BRISBANE, Calif., May 01, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR) (“Cutera” or the “Company”), a leading provider of laser and other energy-based aesthetic systems for practitioners worldwide, today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2017.
Key operating highlights and financial performance for the first quarter of 2017, when compared to the first quarter of 2016, were as follows:
• Revenue:
- Increased 31% to a record first quarter $29.3 million, due primarily to 60% growth in North America product revenue. International product revenue also contributed growth of 14%.
- Eleventh consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth.
- Growth experienced by multiple products with particular strength from enlightenTM, the Company’s pico technology platform for tattoo removal and facial revitalization.
• Gross Margin was 53%, lower than previous expectations, due primarily to a greater percentage of revenue coming from our enlighten systems and associated upgrades. Key reasons for the lower gross margin associated with enlighten products include:
- Normal market seeding during the early launch phase inclusive of favorable pricing offered to our installed base to upgrade to enlighten III. The Company expects such upgrades to decline throughout the year;
- Higher initial costs of our enlighten III system, that are expected to decline throughout the year; and
- Continued increasing level of bundled transactions.
• Continued discipline on expense and leveraging as Operating Expenses declined as a percent of revenue from 65% to 58%.
• Profitability improved by $1.1 million, from a net loss of $2.1 million to a net loss of $1.0 million.
• Cash, cash equivalents and marketable investments were $48.4 million, and the Company remains debt-free.
• Repurchased $2.9 million of stock under our Board approved $10.0 million stock repurchase program.
James Reinstein, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cutera, stated, “We are very pleased to achieve a record level of revenue this past quarter resulting in our eleventh consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth, compared to the same period in the prior year. The growth is coupled with significant improvement in several operating metrics, illustrating the organization’s ability to leverage the strong revenue. Our 31% revenue growth was driven by multiple platforms within our product portfolio, with particular strength coming from our enlighten product in North America. Our financial performance in the first quarter of 2017, and overall trajectory, has the Company well positioned for continued growth in revenue, profits and cash generation.
