Fluidigm Announces Third Quarter 2020 Financial Results


Third Quarter Total Revenue Increased 50 Percent to $39.9 Million

Third Quarter Product and Service Revenue Increased 34 Percent to $35.3 Million Driven by COVID-19 Testing

GAAP Net Loss in the Third Quarter Was $6.0 Million; Non-GAAP Net Income Was $2.5 Million   

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Nov. 05, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fluidigm Corporation (Nasdaq:FLDM), an innovative biotechnology tools provider with a vision to improve life through comprehensive health insight, today announced financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2020.

Financial Highlights

Third Quarter 2020

  • Third quarter revenue increased 50.4 percent to $39.9 million from $26.5 million in the third quarter of 2019. Product and service revenue increased 34.4 percent to $35.3 million. Microfluidics product and service revenue increased 88 percent driven by COVID-19 testing. Total revenue included $4.5 million of other revenue.
  • GAAP net loss for the quarter was $6.0 million, compared with a GAAP net loss of $12.9 million for the third quarter of 2019.
  • Non-GAAP net income was $2.5 million for the quarter, compared with a $6.2 million non-GAAP net loss for the third quarter of 2019.

“I am extremely pleased with our exceptional performance this quarter with strong execution on our COVID-19 testing and clinical research strategies yielding sequential growth for both the microfluidics and mass cytometry businesses,” said Chris Linthwaite, President and CEO. “FDA Emergency Use Authorization of the Advanta™ Dx SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Assay at the end of August drove growing awareness and healthy adoption of saliva-based testing, with new instrument placements across multiple customer segments including clinical and public health labs, and academic medical centers.”

“In the third quarter, we closely managed our cash and operating expenses while making progress on milestones tied to collaboration payments,” added Linthwaite. “Moving forward, we are focused on expanding our diagnostic reach as our customers utilize microfluidics to address the gap in COVID-19 testing capacity. Longer-term, we are also executing on a product roadmap for microfluidics and mass cytometry to drive growth from translational and clinical research and diagnostics customer segments.”

A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures can be found in the tables of this news release.

Third Quarter 2020 Results

Revenue by category:

CategoryRevenue by CategoryYear-over-Year Change% of Total Revenue
Instruments$12.7 million38%32%
Consumables$16.6 million44%42%
Service$6.1 million9%15%
Other$4.5 millionN/A11%

Product and service revenue by market:

  • Mass cytometry product and service revenue decreased 3 percent to $15.1 million from $15.5 million in the prior year period due to lower sales of instruments, partially offset by higher sales of consumables and services.

  • Microfluidics product and service revenue increased 88 percent to $20.2 million from $10.7 million in the prior year period primarily due to higher sales of instruments and consumables.

Revenue by geographic area:

Geographic AreaRevenue by GeographyYear-over-Year Change% of Total Revenue
Americas*$23.7 million113%60%
EMEA$8.8 million(3)%22%
Asia-Pacific$7.4 million17%18%

*Americas geographic area includes Other Revenue of $4.5 million

Product and service margin: 
Product and service margin was 58.9 percent in the third quarter of 2020 compared to 52.6 percent in the year ago period and 52.5 percent in the second quarter of 2020. Non-GAAP product and service margin was 68.3 percent in the third quarter of 2020 compared to 65.2 percent in the year ago period and 67.1 percent in the second quarter of 2020.

The year-over-year increase in non-GAAP product and service margin was primarily due to sales of COVID-19 related consumables and lower inventory reserves. The increase was partially offset by a higher mix of microfluidics instruments, as well as lower prices and lower product volumes for mass cytometry instruments. On a sequential basis, the increase in non-GAAP product and service margin was primarily due to sales of COVID-19 related consumables partially offset by a higher mix of microfluidics instruments.

GAAP product and service margin, both sequentially and on a year-over-year basis, was positively impacted by fixed amortization over higher revenue in addition to the factors described above.

Cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash as of September 30, 2020
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash as of September 30, 2020 totaled $73.4 million, including approximately $20 million of net proceeds from sales of common stock under an “at the market” equity offering program and $10 million of unspent milestone payments under our National Institutes of Health (NIH) Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx) contract. Cash and cash equivalents, available for sale securities, and restricted cash as of September 30, 2019 totaled $64.8 million.

Operational and Business Progress

Microfluidics and COVID-19 testing progress

  • Received FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the saliva-based Advanta™ Dx SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Assay for COVID-19 on August 25.
  • Achieved initial milestone for $11.7 million payment under NIH RADx agreement; executed definitized contract with NIH RADx.
  • Sold 795,000 COVID-19 assays in the third quarter.
  • Sold more than 30 Biomark™ HD instruments in the third quarter.
  • Year-to-date, 43 Biomark HD instruments have been enabled for COVID-19 testing.
  • Announced an agreement with Healthvana Inc. to provide clinical laboratory customers utilizing the Fluidigm® saliva-based Advanta Dx SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Assay with the option to deliver test results faster via Healthvana’s mobile platform.
  • Introduced the Fluidigm COVID-19 Campus Safeguard Program to support saliva-based testing needs for U.S. colleges and universities, with participation already at Oklahoma University, University of Pennsylvania, and Washington University in St. Louis.
  • Fluidigm COVID-19 testing adopted by clinical labs and public health and academic medical centers including: Dante Labs in Europe; Millennium Health, which has partnered with the U.S. Health and Human Service to provide surge testing through the federal Community-Based Testing Site program; hospitals in Greece; ImmunoGenomics; and Vero Diagnostics.

Mass Cytometry and Imaging Mass Cytometry Progress

  • Record sales of the Maxpar® Direct™ Immune Profiling Assay™ for COVID-19 immune profiling studies.
  • Launch of a new Innovative Solutions offering by Fluidigm Therapeutic Insights Services, the robust IMC™ Cell Segmentation Kit, which facilitates an end-to-end workflow for Imaging Mass Cytometry™ (IMC) single-cell data analytics.
  • Use of CyTOF® technology in 16 COVID-19 publications and five COVID-19 clinical trials through September.
  • Use of CyTOF technology in 113 National Clinical Trials through September, including 25 initiated in 2020, with three of those utilizing Imaging Mass Cytometry. Total publications and reviews involving CyTOF technology exceeded 1,300, including 65 that involved Imaging Mass Cytometry.

Conference Call Information

Fluidigm will host a conference call today, November 5, 2020, at 2:00 p.m. PT, 5:00 p.m. ET, to discuss third quarter 2020 financial results and operational progress. Individuals interested in listening to the conference call may do so by dialing the following:

US domestic callers: (877) 556-5248
Outside US callers: (720) 545-0029
Please reference Conference ID: 7187059

A live webcast of the conference call will be available online from the Investor Relations page of the company’s website at Events & Presentations. The link will not be active until 1:45 p.m. PT, 4:45 p.m. ET, on November 5, 2020.

After the live webcast, the call will be archived on Fluidigm’s Investor Relations page at investors.fluidigm.com. In addition, a telephone replay of the teleconference will be available approximately 90 minutes after the end of the call.

The replay dial-in numbers are:

US domestic callers: (855) 859-2056
Outside US: (404) 537-3406
Please reference Conference ID: 7187059

The telephone replay will be available until November 12.

Statement Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information

Fluidigm has presented certain financial information in accordance with U.S. GAAP and on a non-GAAP basis for the three-month periods ended September 30, 2020, and September 30, 2019. Management believes that non-GAAP financial measures, taken in conjunction with GAAP financial measures, provide useful information for both management and investors by excluding certain non-cash and other expenses that are not indicative of the company’s core operating results. Management uses non-GAAP measures to compare the company’s performance relative to forecasts and strategic plans and to benchmark the company’s performance externally against competitors. Non-GAAP information is not prepared under a comprehensive set of accounting rules and should only be used to supplement an understanding of the company’s operating results as reported under U.S. GAAP. Fluidigm encourages investors to carefully consider its results under GAAP, as well as its supplemental non-GAAP information and the reconciliation between these presentations, to more fully understand its business. Reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP operating results are presented in the accompanying tables of this release.

Use of Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, among others, statements regarding opportunities for Fluidigm technology and products, including growth from sales of Fluidigm’s diagnostic tests, increasing adoption of such tests, and a product roadmap encompassing new customer segments. Forwardlooking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from currently anticipated results, including but not limited to the potential adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic on our business and operating results during 2020; the suitability and acceptance of our tools and technology by the research community pursuing solutions for the novel coronavirus pandemic; our ability and/or the ability of the institutions utilizing our products and technology to obtain FDA and any other requisite approvals to use our products and technology for diagnostic testing purposes; customers and prospective customers continuing to curtail or suspend activities utilizing our products; interruptions or delays in the supply of components or materials for, or manufacturing of, our products resulting from the pandemic or other factors; challenges inherent in developing, manufacturing, launching, marketing, and selling new products; risks relating to reliance on sales of capital equipment for a significant proportion of revenues in each quarter; potential product performance and quality issues; the possible loss of key employees, customers, or suppliers; intellectual property risks; competition; uncertainties in contractual relationships; risks relating to company research and development, sales, marketing, and distribution plans and capabilities; reductions in research and development spending or changes in budget priorities by customers; seasonal variations in customer operations; unanticipated increases in costs or expenses; and risks associated with international operations. Information on these and additional risks and uncertainties and other information affecting Fluidigm's business and operating results is contained in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, and in its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Fluidigm disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements except as may be required by law.

About Fluidigm

Fluidigm (Nasdaq:FLDM) focuses on the most pressing needs in translational and clinical research, including cancer, immunology, and immunotherapy. Using proprietary CyTOF and microfluidics technologies, we develop, manufacture, and market multi-omic solutions to drive meaningful insights in health and disease, identify biomarkers to inform decisions, and accelerate the development of more effective therapies. Our customers are leading academic, government, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, plant and animal research, and clinical laboratories worldwide. Together with them, we strive to increase the quality of life for all. For more information, visit fluidigm.com.

Fluidigm, the Fluidigm logo, Advanta, Biomark, CyTOF, Direct, Imaging Mass Cytometry, IMC, Immune Profiling Assay, and Maxpar are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Fluidigm Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Fluidigm products are provided for Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.

Available Information
We use our website (fluidigm.com), investor site (investors.fluidigm.com), corporate Twitter account (@fluidigm), Facebook page (facebook.com/Fluidigm), and LinkedIn page (linkedin.com/company/fluidigm-corporation) as channels of distribution of information about our products, our planned financial and other announcements, our attendance at upcoming investor and industry conferences, and other matters. Such information may be deemed material information, and we may use these channels to comply with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Therefore, investors should monitor our website and our social media accounts in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, and webcasts.

Contact:

Investors:
Agnes Lee
Vice President, Investor Relations
650 416 7423
agnes.lee@fluidigm.com

Media:
Mark Spearman
Senior Director, Corporate Communications
650 243 6621
mark.spearman@fluidigm.com

 
FLUIDIGM CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS 
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)
           
   Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 
   2020 2019 2020 2019 
Revenue:          
Product revenue  $29,210   $20,666   $65,596   $68,728   
Service revenue  6,131   5,630   16,457   15,875   
Product and service revenue  35,341   26,296   82,053   84,603   
Other revenue  4,520   200   11,483   200   
Total revenue  39,861   26,496   93,536   84,803   
Costs and expenses:          
Cost of product revenue  12,773   10,520   31,896   33,009   
Cost of service revenue  1,769   1,938   4,531   5,403   
Cost of product and service revenue  14,542   12,458   36,427   38,412   
Research and development  8,128   7,125   25,275   23,362   
Selling, general and administrative  22,655   20,729   65,966   65,687   
Total costs and expenses  45,325   40,312   127,668   127,461   
Loss from operations  (5,464)  (13,816)  (34,132)  (42,658)  
Interest expense  (885)  (444)  (2,682)  (3,636)  
Loss on extinguishment of debt           (9,000)  
Other income (expense), net  107   205   (248)  920   
Loss before income taxes  (6,242)  (14,055)  (37,062)  (54,374)  
Income tax benefit  243   1,168   2,068   2,269   
Net loss  $(5,999)  $(12,887)  $(34,994)  $(52,105)  
Net loss per share, basic and diluted  $(0.08)  $(0.19)  $(0.49)  $(0.79)  
Shares used in computing net loss per share, basic and diluted  72,486   69,469   71,294   65,792   


FLUIDIGM CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands)
(Unaudited)
     
   
  September 30,
2020
 December 31,
2019 (1)
ASSETS    
Current assets:    
Cash and cash equivalents (Note 2) $72,345  $21,661 
Short-term investments (Note 2)   36,978 
Accounts receivable, net 17,613  18,981 
Grant receivable 7,456   
Inventories 19,560  13,884 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets (Note 2) 5,689  4,592 
Total current assets 122,663  96,096 
Property and equipment, net 7,531  8,056 
Operating lease right-of-use assets, net 38,469  4,860 
Other non-current assets (Note 2) 4,904  5,492 
Developed technology, net 42,955  46,200 
Goodwill 106,455  104,108 
Total assets $322,977  $264,812 
     
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY    
Current liabilities:    
Accounts payable $10,971  $6,510 
Accrued compensation and related benefits 9,122  5,160 
Operating lease liabilities, current 2,697  1,833 
Other accrued liabilities 6,565  7,515 
Deferred revenue, current 13,436  11,803 
Total current liabilities 42,791  32,821 
Convertible notes, net 54,121  53,821 
Deferred tax liability, net 9,041  11,494 
Operating lease liabilities, non-current 38,607  4,323 
Deferred revenue, non-current 7,684  8,168 
Deferred grant income, non-current 18,224   
Other non-current liabilities 536  573 
Total liabilities 171,004  111,200 
Total stockholders' equity 151,973  153,612 
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $322,977  $264,812 
     
Notes:    
(1) Derived from audited consolidated financial statements    
(2) Cash and cash equivalents, available for sale securities and restricted cash consist of:    
Cash and cash equivalents $72,345  $21,661 
Short-term investments   36,978 
Restricted cash (included in prepaid and other current assets, and other non-current assets) 1,015  2,075 
Total cash and cash equivalents, available for sale securities and restricted cash $73,360  $60,714 
     


FLUIDIGM CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In thousands)
(Unaudited)
     
  Nine Months Ended September 30,
  2020 2019
Operating activities    
Net loss $(34,994)  $(52,105) 
Depreciation and amortization 2,988   3,484  
Stock-based compensation expense 10,358   8,292  
Amortization of developed technology 8,929   8,400  
Loss on extinguishment of debt    9,000  
Loss on disposal of property and equipment 191   52  
Other non-cash items 2,971   3,310  
Changes in assets and liabilities, net (2,127)  (10,124) 
Net cash used in operating activities (11,684)  (29,691) 
     
Investing activities    
Acquisition, net of cash acquired (5,154)    
Purchases of investments    (52,719) 
Proceeds from RADx grant 11,151     
Proceeds from sales and maturities of investments 36,810   16,000  
Purchases of property and equipment (2,010)  (2,031) 
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities 40,797   (38,750) 
     
Financing activities    
Proceeds from issuance of common stock from at-the-market offering, net of commissions 20,226     
Payment of debt and equity issuance costs (509)  (128) 
Proceeds from employee equity programs, net 708   1,134  
Net cash provided by financing activities 20,425   1,006  
     
Effect of foreign exchange rate fluctuations on cash and cash equivalents 86   (5) 
Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash 49,624   (67,440) 
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period 23,736   95,401  
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period $73,360   $27,961  
     
Cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and available for sale securities consist of:    
Cash and cash equivalents $72,345   $25,886  
Short-term investments    36,875  
Restricted cash (included in prepaid and other current assets, and other non-current assets) 1,015   2,075  
Total cash and cash equivalents, available for sale securities and restricted cash $73,360   $64,836  
     


FLUIDIGM CORPORATION 
RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL INFORMATION 
(In thousands, except per share amounts) 
(Unaudited) 
          
          
ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP NET  INCOME (LOSS)
          
  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 
  2020 2019 2020 2019 
          
Net loss (GAAP) $(5,999)  $(12,887)  $(34,994)  $(52,105)  
Stock-based compensation expense 4,358   3,029   10,358   8,292   
Amortization of developed technology (a) 2,993   2,800   8,929   8,400   
Depreciation and amortization 972   1,133   2,988   3,484   
Interest expense (b) 885   444   2,682   3,636   
Loss on disposal of property and equipment 43   23   191   52   
Loss on extinguishment of debt          9,000   
Benefit from acquisition related income taxes (c) (742)  (742)  (2,226)  (2,226)  
Net income (loss) (Non-GAAP) $2,510   $(6,200)  $(12,072)  $(21,467)  
Shares used in net income (loss) per share calculation -         
basic and diluted (GAAP and Non-GAAP) 72,486   69,469   71,294   65,792   
          
Net loss per share - basic and diluted (GAAP) $(0.08)  $(0.19)  $(0.49)  $(0.79)  
Net income (loss) per share - basic and diluted (Non-GAAP) $0.03   $(0.09)  $(0.17)  $(0.33)  
          
ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP PRODUCT AND SERVICE MARGIN 
          
  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 
  2020 2019 2020 2019 
Product and service gross profit (GAAP) $20,799   $13,838   $45,626   $46,191   
Amortization of developed technology (a) 2,800   2,800   8,400   8,400   
Depreciation and amortization (d) 419   418   1,215   1,315   
Stock-based compensation expense (d) 133   94   312   328   
Product and service gross profit (Non-GAAP) $24,151   $17,150   $55,553   $56,234   
          
Product and service margin percentage (GAAP) 58.9 % 52.6 % 55.6 % 54.6 % 
Product and service margin percentage (Non-GAAP) 68.3 % 65.2 % 67.7 % 66.5 % 
          
ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP OPERATING EXPENSES
          
  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 
  2020 2019 2020 2019 
Operating expenses (GAAP) $30,783   $27,854   $91,241   $89,049   
Stock-based compensation expense (e) (4,225)  (2,935)  (10,046)  (7,964)  
Depreciation and amortization (e) (746)  (715)  (2,302)  (2,169)  
Loss on disposal of property and equipment (e) (43)  (23)  (191)  (52)  
Operating expenses (Non-GAAP) $25,769   $24,181   $78,702   $78,864   
          
          
ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP INCOME (LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS
 
          
  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 
  2020 2019 2020 2019 
Loss from operations (GAAP) $(5,464)  $(13,816)  $(34,132)  $(42,658)  
Stock-based compensation expense 4,358   3,029   10,358   8,292   
Amortization of developed technology (a) 2,993   2,800   8,929   8,400   
Depreciation and amortization (e) 972   1,133   2,988   3,484   
Loss on disposal of property and equipment (e) 43   23   191   52   
Income (loss) from operations (Non-GAAP) $2,902   $(6,831)  $(11,666)  $(22,430)  
          
          
(a) represents amortization of developed technology in connection with the DVS acquisition
(b) represents interest expense, primarily on convertible debt
(c) represents the tax impact on the purchase of intangible assets in connection with the DVS acquisition
(d) represents expense associated with cost of product revenue
 
(e) represents expense associated with research and development, selling, general and administrative activities