ABM Industries, Inc. (NYSE:ABM) stock rose 2.45% (As on Dec 16, 12:51:47 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company posted better than expected results for the fourth quarter of FY 21. The strong revenue growth in the fourth quarter was driven by one month of contribution from Able, as well as organic growth in our B&I, Aviation and Technical Solutions verticals, which more than offset a modest decline in our Education segment. The overall demand for the higher margin work orders and EnhancedClean services eased as the year progressed, yet the company maintained elevated in the fourth quarter compared to pre-pandemic levels. Going forward, the company expects that ongoing concerns around COVID-19 variance will lead to incremental opportunities for the disinfection services, providing support for the adjusted EBITDA margins exceeding 6% in fiscal 2022. On an adjusted basis, fourth quarter income from continuing operations grew 25% to $58.2 million compared to $46.7 million in the fourth quarter of last year.

ABM in the fourth quarter of FY 21 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of 85 cents, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share by 6.3%, according to the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The increase in adjusted EPS reflects revenue growth and a benefit from the absence of a reserve for notes receivable related to a single project within the company’s Technical Solutions segment recorded last year, partially offset by reduced labor efficiencies and disinfection work. The company had reported the adjusted revenue growth of 14 percent to $1.69 billion in the fourth quarter of FY 21, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue by 4.7%.

Moreover, B&I revenue increased 17.5% year-over-year to $933 million, driven primarily by a one-month contribution from Able Services, increased office occupancy and the expansion of key accounts. Aviation revenue increased 43% to $201.7 million, marking the second consecutive quarter of robust year-over-year revenue growth. This improvement was driven largely by increased airline passenger volume and the expansion of our airport parking operations. Aviation operating profit increased to $13.2 million, compared to $3.5 million in last year’s fourth quarter, driven by the significant rebound in revenue as well as our efforts to emphasize higher margin airport facility services. Revenue within the Technology & Manufacturing segment was essentially flat year-over-year at $245.5 million, as new business starts were offset by reduced client demand for COVID related work orders and EnhancedClean. Education revenue declined 3.7% to $204.4 million, largely reflecting the timing of contract rebids.