Optimal Robotics Corp. Reports Record Revenue and Earnings For The First Quarter of 2001 (Part 1 of 2)
MONTREAL, Quebec--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 24, 2001--Optimal Robotics Corp. (NASDAQ: OPMR - news), North America's leading provider of self-checkout systems to retailers, today announced record results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2001. All references are to U.S. dollars.
Optimal Robotics reported record revenues of $19,607,998 for the first quarter as compared to $12,004,159 for the same period of 2000, an increase of 63%.
Net earnings for the quarter were a record $2,519,438 as compared to net earnings of $701,218 for the first quarter of 2000, an increase of 259%.
Fully diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $0.17 as compared to $0.06 for the first quarter of 2000, an increase of 183%.
Optimal Robotics delivered 797 U-Scan® self-checkout terminals, or 200 U-Scan® systems, in the quarter, an increase of 74% from 460 U-Scan® terminals, or 115 U-Scan® systems, delivered in the first quarter of 2000.
``We are extremely pleased with both our growth and our strong operating performance during the quarter.'' said Holden L. Ostrin, Co-Chairman of Optimal Robotics. ``In particular, we are very enthusiastic about the immediate positive impact on our margins from assembling our U-Scan® systems in-house'', continued Mr. Ostrin. ``Our strong performance in a challenging economic environment demonstrates the powerful impact that our U-Scan® systems are having on both our customers and their shoppers.''
``We are working closely with a number of new retailers, including new supermarket chains and retailers operating in other sectors, and we continue to see exciting growth with our existing customer base'', added Mr. Ostrin. ``Taking into account our current order flow and backlog, we remain very optimistic for both the second quarter and the remainder of the year.''
Certain additional information follows:
Gross Margin
Gross margin for the quarter was 37.42% as compared to 24.91% for the first quarter of 2000. Increased margins were a direct result of the Company assembling its systems in-house at its Plattsburgh, New York facility and increased efficiencies, particularly in purchasing and procurement.
Working Capital and Liquidity
The Company's working capital at quarter-end was $103,651,411, as compared to $32,854,544 at the end of the first quarter of 2000, an increase of 215%. The Company had cash and short-term investments of $75,900,709 at quarter-end, as compared to $24,770,232 at the end of the first quarter of 2000, an increase of 206%.
Accounts Receivable
The Company's accounts receivable at quarter-end were $18,435,765, of which $17,538,033 was trade accounts receivable.
During the first quarter of 2001, the Company sold, on a non-recourse basis, certain designated accounts receivable to a Canadian chartered bank. These receivables had an aggregate carrying value of $3,063,331 for which the Company received net proceeds of $3,038,907 (or $.992 on the dollar).
Under generally accepted accounting principles (``GAAP''), the Company's days outstanding of accounts receivable (``DSO's'') as at March 31, 2001 were 60 days. If the Company had not sold certain designated accounts receivable, under GAAP, DSO's would have been 80 days.
Inventory
The Company's inventory position at quarter-end was $19,636,789. The quarter-end inventory position included $2,021,239 of finished goods; $2,210,525 of work in process; $5,991,263 of raw materials; and $9,413,762 of replacement parts.
The Company is comfortable with its inventory position in view of its current and projected order flow and to properly service and support its current installed base.
Shareholders' Equity
The Company had shareholders' equity of $109,000,998 at quarter-end, as compared to $40,402,642 at the end of the first quarter of 2000, an increase of 170%.
Long-Term Debt
The Company has no long-term debt.
It is the intent of Optimal's conference call to have the question and answer session limited to institutional analysts and investors. The call can be heard beginning at 5:00pm EST as an audio webcast via Optimal's website at www.opmr.com. As well, Optimal invites retail brokers and individual investors to hear the first quarter conference call replay by dialing 1-888-716-7820--Pass Code: 736206#. The replay may be heard beginning at 9 pm (EDT) on April 24, 2001 and will be available for 5 business days.
Optimal Robotics Corp. is the leading provider of self-checkout systems to retailers in North America. The Company's principal product is U-Scan®, an automated self-checkout system that enables shoppers to scan, bag and pay for their purchases with limited or no assistance from store personnel. U-Scan®, which the Company anticipates will process over 350 million shopper transactions in 2001, is designed to reduce retailer checkout costs and increase shoppers' convenience.
-0-
This news release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These forward-looking statements include projecting revenue and profit growth, and statements expressing comfort with analysts' earnings estimates. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause Optimal's actual results to differ materially.
These risks and uncertainties include price and product competition, dependence on new product development, reliance on major customers, customer demand for our product and services, control of costs and expenses, domestic and international growth, general industry and market conditions and growth rates and general domestic and international economic conditions including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations. For a further list and description of such risks and uncertainties, see the reports filed by Optimal with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Optimal disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Consolidated statements of operations and balance sheet follow. |
