News Releases

For Immediate Release: February 26, 2018

BOISE, Idaho - Boise Cascade Company ("Boise Cascade," the "Company," "we," or "our") (NYSE: BCC) today reported fourth quarter net income of $19.1 million, or $0.49 per share, on sales of $1.1 billion. For the full year 2017, Boise Cascade reported net income of $83.0 million, or $2.12 per share, on sales of $4.4 billion. Fourth quarter and full year results for 2017 include an $8.1 million, or $0.21 per share, income tax benefit associated with the effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. See 'Income Taxes' below for further information. For 2016 comparative period results, see the table below, as well as 'Other Items Impacting 2016 Results.'

Fourth Quarter and Year End 2017 Highlights

¹ For reconciliations of non-GAAP measures, see summary notes at the end of this press release.

            In the fourth quarter 2017, total U.S. housing starts were flat compared to the same period last year. Consistent with the trend in 2017, fourth quarter single-family starts increased from the comparative period, growing by 7%, whereas multi-family starts decreased by 13%. Single-family residential construction is the primary demand driver of our sales. For the full year 2017, total U.S. housing starts improved 2% compared to 2016, driven by an approximate 9% increase in single-family starts, offset by an approximate 10% decrease in multi-family starts.  

            "Our distribution business closed out 2017 with another strong quarter of revenue and earnings growth. In 2017, the team in BMD far exceeded their previous annual revenue and earnings records. Very strong plywood pricing and favorable sales prices and volumes for our engineered wood products compared to those in last year's fourth quarter combined to drive substantial improvement in our Wood Products earnings," commented Tom Corrick, CEO. "We were successful in improving our free cash flow generation and balance sheet during 2017 and are very well positioned to take advantage of the continued recovery in single-family residential construction as 2018 progresses."

Wood Products

            Wood Products sales, including sales to Building Materials Distribution (BMD), increased $41.2 million, or 14%, to $330.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017, from $289.7 million for the three months ended December 31, 2016. The increase in sales was driven primarily by increases in plywood and lumber sales prices and increases in LVL and I-joist (collectively EWP) sales volumes. In addition, sales prices of LVL and I-joists increased. These increases were offset partially by a decrease in plywood sales volumes. Wood Products segment income increased $14.6 million to income of $6.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017, from a loss of $7.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2016. The improvement in segment income was due primarily to higher sales prices of plywood, EWP, and lumber. These improvements were offset partially by higher oriented strand board (OSB) costs used in the manufacture of I-joists, as well as higher per-unit conversion costs.

            For the year ended December 31, 2017, sales, including sales to BMD, increased $93.3 million, or 7%, to $1,373.8 million from $1,280.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase in sales was driven primarily by higher sales prices for plywood and lumber, as well as higher sales volumes of LVL and I-joists. An increase in sales prices for both LVL and I-joists also contributed to the improved sales. These increases were offset by decreases in plywood and lumber sales volumes. We have shifted a higher proportion of our internally produced veneer into EWP, resulting in the decline in plywood production and sales volumes. Wood Products segment income increased $27.7 million to $53.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2017, from $25.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase in segment income was due primarily to higher plywood, lumber, and EWP sales prices. In addition, the year ended December 31, 2016, included $3.6 million of acquisition-related expenses. These improvements were offset partially by higher OSB costs used in the manufacture of I-joists, as well as higher per-unit conversion costs. In addition, depreciation and amortization expense increased $5.6 million due primarily to the acquisition of two EWP facilities on March 31, 2016, and other capital expenditures.

            Comparative average net selling prices and sales volume changes for EWP, plywood, and lumber are as follows:

Building Materials Distribution

            Sales increased $160.9 million, or 21%, to $931.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017, from $770.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2016. Compared with the same quarter in the prior year, the overall increase in sales was driven by sales price and sales volume increases of 14% and 7%, respectively. By product line, commodity sales increased 30%, general line product sales increased 9%, and sales of EWP (substantially all of which is sourced through our Wood Products segment) increased 20%. BMD segment income increased $7.5 million to $22.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017, from $15.5 million in the comparative prior year quarter, driven primarily by a higher gross margin of $17.9 million generated from a sales increase of 21%. The increase in gross margin was offset partially by higher selling and distribution expenses and general and administrative expenses. 

            For the year ended December 31, 2017, sales increased $546.6 million, or 17%, to $3,773.8 million from $3,227.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase in sales was driven by sales price and sales volume increases of 9% and 8%, respectively. By product line, commodity sales increased 20%, general line product sales increased 11%, and sales of EWP (substantially all of which is sourced through our Wood Products segment) increased 20%. BMD segment income increased $32.4 million to $116.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2017, from $84.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase in segment income was driven primarily by a higher gross margin of $65.1 million generated from a sales increase of 17%. This improvement was offset partially by increased selling and distribution expenses and general and administrative expenses.

Income Taxes

            Fourth quarter and full year net income includes an $8.1 million income tax benefit associated with the remeasurement of our deferred tax assets and liabilities at the new federal corporate income tax rate of 21% as of December 22, 2017 (date of enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act). The most significant impact to our financial statements is the reduction of the corporate federal income tax rate from 35% to 21%. Other relevant provisions which may impact our financial statements in the future include, but are not limited to, the elimination of the production activities deduction, limitations on the deductibility of certain executive compensation, bonus depreciation to allow immediate expensing of qualified property, and limitations on deductible interest expense.

Other Items Impacting 2016 Results

            For the fourth quarter 2016, the Company's financial results include after-tax losses associated with the early extinguishment of debt and voluntary lump-sum payments to pension plan participants of $3.0 million and $2.4 million, respectively. In addition, the Company's financial results include an $8.5 million income tax benefit primarily associated with the reversal of valuation allowances on foreign deferred tax assets, net of other tax adjustments. Collectively, these items resulted in a net $3.1 million after-tax gain, or $0.08 per share impact on fourth quarter 2016. For the year ended December 31, 2016, these items amounted to an after-tax loss of $2.8 million, or $0.07 per share, as the Company recorded an additional $5.9 million after-tax loss on the early extinguishment of debt during third quarter 2016.

Balance Sheet

            Boise Cascade ended 2017 with $177.1 million of cash and cash equivalents and $379.8 million of undrawn committed bank line availability, for total available liquidity of $556.9 million. The Company had $438.3 million of outstanding debt at December 31, 2017.

Dividends

            On November 14, 2017, the Company announced that our board of directors approved a dividend policy to pay quarterly cash dividends to holders of our common stock. The Company also declared an initial dividend of $0.07 per share of our common stock, paid on December 15, 2017, to stockholders of record on November 27, 2017. As such, the Company paid $2.7 million in dividends to shareholders for the year ended December 31, 2017.

            On February 7, 2018, the Company declared a dividend of $0.07 per share of its common stock, payable on March 15, 2018, to stockholders of record on March 1, 2018.

Outlook

            As in recent years, we expect to continue to experience modest demand growth for the products we manufacture and distribute in 2018. Total housing starts in the U.S. continue to show modest improvement, with single-family starts growth offsetting weakness in multi-family starts in 2017. The February 2018 Blue Chip consensus forecast for 2018 reflects 1.28 million total U.S. housing starts, a 7% expected increase from 2017 levels. We remain optimistic that the improvement in demand for our products will continue as household formation rates and residential construction continue to recover. We will continue to manage our production levels to our sales demand, which will likely result in operating some of our facilities below their capacity until demand further improves. Future commodity product pricing and commodity input costs could be volatile in response to industry operating rates, net import and export activity, the North American softwood lumber trade dispute, inventory levels in various distribution channels, and seasonal demand patterns.

            We have successfully grown revenues and earnings in our distribution business as residential construction has recovered in the U.S. over the last several years. As we consider potential acquisitions, much of our activity is focused on adding to our distribution capabilities.

            We expect our capital spending, excluding acquisitions, to be $75-$85 million during 2018.

About Boise Cascade

            Boise Cascade Company is one of the largest producers of engineered wood products and plywood in North America and a leading U.S. wholesale distributor of building products. For more information, please visit the Company's website at www.bc.com.

Webcast and Conference Call

            Boise Cascade will host a webcast and conference call on Monday, February 26, at 11 a.m. Eastern, to review the Company's fourth quarter and year-end results.

            You can join the webcast through the Company's website by going to www.bc.com and clicking on the Event Calendar link under the Investor Relations heading. Please go to the website at least 15 minutes before the start of the webcast to register. To join the conference call, dial 844-795-4410 (international callers should dial 661-378-9637), participant passcode 8365486, at least 10 minutes before the start of the call.

            The archived webcast will be available in the Investor Relations section of the Company's website. A replay of the conference call will be available from Monday, February 26, at 2 p.m. Eastern through Monday, March 5, at 11 p.m. Eastern. Replay numbers are 855-859-2056 for U.S. callers and 404-537-3406 for international callers, and the passcode will be 8365486.

Basis of Presentation

            As of January 1, 2017, we operate our business using two reportable segments: Wood Products and Building Materials Distribution. Prior to January 1, 2017, we operated our business using three reportable segments: Wood Products, Building Materials Distribution, and Corporate and Other. This change is based on Corporate and Other no longer earning revenue as of January 1, 2017, and thus no longer meeting the definition of a reportable segment. Corporate results are now presented as reconciling items to arrive at total net sales and operating income. Corresponding information for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2016 has been revised to conform with current presentation.

            We refer to the terms EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA in this earnings release as supplemental measures of our performance and liquidity that are not required by or presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("GAAP"). We define EBITDA as income before interest (interest expense and interest income), income taxes, and depreciation and amortization. Additionally, we disclose Adjusted EBITDA, which further adjusts EBITDA to exclude the change in fair value of interest rate swaps and loss on extinguishment of debt.

            We believe EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are meaningful measures because they present a transparent view of our recurring operating performance and allow management to readily view operating trends, perform analytical comparisons, and identify strategies to improve operating performance. We also believe EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are useful to investors because they provide a means to evaluate the operating performance of our segments and our Company on an ongoing basis using criteria that are used by our management and because they are frequently used by investors and other interested parties when comparing companies in our industry that have different financing and capital structures and/or tax rates. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA, however, are not measures of our liquidity or financial performance under GAAP and should not be considered as alternatives to net income, income from operations, or any other performance measure derived in accordance with GAAP or as alternatives to cash flow from operating activities as a measure of our liquidity. The use of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA instead of net income or segment income (loss) have limitations as analytical tools, including the inability to determine profitability; the exclusion of interest expense, interest income, and associated significant cash requirements; and the exclusion of depreciation and amortization, which represent unavoidable operating costs. Management compensates for these limitations by relying on our GAAP results. Our measures of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not necessarily comparable to other similarly titled captions of other companies due to potential inconsistencies in the methods of calculation.

Forward-Looking Statements

            This press release includes statements about our expectations of future operational and financial performance that are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The accuracy of such statements is subject to a number of risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected, including, but not limited to, prices for building products, commodity input costs, the effect of general economic conditions, mortgage rates and availability, housing demand, housing vacancy rates, governmental regulations, unforeseen production disruptions, as well as natural disasters. These and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements are discussed in greater detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to revise them in light of new information. Finally, we undertake no obligation to review or confirm analyst expectations or estimates that might be derived from this release.

Boise Cascade Company
Consolidated Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except per-share data)

See accompanying summary notes to consolidated financial statements and segment information.

Wood Products Segment
Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except percentages)

Building Materials Distribution Segment
Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except percentages)

Segment Information
(in thousands)

See accompanying summary notes to consolidated financial statements and segment information.

Boise Cascade Company
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(in thousands)

Boise Cascade Company
Consolidated Balance Sheets (continued)
(in thousands, except per-share data)

Boise Cascade Company
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(in thousands)

Summary Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements and Segment Information

            The Consolidated Statements of Operations, Segment Statements of Operations, Consolidated Balance Sheets, Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows, and Segment Information presented herein do not include the notes accompanying the Company's Consolidated Financial Statements and should be read in conjunction with the Company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Net income for all periods presented involved estimates and accruals.

1. EBITDA represents income before interest (interest expense and interest income), income taxes, and depreciation and amortization. Additionally, we disclose Adjusted EBITDA, which further adjusts EBITDA to exclude the change in fair value of interest rate swaps and loss on extinguishment of debt. The following table reconciles net income to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, and September 30, 2017, and the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016:

The following table reconciles segment income and unallocated corporate costs to EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, and September 30, 2017, and the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016:

Investor contact:  Wayne Rancourt, 208-384-6073
Media contact:  John Sahlberg, 208-384-6451