PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PRG) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Steve Michaels: Yes, I’ll start and then Brian can chime in. We’re very focused on the expense side, but as you said in your question, nothing has changed. Even though this has been a crazy couple of years managing and navigate through this environment, nothing has changed about our view on the size of the price and the market that we’re out there trying to capture. So, while we’re trying to be prudent on near-term results, we’re also investing for the future. As you will remember, we did a reduction in last year, took out about 10% of our headcount. That was earlier than most did that. We definitely took some cost actions with anything. We right sized the expense base. As we started to plan for 2023, we started to think about how our revenue picture was shaping up.

We are very focused on the cost and there’s not really any hiring in the base plan. In fact, based on active leases and how GMV shakes out, there could be some headcount reductions just through attrition in our ops area, but we are also operating in an environment of a tough recruiting and talent retention environment, there’s wage inflation. And so, we have to win with the teams that we have on the field and we think it’s appropriate investment to the best back in those talented folks. As it relates to specific investments, we continue to invest in products and technology in order to improve our offering both on e-com and the customer experience. So, we believe that they just feel the right things because as you mentioned, it’s been a tough revenue environment, but we don’t think that this is the new normal that we do believe that that growth will come and we look forward to spring boarding off of a better foundation when it does.

Brian Garner : Yes, Brad I would just add. As Steve said, it’s a balancing act, and we need obviously the cost structure going to 2023 and I think the opportunity remains as well as the, kind of near term set-up in the prepared remarks about the near-term headwinds on revenue. There’s going to be a national deleveraging, if you will, from an operating leverage standpoint. With €“ we’re highly variable cost structure, but we do have fixed costs and that’s going to be something that does weigh on margins in 2023 is our expectation. So, the levers exist. We do control them to a large degree. I think it’s €“ and our judgment getting €“ being too reactive in this environment, I think it would be the right decision. We’re going to be careful and thoughtful about the investments in these expected ROI from those investments as we evaluate that structure.

Brad Thomas: Really helpful. Thanks Steve. Thanks Brian.

Brian Garner: Brad, thank you.

Operator: One moment for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Anthony Chukumba from Loop Capital. Your line is open.

Anthony Chukumba: Thank you. Good morning. Thanks for taking my question. So, just had a question on guidance, specifically first quarter guidance. So, as I look at your first quarter guidance pretty simplistically, particularly from an earnings perspective, you’re implying that earnings will be up pretty significantly year-over-year and that EBITDA will account for, call it, about 33%-ish of the full-year EBITDA. And then I look back at last year and EBITDA for the first quarter was about 25% of your full-year EBITDA. So, it would seem to imply that you’re expecting numbers performance to, sort of get worse as the year goes on like, I guess what’s leading you to think that or am I misinterpreting? I’m just trying to sort of €“ I’m just trying to square that all.