SMART EYE AB The Foreseen Acceleration of Automotive Sales has Started
January-
- Net sales amounted to
SEK 86.1 (64.3) million, an increase of 34% compared to the corresponding period the previous year. Business area Automotive continuing to drive the growth in the quarter. - Gross Profit amounted to
SEK 77.3 million , an increase of 41% compared to the corresponding period the previous year. Gross Margin amounts to 90% (85%) which is due to a higher share of software sales in the quarter. - EBITDA amounted to
SEK -23.0 (-44.2) million. The improved result is driven by higher sales and lower OPEX. One-time expenses due to restructuring costs impacted the result negatively with -11.6 million. - Operating loss amounted to
SEK -61.5 (-81.9) million. Depreciation of the surplus value created in conjunction with the Affectiva and iMotions acquisitions amounts toSEK -28.4 million . - Earnings after tax per share are -1.53 (-2.33), and after full dilution -1.53 (-2.33).
- Cash and cash equivalents totaled
SEK 161.2 million at the end of March. The cash ending balance including credit facilities amounts toSEK 243.6 million . - Strong order intake during the quarter included 19 design wins for DMS, 5 design wins for Interior Sensing and 2 design wins for a commercial vehicle manufacturer (AIS). The total estimated order value for these design wins amounts to
SEK 785 million based on estimated product life cycle projections.
Comments from the CEO
The most significant development in the first quarter is that our software license revenue from the automotive sector is gearing up as planned. The company is growing 34% year on year, with the majority of the growth coming from Automotive. The costs are kept firmly in control, and we are eagerly anticipating that the revenues ramp-up, driven by higher car production volumes. In the period we chose to increase our cash position by 150 MSEK with a directed share issue. After our last earnings call it became clear to us that we had the option to raise cash that way on favorable terms, as an alternative to a debt facility. We concluded this was the best alternative, in terms of risk minimization, and executed the deal in a short time frame with low discount.
Automotive
We are proceeding according to our plan. The Automotive business is growing with 138% (121% in Q4 2023). The increased growth rate comes mainly from production volumes in
AIS’s main achievement this quarter was securing a very big contract with a well-known European truck manufacturer, with a combined order value of 150 MSEK with start of production in 2025. We are pursuing several bus manufacturers that need a DMS system to comply with the upcoming European legislation starting this year. This will start to ramp up in Q3. The fleet customers are adding up and will during this year become a significant and welcome addition to the already fast-growing automotive business area.
The business area grew by 6% during the quarter, mainly coming from the eye trackers of Research Instruments. All product categories and geographic regions grew and helped make Q1 the best quarter so far for RI. Both iMotions and Media Analytics slowed down a bit, which probably has to do with the strong end of year effect we saw in Q4. Next quarter looks very promising for the entire business area. We showcased a new reference measuring product at World NCAP conference in
Final Words
We are perfectly set up for the year to come. We have an uniquely strong automotive production program pipeline. We have a dedicated and enthusiastic organization in place delivering the production projects that we won. We have a solid research business as a base platform, and we have the exhilarating fleet and aftermarket business that quickly can turn into yet another cash cow. The inevitable ramp-up of the production programs is such that it supports our forthcoming profitability. We also filled up our war chest so that we are secure for anything unexpected that might occur. We have never been in a better position with
CEO
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