Madrid, Spain and Heidelberg, Germany, 3 August 2016 - SYGNIS AG (Frankfurt: LIO1; ISIN: DE000A1RFM03; Prime Standard) today announced its financial results for the first six months ended 30 June 2016 and provided a business update.
"We made strong progress during the first half of 2016 and achieved to secure a major acquisition with significant importance for the successful future for our company," said Pilar de la Huerta, CEO and CFO of SYGNIS. "Key to building this bright future is the acquisition of Expedeon, which was approved by our shareholders at the Annual General Meeting in June 2016. Through this important acquisition, we gain access to a well-established sales force with a strong presence in key markets, including the US. In addition to our activities in genomics testing, Expedeon brings a range of proteomics tests that will enable us to offer our customers a wide range of products along the value chain. The new combined business places the Company in a stronger market position and provides the conditions for accelerated revenue growth in a very near future."
First half 2016 financial results highlighted by increased revenue and improved operating results
In the first half of 2016, revenues increased significantly by 63% to EUR319 thousand, compared to EUR196 thousand for the same period in 2015. This increase was due to an increase in kit sales, which more than offset the lower revenues related to US licensee sales of Caco-2 in first 6 months of 2016.
Operating results improved by 23 % to EUR1,437 thousand (H1 2015: EUR1,877 thousand). Net loss improved by 24% or EUR464 thousand. This improvement was mainly driven by significantly higher revenues, lower operating expenses and lower interest expenses. Operating expenses decreased to EUR1,756 thousand (H1 2015: EUR2,073 thousand), mainly due to lower administrative and research and development costs.
As of 30 June 2016, cash and cash equivalents totaled EUR2,409 thousand (December 31, 2015: EUR4,557 thousand). Cash outflow from operating activities was -EUR1,507 thousand (H1 2015: -EUR2,178 thousand).
Operating highlights included acquisition of Expedeon
Expedeon acquisition: The key event in the first half of 2016 was the acquisition of Expedeon Holdings Limited, Cambridge, UK. Expedeon has a well-established direct sales force and excellent distribution channels with representative offices in the US, UK and Singapore, key markets for SYGNIS products. Expedeon also has proteomics tool product lines that are focused on market segments highly complementary to SYGNIS' genomics product portfolio, which will enable SYGNIS to offer a wide range of proteomics and genomics products to customers.
Successful rights offering: Related to this acquisition, which was approved by the Annual General Meeting in June 2016, SYGNIS announced in July 2016 the successful completion of a rights offering and private placement to finance the Expedeon acquisition, raising gross proceeds of EUR 5.3 million. Proceeds are being used for transaction-related expenses, including EUR 1.7 million cash payments to Expedeon shareholders, one-off integration costs and financing of the working capital.
Increased commercialization activities: SYGNIS made important progress in commercializing its proprietary products in the first half of 2016 through expanding its direct sales and marketing activities. At the end of the second quarter of 2016, prior to the close of the acquisition, SYGNIS signed a temporary distribution agreement with Expedeon to use its experienced international sales force to already prepare to execute on the combined organization's international sales and commercialization strategy, which includes utilizing Expedeon's existing sales channels to increase demand for SYGNIS' products in the US and Asian markets and to reduce a product's time to market.
Ongoing product development: In June, SYGNIS announced that it is developing a new tool in its TruePrimeTM product line to detect and amplify fragments of floating DNA derived from tumor cells in the blood. This innovative new product is designed to enable researchers to obtain sufficient quantities of DNA samples for any further downstream analysis. The Company expects to launch this kit during the fourth quarter of 2016.
Outlook 2016
Given that the integration process of Expedeon into SYGNIS has just started, the Company is currently not able to publish any detailed consolidated forecast for the remainder of the year. The combined financial figures strongly depend on the progress of the operating integration process. Therefore, the guidance for the fiscal year 2016 that was published on 28 April 2016 is currently under review, and the new guidance will be published afterwards.
H1 2016 figures and comparative figures in accordance with IFRS
[Numbers in EUR thousand]
H1/2016 | H1/2015 | |
Revenues | 319 | 196 |
Operating expenses | -1,756 | -2,073 |
EBIT | -1,437 | -1,877 |
Net results for the period | -1,450 | -1,914 |
Operating cash flow | -1,507 | -2,178 |
30 June 2016 | 30 June 2015 | |
Liquidity at period-end | 2,409 | 1,281 |
Equity | 8,586 | 6,505 |
Equity ratio | 72.0% | 63.2% |
Non-current financial liabilities | 1,913 | 2,032 |
The interim report for the first six months ended 30 June 2016 is available for download from the Company's website at www.sygnis.com.
For further information please contact:
SYGNIS AG Pilar de la Huerta CEO/CFO Phone: +34 91 192 36 50 Email: pdelahuerta@sygnis.com |
MC Services AG Raimund Gabriel Managing Partner Phone: +49 89 210228 30 Email: raimund.gabriel@mc-services.eu |
About SYGNIS AG: www.sygnis.com
SYGNIS, headquartered in Germany and Spain, specializes in the development and commercialization of innovative products for DNA amplification and sequencing. Based on its proprietary technologies, SYGNIS has developed a commercial product portfolio addressing key challenges in the fast-growing fields of molecular biology and next-generation sequencing applications. Key products include the TruePrime(TM) product line and SensiPhi(R), licensed to a leading industry partner, for whole genome DNA amplification and sequencing, as well as the SunScript(TM) Reverse Transcriptase product family to convert genetic information from RNA molecules back to DNA. SYGNIS AG is listed on the German Stock Exchange in the Prime Standard segment (Ticker: LIO1; ISIN: DE000A1RFM03).
About Expedeon Holdings Ltd.: http://www.expedeon.com/about
Expedeon Holdings Ltd. is privately held proteomics tools and reagents company headquartered in the UK. Expedeon is focused on providing high quality, simple and rapid solutions for protein research including RunBlue(R) gels for electrophoresis, the VersaWave spectrophotometer for quantitation or NVoy kits for refolding proteins to name just a few. Expedeon manufactures and sells a wide range of innovative, proprietary products through a direct sales force as well as well-established distribution channels. The company has manufacturing facilities in San Diego, California, USA and a representative office in Singapore.