Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I N O. X I M AY 1 8 , 2 0 2 0 6 Judge: Voters can decide on CMP corridor A public vote that could block plans by Central Maine Power Co. for a 150-mile electricity transmission line will appear on November ballots, the state's Supreme Judicial Court ruled. e court denied an appeal of a Superior Court judgement finding that the state's certification of the petition for the vote was valid. A group of opponents to the planned $1 billion project had petitioned Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap to hold a vote that could disap- prove the project. In March, Dunlap certified that the group, No CMP Corridor, had delivered enough valid signatures to create the referendum. But the certification prompted some supporters of the New England Clean Energy Corridor to disqualify the petition. Most recently, they asked Kennebec County Superior Court Justice Michaela Murphy to overturn Dunlap's certification, claiming some of the 69,714 approved signatures were invalid because notaries involved had participated in other No CMP Corridor activi- ties. In April, Murphy found there was a "competent record" to support Dunlap's certification, and Maine's highest court agreed. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King announced Wabanaki Health and Wellness in Bangor received $500,000 from the Department of Health & Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E Honesty, integrity and mutual respect are the values that guide us. Stephen Dumont, VP CONTACT (207) 490-5900 www.tpdconstruction.com York Hospital Care Center, Sanford CO N S T RU C T I O N M A N A G EM EN T s D E S I G N / B U I L D s G EN ER A L CO N T R A C T I N G With disruptions to customers and earnings, WEX scales back growth plans B y R e n e e C o r d e s P O R T L A N D — WEX Inc. (NYSE: WEX), a Portland-based provider of corporate payment solutions to the fleet, travel and healthcare sectors, posted first-quarter earnings that fell below expectations. It also pulled out of two acquisitions with a combined $1.7 billion price tag, a first for the company, which also announced steps to cut costs and control capital expenditures. Earnings per diluted share in the quarter ended March 31 were $1.81, up 5% from a year ago but falling short of market expectations. Analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research had projected earnings of $2.05 a share. Fourth-quarter revenues were 13% higher over last year at $431.7 million, exceeding the Zacks consensus forecast of $425.64 million. The reported revenue was also at the lower end of WEX's expected range. Melissa Smith, WEX's chair and CEO, told Mainebiz in a phone interview that she sees the growth continuing in the company's health and employee benefits division, noting it now accounts for 25% of revenues. "It's a diversification play that we had a number of years ago that has created a lot of stability for the organization," she said. Citing the effects of the novel coronavirus, WEX announced precautionary steps including pulling the plug on the acqui- sitions of eNett, a Singapore-based provider of business- to-business payment solutions to the travel industry, and Melbourne, Australia-based B2B payment provider Optal. Both deals were unveiled in January and were expected to cost WEX $1.7 billion in cash and stock. Shares of WEX stock have been down 35% from early February, compared with an 11% drop for the Standard & Poor's 500. The news came less than a month after WEX announced plans to trim its U.S. workforce by 2% and put another 3% on temporary furlough. Smith told Mainebiz that the company anticipates bringing back all 117 U.S. furloughed employees by early August, and that it is in the process of taking voluntary actions in other markets. Exact steps depend on what's happening in each coun- try in regard to COVID-19, she told Mainebiz by phone. WEX employs about 5,000 people worldwide. "Each country has had different reactions to COVID-19," she said. "And so we have been going through our offices around the world, and to the extent that we're taking any actions, we're doing it very thoughtful of whatever the regulations are." Refocusing spending priorities The company also said it had taken a series of actions to pro- tect its financial flexibility, including pay cuts for the board and executive officers and refocusing capital allocation priorities. In the recent earnings release, Smith said that WEX is "managing the com- pany for the long term and keeping our strategic pil- lars in mind so that we are well-positioned for when the economy recovers." Of the steps announced, she said, "This combination allows us to navigate times like this without sacrificing our commitment to long-term sustainable growth. We have established a strong platform that is more resilient and diversified than ever before. While there is uncertainty in the near term, I am confident WEX will emerge a stronger business when conditions improve." She told analysts in a conference that the company will continue to invest in all parts of the business, but at a slower pace due to the pandemic, and said it had not taken the deci- sion lightly to walk away from the two acquisitions that WEX is not required to close, a first for the company. B R I E F P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F W E X WEX's WEX's headquarters in Portland is currently headquarters in Portland is currently empty as employees work from home. empty as employees work from home. [WEX is] managing the company for the long term ... — Melissa Smith WEX Inc.

• Cover