Boule Diagnostics AB (publ) Interim report January–March 2019
2019 starts off with a strong growth in sales
Quarter January – March 2019
- Net sales amounted to SEK 118.6 million (99.5), up 19.3 percent. Adjusted for the change in exchange rates, this corresponds to an increase of 11.5 percent.
- Number of instruments sold in the quarter was 1,159 (940), an increase of 23,3 percent.
- Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK -4.9 million (6.3).
- Operating profit was SEK 16.7 million (18.8) which corresponds to an operating margin of 14.1 percent (18.9).
- Net profit amounted to SEK 9.8 million (14.9).
- Earnings per share before dilution amounted to SEK 0.51 (0.77) and after dilution to SEK 0.51 (0.77).
Significant events during the quarter
No significant events occured in the first quarter 2019.
Significant events after the period
The company has conducted a review and assessment of accounts receivables and has decided to increase the bad debt reserve by approximately SEK 6 million during the second quarter.
Comments from CEO Fredrik Dalborg
Starting the year with strong growth
“Following a relatively weak revenue development in 2018, the year 2019 started off in a strong way. Revenue growth was 19 percent, 11 percent in constant currencies, reaching SEK 118.6 million for the quarter, an all-time high. Instrument sales increased by 23 percent to 1,159 units in the quarter. Instrument sales in Asia remained strong, further building market position and installed base, but also impacting average selling prices and gross margin to some extent. In the five-part segment sales of the Quintus system instruments continued to be slow, while instrument sales for the recently released new five-part systems developed well.
Consumables revenues increased significantly by 32 percent in the quarter, following the weaker Q4 2018.
Revenue growth was strong in all geographic regions, in particular in LATAM and Africa Middle East. In the US, Boule Systems sales, own instruments and consumables, was approximately flat in fixed currencies while currency effects drove the revenue growth in the US market.
Veterinary product sales continued to develop in a favorable way, and revenue growth was significant compared to the first quarter 2018.
Gross margin improved significantly compared to the previous quarter but was lower than the first quarter in 2018. This is primarily due to the continued strong sales in Asia where continued expansion of the instrument installed base had a negative impact on gross margin. Operating expenses were lower than the previous quarter, but higher than the first quarter in 2018 reflecting the gradual strengthening of commercial and R&D resource to drive future growth.
Evolving commercial activities
Boule has been building the commercial resources to develop stronger scientific, clinical and health economics messaging and communication, and to drive more regional marketing and education activities. In the recent months, Boule has been present at industry conferences in Middle East and South East Asia, and hosted education events in Asia and LATAM. Significant efforts have been dedicated to the launch of the two new five-part systems, and also to successfully addressing the issues with the Quintus system. Additional commercial focus will now be directed towards the CellaVision DC 1 and biosurfit spinit products. Resources are allocated to the partnership with distributors and the support for local marketing activities. In Eastern Europe Boule has taken actions to strengthen local presence and to evolve and improve the distributor network.
In the U.S. market important milestones have been achieved, including entering into a Preferred Vendor status with the largest medical surgical distributor in the U.S. The Preferred Vendor agreement will provide better access to the distributor sales organization and improved sales incentives. The agreement is effective as of April 1, 2019. In addition, a new distributor partner in the U.S. has been brought on that concentrates on the larger health network market to help address the decentralization trends in lab testing.
Progressing with quality system improvements
Boule products are known for high quality, and the high quality of current and future products is ensured through rigorous quality assurance processes. The work to diligently follow and develop the quality assurance processes involves the entire organization as well as external parties.
The work on the action plan to improve quality systems and to meet the FDA’s requirements progresses according to the timetable, and most of the process improvements have been implemented. The action plan is expected to be completed during the third quarter of 2019 and Boule has also established a dialogue with the FDA regarding next steps in the process.
The quality processes have been further improved and developed, which was confirmed by good results from external audits during the fourth quarter 2018 as well as during 2019.”
THE INTERIM REPORT FOR JANUARY – MARCH 2019 IN ITS ENTERITY IS FOUND BELOW.
For further information, please contact:
Fredrik Dalborg, CEO and Group President, Boule Diagnostics AB, phone +46 (0)705-58 51 05
Christina Rubenhag, CFO, Boule Diagnostics AB, phone +46 (0)705-46 72 22
About Boule Diagnostics AB (publ)
Boule Diagnostics AB is a global diagnostics company that develops, manufactures and markets instruments and consumable products for blood diagnostics. The company serves hospitals, clinics, laboratories and companies within blood diagnostics, in both human and veterinary hematology. The company operates via subsidiaries in Sweden, the USA, Mexico and Russia. The company products are sold globally primarily through distributors, supported by Boule’s own local sales and support personnel. The Boule shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since 2011. http://www.boule.com
This information is information that Boule Diagnostics AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above at 15:00 CET on May 6, 2019.
