EcoSynthetix Reports 2013 Second Quarter Results

BURLINGTON, ON, Aug. 7, 2013 /CNW/ - EcoSynthetix Inc. (TSX:ECO) ("EcoSynthetix" or the "Company"), a renewable chemicals company that produces a family of commercially proven bio-based products, today announced its financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2013. Financial references are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise indicated.

Second Quarter 2013 Highlights

• Grew net sales by 48% to $5.5 million for the three months ended June 30, 2013, (Q2 2013) compared to the three months ended June 30, 2012 (Q2 2012)
• Won two new customers in Q2 2013, totalling five new customers year-to-date (YTD)
• Expanded product pipeline with upcoming new additions that target the paper and paperboard market and innovative new binders that target the building products market
• Signed an agreement to support product development, validation and sales with Chimar Hellas, a global provider of innovative industrial technology for the resin and wood based panel industries
• Conducted industrial scale trials with leading global manufacturers in both wood composites and, subsequent to the end of the quarter, insulation

"Our base of recurring business continues to grow as sales to existing customers increase and we convert mill trials into new customers, including two new customers in the quarter giving us twelve new mills in the last twelve months," said John van Leeuwen, Chief Executive Officer of EcoSynthetix. "The investments we have made in product development are driving innovation as we expand our product offering. We are preparing to launch new product technologies that address targeted applications in paper and paperboard as well as broad applications in building products, which significantly expand our addressable market."

Financial Summary

Net Sales

Net sales for the three months ended June 30, 2013 (Q2 2013) were $5.5 million compared to $3.7 million for the three months ended June 30, 2012 (Q2 2012), a 48% increase. The increase was principally due to higher sales volume in North America, Asia Pacific and EMEA of $0.9 million, $0.5 million and $0.4 million, respectively.  This was partially offset by a marginal decline in sales volume in Latin America of $0.1M. EcoSynthetix has won twelve new customers since Q2 2012, including two new customers in Q2 2013. Collectively, these new customers accounted for 20% of net sales in the quarter and 29% of the increase in sales compared to the same period last year. Sales to existing customers accounted for 80% of net sales in the quarter, representing a 19% increase in sales to those existing customers compared to the same period last year.

Net sales for the year-to-date (YTD) period were $11.7 million compared to $7.7 million in the same period last year, an increase of 51%. The increase was primarily attributable to higher sales volumes sales in North America, EMEA, Asia Pacific and Latin America.

Gross Profit

Gross profit was $0.8 million or 14.8% of sales in Q2 2013 compared to $0.6 million or 16.7% in the same period last year. For the YTD period, gross profit was $1.9 million or 16.1% of sales compared to $1.4 million or 18.0% in the same period last year. The change in gross profit during the both the Q2 and YTD periods were principally due to higher sales volume and lower manufacturing production costs.

Gross profit as a percentage of sales, adjusted for manufacturing depreciation, was 19.6% and 21.1% for Q2 2013 and YTD, respectively, compared with 22.9% and 23.6% in the same periods last year. The change is primarily due to higher corn starch costs partly offset by lower manufacturing production costs.

Selling, General and Administrative
(excludes share-based compensation, depreciation and amortization and foreign exchange loss or gain)

Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) costs were $2.9 million in Q2 2013 compared to $2.3 million in the same period last year. For the YTD period, SG&A costs were $5.9 million compared to $4.7 million for the same period last year. The change was principally due to increased headcount.

Research and Development

Research and development (R&D) costs were $1.2 million in Q2 2013 compared to $1.0 million for the same period last year. For the YTD period, R&D costs were $2.5 million compared to $2.0 million for the same period last year. R&D is a key focus of EcoSynthetix to enhance its bio-based material product portfolio and expand into new applications and markets. The increase in R&D expenses reflects the Company's ongoing investment in product development and innovation.

Adjusted EBITDA¹

Adjusted EBITDA was ($3.1) million in Q2 2013, compared to ($2.4) million in the same period last year. For the YTD period, adjusted EBITDA was ($6.0) million compared to ($5.0) million in the same period last year. The change is primarily due to higher operating expenses including SG&A and R&D noted above partially offset by higher gross profit.

Net Loss

Net loss in Q2 2013 was $3.6 million, or $0.07 per common share (basic and fully diluted), compared to a net loss of $2.8 million, or $0.05 per common share (basic and fully diluted), for same period last year. For the YTD period, net loss was $7.2 million, or $0.13 per share (basic and fully diluted) compared to $5.7 million or $0.10 per share (basic and fully diluted) in the prior period.

Liquidity

Working capital was $93.8 million at June 30, 2013 compared to working capital of $100.2 million at December 31, 2012. The decrease was principally due to cash utilized in operating and investing activities. 

Notice of Conference Call

EcoSynthetix will host a conference call on Thursday, August 8, 2013, at 8:30 AM ET to discuss its financial results.  John van Leeuwen, CEO, and Robert Haire, CFO, will co-chair the call. All interested parties can join the call by dialling [phone] or [phone]. Please dial in 15 minutes prior to the call to secure a line. A live audio webcast of the conference call will also be available at www.ecosynthetix.com. The presentation will be accompanied by slides, which will be available via the webcast link and the Company's website. Please connect at least 15 minutes prior to the conference call to ensure adequate time for any software download that may be required to join the webcast.

¹Non-IFRS Financial Measures

This press release makes reference to certain non-IFRS measures. These non-IFRS measures are not recognized measures under IFRS, do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Rather, these measures are provided as additional information to complement those IFRS measures by providing a further understanding of results of operations of EcoSynthetix from management's perspective. Accordingly, they should not be considered in isolation nor as a substitute for analysis of the financial information of EcoSynthetix reported under IFRS. The Company uses non-IFRS measures such as Adjusted EBITDA to provide investors with a supplemental measure of operating performance and thus highlight trends in its core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS financial measures. Management also believes that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS measures in the evaluation of issuers. Management also uses non-IFRS measures in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, prepare annual operating budgets and assess the Company's ability to meet its capital expenditure and working capital requirements.

Adjusted EBITDA is not a measure recognized under IFRS and does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. The Company presents Adjusted EBITDA because the Company believes it facilitates investors' use of operating performance comparisons from period to period and company to company by backing out potential differences caused by variations in capital structures (affecting relative interest expense), the book amortization of intangibles (affecting relative amortization expense) and the age and book value of property and equipment (affecting relative depreciation expense). The Company also presents Adjusted EBITDA because it believes it is frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties as a measure of financial performance. Adjusted EBITDA as presented herein is not a recognized measure under IFRS and should not be considered as an alternative to operating income or net income as a measure of operating results or an alternative to cash flows as a measure of liquidity. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as consolidated net income (loss) before interest, income taxes, depreciation, amortization, other non-cash expenses and charges which include the movement in the unrealized gains and losses on the Company's redeemable preferred shares and warrants classified as financial liabilities prior to the initial public offering and share based compensation expense.

The following table reconciles net loss to Adjusted EBITDA for Q2 2013 and Q2 2012:

		Three months ended
		June 30, 2013	June 30, 2012
Net loss		(3,634,692)	(2,772,608)
Depreciation and amortization		365,697	262,515
Share-based compensation		285,876	177,104
Interest Income		(93,856)	(95,655)
Adjusted EBITDA ^(1)		(3,076,975)	(2,428,644)

About EcoSynthetix Inc. (www.ecosynthetix.com)
EcoSynthetix Inc. is a renewable chemicals company specializing in bio-based products that can be used as inputs in industrial manufacturing for a wide range of consumer products. The Company's products offer a reduced carbon footprint and are marketed primarily on the basis of lower cost, stable pricing and equal or superior performance. EcoSynthetix's lead product, EcoSphere^® biolatex^® binders, is used commercially by a number of the global top 20 manufacturers in the coated paper and paperboard industry.

Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this Press Release constitute "forward looking" statements that involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, objectives or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance, objectives or achievements expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. These statements reflect our current views regarding future events and operating performance and are based on information currently available to us, and speak only as of the date of this Press Release. These forward looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions and should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such performance or results will be achieved. Those assumptions and risks include, but are not limited to, the fact that our results of operations and business outlook are subject to significant risk, volatility and uncertainty. Many factors could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward looking statements, including the factors identified in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 28, 2013. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in this Press Release as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Unless required by applicable securities law, we do not intend and do not assume any obligation to update these forward looking statements.

EcoSynthetix Inc.
Interim Consolidated Balance Sheet
(Expressed in U.S. dollars), unaudited
		As at June 30, 2013		As at December 31, 2012
Assets
Current assets
	Cash	84,977,872		93,260,296
	Accounts receivable	4,580,528		4,309,355
	Inventories	7,604,394		6,822,619
	Government grants receivable	176,520		184,118
	Prepaid expenses	389,034		154,492
Total current assets		97,728,348		104,730,880
Non-current assets
Intangible assets		159,671		163,501
Property, plant and equipment		13,249,974		13,174,416
Total Assets		111,137,993		118,068,797
Liabilities
Current liabilities
	Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	3,803,996		4,282,296
	Deferred government grant	82,918		226,920
Total liabilities		3,886,914		4,509,216
Shareholder's Equity
Common shares		492,402,517		492,065,820
Contributed surplus		7,354,333		6,831,354
Accumulated deficit		(392,505,771)		(385,337,593)
Total shareholder's equity		107,251,079		113,559,581
Total shareholders' equity and liabilities		111,137,993		118,068,797

 

EcoSynthetix Inc.
Interim Consolidated Statement of Operations and Loss
(Expressed in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted), unaudited
		Six months ended June 30,				Three months ended June 30
		2013		2012		2013		2012
Net sales		11,654,156		7,713,113		5,533,678		3,734,766
Cost of sales		9,777,548		6,328,535		4,713,196		3,110,002
Gross profit on sales		1,876,608		1,384,578		820,482		624,764
Expenses
	Selling, general and administrative	6,725,061		5,254,457		3,319,599		2,538,024
	Research and development	2,498,953		2,031,497		1,229,431		955,003
Total operating expenses		9,224,014		7,285,954		4,549,030		3,493,027
Loss from operations		(7,347,406)		(5,901,376)		(3,728,548)		(2,868,263)
Interest income		179,228		189,276		93,856		95,655
Net loss and comprehensive loss		(7,168,178)		(5,712,100)		(3,634,692)		(2,772,608)
Basic and diluted loss per common share		(0.13)		(0.10)		(0.07)		(0.05)
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding		55,904,023		55,248,568		55,709,678		55,248,933

EcoSynthetix Inc.
Interim Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows
(Expressed in U.S. dollars), unaudited
		Six months ended June 30,				Three months ended June 30
		2013		2012		2013		2012
Cash provided by (used in)
Operating activities
Net loss and comprehensive loss		(7,168,178)		(5,712,100)		(3,634,692)		(2,772,608)
Items not affecting cash
	Depreciation and amortization	747,604		501,932		365,697		262,515
	Share based compensation	616,979		417,104		285,876		177,104
Changes in non-cash working capital						-
	Accounts receivable	(271,173)		346,008		108,476		(140,693)
	Inventories	(716,568)		1,841,523		283,494		1,057,335
	Government grants receivable	7,598		12,889		3,979		(104,460)
	Prepaid expenses	(234,542)		1,035		(167,350)		(63,901)
	Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	(119,904)		(1,122,947)		(1,668,447)		390,202
	Deferred government grant	(144,002)		-		(40,972)		-
		(7,282,186)		(3,714,556)		(4,463,939)		(1,194,506)
Investing activities
Cash used for purchase of intangible assets, property, plant and equipment		(1,242,935)		(4,717,994)		(775,745)		(1,407,095)
		(1,242,935)		(4,717,994)		(775,745)		(1,407,095)
Financing activities
Exercise of common share options		242,697		18,321		7,818		2,174
Cash provided by financing activities		242,697		18,321		7,818		2,174
Change in cash during the period		(8,282,424)		(8,414,229)		(5,231,866)		(2,599,427)
Cash - Beginning of period		93,260,296		105,713,705		90,209,738		99,898,903
Cash - End of period		84,977,872		97,299,476		84,977,872		97,299,476

SOURCE: EcoSynthetix Inc.

EcoSynthetix Inc.
John van Leeuwen
Chief Executive Officer
Phone: [phone]
E-mail: [email protected]

Investor Relations
Ross Marshall
TMX Equicom
Phone: [phone] (Ext.238)
E-mail: [email protected]