QIAGEN N.V. Reports Results For Second Quarter And First Half Of 2017
- Strong Q2 2017 results reaffirm QIAGEN on track to achieve full-year goals
- Net sales $349.0 million (+4% actual); adjusted net sales $349.6 million (+5%
actual, +7% CER vs. +5-6% CER guidance)
- EPS $0.06; adjusted EPS $0.25 ($0.25 CER), adjusted EPS excluding restructuring
charge $0.30 ($0.30 CER vs. $0.28-0.29 CER guidance)
- H1 free cash flow of $91.6 million impacted by $30.8 million for restructuring
- Sample to Insight portfolio momentum with expansion of QuantiFERON latent TB test, Personalized Healthcare, NGS portfolio and QIAsymphony platform
- QIAGEN upgrades 2017 adjusted sales outlook after solid H1, now expects 7% CER growth; keeps adjusted EPS target before restructuring of $1.25-1.27 CER
Venlo, the Netherlands, July 27, 2017 - QIAGEN N.V. (NASDAQ: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA) announced results of operations for the second quarter and first half of 2017, delivering on goals for improvements in net sales and adjusted earnings.
“QIAGEN’s performance for the second quarter of 2017 further strengthens our confidence in achieving our full-year goals for strong sales growth and a double-digit increase in adjusted earnings per share, as our differentiated portfolio of Sample to Insight molecular testing solutions gains momentum,” said Peer M. Schatz, Chief Executive Officer of QIAGEN N.V.
“All customer classes and regions contributed to growth in the second quarter of 2017. Molecular Diagnostics maintained a 6% sales growth pace at constant exchange rates (CER). In the Life Science customer classes, Applied Testing led with 12% CER growth due to market share gains for human ID and forensics solutions, followed by Pharma (+8% CER) and Academia (+4% CER). Among key products, the QuantiFERON latent TB test delivered dynamic growth supporting the 2017 goal for more than 25% CER growth. The QIAsymphony automation system also remains on track to exceed the year-end 2017 goal of more than 2,000 cumulative placements, and to generate double-digit CER growth in related consumables. In Personalized Healthcare, QIAGEN signed an important agreement with Bristol-Myers Squibb to develop next-generation sequencing (NGS) solutions for companion diagnostics to better guide the use of novel immuno-oncology therapies, and negotiations are progressing well with several other pharma companies for similar collaborations. These assays will be optimized for use on the GeneReader NGS System, the world’s first complete Sample to Insight NGS workflow. GeneReader NGS solutions are building momentum with the recent launch of two new panels for breast and lung cancer analysis, as well as the first customers receiving customized panels, creating an almost unlimited panel offering available for GeneReader,” Schatz said.
“The progress we are making in 2017 – anchored by our commitment to value creation and disciplined capital allocation – is creating a foundation for our ambitions to deliver on goals we have set for faster sales growth, double-digit earnings per share growth and increasing cash flows from 2016 through 2020,” Schatz said.
Second quarter 2017 results
Net sales grew 4% to $349.0 million in the second quarter of 2017 over the year-ago period, rising 6% at constant exchange rates (CER) with two percentage points of adverse currency movements. Adjusted net sales, which include all revenues from the January 2017 acquisition of the bioinformatics company OmicSoft, increased 5% to $349.6 million in the second quarter of 2017, and increased 7% CER with two percentage points of adverse currency movements. Organic expansion contributed four percentage points to total CER growth, while three percentage points came from the June 2016 acquisition of Exiqon A/S, a leader in RNA analysis technologies, and to a lesser extent from the OmicSoft acquisition. No headwinds were seen from U.S. HPV test sales in the 2017 quarter.
Higher adjusted net sales of consumables and related revenues (+8% CER / 88% of sales) more than offset lower instrument sales (-4% CER / 12% of sales). Growth in Molecular Diagnostics (+6% CER / 48% of sales) was led by the QuantiFERON latent TB tests remaining on track for more than 25% CER growth for the year, as well as double-digit CER gains in the QIAsymphony automation system consumables portfolio and solid growth in Personalized Healthcare. In the Life Science customer classes, Applied Testing led with 12% CER growth thanks to market share gains in forensics and Human ID testing, while Pharma (+8% CER) and Academia (+4% CER) grew amid modestly improving customer demand trends. Among the regions, Asia-Pacific / Japan (+12% CER) showed the strongest growth trend, and ahead of the Europe / Middle East / Africa (+8% CER) region, while the Americas (+4% CER) benefited from the lack of headwinds from U.S. HPV test sales.
Operating income was $22.4 million in the second quarter of 2017 compared to $29.8 million in the same period of 2016, and included charges of $21 million for business integration and acquisition-related costs, of which $16 million was related to the settlement of various acquisition-related litigation matters, with the vast majority for PCR-based biomarker disputes. Adjusted operating income, which excludes items such as business integration, acquisition-related costs and the amortization of intangible assets acquired in business combinations, rose 7% to $74.5 million compared to $69.5 million in the year-ago period. The adjusted operating income margin was steady at 21% of sales compared to the same period of 2016. Excluding the pre-tax restructuring charge of $13.5 million (or $0.05 per share after tax) in the second quarter of 2017, adjusted operating income rose 27% to $88.0 million and the adjusted operating income margin was 25% of sales.
Net income attributable to owners of QIAGEN N.V. was $14.0 million, or $0.06 per diluted share (based on 232.7 million diluted shares) compared to $21.3 million, or $0.09 per share (based on 238.7 million diluted shares) in the same quarter of 2016. Adjusted net income was $57.7 million, or $0.25 per share ($0.25 CER), compared to $57.2 million, or $0.24 per share, a year earlier. Excluding the restructuring charge in the 2017 quarter, adjusted diluted EPS was $0.30 per share ($0.30 CER).
First half 2017 results
Net sales grew 4% to $656.7 million in the first half of 2017 over the year-ago period, rising 6% CER with two percentage points of adverse currency movements. Adjusted net sales rose 4% to $657.9 million in the first half of 2017, growing 6% CER with two percentage points of adverse currency movements. Organic expansion provided four percentage points to total CER growth, while two percentage points came from Exiqon and OmicSoft. Excluding U.S. HPV test sales, which created one percentage point of headwinds, adjusted net sales rose 7% CER over the first half of 2016.
Higher sales of consumables and related revenues (+7% CER / 89% of sales) more than offset a modest decline in instruments (-4% CER / 11% of sales). Molecular Diagnostics (+5% CER / 47% of sales) advanced +6% CER when excluding U.S. HPV test sales. In the Life Science customer classes, Applied Testing led with 16% CER growth, supported by single-digit growth trends in Pharma (+8% CER) and Academia (+3% CER). Among the regions, Asia-Pacific / Japan (+11% CER) had the fastest pace, followed by Europe / Middle East / Africa (+7% CER) and the Americas (+3% CER), which grew 5% CER excluding headwinds from lower U.S. HPV test sales.
Operating income was $46.1 million in the first half of 2017 compared to $46.4 million in the same period of 2016. Adjusted operating income, which excludes items such as business integration, acquisition-related costs and the amortization of intangible assets acquired in business combinations, increased 8% to $134.4 million compared to $124.0 million in the year-ago period, as the adjusted operating income margin remained steady at 20% of sales compared to the same period of 2016. Excluding the pre-tax restructuring charge of $17.4 million (or $0.06 per share after tax) in the first half of 2017, adjusted operating income rose 22% to $151.7 million and the adjusted operating income margin was 23% of sales.
Net income attributable to owners of QIAGEN N.V. was $31.6 million, or $0.14 per diluted share (based on 233.8 million diluted shares), compared to $37.0 million, or $0.16 per share (based on 238.5 million diluted shares), in the first half of 2017. Adjusted net income was $105.5 million, or $0.45 per share ($0.46 CER), compared to $102.0 million, or $0.43 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding the restructuring charge in the first half of 2017, adjusted diluted EPS was $0.51 per share ($0.52 CER).
Balance sheet and cash flows
At June 30, 2017, cash and cash equivalents increased to $542.8 million from $439.2 million at December 31, 2016. Net cash provided by operating activities was $129.5 million in the first half of 2017, down from $147.8 million in the year-ago period, in part due to $30.8 million of cash paid in the first half of 2017 for restructuring. Purchases of Property, Plant and Equipment declined slightly to $37.9 million in the first half of 2017 from $39.8 million in the first half of 2016, and free cash flow was $91.6 million compared to $107.9 million in the year-ago period. Net cash used in investing activities was $79.5 million in the first half of 2017, which included payments for the OmicSoft acquisition, compared to net cash used in investing activities of $107.1 million in the first half of 2016. Net cash provided by financing activities was $48.3 million compared to cash used in financing activities of $5.0 million in the first half of 2016. Results for the 2017 period included net proceeds of $300.2 million equivalent from the issuance of a German private placement (“Schuldschein”) in the second quarter of 2017 at low interest rates and with maturities from 2021 until 2027, as well as $244 million of cash used for the capital repayment as part of the synthetic share repurchase in January 2017.
“QIAGEN is moving ahead toward achieving the goals we have set for solid growth in sales and adjusted earnings with a mindset of continuous improvement to sustain this faster performance and to further increase margins,” said Roland Sackers, Chief Financial Officer of QIAGEN N.V. “Based on the success of these initiatives, we decided to take additional actions during the second quarter of 2017. We expect these to generate benefits in 2018 and the coming years, especially as we focus on our goals for 2020 and on further improving sales growth, adjusted earnings and cash flow. Underlying free cash flow trends were strong in the first half of 2017, but were hampered by the cash restructuring payments in the first half of 2017. Furthermore, we are committed to our disciplined approach to capital allocation and intend to return the remaining $55 million balance of our $300 million return commitment through open-market share repurchases.”
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