Quarterhill Announces Q3 Fiscal 2023 Financial Results

TORONTO, Nov. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Quarterhill Inc. ("Quarterhill" or the "Company") (TSX: QTRH) (OTCQX: QTRHF), a leading provider of tolling and enforcement solutions in the Intelligent Transportation System ("ITS") industry, announces its financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023. All financial information in this press release is reported in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise indicated.

Q3 Fiscal 2023 Highlights

• Revenue was $45.7 million compared to $42.2 million in Q3 2022.
• Adjusted EBITDA¹ was $1.9 million compared to $1.0 million in Q3 2022.
• Revenue backlog³ was more than USD$500.0 million at September 30, 2023.
• Working capital was $111.1 million at September 30, 2023.
• Appointed ITS industry veteran Charles ("Chuck") Myers as Chief Executive Officer.
• Electronic Transaction Consultants, LLC ("ETC") went live with its back-office toll operations for the Ohio River Bridges toll service.
• International Road Dynamics ("IRD") won a five-year $13.7 million contract with the Hawaii Department of Transportation.

"Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth in Q3 reflected progress at both our tolling and enforcement businesses as well as the positive impact from the integration actions we have made this year," said Chuck Myers, CEO of Quarterhill. "Of note in the quarter, certain revenue from two of our tolling projects was pushed from Q3 into subsequent periods due to scheduling adjustments in the quarter. This is expected to result in a stronger Q4 and finish to the year."

"Since joining Quarterhill as CEO in September, I have done a deep dive on the company's operations, spending the majority of my time with employees, customers and partners on the ground in North America, Europe and Asia. 2023 has been a year of transition for Quarterhill and I believe further integration opportunities exist to improve our operational efficiency and effectiveness. I look to complete this assessment and to implement any changes by year-end."

"Strategically we remain focused on growing our world-class ITS franchises in tolling and enforcement and on capitalizing on the favorable growth trends in the ITS industry. This is an exciting time to be in ITS and I am honored to lead the Company at this stage of its evolution. My ultimate goal for the business is to generate robust cash flows and to manage expenses throughout all our businesses in order to build a healthy and sustainable balance sheet capable of supporting both our organic and acquisitive strategies."

Q3 and Year-to-Date Fiscal 2023 Financial Review

Quarterhill's Management's Discussion and Analysis and financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 are available at the Company's website and at its profile at SEDAR+.

Financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, and for the respective comparison periods, have been prepared to reflect continuing operations and therefore exclude results during those periods from Wi-LAN Inc. ("WiLAN"), which was sold by Quarterhill on June 15, 2023. Operating results from WiLAN in 2022 and up to the date of sale on June 15, 2023, are reported as net income (loss) from discontinued operations.

Revenue for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, was $45.7 million and $135.9 million compared to $42.2 million and $119.2 in the prior year comparative periods, respectively. The increase in revenue was due to growth in both the enforcement and tolling business units.

Gross profit² as a value and as a percentage of revenues may be subject to significant variance in each reporting period due to the nature and type of contract and service work currently in process, currency volatility and competitive factors, among other things. Gross profit for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, was $10.6 million and $29.1 million, or 23% and 21%, as compared to $11.5 million and $27.6 million, or 27% and 23% in the prior year comparative periods, respectively. The decrease in gross profit margin percentage compared to the prior year periods is primarily due to an implementation delay with one tolling project. The delay has resulted in additional anticipated costs and a reduced margin profile for the project. This decrease in gross profit margin was partially offset by continuing strong performance in our enforcement operations.

Operating expenses include sales general and administrative ("SG&A") expense, research and development costs ("R&D"), depreciation and amortization and other charges. Total operating expenses for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, were $13.3 million and $43.2 million compared to $17.0 million and $66.6 million in the prior year comparative periods, respectively. The decreases are primarily due to the cost reduction initiatives deployed by the Company and the allocation of certain selling, general and administrative personnel costs into cost of revenues as well as the absence of a one-time $14.6 million legal settlement that was present in the 2022 nine-month comparative period.

SG&A for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, was $8.2 million and $25.9 million compared to $11.2 million and $36.7 million in the prior year comparative periods, respectively. As a percentage of revenue, SG&A in Q3 2023 was 18% compared to 27% in Q3 2022. The Company has worked to drive efficiencies in the business through its restructuring and integration efforts, which are reflected in the year-over-year decrease in SG&A.

Adjusted EBITDA¹ for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, was $1.9 million and $0.6 million compared to $1.0 million and ($9.0) million for the comparative prior year periods, respectively. The increase in Adjusted EBITDA compared to the prior year periods is due to the favorable changes to revenue and operating expenses as previously explained.

Net loss from continuing operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, was ($0.02) per diluted share and ($0.25) per diluted share, compared to a net loss from continuing operations of ($0.04) per diluted share and ($0.31) per diluted share, in the comparative prior year periods, respectively.

Cash used in continuing operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, was $2.3 million and $21.0 million, compared to cash used in continuing operations of $23.5 million and $75.0 million in the comparative prior year periods, respectively.

Cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments were $60.9 million at September 30, 2023, compared to $61.0 million at June 30, 2023 and $67.9 million at December 31, 2022. Working capital was $111.1 million at September 30, 2023, compared to $109.5 million at June 30, 2023 and $71.5 million at December 31, 2022. Due to the nature of the Company's business activities, operating cash flows may vary significantly between periods due to changes and timing in working capital balances.

Conference Call and Webcast

Quarterhill will host a conference call to discuss its financial results today at 10:00 AM Eastern Time.

Webcast Information

• Live audio webcast will be available at: https://app.webinar.net/R2gYoZwnlzM        
• Webcast replay will be available at: https://app.webinar.net/R2gYoZwnlzM

Traditional Dial-in Information

• To access the call from Canada and U.S., dial 1.888.664.6383 (Toll Free)
• To access the call from other locations, dial 1.416.764.8650 (International)

Rapidconnect

To instantly join the conference call by phone, please use the following URL to easily register and be connected into the conference call automatically: https://emportal.ink/48C6OLQ  

Telephone Replay

Telephone replay will be available from 1:00 p.m. ET on November 8, 2023, until 11:59 p.m. ET on August 15, 2023, at: 1.888.390.0541 (Toll Free North America) or 1.416.764.8677.

Conference ID: 21772343 and Replay Passcode: 772343 #

Non-IFRS Financial Measures and Non-IFRS Ratios

Quarterhill uses both IFRS and certain non-IFRS financial measures to assess performance. Non-IFRS financial measures are financial measures disclosed by a company that (a) depict historical or expected future financial performance, financial position or cash flow of a company, (b) with respect to their composition, exclude amounts that are included in, or include amounts that are excluded from the composition of the most directly comparable financial measure disclosed in the primary financial statements of the company, (c) are not disclosed in the financial statements of the company and (d) are not a ratio, fraction, percentage or similar representation. Non-IFRS ratios are financial measures disclosed by a company that are in the form of a ratio, fraction, percentage or similar representation that has a non-IFRS financial measure as one or more of its components, and that are not disclosed in the financial statements of the company.

These non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios are not standardized financial measures under IFRS, and, therefore, are unlikely to be comparable to similar financial measures presented by other companies. Management believes these non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios provide transparent and useful supplemental information to help investors evaluate our financial performance, financial condition, and liquidity using the same measures as management. These non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios should not be considered as a substitute for, or superior to, measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.

Adjusted EBITDA - Non-IFRS Financial Measures

We use the non-IFRS financial measure "Adjusted EBITDA" to mean net (loss) income adjusted for (i) income taxes, (ii) finance expense or income; (iii) amortization and impairment of intangibles; (iv) other charges and other on-time items; (v) depreciation of right-of-use assets and property, plant and equipment; (vi) stock- based compensation; (vii) foreign exchange (gain) loss; and (viii) other income which includes equity in earnings from joint ventures, and (ix) dividends received from joint ventures. Adjusted EBITDA is used by our management to assess our normalized cash generated on a consolidated basis. Adjusted EBITDA is also a performance measure that may be used by investors to analyze the cash generated by Quarterhill. Adjusted EBITDA should not be interpreted as an alternative to net (loss) income and cash flows from operations as determined in accordance with IFRS or as measure of liquidity. The most directly comparable IFRS financial measure is Net (loss) income.

Adjusted EBITDA per share – Non-IFRS ratio

Adjusted EBITDA per share is calculated as Adjusted EBITDA divided by the basic weighted average of common shares. Adjusted EBITDA per share is used by our management and investors to analyze cash generated by Quarterhill on a per share basis. The most comparable IFRS measure is earnings per share.

Backlog - Non-IFRS Financial Measures

We use the non-IFRS measure "backlog" to mean the total value of work that has not yet been completed but that in management's experience of similar situations has: (a) a high certainty of being performed pursuant to existing contracts or work orders specifying job scope, value and timing; (b) an expectation of expansion of existing contracts due to expected extensions; and/or (c) been awarded to one or more of our ITS operating subsidiaries as evidenced by a binding contract or where the finalization of a binding contract is reasonably assured. Activities under such contracts may cover a period of up to 15 years. We do not include in "backlog", the value of any expected but unsigned change orders that management considers may apply to such contracts.

Supplementary Financial Measures

Supplementary financial measures are financial measures disclosed by a company that (a) are, or are intended to be, disclosed on a periodic basis to depict the historical or expected future financial performance, financial position or cash flow of a company (b) are not disclosed in the financial statement of the company, (c) are not non-IFRS financial measures, and (d) are not non-IFRS ratios.

Key supplementary measures disclosed are as follows:

Gross margin %
Calculated as gross profit as a percentage of revenue.

About Quarterhill

Quarterhill is a leading provider of tolling and enforcement solutions in the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) industry. Our goal is global leadership in ITS, via organic growth of the Electronic Transaction Consultants, LLC (ETC) and International Road Dynamics, Inc. (IRD) platforms, and by continuing an acquisition-oriented investment strategy that capitalizes on attractive growth opportunities within ITS and its adjacent markets. Quarterhill is listed on the TSX under the symbol QTRH and on the OTCQX Best Market under the symbol QTRHF. For more information: www.quarterhill.com.

Forward-looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding Quarterhill, its operating subsidiaries and their respective businesses. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions made by Quarterhill in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and the expected effects of new business strategies, as well as other factors that Quarterhill believes are appropriate in the circumstances. The forward-looking events and circumstances discussed herein may not occur and could differ materially as a result of known and unknown risk factors and uncertainties affecting Quarterhill, which include, without limitation, the risks described in Quarterhill's March 22, 2023 annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2022 (the "AIF"). In addition, readers are also urged to review the additional risk factors disclosed in our Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 filed today on www.sedarplus.ca. Quarterhill recommends that readers review and consider all of these risk factors and notes that readers should not place undue reliance on any of Quarterhill's forward-looking statements. Quarterhill has no intention, and undertakes no obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of (Loss) Income and Comprehensive Income (Loss)
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Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position (in thousands and in Canadian dollars)

Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
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Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity
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Reconciliation of Net Loss to Adjusted EBITDA
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SOURCE Quarterhill Inc.