Cepheid Reports 2010 First Quarter Results

SUNNYVALE, Calif., April 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cepheid (Nasdaq: CPHD) today reported revenue for the first quarter of 2010 of $48.0 million.  Net loss was $4.3 million, or $(0.07) per share, which compares to revenue of $38.8 million and a net loss of $7.6 million, or $(0.13) per share, in the first quarter of 2009.

Excluding amortization of purchased intangible assets and stock compensation expense, non-GAAP net loss for the first quarter was $0.2 million, or $(0.00) per share.  This compares to a non-GAAP net loss of $3.0 million, or $(0.05) per share, in the first quarter of 2009, which excluded amortization of purchased intangible assets, stock compensation and restructuring expenses.

"As Cepheid's diagnostic offering continues to expand, now with nine tests available in the United States, the dramatic improvements offered by the GeneXpert® System over traditional testing methodologies are proving increasingly compelling," said John Bishop, Cepheid's Chief Executive Officer.  "This led to solid system placements in the first quarter, and record sales of our clinical diagnostic tests which deliver the fastest and, in many cases, the most accurate molecular results to support clinical decisions that can improve patient management and reduce health care costs."

"Even as we work diligently to narrow our net loss further and move to profitability, Cepheid is investing heavily in further expansion of our test menu and in the maintenance of our technology leadership," continued Bishop.  "By the end of 2010, we intend to deliver additional tests to the US market, including our Xpert® MRSA/SA test for presurgical identification of colonized patients who are at greater risk of post surgical infection."

Operational Overview

• Total product sales of $47.2 million in the first quarter of 2010, compared to $36.6 million in the first quarter of 2009.  By industry, product sales were, in millions:

• By geography, product sales were, in millions:

• During the quarter, Cepheid installed a total of 124 GeneXpert systems and 587 modules.  As of March 31, 2010, a cumulative total of 1,499 GeneXpert systems and 8,140 modules have been placed worldwide.
• GAAP gross margin on product sales was 45% and non-GAAP gross margin on product sales was 46%, which compares to 43% and 45%, respectively, in the first quarter of 2009.
• Cash, cash equivalents and investments, net of associated debt, were $39.2 million as of March 31, 2010.
• DSO was 53 days.

Business Outlook

For the fiscal year ending December 31, 2010, the company expects:

• Total revenue to be in the range of $195 to $205 million;
• Net loss in the range of $(0.35) to $(0.27) per share;  
• Non-GAAP net income ranging from a loss of $(0.05) to net income of $0.02 per share.  

Expected non-GAAP net income/loss excludes approximately $16.5 million related to stock compensation expense and approximately $1.5 million related to the amortization of acquired intangibles.

Accessing Cepheid's Q110 Results Conference Call

The company will host a management presentation at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time on Thursday, April 22, 2010 to discuss the results.  To access the live webcast, please visit Cepheid's website at www.cepheid.com/investors at least 15 minutes before the scheduled start time to download any necessary audio or plug-in software.  A replay of the webcast will be available shortly following the call and will remain available for at least 90 days.

Interested participants may also listen to the live teleconference call by dialing (866) 356-4441 (domestic) or (617) 597-5396 (international), and entering participant code 57219884.  A replay will be available for seven days beginning at 4 p.m. Pacific Time.  Access numbers for this replay are (888) 286-8010 (domestic) and (617) 801-6888 (international), with participant code 22168742.

About Cepheid

Based in Sunnyvale, Calif., Cepheid (Nasdaq: CPHD) is an on-demand molecular diagnostics company that develops, manufactures, and markets fully-integrated systems and tests for genetic analysis in the clinical, industrial and biothreat markets. The company's systems enable rapid, sophisticated genetic testing for organisms and genetic-based diseases by automating otherwise complex manual laboratory procedures. The company's easy-to-use systems integrate a number of complicated and time-intensive steps, including sample preparation, DNA amplification and detection, which enable the analysis of complex biological samples in its proprietary test cartridges. Through its strong molecular biology capabilities, the company is focusing on those applications where rapid molecular testing is particularly important, such as identifying infectious disease and cancer in the clinical market; food, agricultural, and environmental testing in the industrial market; and identifying bio-terrorism agents in the biothreat market. See www.cepheid.com for more information.

Use of Non-GAAP Measures

The company has supplemented its reported GAAP financial information with non-GAAP measures that do not include employee share-based compensation expense and amortization of purchased intangible assets and, for the first quarter of 2009, restructuring charges.  The presentation of this additional information is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for results prepared in accordance with GAAP.   The company's management uses the non-GAAP information internally to evaluate its ongoing business, continuing operational performance and cash requirements, and believes these non-GAAP measures are useful to investors as they provide a basis for evaluating the company's cash requirements and additional insight into the underlying operating results and the company's ongoing performance in the ordinary course of its operations.

These non-GAAP measures may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies.  In addition, these non-GAAP measures are not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles.  The company believes that non-GAAP measures have limitations in that they do not reflect all of the amounts associated with its results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP and that these measures should only be used to evaluate the company's results of operations in conjunction with the corresponding GAAP measures.

As described above, the company excludes the following items from one or more of its non-GAAP measures when applicable:

Employee stock-based compensation expense. These expenses consist primarily of expenses for employee stock options and employee restricted stock under ASC 718 (formerly SFAS 123(R)).  The company excludes employee stock-based compensation expenses from its non-GAAP measures primarily because they are non-cash expenses that the company does not believe are reflective of ongoing operating results.  Further, as the company applies ASC 718, it believes that it is useful to investors to understand the impact of the application of ASC 718 on its results of operations.

Amortization of purchased intangible assets.  The company incurs amortization of purchased intangible assets in connection with acquisitions.  The company excludes these items because these expenses are not reflective of ongoing operating results in the period incurred.  These amounts arise from the company's prior acquisitions and have no direct correlation to the operation of the company's business.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are not purely historical regarding Cepheid's or its management's intentions, beliefs, expectations and strategies for the future, including those relating to  product pipeline and timeline, product performance, future revenues and future net income or loss. Because such statements deal with future events, they are subject to various risks and uncertainties, and actual results could differ materially from the company's current expectations. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include risks and uncertainties such as those relating to: our success in increasing direct sales and the effectiveness of new sales personnel; the performance and market acceptance of new products; sufficient customer demand; our ability to develop and complete clinical trials successfully in a timely manner for new products; uncertainties related to the FDA regulatory and European regulatory processes; the level of testing at clinical customer sites; changes in the protocols or levels of testing for Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs); the company's ability to successfully introduce and sell products in clinical markets other than HAIs; the rate of environmental biothreat testing conducted by the USPS, which will affect the amount of consumable products sold to the USPS; unforeseen development and manufacturing problems; the potential need for additional intellectual property licenses for tests and other products and the terms of such licenses; lengthy sales cycles in certain markets; the company's reliance on distributors in some regions to market, sell and support its products; the occurrence of unforeseen expenditures, acquisitions or other transactions; the impact of acquisitions and stock-based compensation expense; the impact of competitive products and pricing; the company's ability to manage geographically-dispersed operations; and underlying market conditions worldwide, including the uncertain impact of the significant global economic downturn on our business, and that of our customers, potential customers and business partners.  Readers should also refer to the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Cepheid's Annual Report on Form 10-K, its most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and its other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

All forward-looking statements and reasons why results might differ included in this release are made as of the date of this press release, based on information currently available to Cepheid, and Cepheid assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statement or reasons why results might differ.

SOURCE Cepheid