SAN FRANCISCO, August 11, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Stem, Inc. (“Stem” or the “Company”) (NYSE:STEM), a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven clean energy storage services, announced today its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2021.
Second Quarter 2021 Financial and Operating Highlights
Financial Highlights
Revenues of $19.3 million, up from $4.4 million (+339%) in the same quarter last year
Gross Margin (GAAP) of (1)% versus (40)% in the same quarter last year
Non-GAAP Gross Margin of 11%, up from 5% in the same quarter last year
Net Loss of $(100.2) million versus $(19.0) million in the same quarter last year
Adjusted EBITDA of $(8.6) million vs. $(7.5) million in the same quarter last year
Ended the second quarter with $474 million in cash and zero debt
Operating Highlights
12-month Pipeline of $1.7 billion, up from $1.4 billion (+21%) at end of the first quarter
Contracted Backlog of $250 million, up from $221 million (+13%) at end of the first quarter
Contracted Assets Under Management (AUM) of 1.2 gigawatt hours (GWh), up from 0.5 GWh in the same quarter last year
John Carrington, Chief Executive Officer of Stem, commented, “We are pleased to announce a solid second quarter of execution, building on our strong first-quarter results. Revenue was at the high end of our guidance range, which, coupled with our gross margin and operating expense performance, keeps us on track to meet our full-year revenue and Adjusted EBITDA targets. Our sales team continued to leverage our partner channel in multiple geographies increasing our contracted backlog to $250 million (13% sequential growth), providing us with increased visibility into 2022 revenue. As the first pure-play publicly traded smart energy storage company, our experience, industry-leading Athena® software platform, robust service offerings, and strong balance sheet will continue to differentiate Stem in this rapidly expanding market.”
Key metrics
$ millions unless otherwise noted
Three Months Ended
June 30,
2021
2020
Financial metrics
Revenue
$19.3
$4.4
Gross Margin (GAAP)
$(0.1)
$(1.7)
Gross Margin (GAAP, %)
-1%
-40%
Non-GAAP Gross Margin***
$2.1
$0.2
Non-GAAP Gross Margin (%)***
11%
5%
Net Loss (GAAP)
$(100.2)
$(19.0)
Adjusted EBITDA***
$(8.6)
$(7.5)
Key Operating metrics*
12-Month Pipeline ($ billions)
$1.7
**
Contracted Backlog
$250
**
Contracted AUM (GWh)
1.2
0.5
* at period end
** not available
***Non-GAAP financial measures. See the section below titled “Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for details and page 9 for reconciliations.
Second-Quarter 2021 Financial and Operating Results
Financial Results
Second quarter revenue increased 339% to $19.3 million, versus $4.4 million in the same quarter last year. Higher hardware revenue from Front of the Meter (“FTM”) partnership agreements drove most of the year-over-year increase, in addition to higher services revenue from host customer arrangements.
Gross Margin (GAAP) was $(0.1) million, or (1)%, versus $(1.7) million, or (40)% in the same quarter last year. Non-GAAP Gross Margin was $2.1 million or 11% versus $0.2 million or 5% in the same quarter last year. The year-over-year increases in Gross Margin (GAAP) and Non-GAAP Gross Margin resulted from an increased mix of software service revenues and higher-margin hardware deliveries.
Net Loss increased to $(100.2) million versus $(19.0) million in the same quarter last year. This was primarily due to $76.4 million of non-cash charges recorded in the quarter from the revaluation of warrants tied to an increase in the value of the underlying stock, along with higher operating expenses.
Adjusted EBITDA was $(8.6) million compared to $(7.5) million in the same quarter last year. The lower Adjusted EBITDA results were primarily driven by higher operating expenses, due to increased personnel costs reflecting continued investment in our growth initiatives.
The Company ended the second quarter with $474 million in cash and no debt.
Operating Results
The Company’s 12-month forward Pipeline was $1.7 billion as of June 30, 2021, representing significant year-over-year growth. The 21% increase in the 12-month pipeline from $1.4 billion at March 31, 2021 is a result of increased FTM project opportunities and the seasonal nature of the pipeline.
Contracted Backlog increased 13% sequentially, from $221 million as of March 31, 2021 to $250 million as of June 30, 2021. The increase in Contracted Backlog resulted from strong bookings of $45 million tied to increased commercial activity. Bookings grew 18% year-over-year from $38 million in the quarter ended June 30, 2020.
Contracted AUM more than doubled year-over-year to 1.2 GWh, driven by increased commercial activity and the addition of the 345-megawatt hour (MWh) Electrodes Holdings LLC portfolio. Contracted AUM increased sequentially by 9%, driven by new contracts and new systems that came in service.
The following table provides a summary of current backlog compared to prior quarter backlog:
$ millions
Period ending 1Q21
$221
$45
($19)
$3
Period ending 2Q21
$250
Business Highlights
Since mid-June 2021, Stem has consistently dispatched more than 500 MWh daily in multiple markets across the United States and Canada in response to heat waves, increased grid interconnections from renewables and wildfires that have caused widespread stress on power grids. Stem’s demand response and grid services programs are designed to use virtual power plants powered by the Athena software platform to flatten electricity usage peaks and deliver power to the most constrained parts of the grid.
Stem has grown rapidly in ISO New England since the system operator expanded market participation activities for Front-of-the-Meter (“FTM”) storage in 2020. As of the end of June, Stem-directed systems comprised 52% of Massachusetts and 19% of ISO-NE of the operational continuous storage facilities active in the wholesale energy, ancillary services and forward capacity settlement markets, as reported by the system operator.
On June 25, 2021, Stem entered into an agreement to exchange 7.2 million private warrants for 4.7 million shares of common stock. The transaction closed on June 30, 2021. As of August 11, 2021, 12.8 million public warrants remain outstanding, which are redeemable by the Company beginning August 20, 2021.
On June 2, 2021, Stem announced that it had partnered with Ameresco, a leading cleantech integrator, whereby it will provide 15 MWh of battery storage for Holy Cross Energy, an electric cooperative in western Colorado. Stem and Ameresco plan to further collaborate to provide enhanced returns in electric cooperative markets and beyond. The Company is currently pursuing projects with cooperatives in 26 states and expects this end market to represent a significant component of its FTM business.
Outlook
The Company reaffirms its guidance of full-year 2021 revenue of $147 million and full-year 2021 Adjusted EBITDA of $(25) million. Consistent with prior guidance, the Company reaffirms that it expects to recognize 20-30% of total 2021 revenue in Q3, and 50-60% of total 2021 revenue in Q4.
The Company believes that it has contracted for sufficient supply chain commitments to meet its 2021 revenue goal and will continue to diversify its supply chain, adopt alternative technologies, and deploy its balance sheet to meet the significant growth in customer demand.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
In addition to financial results determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), we use the following non-GAAP financial measures: non-GAAP gross margin and Adjusted EBITDA. The presentation of this financial information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for, or superior to, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP. See “Reconciliations of non-GAAP Financial Measures” on page 9 of this release. We use these non-GAAP financial measures for financial and operational decision making and as a means to evaluate our operating performance and future prospects, develop internal budgets and financial goals, and to facilitate period-to-period comparisons. Our management believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide meaningful supplemental information regarding our performance and liquidity by excluding certain expenses and expenditures that may not be indicative of our operating performance, such as stock-based compensation and other non-cash charges, as well as discrete cash charges that are infrequent in nature. We believe that both management and investors benefit from referring to these non-GAAP financial measures in assessing our performance and when planning, forecasting, and analyzing future periods. These non-GAAP financial measures also facilitate management’s internal comparisons to our historical performance and liquidity as well as comparisons to our competitors’ operating results. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures are useful to investors both because they (1) allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by management in its financial and operational decision making and (2) are used by our institutional investors and the analyst community to help them analyze the health of our business.
We define Adjusted EBITDA as net loss before depreciation and amortization, including amortization of internally developed software, net interest expense, further adjusted to exclude stock-based compensation and other income and expense items, including the change in fair value of warrants and embedded derivatives.
We define non-GAAP gross margin as gross margin excluding amortization of capitalized software, impairments related to decommissioning of end-of-life systems, and adjustments to reclassify data communication and cloud production expenses to operating expenses.
About Stem, Inc.
Stem Inc. (NYSE: STEM) provides solutions that address the challenges of today’s dynamic energy market. By combining advanced energy storage solutions with Athena®, a world-class AI-powered analytics platform, Stem enables customers and partners to optimize energy use by automatically switching between battery power, onsite generation and grid power. Stem’s solutions help enterprise customers benefit from a clean, adaptive energy infrastructure and achieve a wide variety of goals, including expense reduction, resilience, sustainability, environmental and corporate responsibility and innovation. Stem also offers full support for solar partners interested in adding storage to standalone, community or commercial solar projects – both behind and in front of the meter.
For more information, visit www.stem.com.
Notes
Stem will hold a conference call to discuss this earnings press release and business outlook on Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The conference call may be accessed via a live webcast on a listen-only basis on the Events & Presentations page of the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at https://investors.stem.com/events-and-presentations. The call can also be accessed live over the telephone by dialing 877-705-6003, or for international callers, 201-493-6725 and referencing Stem. A replay of the webcast will be available shortly after the call on the Events & Presentations page in the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website and will remain available for approximately one month.
Forward-Looking Statements
This second-quarter 2021 earnings release, as well as other statements we make, contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws, which include any statements that are not historical facts. Such statements often contain words such as “expect,” “may,” “can,” “believe,” “predict,” “plan,” “potential,” “projected,” “projections,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “ambition,” “goal,” “target,” “think,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “will,” “hope,” “see,” “likely,” and other similar words. Forward-looking statements address matters that are, to varying degrees, uncertain, such as the reduction of greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions; the integration and optimization of energy resources; the business strategies of Stem and those of its customers; the global commitment to decarbonization; our ability to retain or upgrade current customers, further penetrate existing markets or expand into new markets; our ability to manage our supply chains and distribution channels and the impact of natural disasters and other events beyond our control, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Delta variant; and future results of operations. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by Stem and its management, depend upon inherently uncertain factors and risks that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations, including our inability to help reduce GHG emissions; our inability to seamlessly integrate and optimize energy resources; our inability to achieve our financial and performance targets and other forecasts and expectations; our inability to recognize the anticipated benefits of our recent business combination with Star Peak Energy Transition Corp. (“Star Peak”); our ability to grow and manage growth profitably; risks relating to the development and performance of our energy storage systems and software-enabled services; the risk that the global commitment to decarbonization may not materialize as we predict, or even if it does, that we might not be able to benefit therefrom; our inability to retain or upgrade current customers, further penetrate existing markets or expand into new markets; our inability to secure sufficient inventory from our suppliers to meet customer demand, and provide us with contracted quantities of equipment; supply chain interruptions and manufacturing or delivery delays; disruptions in sales, production, service or other business activities; our inability to attract and retain qualified personnel; the risk that our business, financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected by other political, economic, business and competitive factors; and other risks and uncertainties set forth in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in the registration statement on Form S-1 filed with the SEC on July 19, 2021, and our most recent Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K filed with or furnished to the SEC. If one or more of these or other risks or uncertainties materialize (or the consequences of any such development changes), or should our underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual outcomes may vary materially from those reflected in our forward-looking statements. Statements in this second-quarter 2021 press release are made as of the date of this release, and Stem disclaims any intention or obligation to update publicly or revise such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Source: Stem, Inc.
STEM, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(UNAUDITED)
(in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
June 30, 2021
December 31, 2020
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
$
474,138
$
6,942
Accounts receivable, net
17,833
13,572
Inventory, net
27,167
20,843
Other current assets (includes $206 and $123 due from related parties as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively)
19,199
7,920
Total current assets
538,337
49,277
Energy storage systems, net
118,216
123,703
Contract origination costs, net
11,668
10,404
Goodwill
1,786
1,739
Intangible assets, net
12,387
12,087
Other noncurrent assets
15,945
8,640
Total assets
$
698,339
$
205,850
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY (DEFICIT)
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable
$
17,798
$
13,749
Accrued liabilities
9,177
16,072
Accrued payroll
4,565
5,976
Notes payable, current portion
—
33,683
Convertible promissory notes (includes $— and $45,271 due to related parties as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively)
—
67,590
Financing obligation, current
15,336
14,914
Deferred revenue, current
37,056
36,942
Other current liabilities (includes $880 and $399 due to related parties as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively)
1,910
1,589
Total current liabilities
85,842
190,515
Deferred revenue, noncurrent
18,648
15,468
Asset retirement obligation
4,178
4,137
Notes payable, noncurrent
1,719
4,612
Financing obligation, noncurrent
74,496
73,128
Warrant liabilities
303,798
95,342
Lease liability, noncurrent
880
57
Total liabilities
489,561
383,259
Commitments and contingencies (Note 13)
Stockholders’ equity (deficit):
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively; 0 shares issued and outstanding as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020
—
—
Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 500,000,000 shares authorized as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020; 130,418,055 and 40,202,785 issued and outstanding as of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively
13
4
Additional paid-in capital
799,918
230,620
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
(543
)
(192
)
Accumulated deficit
(590,610
)
(407,841
)
Total stockholders’ equity (deficit)
208,778
(177,409
)
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity (deficit)
$
698,339
$
205,850
STEM, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(UNAUDITED)
(in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
Three Months Ended June 30,
Six Months Ended June 30,
2021
2020
2021
2020
Revenue
Services revenue
$
5,153
$
3,670
$
10,035
$
7,062
Hardware revenue
14,184
709
24,723
1,427
Total revenue
19,337
4,379
34,758
8,489
Cost of revenue
Cost of service revenue
5,809
5,510
12,715
10,255
Cost of hardware revenue
13,655
614
22,286
1,365
Total cost of revenue
19,464
6,124
35,001
11,620
Gross margin
(127
)
(1,745
)
(243
)
(3,131
)
Operating expenses:
Sales and marketing
3,913
4,242
6,580
8,646
Research and development
4,827
3,619
9,234
7,032
General and administrative
15,014
2,404
17,706
5,383
Total operating expenses
23,754
10,265
33,520
21,061
Loss from operations
(23,881
)
(12,010
)
(33,763
)
(24,192
)
Other income (expense), net:
Interest expense
(3,929
)
(5,192
)
(10,162
)
(9,561
)
Loss on extinguishment of debt
(5,064
)
—
(5,064
)
—
Change in fair value of warrants and embedded derivative
(67,179
)
(1,918
)
(133,577
)
(909
)
Other income (expenses), net
(163
)
139
(203
)
(1,790
)
Total other income (expense)
(76,335
)
(6,971
)
(149,006
)
(12,260
)
Loss before income taxes
(100,216
)
(18,981
)
(182,769
)
(36,452
)
Income tax expense
—
—
—
—
Net loss
$
(100,216
)
$
(18,981
)
$
(182,769
)
$
(36,452
)
Net loss per share attributable to common shareholders, basic and diluted
$
(1.00
)
$
(0.48
)
$
(2.59
)
$
(1.14
)
Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per share, basic and diluted
100,611,965
39,801,379
70,684,750
40,209,877
STEM, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(UNAUDITED)
(in thousands)
Six Months Ended June 30,
2021
2020
OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net loss
$
(182,769
)
$
(36,452
)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization expense
10,315
7,918
Non-cash interest expense, including interest expenses associated with debt issuance costs
7,119
4,570
Stock-based compensation
1,784
932
Change in fair value of warrant liability and embedded derivative
133,577
909
Noncash lease expense
334
286
Accretion expense
112
160
Impairment of energy storage systems
1,275
947
Issuance of warrants for services
9,183
—
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable
(4,219
)
2,212
Inventory
(6,323
)
(6,340
)
Other assets
(16,924
)
(2,691
)
Contract origination costs
(1,650
)
(1,383
)
Accounts payable and accrued expenses
3,292
412
Deferred revenue
3,294
12,308
Lease liabilities
(289
)
(310
)
Other liabilities
56
25
Net cash used in operating activities
(41,833
)
(16,497
)
INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Purchase of energy storage systems
(5,603
)
(7,555
)
Capital expenditures on internally-developed software
(2,693
)
(2,628
)
Purchase of property and equipment
(300
)
—
Net cash used in investing activities
(8,596
)
(10,183
)
FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Proceeds from exercise of stock options and warrants
2,933
54
Net contributions from Merger and PIPE financing, net of transaction costs of $58,061
550,322
—
Proceeds from financing obligations
4,929
8,391
Repayment of financing obligations
(4,609
)
(4,267
)
Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes, net of issuance costs of $8 and $911 for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively
1,118
14,050
Proceeds from issuance of notes payable, net of issuance costs of $101 and $1,502 for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively
3,940
23,498
Repayment of notes payable
(41,446
)
(19,665
)
Net cash provided by financing activities
517,187
22,061
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents
438
(176
)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents
467,196
(4,795
)
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period
6,942
12,889
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period
$
474,138
$
8,094
STEM, INC.
RECONCILIATIONS OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
(unaudited)
The following table provides a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA:
Three Months Ended June 30,
Six Months Ended June 30,
2021
2020
2021
2020
(in thousands)
(in thousands)
Net loss
$
(100,216
)
$
(18,981
)
$
(182,769
)
$
(36,452
)
Adjusted to exclude the following:
Depreciation and amortization
5,236
3,924
10,315
7,918
Interest expense
3,929
5,192
10,162
9,561
Loss on extinguishment of debt
5,064
—
5,064
—
Stock-based compensation
1,024
476
1,784
932
Vesting of warrants
9,184
—
9,184
—
Change in fair value of warrants and embedded derivative
67,179
1,918
133,577
909
Provision for income taxes
—
—
—
—
Adjusted EBITDA
$
(8,600
)
$
(7,471
)
$
(12,683
)
$
(17,132
)
Adjusted EBITDA as used in connection with the Company’s 2021 outlook is a non-GAAP financial measure that excludes or has otherwise been adjusted for items impacting comparability. The Company is unable to reconcile Adjusted EBITDA to net loss, its most directly comparable forward-looking GAAP financial measure, without unreasonable efforts, because the Company is currently unable to predict with a reasonable degree of certainty its change in fair value of warrants expense for 2021. In addition, the Company may incur additional expenses that may affect Adjusted EBITDA, such as stock-based compensation expense and other items. The unavailable information could have a significant effect on the Company’s full year 2021 GAAP financial results.
The following table provides a reconciliation of gross margin (GAAP) to non-GAAP gross margin:
$ millions, unless otherwise noted
Three Months Ended
June 30,
2021
2020
Revenue
$19.3
$4.4
Cost of Goods Sold
($19.4)
($6.1)
Gross Margin (GAAP)
($0.1)
($1.7)
Gross Margin (GAAP) (%)
-1%
-40%
Adjustments to Gross Margin
Amortization of Capitalized Software
$1.3
$0.9
Impairments of Storage Systems
$0.3
$1.1
Other Adjustments(1)
$0.6
($0.1)
Non-GAAP Gross Margin
$2.1
$0.2
Non-GAAP Gross Margin (%)
11%
5%
(1) Consists of certain operating expenses including communication and cloud service expenditures reclassified to cost of revenue.
Key Definitions:
Item
Definition
12-Month Pipeline
Total value of uncontracted, potential hardware and software revenue from opportunities currently in process by Stem direct salesforce and channel partners which have a reasonable likelihood of contract execution within 12 months
Gross Pipeline
Total value of uncontracted, potential hardware and software revenue from opportunities currently in process by Stem direct salesforce and channel partners
Bookings
Total value of executed customer agreements, as measured during a given period (e.g. quarterly booking or annual booking)
Contracted Backlog
Total value of bookings in dollars, as reflected on a specific date
Contracted AUM
Total MWh of systems in operation or under contract
Netflix (NFLX) stock slid as much as 9.6% Friday after the company gave a second quarter revenue forecast that missed estimates and announced it would stop reporting quarterly subscriber metrics closely watched by Wall Street.
On Thursday, Netflix guided to second quarter revenue of $9.49 billion, a miss compared to consensus estimates of $9.51 billion.
The company said it will stop reporting quarterly membership numbers starting next year, along with average revenue per member, or ARM.
“As we’ve evolved our pricing and plans from a single to multiple tiers with different price points depending on the country, each incremental paid membership has a very different business impact,” the company said.
Netflix reported first quarter earnings that beat across the board on Thursday, with another 9 million-plus subscribers added in the quarter.
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Subscriber additions of 9.3 million beat expectations of 4.8 million and followed the 13 million net additions the streamer added in the fourth quarter. The company added 1.7 million paying users in Q1 2023.
Revenue beat Bloomberg consensus estimates of $9.27 billion to hit $9.37 billion in the quarter, an increase of 14.8% compared to the same period last year as the streamer leaned on revenue initiatives like its crackdown on password-sharing and ad-supported tier, in addition to the recent price hikes on certain subscription plans.
Netflix’s stock has been on a tear in recent months, with shares currently trading near the high end of its 52-week range. Wall Street analysts had warned that high expectations heading into the print could serve as an inherent risk to the stock price.
Earnings per share (EPS) beat estimates in the quarter, with the company reporting EPS of $5.28, well above consensus expectations of $4.52 and nearly double the $2.88 EPS figure it reported in the year-ago period. Netflix guided to second quarter EPS of $4.68, ahead of consensus calls for $4.54.
Profitability metrics also came in strong, with operating margins sitting at 28.1% for the first quarter compared to 21% in the same period last year.
The company previously guided to full-year 2024 operating margins of 24% after the metric grew to 21% from 18% in 2023. Netflix expects margins to tick down slightly in Q2 to 26.6%.
Free cash flow came in at $2.14 billion in the quarter, above consensus calls of $1.9 billion.
Meanwhile, ARM ticked up 1% year over year — matching the fourth quarter results. Wall Street analysts expect ARM to pick up later this year as both the ad-tier impact and price hike effects take hold.
On the ads front, ad-tier memberships increased 65% quarter over quarter after rising nearly 70% sequentially in Q3 2023 and Q4 2023. The ads plan now accounts for over 40% of all Netflix sign-ups in the markets it’s offered in.
Netflix reported first quarter earnings after the bell on Thursday. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File Photo (REUTERS / Reuters)
Alexandra Canal is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X @allie_canal, LinkedIn, and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com.
Oil prices initially spiked on Friday due to unconfirmed reports of an Israeli missile strike on Iran.
Prices briefly reached above $90 per barrel before falling back as Iran denied the attack.
Iranian media reported activating their air defense systems, not an Israeli strike.
Oil prices gave up nearly all of early Friday’s gains after an Iranian official told Reuters that there hadn’t been a missile attack against Iran.
Oil surged by as much as $3 per barrel in Asian trade early on Friday after a U.S. official told ABC News today that Israel launched missile strikes against Iran in the early morning hours today. After briefly spiking to above $90 per barrel early on Friday in Asian trade, Brent fell back to $87.10 per barrel in the morning in Europe.
The news was later confirmed by Iranian media, which said the country’s air defense system took down three drones over the city of Isfahan, according to Al Jazeera. Flights to three cities including Tehran and Isfahan were suspended, Iranian media also reported.
Israel’s retaliation for Iran’s missile strikes last week was seen by most as a guarantee of escalation of the Middle East conflict since Iran had warned Tel Aviv that if it retaliates, so will Tehran in its turn and that retaliation would be on a greater scale than the missile strikes from last week. These developments were naturally seen as strongly bullish for oil prices.
However, hours after unconfirmed reports of an Israeli attack first emerged, Reuters quoted an Iranian official as saying that there was no missile strike carried out against Iran. The explosions that were heard in the large Iranian city of Isfahan were the result of the activation of the air defense systems of Iran, the official told Reuters.
Overall, Iran appears to downplay the event, with most official comments and news reports not mentioning Israel, Reuters notes.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that “there is no damage to Iran’s nuclear sites,” confirming Iranian reports on the matter.
The Isfahan province is home to Iran’s nuclear site for uranium enrichment.
“Brent briefly soared back above $90 before reversing lower after Iranian media downplayed a retaliatory strike by Israel,” Saxo Bank said in a Friday note.
The $5 a barrel trading range in oil prices over the past week has been driven by traders attempting to “quantify the level of risk premium needed to reflect heightened tensions but with no impact on supply,” the bank said, adding “Expect prices to bid ahead of the weekend.”
At the time of writing Brent was trading at $87.34 and WTI at $83.14.
Premier David Eby is warning real estate investors and speculators that his government is tilting the rules toward families seeking homes as it tightens the rules on short-term rentals.
Eby said Thursday that the rule changes on May 1 will limit short-term rental units to within the principal home of a host, but the move isn’t a ban on platforms such as Airbnb if they aren’t used to create de facto hotels from B.C.’s housing stock.
“If there’s a major event [such as a] Taylor Swift concert, a FIFA-like event and somebody wants to rent out their primary residence and go away for the weekend to avoid the crush of the crowds, they can still do that,” Eby said.
The changes were announced by the government last spring, giving those who own short-term rentals a year to conform.
Eby said the changes will allow both the province and local governments to crack down on speculators.
“If you’re flipping homes, if you’re buying places to do short-term rental, if you’re buying a home to leave it vacant, we have consistently, publicly, repeatedly sent the message: Do not compete with families and individuals that are looking for a place to live with your investment dollars.”
Eby made his comments as the province announced new figures gathered in March that showed more than 19,000 entire homes being listed as short-term rentals.
Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon said the new rules also require short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb to share listed property data with the province and local governments.
He said they expect a significant amount of the homes listed on short-term sites to be back in the long-term rental pool.
“Our view is even if half of those units were to come back onto the market, that is substantial,” Kahlon said. “The cost that it takes to build new housing, when you can get even half of the 19,000 back on the market, that’ll make a substantial difference in our communities.”
He said previous efforts to limit short-term rentals are increasing housing supply in some places.
“We’re seeing, already, in many communities that action happening,” Kahlon said. “We have heard many stories of people finding rentals now because of opportunities when it comes to short-term rentals coming onto the market.”
The new principal residence requirement for short-term rentals will allow local governments to request that a platform remove listings that don’t display a valid business licence.
Valid short-term rental hosts will also be required to display a business licence number on their listings if a licence is required by local government.
The new rules will apply to more than 60 B.C. communities, and Kahlon said a compliance enforcement unit will be phased in to help municipalities deal with rule violations.
Much of the monitoring and enforcement, however, will be conducted online through a new rental data portal that will allow local governments to track and request removal of listings from platforms.
“With this new digital portal, local governments will be able to upload, within moments, listings that they believe are operating illegally within their community,” Kahlon said.
The platform will have five days to remove listings that aren’t following the rules, and if they don’t, they will be fined, he said, noting there’s an up-to-$10,000-a-day-per-listing fine for platforms that don’t co-operate.
“We believe that’s enough of a deterrent for the platforms to co-operate with local governments,” said Kahlon
A website launched Thursday for hosts will allow them to get information about their requirements from the province and their municipality, and their responsibility to notify anyone that’s booked.
“Hosts and platforms have a responsibility to notify anyone that’s booking of all the changes that have been coming,” said Kahlon. “They’ve been notified about this since September or October when the legislation has come in, and they’ve had plenty of time to set up their policies to do that.”
The rules do include some exceptions, including some strata hotels and motels operating before last December being exempt if certain criteria are met.
Eby said the overall message to property investors looking for short-term gains is clear: Build homes that people need and government will do all it can to help expedite the process.
“But if you are standing neck and neck with a family that’s looking for a place to live, and you’re trying to do a speculative investment, [while] they’re looking for a place to live, we are going to tilt the deck every single time towards that family,” Eby said. “And we’re gonna keep doing it.”
Eby also said a positive side-effect of short-term rental regulation has been the re-emergence of hotel construction, with 1,400 rooms “in the development pipeline” in Vancouver.
“Those investors in those hotel rooms weren’t able to make the decision to proceed,” Eby said, citing the previous competition from short-term rentals. “Very clearly, with these regulations in place, there will be visitors to stay in hotel rooms, there will be a market for hotel rooms and they’re making the decision to proceed. This is very good news.”
Victoria-based Property Rights B.C. has filed a lawsuit against the province and city of Victoria to fight the new regulatory system.
It maintains the province overstepped its authority and its lawsuit is focused on preserving the rights to own and operate short-term vacation rentals. The organization is also seeking a delay in enforcement.
Asked about the lawsuit, Eby said he can’t comment on a matter that’s before the courts, “but what I can say is we’re very confident in the legal authority of the province to regulate the housing sector in this way and we’ll make the arguments that are needed in court to address that.”
More communities initially exempt from the province’s new regulations have opted in, including Gabriola Island, Mill Bay/Malahat, Cobble Hill, Cowichan Station/Sahtlam/Glenora, Cowichan Lake South/Skutz Falls, Saltair/Gulf Islands and North Oyster/Diamond. Tofino previously announced it would opt in.
Municipalities with fewer than 10,000 people, resort communities and regional districts are exempt from a requirement restricting short-term rentals to principal residences and either a secondary suite or laneway home/garden suite.
