MONTRÉAL, Québec, June 10, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IBEX Technologies Inc. (“IBEX” or the “Company”) (TSX Venture: IBT) today reported its financial results for the nine months ended April 30, 2022.

“We are pleased with the continued growth in sales, driven by strong sales of heparinase-based products, as well as by the sales of aryl-acyl amidase, a product used in tests for acetaminophen poisoning; and also with the continued strengthening of the Company’s balance sheet” said Paul Baehr, IBEX President & CEO. “The Company had record sales in the first nine months, some of which was driven by customers increasing orders to protect against supply chain interruptions, and some driven by COVID related hospitalizations. While we expect that Fiscal 2022 will be an exceptional year, we expect that sales in the next few quarters will be lower due to a reduction in COVID-related hospitalizations (and therefore less demand for heparinase-based tests), as well a reduction in customer inventories. As a consequence we do not expect Fiscal 2023 results to be as strong as Fiscal 2022”.

Note: All figures are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated. The Company’s audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended July 31, 2021 and the accompanying notes and the related management’s discussion and analysis can be found on the Company’s website at www.ibex.ca or under the Company’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE THIRD QUARTER OF FISCAL 2022

Revenues for the quarter ended April 30, 2022 totaled a record $2,209,234 up by $741,569 (51%) from $1,467,665 in the same period of the prior year.

Expenses after taxes were up $505,476 totaling $1,639,632 vs $1,134,156 compared to the same period a year ago, due mainly to variable compensation expense (an accrual for the profit sharing program of $350K), an increase in consultant fees ($33K), in inventory allocations ($129K), and the absence of the wage subsidy ($36K), partially offset by a positive foreign exchange variance ($129K).

The Company recorded a net profit of $569,602 vs. $333,509 in the same period year ago, and EBITDA of $686,674 versus $432,317 in the same period year ago.

It should be noted that “EBITDA” (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation & Amortization) is not a performance measure defined by IFRS, but we, as well as investors and analysts, consider that this performance measure facilitates the evaluation of our ongoing operations and our ability to generate cash flows to fund our cash requirements, including our capital expenditures program. Note that our definition of this measure may differ from the ones used by other public corporations.

FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE NINE MONTHS ENDED APRIL 30, 2022

Revenues for the nine months ended April 30, 2021 of $5,822,473 were up $1,877,235 (48%) as compared to $3,945,238 in the same period of the prior year. The increase in revenues is due to a combination of COVID driven increases in the use of heparinase I, and changes in quarterly purchasing patterns on the part of several of our major customers.

Expenses after taxes totaled $4,182,842, an increase of $969,684 from the same period in FY2021, due mainly to an increase in variable compensation (an accrual of the profit sharing plan of $550K and stock option expense of $152K), changes in inventory allocation ($126K), consulting fees ($53K), and the absence of the wage subsidy (CEWS) ($244K), partially offset by a positive foreign exchange impact ($286K).

The combination of the above elements resulted in the Company recording net earnings of $1,639,631 compared to net earnings of $732,080 for the same period year ago.

The Company recorded EBITDA of $1,945,668 vs a $1,026,639 EBITDA in the same period year ago, explained by the above.

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Cash and cash equivalents increased by $2,525,725 during the nine months ended April 30, 2022 as compared to the year ended July 31, 2021. Net working capital increased by $1,839,892 during the nine months ended April 30, 2022 as compared to the year ended July 31, 2021.

LOOKING FORWARD        

As always, the future financial results of the Company are difficult to predict as the Company’s customers have significant variations in their purchasing patterns, as it has been illustrated in the quarterly results over the past few years. The impact of COVID-19 adds further uncertainty as some of our customers have increased their inventories over supply-chain concerns, and we expect that, with the reduction in COVID-related hospitalizations there will be a reduction in the use of heparinase-based haemostasis tests.

The Company continues to support a number of our customers who are developing of new clinical devices which contain an IBEX enzyme. Some of these may result in additional revenues in calendar 2022. However, as with all developmental projects, we cannot give assurances that any of these customer-driven projects will come to market and produce significant revenues.

We are continuing with our development of DiaMaze® (diamine oxidase). DiaMaze® is an enzyme targeted to persons suffering from histamine intolerance and will be marketed as a nutraceutical. While we continue to make good progress, development of this product relies on a number of third-party suppliers whose deliverables have been slower than expected owing to COVID-19 constraints.

ABOUT IBEX

IBEX manufactures and markets proteins for biomedical use through its wholly owned subsidiary IBEX Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Montréal, QC). IBEX Pharmaceuticals also manufactures and markets a series of arthritis assays, which are widely used in osteoarthritis research.

For more information, please visit the Company’s website at www.ibex.ca.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Safe Harbor Statement

All of the statements contained in this news release, other than statements of fact that are independently verifiable at the date hereof, are forward-looking statements. Such statements, as they are based on the current assessment or expectations of management, inherently involve numerous risks and uncertainties, known and unknown. Some examples of known risks are: the impact of general economic conditions, general conditions in the pharmaceutical industry, changes in the regulatory environment in the jurisdictions in which IBEX does business, stock market volatility, fluctuations in costs, and changes to the competitive environment due to consolidation or otherwise. Consequently, actual future results may differ materially from the anticipated results expressed in the forward-looking statements. IBEX disclaims any intention or obligation to update these statements, except if required by applicable laws.

In addition to the risk factors identified above, IBEX is, and has been in the past, heavily reliant on three products and five customers, the loss of any of which could have a material effect on its profitability.

Contact:

Paul Baehr
President & CEO
IBEX Technologies Inc.
514-344-4004 x 143