Callouts & quotes from 844+ activist slides

"Unlike its peers, executive incentive compensation at HMA through 2012 has been based solely on EBITDA – with no focus on per share metrics or quality metrics"

"Pioneer Power stands out as Limbach’s lowest-margin acquisition, with EBITDA margins meaningfully below those of its prior targets and of the legacy business."

"Cutting advertising is a quick and easy way to boost EBITDA and unit economics as the full impact on unit sales lags the near instantaneous reduction in cost."

"We believe ADT's margins will continue to expand over time, as they have done steadily over the past 5 years, driving EBITDA growth in excess of the top-line"

"The 22x '23E EBITDA valuation ascribed to Evoqua and 25% share dilution was described as "crazy expensive" and "surprising" by a former high-level executive."

"The 22x '23E EBITDA valuation ascribed to Evoqua and 25% share dilution was described as "crazy expensive" and "surprising" by a former high-level executive."

"Assuming a 7x Forward EBITDA multiple, even if the recovery is protracted or prolonged, we believe we will earn an attractive IRR at the current share price"

"Trading at 15.4x TTM EV/EBITDA, VRNT shares appear to be valued at a ~35% discount to the space on a TTM EV/EBTIDA basis, against the peer median of 23.6x."

"“EBITDA levels are at a low point and [the Company expects] to see improvements with revenue growth in 2015...” — Yahoo! Management, Q3 2014 earnings call."

"We rate NOVA Overweight. At ~20 times CY21E EV/EBITDA, we think the multiple is attractive, set against an earnings growth rate of about 40%. — J.P. Morgan"

"The frackers insist they are “investing for growth”, which leads investors to ignore the GAAP financials in favor of non-traditional metrics like EBITDAX."

"Just growing in line with the market would mean revenues in 2027 would be JPY 30 billion and EBITDA nearly JPY 7 billion larger than under Kao's targets"

"Although Prestige Brands may appear cheap vs its peers on a P/E and EBITDA multiple basis, PBH trades at a premium to its operating cash flow and sales."

"Excluding the value of its stake in REA Group, News Corp is valued at just 4x EBITDA, compared to The New York Times Company at greater than 15x EBITDA."

"Just growing in line with the market would mean revenues in 2027 would be JPY 30 billion and EBITDA nearly JPY 7 billion larger than under Kao's targets"

"We are not going to run for EBITDA per ton, we're going to run for total EBITDA out of this business. — Roy Harvey, CEO, Alcoa Corp., February 28, 2017"

"The Company believed that it would nearly double Adjusted EBITDA in the Textile Effects business and raise Adjusted EBITDA margins into the mid-teens."

"While this contribution margin analysis implies $230mm of incremental EBITDA, we believe the actual number will be somewhere between $100mm and $230mm"

"We evaluated the Entity's ability to accurately forecast EBITDA by comparing actual results to historical EBITDA forecasts — KPMG (2022 Annual Report)"

"GoDaddy expects to generate 7% revenue growth and 28% Adj. EBITDA margins in Q4'23E as growth headwinds abate and operating leverage improves margins"

"GoDaddy expects to generate 7% revenue growth and 28% Adj. EBITDA margins in Q4'23E as growth headwinds abate and operating leverage improves margins"

"AT&T and T-Mobile tower portfolios traded for premium multiples in excess of 21.0x EV / EBITDA, in comparison to CCI's recent multiple of only 17.3x"

"In Bristol-Myers base case projections for Celgene’s pipeline products, Adjusted EBITDA is negative for the first SIX years of the forecasted period"

"Ancora estimates the combined company will have improved EBITDA margins and free cash flow generation which should lead to a re-rating in valuation."

"Even though costs have been cut to end the cash burn, Peloton still achieves basically zero adjusted EBITDA versus the peer median of $406 million."

"While Saputo does not disclose profitability or Adjusted EBITDA for its Australian business, but claimed in 2018 it would be at respectable levels."

"AOL's CEO and CFO total cash compensation as a percentage of EBITDA of 1.7% is significantly higher than the Independent Peer Group median of 1.0%."

""when it was publicly traded back in the early part of the decade at ~6x NTM EV/EBITDA it was not viewed as the highest quality asset." — Jefferies"

"“AOL's actual total cash compensation is high as a percentage of EBITDA in relation to peers.” — A leading independent compensation consulting firm"

"If PowerSchool capitalized software development costs at the industry average of 3.7%, that would lead to a $23 million difference in Adj. EBITDA."

"All told, Reese’s trades at 30% of 2024 sales, 2.4x EBITDA and 4.8x EBIT, making it arguably the lowest multiple auto parts supplier in the world."

"Why would Perion reward the selling management team with destroying 440 basis points of margin and not incentivize them to increase EBITDA margin?"

"FTAI’s Leasing Segment Assumes a Material Portion of Aerospace Products’ COGS, Which Explains the ~1,000bps Discrepancy in EBITDA Margins Vs Peers"

"“...And actually, the -- both the growth and the EBITDA profile for SchoolMessenger is actually very similar to PowerSchool.” — 2Q23 Earnings Call"

"Generac's goals are heavily tied to EBITDA over actual cash flow. In fact, even the 25% “Individual Performance Goals” references back to EBITDA."

"Spruce Point believes EBITDA does not accurately reflect Sunnova's financial performance and paints an overly optimistic picture of the business."

"Actual FY 2020 Adjusted EBITDA was 6% below threshold, which should have resulted in NO annual cash bonus payment if targets had not been revised"

"Actual FY 2020 Adjusted EBITDA was 6% below threshold, which should have resulted in NO annual cash bonus payment if targets had not been revised"

"Wall Street analysts estimated Adjusted EBITDA would be 30% BELOW the Company's initial 2018 Investor Day target even before the global pandemic."

"“Did BP just implicitly downgrade its 2025 targets? We think BP may be preparing to formally drop its 2025 EBITDA target.” — HSBC Global Research"

"Our one-year price target of $68 is based on a blended rate of 29.9x EV/EBITDA multiple of our FY20 EBITDA estimate of $123mn. — Imperial Capital"

"After the drops, MPLX will still deliver 8% EBITDA growth... leading to 8% growth in distributable cash flow and 12% growth in GP distributions."

"If Riot can monetize its power in-line with recent precedent transactions, we believe it could generate more than $1.6 billion of annual EBITDA."

"Take two hypothetical identical mills – 500ktpa capacity; $50 million in maintenance capex, one focused on EBITDA/MT, one focused on utilization"

"Assuming a 9.0x EV/EBITDA normalized valuation, the implied equity would be in the NZD183m-230m range equivalent to NZD 0.37-0.47 per RBC share."

"After this transaction, Pro Forma McDonald's would be leveraged approximately 3.5x Total Debt/EBITDA or at a 25% Debt to Enterprise Value ratio."

"At the 2018 Investor Day, Huntsman committed to 10% organic Adjusted EBITDA growth with “no additional M&A” through 2020. — Huntsman Corporation"

"Note that the EBITDA margin is so high because of Site Sharing's abnormally high rents, which were apparently up to 3.0x market on some towers."

"If we right-size the cost structure to the benchmark, there should be $400 - $500 million of EBITDA from the current subscription revenue base."

"The Company’s financial condition was deteriorating significantly with Net Debt / EBITDA > 10x and EBITDA interest coverage hovering around 1x."

"European auto parts suppliers look very similar, but a little cheaper. Again half of sales, but more like 4x EBITDA, 7.5x EBIT and 7x earnings."

"If met coal prices went to $300, Teck would generate over $1 billion Canadian dollars of incremental EBITDA each quarter vs. analyst estimates."

"We estimate fair value using an equally weighted combination of discounted cash flows and multiples of revenue and EBITDA. — 2014 Annual Report"

"We believe that significant cost savings opportunities exist across various functional areas at Bristol-Myers to substantially improve EBITDA."

"We believe REITs trade in the range of 13x-17x EV/'06E EBITDA, depending on the type of real estate and the businesses the properties support."

"Garcia stated the company could cover interest expense assuming “long-term EBITDA targets even at today’s units.” — Carvana 3Q22 earnings call"

"The Company is promising to improve Adjusted EBITDA margins to 18 – 20% and consistently deliver an Adjusted EBITDA to FCF Conversion of >40%"

"We believe EBITDA is the incorrect metric for the Company and estimated customer value is calculated with numerous unpredictable assumptions."

"Set forth herein is a table which details our assumptions regarding average unit level 4-Wall EBITDA margins for McOpCo and U.S. Franchisees."

"The Company is promising to improve Adjusted EBITDA margins to 18 – 20% and consistently deliver an Adjusted EBITDA to FCF Conversion of >40%"