ahead.

Thank you. Ron and Tom, you discussed the M&A pipeline. I am curious about what deals are in there. I know there's a lot of focus on share buybacks as well. As you allocate your capital next, do you prefer M&A over buybacks given some valuations are compressed?

Yes, regarding the pipeline, we’re particularly focused on corporate payments and consumer vehicles that can help boost volume and growth. In terms of the balance between buybacks and acquisitions, our priority remains on acquiring attractive, growing earnings-generating assets. We utilize liquidity for share repurchases if stock prices are outside our desired range. So, while we’ll keep an eye on both options, our decision-making process isn’t materially different going into next year, although we have indeed increased the buyback authorization by $1 billion.

Following up, you mentioned the acceleration and comps; as we look at your expected growth in Q4 of 13%, I’m curious about any risks surrounding this number. It appears things are going well, but in terms of achieving such growth, what do you perceive as potential pitfalls?

That's a great question. While a 13% revenue growth target and significant earnings growth in Q4 appears ambitious, we’ve indeed reached a strong base. I’d say the most significant risk lies around the gift segment, as its revenue recognition relies heavily on customer transactions which are largely end-of-quarter activations. If we do catch a slight headwind in Q4, that would be the most probable cause for missing expectations.

To build on what Ron pointed out, the sequential growth should amount to approximately $25 million, with significant contributions from the Brazil corporate payments business and expected synergies from Paymerang. Given the predictability of these trends, we hold robust confidence in reaching the Q4 numbers.

Ultimately, we are moving towards doors of record revenue, record earnings, and near-record margins. Positivity in our numbers and outlook reflects a robust foundation absent major concerns.

Thank you. We will take our next question from Peter Christiansen with Citi. Please go ahead.

Good evening, and thank you for the question. Consider updating on the initiative to pick the business out of the micro accounts in your past efforts. How does your cross-sell plan differ now to make you confident this is a more viable opportunity for 2024?

Hey Pete, thanks for bringing this up. We have indeed learned from our past initiatives. A few differences this time are worth mentioning. Firstly, we are now targeting our sales efforts more strategically. Rather than chasing broad numbers, we focus on a defined set of target clients likely to benefit from additional product offerings. Secondly, we emphasize leveraging our established brand, moving existing clients in the fleet card business towards products branded as Corpay. Finally, dedicated sales teams solely focused on cross-selling give more attention to this task, supported by marketing efforts. I believe we’re now better organized for success and should begin to see results over the next three to six months.

That's encouraging! Additionally, can you shed some light on margin expectations for 2025? I understand various factors will influence them, but what’s your current outlook?

Certainly! We anticipate improved margin performance driven by operating leverage, despite some noise from lower-margin acquisitions. Our expectation for revenue growth driven by significant fixed costs in conjunction with solid revenue growth suggests margins should trend in a positive direction next year.

Additionally, we have consistently seen improvement in our margins quarter over quarter, looking at earnings margins of 51%, 52%, 54%, and now heading towards 55%. Therefore, as top-line growth accelerates alongside controlled fixed costs, we certainly expect margin growth to follow.

Thank you. We will take our next question from Rufus Hone with BMO Capital Markets. Please go ahead.

Hey guys, thanks. I joined the call a little late, so hopefully this hasn’t been addressed. Regarding Corporate Payments, the gross sales performance looks quite strong, and you noted 40% growth in cross-border payments, with retention rates above the Corpay average. How are you viewing organic growth in that segment as we head into 2025 given that sales traction?

Yes, Rufus, what we’re anticipating is high-teens growth for that segment. You’re correct; we’ve been recording sales at unprecedented levels for the past couple of years, and retention in the business outperforms the overall average. When we piece that data together, I see high teen growth in revenue for this area. As Tom pointed out earlier, we have structural efficiencies due to operating on one system, leading to mid-20s EBITDA growth in this segment. Furthermore, it's crucial to highlight that we are actively pursuing additional acquisitions within this space, as we see potential for increased volume.

Thank you. And there are no further questions at this time. I'll turn the call back over to Jim Eglseder for closing remarks.

Thanks for your interest, everyone. I know it’s a busy night, so if any follow-up issues arise as you work through your analysis, feel free to reach out. Thank you for joining the call.

Thank you. This does conclude today's program. Thank you for your participation. You may disconnect at any time.