LOUISVILLE, Ky., Nov. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Creative Realities, Inc. ("Creative Realities," "CRI," or the "Company") (OTCQB: CREX), a leading provider of digital marketing solutions, announced the financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 as well as reiterated a significantly improving business outlook beginning in the fourth calendar quarter of 2016.

Rick Mills, Chief Executive Officer, remarked, "Creative Realities is now much more than a digital signage company.  Our vision for the merger of ConeXus World with CRI in October 2015 was to have an integrated digital marketing company that would reinvigorate existing client relationships, add new customers, expand our capabilities, and build an ever-improving sales pipeline.  I am proud to say that we have completed the integration approximately three months ahead of schedule, and are already beginning to see the positive results from all of these efforts.  As a result, we are now in a position to provide preliminary financial guidance regarding our significantly improving business outlook, beginning with the fourth calendar quarter of 2016, and for fiscal 2017 as well."

Third Quarter Financial Overview

• Revenues were $2.7 million for the three-month period ended September 30, 2016, a decrease of 20% compared to the same period in 2015. Revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 were $8.2 million, essentially unchanged from the corresponding period in 2015.
• Gross profit was $1.3 million for the third quarter 2016, down from $1.5 million for the corresponding period in the prior year due to lower sales in the most recent quarter.  However, for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 gross profit increased to $4.2 million from $2.6 million in the corresponding period in 2015, an increase of approximately 62%.
• Gross margin improved to 49% of revenue for the three months ended September 30, 2016 and to 53% of revenue for the first nine months of 2016.
• We recognized $0.5 million in gains on the settlement of debts during the three-month period ended September 30, 2016. We significantly strengthened our balance sheet through settlements with legacy creditors resulting in cash savings of $2.0 million, and the elimination of $1.7 million in liabilities during the nine months ended September 30, 2016.
• We entered into a new $3.0 million term-loan with our largest institutional shareholder and expect to receive additional support in the future from our largest institutional shareholder and other lenders who are also shareholders.

"We have rebuilt our sales function, restructured our operations and balance sheet, reduced our cost structure, increased our liquidity, and reduced our cost of capital," summarized Mills.  "This has consumed a significant amount of our time and attention. As a result of the team's blocking and tackling this past year, we are now re-directing our efforts to growing the business and the future results look promising."

4Q16 and 2017 Preliminary Financial Guidance

The Company is reaffirming its financial guidance provided in connection with an investor presentation at The MicroCap Conference in Philadelphia on October 25, 2016. This presentation is available on our website (www.cri.com). The Company's 4Q16 and 2017 preliminary financial guidance is:

• For the three-month period ended December 31, 2016 compared to the same period in 2015, the Company anticipates: revenue growth between 60% and 80%; gross profit growth between 250% and 300%; and, gross margin to increase from 30% to over 50% of revenue.
• For 2017, the Company expects revenue will increase 70% organically (i.e., excluding acquisitions) year-over-year. 
• Little additional overhead is required to achieve and support our Q4 2016 and 2017 guidance and therefore we expect both to be profitable.

"In recent months, we have announced multiple milestones in our business transformation, including substantial new orders from an existing client, and the major rollout of an advertising network with another client. In addition, we continue to make meaningful strides in expanding relationships with our other existing clients, the acquisition of new clients, the expansion of our sales team, and the critical addition of new sales leadership", added Mills. "Our confidence in this preliminary 4Q16 and 2017 financial guidance is the byproduct of those efforts by the entire team."

"As we build on our recent successes, as well as our renewed sense of focus and commitment, we continue to engage in ongoing discussions with potential acquisition candidates that we believe can be effectively and efficiently consolidated into our public company platform, and contribute to our top and bottom lines. Our industry remains highly fragmented and we believe we are uniquely positioned to be a consolidator to achieve greater scale, diversification and profitability."

"Finally, we appreciate the patience and the support our investors have exhibited as we have gone through this transition to put the company in a much better position.  We plan to increase our communications with investors in the future and are planning to begin to implement conference calls to discuss our financial and operating results during 2017.  Please stay tuned for details."

About Creative Realities, Inc.
Creative Realities helps retailers and brands use the latest technologies to inspire shopper engagement in and around the Store.  Founded 16 years ago, the firm's evolving client base has led to recognized leadership in deploying technology aligned with strategic and consumer behavior goals at Retail.  The firm has delivered consumer/shopper experiences, and is actively providing recurring services today, across diverse categories: Automotive, Apparel & Accessories, Banking, Baby/Children, Beauty, CPG, Department Stores, Electronics, Fashion, Fitness, Foodservice/QSR, Financial Services, Gaming, Luxury, Mass Merchants, Mobile Operators, and Pharmacy Retail. The Company's ConeXus subsidiary designs, installs and services high-end audio-visual networks for global retailers, luxury brands, digital out-of-home (DOOH) companies, advertising networks, and outdoor clients. The Company has five offices across North America and active installations in 40 countries.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain statements that would be deemed "forward-looking statements" under Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and includes, among other things, discussions of our business strategies, future operations and capital resources.  Words such as "may," "likely," "anticipate," "expect" and "believe" indicate forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements may reflect management's present expectations and estimates regarding future expenses, revenue and profitability, trends affecting our financial condition and results of operations, operating efficiencies, revenue opportunities, potential new markets, and the ability of the Company to effectively compete in a highly competitive market. Nevertheless, and despite the fact that management's expectations and estimates are based on assumptions management believes to be reasonable and data management believes to be reliable, the Company's actual results, performance, or achievements are subject to future risks and uncertainties, any of which could materially affect the Company's actual performance.  Risks and uncertainties that could affect such performance include, but are not limited to:  the adequacy of funds for future operations; future expenses, revenue and profitability; trends affecting financial condition and results of operations; ability to convert proposals into customer orders; the ability of customers to pay for products and services; the impact of changing customer requirements upon revenue recognition; customer cancellations; the availability and terms of additional capital; ability to develop new products; dependence on key suppliers, manufacturers and strategic partners; industry trends and the competitive environment; the impact of the Company's financial condition upon customer and prospective customer relationships; and the impact of losing one or more senior executives or failing to attract additional key personnel.  These and other risk factors are discussed in Company reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Given these uncertainties, and the fact that forward-looking statements represent management's estimates and assumption as of the date of this press release, you should not attribute undue certainty to these forward-looking statements.  We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements publicly, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, even if new information becomes available in the future.

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SOURCE Creative Realities, Inc.