Valvoline

Valvoline’s operating income from continuing operations was $61.2 million for the January-through-March period, which is Valvoline’s second quarter, 53% better than the same period a year earlier. Sales from continuing operations increased 16% to $344.5 million, while system-wide store sales climbed to almost $660 million, an 18% increase.

“The second quarter results were in line with our expectations, and we remain on track to meet our [full-year 2023] targets,” Valvoline CEO Sam Mitchell said in the company’s earnings release.

On March 1, Valvoline completed the sale of its Global Products business, which includes engine oil sales, to Saudi Aramco. The transaction generated $2.38 billion of net proceeds and an after-tax gain of $1.15 billion. That deal was first announced last August.

In light of the transaction, the company began excluding Global Products from its earnings reports last year, instead comparing performance by the remaining business to prior results for the same operations. The only segment remaining is its Retails Services business, which consists of its oil change centers in the United States and Canada.

Mitchell laid out the company’s new focus of growing system-wide store sales, increasing units through both company-operated and franchised additions, and evolving the service portfolio over time.

Moove

Moove, the lubricants arm of Brazil-based Cosan, increased its sales revenue but suffered a major net loss under special circumstances.

The Sao Paulo-based company said that Moove reported a consolidated net loss of 119.2 million reals (U.S. $24.1 million) in the first quarter, compared to a consolidated net income of 101.9 million reals for same period last year.

In total Cosan posted a consolidated net loss of 904.1 million reals in the quarter.

“[This is] mainly due to the recognition of the non-recurring effect of 1.5 billion reals referring to the exclusion of the Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services benefit in the Corporate Income Tax and Social Contribution on Net Income calculation basis, recorded at Comgas and Moove,” the company said.

“From the beginning of 2021, these companies concluded to recognize the payable tax credits in line with the opinion of their external legal advisors and based on all the prevailing jurisprudence at that time, starting to recognize the credits. In March 2022, the first panel of Superior Court of Justice reaffirmed the thesis on the non-incidence of IRPJ/ICSS on presumed ICMS credits. However, a month later in April 2022, the second panel of the STJ decided otherwise, unfavorable to taxpayers.

“Since then, we have reclassified the probability of loss from remote to possible, as disclosed in our financial statements since 2Q22. More recently at the end of April, there was a trial at the STJ with an unfavorable result for taxpayers. In view of this, the Company decided to set up a provision for the amount used – approximately 1.5 billion reals consolidated.”

Net revenue reached 2.6 billion reals, up 47%.

Total combined lubricant and base oil sales volume jumped 84% from 78,000 metric tons to 143,000 metric tons in the first quarter.

Cosan, a producer of sugar and ethanol products since 1936, expanded through acquisitions beginning in 2008 to become a distributor of fuels and lubricants. Moove produces and distributes products under the Mobil and Comma brands, with operations in Brazil and other countries in South America, Europe and the United States. It markets lubricants and other products for applications in the automotive and industrial segments and is an importer and distributor of base oils in the Brazilian market.

Perimeter Solutions

Clayton, Missouri-based Perimeter Solutions’ specialty products segment – formerly known as oil additives – reported that adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization decreased 58% to $6.5 million in the first quarter.

Net sales for the quarter also decreased to $25.1 million, a 36% drop.

“As expected, and as evidenced by our [first quarter 2023] results relative to our [fourth quarter 2022] results, end-market demand for our Specialty Products business improved sequentially, though it remained soft relative to normalized levels,” explained CEO Haitham Khouri.

Perimeter’s specialty products business manufactures and sells phosphorus pentasulfide, which is mainly used in preparation of lubricant additives, including zinc dialkyldithiophosphates that provide anti-wear protection to engine components. The company manufactures the chemical at plants in Sauget, Illinois, and Hurth, Germany.