Gaia Reports Full Year 2021 Results

2021 Revenues up 19% with 19% EBITDA Margin


BOULDER, Colo., Feb. 28, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gaia, Inc. (NASDAQ: GAIA), a conscious media and community company, reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021.

Highlights

  • Generated positive operating income for the first full year since the launch of Gaia’s streaming business
  • 19% revenue growth in 2021, ending the year with 821,000 members
  • Sixth consecutive quarter of positive earnings and double-digit revenue growth

“Our first year with annual operating income represents an important milestone for Gaia,” said Jirka Rysavy, Gaia’s Chairman and CEO. “We are now in position to expand more aggressively internationally, leveraging our existing operating infrastructure and worldwide rights to virtually all of our content library.”

A summary of selected financial metrics since 2018, when Gaia made the decision to focus on becoming profitable and self-sustaining, are included below:

  2021  2020  2019  2018 
Revenues, net $79,573  $66,827  $53,979  $41,997 
Average monthly revenue per member $8.60  $8.46  $7.95  $7.78 
Customer acquisition costs as a percentage of revenues  39%  47%  56%  110%
Other operating expenses as a percentage of revenues  45%  47%  63%  64%
Income (loss) from operations $1,985  $(4,628) $(17,847) $(36,412)
EBITDA $15,130  $7,414  $(7,609) $(29,477)
EBITDA Margin  19%  11%  -14%  -70%

Paul Tarell, Gaia’s CFO commented: “Despite a quarter impacted by elevated customer acquisition costs industry-wide, we grew full-year revenues by 19% while remaining profitable. We also completed the acquisition of Yoga International in late December with the integration progressing smoothly. As a leader in consciousness-expanding media, Yoga International shares our passion for empowering its members’ personal growth. Looking to 2022, we expect this acquisition to help drive annual revenue growth similar to this year while we continue to maintain profitability.”

Fourth Quarter 2021 Financial Results

Revenues increased 12% to $20.8 million from $18.6 million in the year-ago quarter. This was primarily due to growth in members and an increase in average revenue per member. Member count increased to 821,000 as of December 31, 2021.

Gross profit in the fourth quarter increased to $17.9 million compared to $16.2 million in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was down to 85.8% from 87.1% in the year ago quarter primarily as a result of increased content amortization.

Total operating expenses were $17.7 million or 85% of revenues, which includes $0.4 million in one-time transaction related expenses for the Yoga International acquisition, compared to $15.7 million or 84% of revenues in the year-ago quarter. Including the $0.4 million in acquisition costs, EBITDA improved slightly to $3.6 million compared to $3.5 million in the year ago quarter.

Net income was $2.1 million or $0.10 per share compared to $0.3 million or $0.02 per share in the year ago quarter.

Cash flows from operations improved 40% to $6.3 million from $4.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Gaia’s cash balance as of December 31, 2021, was $10.3 million, even after the use of $6.5 million for the acquisition of Yoga International and a French language content library during the quarter. Gaia’s cash balance as of December 31, 2020 was $12.6 million.

2021 Financial Results

Revenues in 2021 increased 19% to $79.6 million from $66.8 million.

Gross profit for 2021 increased to $69.0 million compared to $58.2 million. Gross margin was 86.8%, reflecting increased content amortization as we have scaled our content investment to support our larger member base during 2021.

Total operating expenses were $67.1 million or 84% of revenues for 2021 compared to $62.8 million or 94% of revenues in the prior period. EBITDA improved to $15.1 million, which reflects a 60% flow through of the incremental revenues generated in 2021 compared to the prior year.

Income from operations for 2021 improved to $2.0 million from a loss of $4.6 million in 2020, marking the first year generating income since launching our streaming business.

Net income increased to $3.7 million or $0.19 per share for 2021 compared to $0.5 million or $0.03 per share in the prior period which includes a $6.1 million gain on the sale of a portion of Gaia’s corporate campus in September 2020.

Cash flows from operations improved 79% to $20.9 million during 2021 compared to $11.7 million in the prior period.

Conference Call

Date: Monday, February 28, 2022
Time: 4:30 p.m. Eastern time (2:30 p.m. Mountain time)
Toll-free dial-in number: 1-888-204-4368
International dial-in number: 1-323-994-2093
Conference ID: 8303780

Please call the conference telephone number 5-10 minutes prior to the start time. An operator will register your name and organization. If you have any difficulty connecting with the conference call, please contact Gateway Investor Relations at (949) 574-3860.

The conference call will be broadcast live and available for replay here and via ir.gaia.com

A telephonic replay of the conference call will be available after 7:30 p.m. Eastern time on the same day through March 14, 2022.

Toll-free replay number: 1-844-512-2921
International replay number: 1-412-317-6671
Replay ID: 8303780

About Gaia

Gaia is a member-supported global video streaming service and community that produces and curates conscious media through four primary channels—Seeking Truth, Transformation, Alternative Healing and Yoga—in four languages (English, Spanish, French and German) to its members in 185 countries. Gaia’s library includes over 10,000 titles, 80% of which is exclusive to Gaia, and approximately 75% of viewership is generated by content produced or owned by Gaia. Gaia is available on Apple TV, iOS, Android, Roku, Chromecast, and sold through Amazon Prime Video and Comcast Xfinity. For more information about Gaia, visit www.gaia.com.

Company Contact:
Paul Tarell
Chief Financial Officer
Gaia, Inc.
Investors@gaia.com

Investor Relations:
Gateway Group
Cody Slach
(949) 574-3860
GAIA@gatewayir.com

GAIA, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

  For the Three Months Ended December 31,  For the Year Ended December 31, 
(in thousands, except per share data) 2021  2020  2021  2020 
  (unaudited)    
Revenues, net $20,829  $18,626  $79,573  $66,827 
Cost of revenues  2,953   2,403   10,526   8,651 
Gross profit  17,876   16,223   69,047   58,176 
Gross profit margin  85.8%  87.1%  86.8%  87.1%
Expenses:                
Selling and operating  15,757   14,583   60,577   56,937 
Corporate, general and administration  1,619   1,151   6,125   5,867 
Acquisition costs  360      360    
Total operating expenses  17,736   15,734   67,062   62,804 
Income (loss) from operations  140   489   1,985   (4,628)
Interest and other income (expense), net  (68)  (68)  (265)  5,327 
Income before income taxes  72   421   1,720   699 
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes  (2,011)  111   (2,011)  180 
Net income $2,083  $310  $3,731  $519 
                 
Earnings per share:                
Basic $0.11  $0.02  $0.19  $0.03 
Diluted $0.10  $0.02  $0.19  $0.03 
Weighted-average shares outstanding:                
Basic  19,441   19,183   19,307   18,921 
Diluted  19,899   19,603   19,834   19,305 
                 
EBITDA* $3,644  $3,505  $15,130  $7,414 

* See definition and reconciliation below.

GAIA, INC.
Summary of Cash Flows

  For the Three Months Ended December 31,  For the Year Ended December 31, 
(in thousands) 2021  2020  2021  2020 
  (unaudited)    
Net cash provided by (used in):                
Operating activities $6,281  $4,453  $20,867  $11,650 
Investing activities  (10,503)  (2,957)  (23,858)  (176)
Financing activities  63   2,388   655   (10,363)
Net change in cash $(4,159) $3,884  $(2,336) $1,111 

Reconciliation of Net Income to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA

  For the Three Months Ended December 31,  For the Year Ended December 31, 
(in thousands) 2021  2020  2021  2020 
  (unaudited)    
Net income $2,083  $310  $3,731  $519 
Interest expense, net  68   68   265   798 
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes  (2,011)  111   (2,011)  180 
Gain on sale of real estate           (6,125)
Depreciation and amortization expense  3,504   3,016   13,145   12,042 
EBITDA  3,644   3,505   15,130   7,414 
Acquisition costs  360      360    
Share-based compensation expense  474   474   1,710   2,338 
Adjusted EBITDA $4,478  $3,979  $17,200  $9,752 

EBITDA represents net income before interest expense, provision for income taxes, other income, depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA further adjusted to remove share-based compensation expense and acquisition costs. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA do not represent net income, as that term is defined under GAAP, and should not be considered as an alternative to net income as an indicator of our operating performance.

Additionally, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not intended to be measures of free cash flow available for management or discretionary use as such measures do not consider certain cash requirements such as capital expenditures, tax payments and debt service requirements. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as presented herein are not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures.

GAIA, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

  December 31,  December 31, 
(in thousands, except share and per share data) 2021  2020 
         
ASSETS        
Current assets:        
Cash $10,269  $12,605 
Accounts receivable  2,728   2,024 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets  1,986   1,746 
Total current assets  14,983   16,375 
Media library, software and equipment, net  50,558   39,231 
Right-of-use lease asset, net  7,871   8,622 
Real estate, investment and other assets, net  31,394   28,500 
Goodwill  28,870   17,289 
Total assets $133,676  $110,017 
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY        
Current liabilities:        
Accounts payable, accrued and other liabilities $14,962  $8,947 
Deferred revenue  14,847   12,376 
Total current liabilities  29,809   21,323 
Long-term mortgage, net  6,109   6,250 
Long-term lease liability  7,234   7,952 
Deferred taxes  309   257 
Total liabilities  43,461   35,782 
Total shareholders' equity  90,215   74,235 
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity $133,676  $110,017