Pure Cycle Corporation (NASDAQ:PCYO) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

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We take a look at these things incrementally. We see if they’re working and then where they are working, we continue to reinvest in those areas. So this share buyback was very, very well thought through a number of quarters and it’s an opportunity for us to continue to invest in our own currency so, so I can’t give you any more specifics other than that. Other than you kind of see our past performance and our history of how we do things thoughtfully, carefully and then we continue where we see successes. So those are going to be our metrics that we continue to roll forward.

Bill Miller: Mark, how big a portion of your company, do you want to rental business to be.

Mark Harding: It’s a good question. If you take a look at the 3,200 single-family lots out there, a good growth target would be somewhere around that 12% to 15% of that market can be in our portfolio.

Bill Miller: That’s going to be a big business for you.

Mark Harding: That is going to be a good business for us. And much to your point. I mean, it is 1 of those things where that asset continues to appreciate. Our customer is paying down the vertical cost of that through the mortgage rentals on that. And then it also provides cash flow to us. So it’s going to be 1 of those — it is a win-win segment. And it’s one that we actually have a reason to be in. If you take a look at us being in the business just to be in the business, I would say it’s a good business to be in and a lot of money is going towards that segment. But given the fact that we are able to carry forward the equity value that we have in the land and the equity value that we have in the water, it’s a highly tax-efficient mechanism for us to invest in.

So we’re carrying that forward and it’s appreciating. And so if it turns out that we find a great acquisition and we’ve got a few hundred homes that are out there, that can be an opportunity for us to spin that off and use that as monetizing for another land acquisition that might be a bit above our punching weight at the time and then continue to grow that back. So there’s a real flex there for us on that business segment.

Operator: Our next question is coming from Geoffrey Scott with Scott Asset Management.

Geoffrey Scott: Two questions. You didn’t mention much about the commercial side. Can you talk about the development and potential timing of that.

Mark Harding: Great question. And we have — we’re continuing to build up on that residential side. The commercial segment, I’d say still a bit out. I think they’re looking for about — most of what we would be putting up there would be looking for about 1,000 rooftops in and around the area. We do have neighboring developments that do provide a lot of density to the equation on this thing. And really, we’re looking for the higher-value commercials there. We’re looking for the big boxes. We’re looking for the big — not just a small grocery store, we want a big grocery store. We want big retail centers out there that are really high-volume stuff. And we also want to be opportunistic to be able to maybe partner on some of that, where we’re able to bring the utilities and bring the land to the venture, much like we’re doing in the single-family rental segment carrying forward some of that equity value.

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