Evogene Ltd. Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual 2009 Financial Results

REHOVOT, ISRAEL--(Marketwire - March 10, 2010) -

Evogene Ltd. (TASE: EVGN) announced today its financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009.

Ofer Haviv, Evogene’s president and CEO, stated: “We are extremely pleased to see the continuing rapid growth and development of our company. During the past year, we continued to advance under our current collaborations, entered into new collaborations with world leading seed companies, substantially increased our infrastructure and capacity and furthered the evaluation of our castor bean lines being developed for biodiesel uses. In addition, during 2009, significant resources were allocated, and during 2010 will continue to be allocated, to enhancements and new applications for our gene discovery core technology -- the ATHLETE -- and to the pursuit of two new core technologies based on our proprietary genomic understandings, systems and tools.”

Among our achievements during 2009 were:

-- A new three year collaboration with Bayer CropScience AG, focusing on rice yield improvement. The agreement strengthens an existing collaboration for rice, established in 2007. -- A new collaboration with Syngenta Biotechnology for Soybean nematode (soil parasites) resistance, significantly expanding our activity in the important field of biotic stresses (e.g. diseases and insect resistance). -- Completion of a first collaboration year under the five year agreement signed with Monsanto on August 2008 and entry into the second year of the collaboration. -- Substantial expansion of field trials in Texas and Brazil for the company’s castor bean lines being developed as a feedstock for biodiesel production. -- The completion of a corporate infrastructure expansion program to substantially increase the company’s R&D and administrative facilities, including construction of a new greenhouse site. -- The further building of the professional team of the company, with approximately 85% of the staff committed to research and development activities. 

Revenues for the year ended December 31, 2009 were $10 million, compared to $3.4 million reported for the same period in 2008. Revenues for the fourth quarter of 2009 were $2.6 million, compared to $2.3 million for the same period in 2008. Revenues for the year ended and fourth quarters of 2008 and 2009 include revenues generated mainly under the collaboration with Monsanto.

Profit from ordinary operations for the year ended December 31, 2009 was $266 thousand, compared to a loss from ordinary operations of $4.1 million in the same period in 2008. Loss from ordinary operations for the fourth quarter of 2009 was $481 thousand, compared to a profit from ordinary operations of $836 thousand in the same period in 2008.

Included in the comprehensive loss for year ended December 31, 2009 were $4.8 million of non-cash financial expenses, compared to $247 thousand for the prior year. These non-cash charges are due primarily to the revaluation for accounting purposes of the publicly traded options issued in the 2007 IPO due to the change in market price of the Company’s ordinary shares during such time periods. After taking into account these non-cash charges, total comprehensive loss for the year ended December 31, 2009, was $3.4 million, or $0.13 per share, compared to $4.5 million, or $0.22 per share, in the same period in 2008.

Mr. Haviv continued: “With regards to our financial results, in 2009 there was a substantial growth in revenues due primarily to our collaborations with Monsanto, Bayer and Syngenta. Consistent with this, a substantial portion of our research and development activities during the year were in support of these collaborations and therefore these expenses are being accounted for as cost of revenues. We anticipate that for 2010, non-collaboration research and development expenses will increase, mostly due to the planned development of the company’s new core technologies.”

As of December 31, 2009, Evogene had $38.2 million in cash, cash equivalents, cash deposits and short-term marketable securities, an increase of approximately $9 million compared to $29.4 million as of December 31, 2008. This increase is mainly due to the exercise in the third quarter of 2009 of substantially all of the company’s Series 1 options that were issued as part of the company’s initial public offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in June 2007.

About Evogene

Evogene is a world leading developer of improved plants traits for the agriculture and biofuel industries through the use of plant genomics. The company’s technology platform is based on a unique computational core technology for gene discovery, the ATHLETE, and high throughput systems for gene validation. Evogene’s development programs focus on the improvement of high-commercial value plant traits, such as yield, biotic and a-biotic stresses tolerance, and the improvement of plants specifically for biofuel uses. Evogene is collaborating with world leading seed companies in order to introduce its technology into key commercial crops. Evogene’s headquarters are in Rehovot, Israel, and its stock is traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE: EVGN). For additional information, please visit Evogene’s website at www.evogene.com.

This press release contains “forward-looking statements.” These statements include words like “may,” “expects,” “believes,” “scheduled” and “intends,” and they describe opinions about future events. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Evogene Ltd. to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

BALANCE SHEETS Dollar in thousands (except per share data) As of As of December 31 December 31 2009 2008 Audited Audited ---------- ---------- Current assets Cash and cash equivalents 26,215 14,490 Short term bank deposits and marketable securities 12,024 14,883 Account receivables 558 1,890 Other account receivables and prepaid expenses 345 322 ---------- ---------- 39,142 31,585 ---------- ---------- Non-current assets Investment in associate company - 136 Prepaid expenses 25 22 Property and equipment 3,440 1,359 Finance derivative 57 585 Intangible assets 217 261 ---------- ---------- 3,739 2,363 ---------- ---------- Total Assets 42,881 33,948 ========== ========== Current liabilities Current maturities of other noncurrent liabilities 4,082 (* 3,927 Trade payable 675 403 Liability related to traded warrants - (* 262 Other accounts payable and accruals 999 842 ---------- ---------- 5,756 5,434 ---------- ---------- Non Current Liabilities: Liability related to finance lease 117 123 Liability related to traded warrants 4,349 (* 2,388 Liability related to chief scientists grants 3,293 2,828 Deferred revenues 10,018 (* 13,556 Accrued severance pay, net 9 9 ---------- ---------- 17,786 18,904 ---------- ---------- Shareholders’ Equity Share capital 80 67 Premium on shares 47,058 34,841 Option Warrants 72 72 Other capital reserves 3,696 2,788 PUT Option (4,433) (4,433) Accumulated deficit (27,134) (23,725) ---------- ---------- 19,339 9,610 ---------- ---------- Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity 42,881 33,948 ========== ========== *) Reclassified STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME Dollar in thousands (except per share data) Three Months Ended Year ended December 31, December 31, 2009 2008 2009 2008 --------- --------- --------- --------- Unaudited Unaudited Audited Audited Revenues 2,606 2,354 9,993 3,426 Cost of revenues 1,320 916 4,962 1,414 --------- --------- --------- --------- Gross profit 1,286 1,438 5,031 2,012 --------- --------- --------- --------- Operating expenses: Research and development, net 1,045 178 2,569 4,078 Business development 246 121 739 922 General and administrative 476 303 1,457 1,160 --------- --------- --------- --------- Profit (Loss) from ordinary operation (481) 836 266 (4,148) Other income 0 0 54 0 Financing (expenses) income 129 226 1,348 376 Financing (expenses) income due to Revaluation of Options 138 4,080 (4,814) (247) Financing (expenses) income due to Revaluation of Obligation to the OCS (181) (395) (217) (675) Share of losses of an associate company 0 (114) (46) (114) --------- --------- --------- --------- Net Profit (Loss) (395) 4,633 (3,409) (4,808) Other Comprehensive income: Currency translation adjustment of financial statement 0 0 0 293 Total Comprehensive loss (395) 4,633 (3,409) (4,515) --------- --------- --------- --------- Loss per share (in dollar) (0.13) (0.22)