Interim report January - June 2017
Continued strong sales growth and increased profitability
Second quarter
- Net sales amounted to 196.3 MSEK (162.9), which is an increase by 20.5 percent compared to the corresponding quarter last year. At comparable exchange rates net sales increased by 15.9 percent.
- Operating profit increased by 54 percent to 37.2 MSEK (24.2).
- Result after tax increased by 52 percent to 37.7 MSEK (24.7).
- Earnings per share amounted to 0.58 SEK (0.38).
- The cash flow from operating activities amounted to 43.1 MSEK (29.1).
- Dividends to the shareholders were paid to the amount of 80.9 MSEK (80.9).
- Net cash at June 30 amounted to 101.6 MSEK (99.6), compared to 152.1 MSEK at March 31 and 128.6 at the start of the year.
- At the end of the reported period Biotage had no holding of own shares. No shares have been acquired under the repurchasing program resolved at the 2017 Annual General Meeting.
Six months, January – June
- Net sales amounted to 381.5 MSEK (321.7), which is an increase by 18.6 percent compared to the corresponding period last year. At comparable exchange rates net sales increased by 14.0 percent.
- Operating profit increased by 51 percent to 72.1 MSEK (47.8).
- Result after tax increased by 53 percent to 73.0 MSEK (47.6).
- Earnings per share amounted to 1.13 SEK (0.74).
- The cash flow from operating activities amounted to 72.2 MSEK (65.9).
Comments by CEO Torben Jörgensen
The sales successes of Biotage continue with yet another record quarter. At comparable exchange rates, sales in the quarter and the half-year increased by 15.9 and 14.0 percent, respectively, which is considerably higher than the average for our markets. The gross margin for the quarter as well as for the six-month period exceeds our strategic 60 percent goal. Higher sales in relation to the fixed cost base contribute significantly to the improved margin. The operating margin (EBIT) is 18.9 percent for the quarter as well as for the half-year, and averages 13.9 percent for the last three years.
All our product areas are growing. This quarter we saw especially strong sales in the product areas peptide synthesis, evaporation systems and industrial products. The combination of good system solutions and media for flash purification makes Biotage an attractive partner in the peptide area. For industrial products the sales of systems as well as consumables are increasing and we note that our products are used in a number of new projects among customers in the pharma industry. Also the system sales in organic synthesis are developing well.
All geographies show double digit growth in the quarter as well as in the six-month period. Asia is the area showing the strongest growth. Above all South Korea develops strongly, but also Japan had a good quarter. The sales successes are benefiting from the increased direct sales. The latest investments in South Korea and China are good examples of this. The direct sales will now be expanded to Italy, where we from July will be selling out entire product range through our own organization. Our evaluation of the sales strategy for India is now nearing completion and we expect to be operative with our own company in India in 2018. We are using the same approach as in South Korea and China with a combination of direct sales and local distributors.
The increasing sales put higher demands on and enable a more efficient production. Great efficiency improvements have been implemented at the plant in Cardiff, Wales, among other things through increased automation. The increased production volumes motivate investments in the production and in the later part of 2017 the production space in Cardiff will be expanded. Access to the new premises enables further automation of the production.
The strong sales growth in China is primarily related to systems. In order to better meet the price competition on consumables we have now introduced a locally adapted line of consumables for flash purification. If the locally produced raw material can maintain an even, if not high, quality there is a possibility to introduce these consumables also in other markets.
At the end of the quarter two new system launches were made, Biotage Isolera™ Dalton 2000 and a new generation of the evaporation system TurboVap®. Biotage Isolera™ Dalton 2000 is a new mass detection system for flash purification that opens up for a broader functionality with a detection range up to molecular weights of 2000 m/z (mass-to-charge ratio). The new system is integrated with Biotage’s flash system Isolera™ and the software functionality Isolera™ Spektra through Isolera™ Dalton Nanolink. The new TurboVap® system is based on the previous system which has been successful for a number of years, but has increased functionality and improved user friendliness. We are eagerly looking forward to the results of these product launches.
Coming financial reports
The interim report for the third quarter 2017 will be issued on November 2, 2017.
The year-end report for 2017 will be issued on February 8, 2018.
This report has not been reviewed by the company’s auditor.
For further information, please contact:
Torben Jörgensen, President and CEO, phone: +46 707 49 05 84
Erika Söderberg Johnson, CFO, phone: +46 707 20 48 20
This information is information that Biotage AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 11.00 CET on July 18, 2017.
About Biotage
Biotage offers efficient separation technologies from analysis to industrial scale and high quality solutions for analytical chemistry from research to commercial analysis laboratories. Biotage’s products are used by government authorities, academic institutions, pharmaceutical and food companies, among others. The company is headquartered in Uppsala and has offices in the US, UK, China, Japan and South Korea. Biotage has approx. 330 employees and had sales of 668 MSEK in 2016. Biotage is listed on NASDAQ Stockholm. Website: www.biotage.com
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