When American Traffic Solutions (ATS) merged with a toll road firm to become Verra Mobility last year, it incurred heavy losses. The newly combined entity reported a loss of $58 million last year, largely as a result of merger-related expenses and the cost of financing $1 billion in debt. The firm on Thursday reported that it made $2.8 million in the last quarter, marking a return to profitability for the Arizona-based tolling and ticketing firm.

The red light camera and speed camera division of Verra Mobility did suffer a setback, losing $1.1 million in revenue compared to the previous quarter after Miami, Florida, decided to stop using red light cameras. A Miami-Dade County judge in November ruled that the way photo ticketing was handled in South Florida violated state law (view ruling). Miami's mayor had pulled the plug on the last red light camera on March 2, 2018. In other jurisdictions, the company also had to lower its prices to retain red light camera contracts when they came up for renewal.

"We believe that red light will be a stable product but we do not expect meaningful growth in the future," the company admitted in its quarterly filing. "Speed programs which make up 26 percent of service revenue, grew approximately $0.9 million year over year due to increases in the total number of camera systems installed and higher average pricing."

Toll road revenue, by contrast, grew a more robust 22 percent over the same period, driving the firm's bottom line into positive territory. For the good financial performance, CEO David Roberts rewarded himself with $20,261,326 in compensation last year. Chief Financial Officer Patricia Chiodo took home $10,053,849. Executive Vice President Jonathan Routledge, who left at the beginning of the year, walked away with $6,057,126.

The company will hold its annual meeting at 1150 North Alma School Road in Mesa, Arizona at 9am on June 25. Shareholders will vote to fill two seats on the board of directors, a position that comes with compensation of about $110,000 per year.

While the quarterly filing was profitable, Verra Mobility's total liabilities increased $18 million to a total of $1,060,791,000 in debt.