Textainer Group Holdings, a lessor of intermodal containers, reported Q2/18 total revenues of $140.7 million, a $21.5 million or 18.0% increase from Q2/17. Lease rental income of $121.6 million for the quarter was up $12.8 million or 11.8% from Q2/17 and was sixth consecutive quarter of growth.

The following highlights were excerpted from the news release:

• Utilization averaged 97.9% for the quarter and is currently at 97.9%, an improvement of 160 basis points from the average in Q2/17
• Issued $259 million, seven-year fixed rate asset backed notes, increasing its ratio of fixed rate debt to 76% of total debt outstanding
• New container investments totaling $700 million ordered and/or received year-to-date.

“The second quarter produced continued growth and financial performance improvement as expected. Total revenues increased 18% over the comparable quarter in 2017 driven by the positive momentum from favorable market conditions and our strong capex,” stated Philip K. Brewer, president and chief executive officer of Textainer Group Holdings.

“We saw a significant surge in lease-outs, starting late June and continuing throughout July, associated with the traditional peak season increase in demand. The steady investments in new containers during the first and second quarters positioned us well to benefit from this surge. Over the past two months, our customers picked up more than 110 thousand TEU, yielding a lease-out to turn-in ratio of 2.5 to 1. The associated revenue will be fully reflected in our third quarter results.

“We have ordered and/or received delivery of 360 thousand TEU totaling $700 million in 2018. New container prices remain stable at approximately $2,200/CEU. Depot inventory remains at historically low levels and we continue to place new orders to replenish lease-outs of our factory inventory.”