Death and taxes are life’s only guarantees, and Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE: CSV) is cashing in on the first one. The funeral and cemetery services provider wrapped up 2024 with a strong performance, flexing its financial muscle with solid revenue growth, improved profitability, and aggressive debt reduction.

2024 in a Nutshell:

📈 Revenue: $404.2M (+5.7% YoY)
📊 Adjusted EBITDA: $126.2M (+11.5%)
💰 Adjusted EPS: $2.65 (+21%)
📉 GAAP EPS: $2.10 (-1.9%)
💳 Debt Reduction: Paid down $42.1M, dropping its leverage ratio to 4.3x (from 5.1x)

What’s Driving the Growth?

Cemeteries Are Booming: Preneed sales surged 26.7%, thanks to more people planning ahead (or maybe just more aggressive sales tactics).
Funeral Homes Held Steady: Contract volume dipped 4.9%, but higher pricing (+3.1%) kept revenue afloat.
Debt? What Debt? The company aggressively paid down loans, which should ease interest expenses going forward.

CEO’s Hot Take

Carlos Quezada, Vice Chairman and CEO, put it simply: “We knew Q4 would be tough, but we stuck to our game plan and came out ahead. Lower funeral volumes? Blame the delayed flu season. But with strong fundamentals and strategic moves, we’re set for an even better 2025.”

The Q4 Speed Bump

Q4 2024 wasn’t as shiny, though:

Revenue dipped 1.1% YoY to $97.7M
Adjusted EBITDA fell 9.6% to $29.3M
Net income dropped 14.7% to $9.9M
Adjusted EPS slipped 19.5% to $0.62

So what happened? Fewer funerals (again, flu season timing) and some one-time executive severance costs took a bite out of the quarter’s results.

2025 Outlook: Betting on the Future (Literally)

Despite selling off some non-core assets (expected to trim $7.9M from revenue), Carriage is staying bullish on 2025. Here’s the forecast:

Revenue: $400M–$410M
Adjusted EBITDA: $128M–$133M
Adjusted EPS: $3.10–$3.30
Free Cash Flow: $40M–$50M

Investor Call & Contact

Want the inside scoop? Carriage Services is hosting an investor call on Feb. 27, 2025, at 9:30 AM CT. Tune in by phone (888-394-8218, ID: 3831963) or via webcast. Investor questions? Hit them up at InvestorRelations@carriageservices.com.

The Bottom Line

Carriage Services isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving. With a focus on efficiency, profitability, and strategic growth, it’s proving that even in the business of death, there’s plenty of life left in its earnings.

Slightly – Caskets and Urns News Journal