EXFO reports third quarter results for fiscal 2020

EXFO reports third quarter results for fiscal 2020

PR Newswire

  • Sales reached US$66.1 million
  • IFRS net earnings totaled US$3.2 million
  • Adjusted EBITDA amounted to US$10.7 million, 16.1% of sales

QUEBEC CITY, July 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - EXFO Inc. (NASDAQ: EXFO) (TSX: EXF), the communications industry's test, monitoring and analytics experts, reported today financial results for the third quarter ended May 31, 2020.

"Despite constraints and restrictive measures in many countries, EXFO navigated through the coronavirus pandemic with a solid financial performance in the third quarter of 2020," said EXFO's CEO Philippe Morin. "We delivered encouraging sales in a difficult environment and proactively implemented cost-controls, while benefiting from a Canadian government wage subsidy program. The end-result was strong earnings amid end-markets that will necessarily improve as long-term drivers like fiber and 5G deployments remain intact."

Third Quarter Highlights

  • Sales. Sales decreased 10.1% year-over-year to US$66.1 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 mainly due to the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Test and Measurement (T&M) sales accounted for 75% of revenue in the third quarter of 2020, while Service Assurance, Systems and Services (SASS) sales represented 25%. Revenue distribution among the three main selling regions amounted to 45% in the Americas, 33% in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and 22% in Asia-Pacific. EXFO's top customer accounted for 9.6% of sales, while the top three totaled 18.2%.
  • Profitability. IFRS net earnings amounted to US$3.2 million, or US$0.06 per share, in the third quarter of fiscal 2020, while adjusted EBITDA totaled US$10.7 million, or 16.1% of sales. Net earnings included a wage subsidy of US$3.3M (US$2.4M after-tax) under the Canada emergency wage subsidy program to help qualifying businesses alleviate the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Selected Financial Information

(In thousands of US dollars)


Three months
ended
May 31, 2020


Three months
ended
May 31, 2019


Nine months
ended
May 31, 2020


Nine months
ended
May 31, 2019













Test and Measurement sales

$

50,309


$

54,359


$

143,733


$

154,530

Service Assurance, Systems and Services sales


16,352



19,469



52,036



62,586

Foreign exchange losses on forward exchange












contracts


(514)



(241)



(758)



(401)

Total sales

$

66,147


$

73,587


$

195,011


$

216,715













Test and Measurement bookings

$

46,634


$

50,157


$

153,646


$

159,473

Service Assurance, Systems and Services












bookings


12,988



19,648



49,000



67,822

Foreign exchange losses on forward exchange












contracts


(514)



(241)



(758)



(401)

Total bookings

$

59,108


$

69,564


$

201,888


$

226,894

Book-to-bill ratio (bookings/sales)


0.89



0.95



1.04



1.05

Gross margin before depreciation and amortization*

$

38,199


$

43,129


$

113,026


$

128,298



57.7%



58.6%



58.0%



59.2%













Other selected information:












     IFRS net earnings (loss)

$

3,177


$

21


$

(5,907)


$

(2,253)

     Amortization of intangible assets

$

1,698


$

2,072


$

5,025


$

7,142

     Stock-based compensation costs

$

523


$

475


$

1,446


$

1,354

     Restructuring charges (reversals)

$


$

(13)


$


$

3,305

     Acquisition-related deferred revenue fair value












adjustment

$


$


$


$

1,435

     Net income tax effect of the above items

$

(257)


$

(344)


$

(760)


$

(1,115)

     Foreign exchange (gain) loss

$

141


$

(146)


$

649


$

55

     Adjusted EBITDA*

$

10,656


$

7,860


$

13,284


$

19,372

Quarterly Overview
Sales reached US$66.1 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to US$73.6 million in the third quarter of 2019.

Bookings attained US$59.1 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to US$69.6 million for the same period in 2019. The company's book-to-bill ratio was 0.89 in the third quarter of 2020.

Gross margin before depreciation and amortization* amounted to 57.7% of sales in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to 58.6% in the third quarter of 2019.

Selling and administrative expenses totaled US$18.9 million, or 28.6% of sales in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to US$23.8 million, or 32.3% of sales, in the third quarter of 2019.

Net R&D expenses attained US$9.2 million, or 13.9% of sales, in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to US$12.0 million, or 16.3% of sales, in the same period last year.

IFRS net earnings totaled US$3.2 million, or US$0.06 per share, in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to net earnings of US$21,000, or US$0.00 per share, in the third quarter of 2019. IFRS net earnings in the third quarter of 2020 included US$1.4 million in after-tax amortization of intangible assets, US$0.5 million in stock-based compensation costs, and US$0.1 million in foreign exchange loss. Net earnings in the third quarter of 2020 also included US$2.4 million for an after-tax wage subsidy granted by the Canadian government to help qualifying businesses alleviate the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Adjusted EBITDA* amounted to US$10.7 million, or 16.1% of sales, in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 compared to US$7.9 million, or 10.7% of sales, in the third quarter of 2019.

During the third quarter of fiscal 2020, EXFO extended its revolving credit facilities, which had provided advances up to US$50.8 million (C$70.0 million), to US$65.3 million (C$90.0 million) until May 31, 2021, and will return to US$50.8 million (C$70.0 million) on June 1, 2021.

Conference Call and Webcast
EXFO will host a conference call today at 5 p.m. (Eastern time) to review third quarter results for fiscal 2020. To listen to the conference call and participate in the question period via telephone, dial 1-323-794-2093. Please take note the following participant passcode will be required: 8963518. Executive Chairman Germain Lamonde, CEO Philippe Morin and Pierre Plamondon, CPA, Chief Financial Officer and Vice–President of Finance, will participate in the call. An audio replay of the conference call will be available two hours after the event until 8 p.m. on July 15, 2020. The replay number is 1-719-457-0820 and the participant passcode is 8963518. The audio Webcast and replay of the conference call will also be available on EXFO's Website at www.EXFO.com, under the Investors section.

About EXFO
EXFO (NASDAQ: EXFO) (TSX: EXF) develops smarter test, monitoring and analytics solutions for fixed and mobile network operators, webscale companies and equipment manufacturers in the global communications industry. Our customers count on us to deliver superior network performance, service reliability and subscriber insights. They count on our unique blend of equipment, software and services to accelerate digital transformations related to fiber, 4G/LTE and 5G deployments. They count on our expertise with automation, real-time troubleshooting and big data analytics, which are critical to their business performance. We've spent over 30 years earning this trust, and today 1,900 EXFO employees in over 25 countries work side by side with our customers in the lab, field, data center and beyond.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and we intend that such forward-looking statements be subject to the safe harbors created thereby. Forward-looking statements are statements other than historical information or statements of current condition. Words such as may, expect, believe, plan, anticipate, intend, could, estimate, continue, or similar expressions or the negative of such expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events and circumstances are considered forward-looking statements. They are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements due to various factors including, but not limited to, macroeconomic uncertainty, namely the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on our employees, customers and global operations, including the ability of our suppliers to fulfil raw material requirements and services and our ability to manufacture and deliver our products and services to our customers; the effects of emergency measures related to isolation periods for individuals in affected areas, lockdown restrictions imposed by national governments on businesses in countries where we operate and have employees, and limitations on travel to attract new customers and serve existing ones; deteriorating financial and market conditions as well as a potential recession; trade wars, and our ability to successfully integrate businesses that we acquire; capital spending and network deployment levels in the communications industry (including our ability to quickly adapt cost structures to anticipated levels of business and our ability to manage inventory levels with market demand); future economic, competitive, financial and market conditions; consolidation in the global communications test, monitoring and analytics solutions markets and increased competition among vendors; capacity to adapt our future product offering to future technological changes; limited visibility with regard to the timing and nature of customer orders; delay in revenue recognition due to longer sales cycles for complex systems involving customers' acceptance; fluctuating exchange rates; concentration of sales; timely release and market acceptance of our new products and other upcoming products; our ability to successfully expand international operations and to conduct business internationally; and the retention of key technical and management personnel. Assumptions relating to the foregoing involve judgments and risks, all of which are difficult or impossible to predict and many of which are beyond our control. Other risk factors that may affect our future performance and operations are detailed in our Annual Report, on Form 20-F, and our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Canadian securities commissions. We believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable based on information currently available to us, but we cannot assure you that the expectations will prove to have been correct. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. These statements speak only as of the date of this document. Unless required by law or applicable regulations, we undertake no obligation to revise or update any of them to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this document.

*Non-IFRS Measures
EXFO provides non-IFRS measures (gross margin before depreciation and amortization and adjusted EBITDA) as supplemental information regarding its operational performance. Gross margin before depreciation and amortization represents sales, less cost of sales, excluding depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA represent net earnings (loss) before interest and other income/expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation costs, restructuring charges, acquisition-related deferred revenue fair value adjustment, and foreign exchange gain or loss.

These non-IFRS measures eliminate the effect on IFRS results of non-cash statement of earnings elements, restructuring charges as well as elements subject to significant volatility such as foreign exchange gain or loss. EXFO uses these measures for evaluating historical and prospective financial performance, as well as its performance relative to competitors. These non-IFRS measures are also used by financial analysts to evaluate and compare EXFO's performance against that of competitors and industry players in the company's sector.

Finally, these measures help EXFO plan and forecast future periods as well as make operational and strategic decisions. EXFO believes that providing this information, in addition to the IFRS measures, allows investors to see the company's results through the eyes of management, and to better understand historical and future financial performance. More importantly, it enables the comparison of EXFO's performance on a relatively similar basis against that of other public and private companies in the industry worldwide.

The presentation of this additional information is not prepared in accordance with IFRS. Therefore, the information may not necessarily be comparable to that of other companies and should be considered as a supplement to, not a substitute for, the corresponding measures calculated in accordance with IFRS.

The following table summarizes the reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA to IFRS net earnings (loss), in thousands of US dollars:

Adjusted EBITDA



Three months
ended
May 31, 2020


Three months
ended
May 31, 2019


Nine months
ended
May 31, 2020


Nine months
ended
May 31, 2019













IFRS net earnings (loss) for the period (1)

$

3,177


$

21


$

(5,907)


$

(2,253)













Add (deduct):
























Depreciation and amortization


3,833



3,440



11,732



11,329

Interest and other (income) expense


291



698



975



(439)

Income taxes


2,691



3,385



4,389



4,586

Stock-based compensation costs


523



475



1,446



1,354

Restructuring charges (reversals)




(13)





3,305

Acquisition-related deferred revenue fair value












adjustment








1,435

Foreign exchange (gain) loss


141



(146)



649



55

Adjusted EBITDA for the period

$

10,656


$

7,860


$

13,284


$

19,372













Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of sales


16.1%



10.7%



6.8%



8.9%



(1)

IFRS net earnings (loss) for the three months and the nine months ended May 31, 2020 takes into account the impact of the adoption of IFRS 16 on September 1, 2019. The adoption of IFRS 16 on September 1, 2019 had a positive impact on adjusted EBITDA of $844,000 or 1.3% of sales and $2,549,000 or 1.3% of sales respectively for the three months and the nine months ended May 31, 2020. Comparative figures were not adjusted.

 

EXFO Inc.

Condensed Unaudited Interim Consolidated Balance Sheets


(in thousands of US dollars)




As at
May 31,
2020


As at
August 31,
2019








Assets














Current assets







Cash


$

17,070


$

16,518

Short-term investments



3,384



2,918

Accounts receivable







Trade



56,842



51,517

Other



4,543



3,396

Income taxes and tax credits recoverable



4,912



3,159

Inventories



42,745



38,017

Prepaid expenses



5,553



6,510

Other assets



3,800



3,083




138,849



125,118








Tax credits recoverable



45,203



46,704

Property, plant and equipment



37,814



39,364

Right-of-use assets



10,636



Intangible assets



17,523



21,654

Goodwill



37,842



38,648

Deferred income tax assets



4,407



4,821

Other assets



1,257



1,293



$

293,531


$

277,602

Liabilities














Current liabilities







Bank loan


$

33,821


$

5,000

Accounts payable and accrued liabilities



43,954



50,790

Provisions



706



1,065

Income taxes payable



249



704

Deferred revenue



21,634



24,422

Other liabilities



1,616



1,606

Current portion of lease liabilities



3,188



Current portion of long-term debt



2,043



2,449




107,211



86,036








Provisions



2,490



2,737

Deferred revenue



7,669



9,056

Lease liabilities



7,453



Long-term debt



2,118



3,293

Deferred income tax liabilities



2,760



3,598

Other liabilities



878



318




130,579



105,038








Shareholders' equity







Share capital



93,999



92,706

Contributed surplus



19,149



19,196

Retained earnings



106,266



112,173

Accumulated other comprehensive loss



(56,462)



(51,511)




162,952



172,564



$

293,531


$

277,602

 

EXFO Inc.

Condensed Unaudited Interim Consolidated Statements of Earnings


(in thousands of US dollars, except share and per share data)




Three months

ended

May 31, 2020


Nine months

ended

May 31, 2020


Three months

ended

May 31, 2019


Nine months

ended

May 31, 2019














Sales


$

66,147


$

195,011


$

73,587


$

216,715














Cost of sales (1)



27,948



81,985



30,458



88,417

Selling and administrative



18,898



67,705



23,761



75,610

Net research and development



9,168



33,483



11,970



39,410

Depreciation of property, plant and













equipment



1,291



4,158



1,368



4,187

Depreciation of lease right-of-use assets



844



2,549





Amortization of intangible assets



1,698



5,025



2,072



7,142

Interest and other (income) expense



291



975



698



(439)

Foreign exchange (gain) loss



141



649



(146)



55

Earnings (loss) before income taxes



5,868



(1,518)



3,406



2,333














Income taxes



2,691



4,389



3,385



4,586














Net earnings (loss) for the period


$

3,177


$

(5,907)


$

21


$

(2,253)














Basic and diluted net earnings (loss)













per share


$

0.06


$

(0.11)


$

0.00


$

(0.04)














Basic weighted average number of shares













outstanding (000's)



55,678



55,573



55,392



55,306














Diluted weighted average number of













shares outstanding (000's)



56,724



55,573



56,437



55,306



(1)

The cost of sales is exclusive of depreciation and amortization, shown separately.

 

EXFO Inc.

Condensed Unaudited Interim Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss


(in thousands of US dollars)




Three months
ended
May 31, 2020


Nine months
ended
May 31, 2020


Three months
ended
May 31, 2019


Nine months
ended
May 31, 2019














Net earnings (loss) for the period


$

3,177


$

(5,907)


$

21


$

(2,253)

Other comprehensive income (loss), net of income taxes













Items that may be reclassified













subsequently to net earnings













Foreign currency translation













adjustment



(3,317)



(4,075)



(4,611)



(6,160)

Unrealized gains/losses on forward













exchange contracts



(1,052)



(1,805)



(1,046)



(1,237)

Reclassification of realized gains/losses













on forward exchange contracts



251



607



(91)



210

Deferred income tax effect on













gains/losses on forward exchange













contracts



206



322



314



356














Other comprehensive loss



(3,912)



(4,951)



(5,434)



(6,831)














Comprehensive loss for the period


$

(735)


$

(10,858)


$

(5,413)


$

(9,084)


 

EXFO Inc.

Condensed Unaudited Interim Consolidated Statements of Changes in Shareholders' Equity


(in thousands of US dollars)




Nine months ended May 31, 2019



 

Share

capital


Contributed
surplus


Retained
earnings


Accumulated
other
comprehensive
loss



Total

shareholders'
equity

















Balance as at September 1, 2018


$

91,937


$

18,428


$

114,906


$

(47,350)


$

177,921

Adoption of IFRS 9







(253)





(253)

Adjusted balance as at September 1, 2018



91,937



18,428



114,653



(47,350)



177,668

Reclassification of stock-based
















compensation costs



1,078



(1,078)







Redemption of share capital



(126)



21







(105)

Stock-based compensation costs





1,363







1,363

Net loss for the period







(2,253)





(2,253)

Other comprehensive loss
















Foreign currency translation adjustment









(6,160)



(6,160)

Changes in unrealized gains/losses on
















forward exchange contracts, net of
















deferred income taxes of $356









(671)



(671)

















Total comprehensive loss for the period















(9,084)

















Balance as at May 31, 2019


$

92,889


$

18,734


$

112,400


$

(54,181)


$

169,842









Nine months ended May 31, 2020



 

Share

capital


 

Contributed
surplus


 

Retained
earnings


Accumulated
other
comprehensive
loss



Total

shareholders'
equity

















Balance as at September 1, 2019


$

92,706


$

19,196


$

112,173


$

(51,511)


$

172,564

Reclassification of stock-based
















compensation costs



1,505



(1,505)







Redemption of share capital



(212)



(13)







(225)

Stock-based compensation costs





1,471







1,471

Net loss for the period







(5,907)





(5,907)

Other comprehensive loss
















Foreign currency translation
















adjustment









(4,075)



(4,075)

Changes in unrealized gains/losses
















on forward exchange contracts,
















net of deferred income taxes
















of $322









(876)



(876)

















Total comprehensive loss for the period















(10,858)

















Balance as at May 31, 2020


$

93,999


$

19,149


$

106,266


$

(56,462)


$

162,952


 

EXFO Inc.

Condensed Unaudited Interim Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows


(in thousands of US dollars)




 

Three months

ended

May 31, 2020


 

Nine months

ended

May 31, 2020


 

Three months

ended

May 31, 2019


 

Nine months

ended

May 31, 2019














Cash flows from operating activities













Net earnings (loss) for the period


$

3,177


$

(5,907)


$

21


$

(2,253)

Add (deduct) items not affecting cash













Stock-based compensation costs



523



1,446



475



1,354

Depreciation and amortization



3,833



11,732



3,440



11,329

Gain on disposal of capital assets









(1,732)

Write-off of capital assets





216





261

Deferred revenue



(329)



(3,144)



1,676



11,619

Deferred income taxes



493



(161)



(142)



(2,295)

Changes in foreign exchange gain/loss



869



1,750



143



(310)




8,566



5,932



5,613



17,973

Changes in non-cash operating items













Accounts receivable



(25,485)



(6,874)



(12,857)



(7,038)

Income taxes and tax credits



44



(2,618)



1,596



1,629

Inventories



(2,282)



(6,233)



(306)



(668)

Prepaid expenses



(773)



215



(585)



(380)

Other assets



(256)



(712)



(664)



(1,003)

Accounts payable, accrued liabilities













and provisions



3,253



(6,020)



1,995



2,013

Other liabilities



53



95



(6)



(1,527)




(16,880)



(16,215)



(5,214)



10,999

Cash flows from investing activities













Additions to short-term investments



(1,927)



(2,074)



(286)



(578)

Disposal of short-term investments





1,264



826



1,168

Purchases of capital assets



(1,880)



(6,066)



(1,639)



(6,318)

Proceeds from disposal of capital assets









3,318




(3,807)



(6,876)



(1,099)



(2,410)

Cash flows from financing activities













Bank loan



19,934



28,304



(3,808)



(5,052)

Repayment of lease liabilities



(844)



(2,534)





Repayment of long-term debt



(292)



(1,607)



(713)



(2,165)

Redemption of share capital





(225)





(105)




18,798



23,938



(4,521)



(7,322)

Effect of foreign exchange rate changes













on cash



(167)



(295)



(306)



(402)














Change in cash during the period



(2,056)



552



(11,140)



865

Cash – Beginning of the period



19,126



16,518



24,763



12,758

Cash – End of the period


$

17,070


$

17,070


$

13,623


$

13,623


 

Cision View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/exfo-reports-third-quarter-results-for-fiscal-2020-301090420.html

SOURCE EXFO Inc.

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