Xebec Reports Record 3rd Quarter 2019 with 136% in Revenue Growth

-  EBITDA of $1.5million and Net Profit of $1.0 million -

MONTREAL, Nov. 12, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Xebec Adsorption Inc. (TSXV: XBC) ("Xebec"), a global provider of clean energy solutions announced today its 2019 third quarter and nine-month periods results, with the following highlights:

• Record revenues of $13.2 million in the third quarter of 2019 compared to $5.6 million for the same period in 2018, a 136% increase.
• Positive EBITDA at $1.5 million for the third quarter 2019 compared to $0.1 million for the same period in 2018.
• Net profit of $1.0 million or $0.02/share for the third quarter 2019, compared to a net loss of ($0.4) million or ($0.01)/share for the same period in 2018.
• Working capital increased to $19.0 million as of September 30, 2019, for a current ratio of 2.3:1 compared with working capital of $5.2 million and a 1.6:1 ratio on December 31, 2018.

Financial Highlights:

Financial Results

• Revenues of $35.7 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, compared to $14.1 million for the same period in 2018, a 153% increase. The increase is mainly explained by the higher volume of major cleantech contracts.
• Gross profit of $11.4 million or 32% of revenues for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, compared to $4.2 million for the same period in 2018, a 171% increase compared to the same period in 2018. The company has higher gross margins in the cleantech segment and a better absorption of the overhead costs due to a higher volume of sales.
• Net profit of $2.5 million or $0.04 per share for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, compared to a net loss of ($1.9) million or ($0.04) per share for the same period in 2018, an improvement of $4.4 million. The increase is mainly due to higher sales and margins.
• Positive EBITDA of $4.4 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, compared to ($0.4) million for the same period in 2018, an increase of $4.8 million.
• Backlog increased by $5.5 million, from $65.5 million on November 8, 2018, to $71.0 million on November 11, 2019.
• Awarded Tenders of $26.0 million as of November 11, 2019 to be contractually formalized into the backlog over the next 12 to 14 weeks.
• Selling and administrative expenses increased by $2.8 million in the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, compared to the same quarter of 2018.  This is primarily due to an organizational scale-up of employees and associated costs to support the increased level of sales, order backlog and building quote log. 
• Cash on hand of $10.2 million and increased working capital of $19.0 million as of September 30, 2019, compared to $5.2 million on December 31, 2018.
• Bought Deal Public Offering Units closed on July 4, 2019 for $11.6 million and Listing of Warrants.
• Unsecured Convertible Debentures issued on November 16, 2017 for $2 million has been completely converted as of November 11, 2019.

CEO Quote:
“I am pleased to see that our team is implementing and executing the strategy we had outlined for Xebec’s growth as a sustainable and profitable clean tech company.  Our rapid growth in the clean tech space is underpinned by a strong industrial and service business that is supportive of our cleantech operations. The benefits of this strategy will become more evident as we deploy more RNG plants and the infrastructure projects over the next few years.  With strong and balanced growth in Europe, North America and China we are also benefitting from our global presence and associated market exposure. I am also excited about our activities in the gasification, carbon capture and hydrogen markets and we expect to discuss more about these opportunities in the coming quarters”. Operationally, we are making progress in establishing a strong supply chain to support our growth and we expect this to be a focus in the coming year leading to improved lead times and higher margins for our products.”
– Kurt Sorschak, President and CEO, Xebec Adsorption Inc.

Guidance for the remainder of 2019

Our outlook for the Cleantech segment remains unchanged from our previous guidance. Our Industrial Service and Support segment continues to grow in line with our acquisition strategy. Overall, we expect significant revenue growth in 2019. This growth includes our European and Chinese subsidiaries. Our guidance for the remainder of 2019 is based on current orders being processed plus some short-term orders through year end, mainly in our Industrial Service segment. We adjust our revenue guidance for 2019 to between $48.0 to $49.0 million and basic earnings per share (EPS) of $0.06 to $0.07.

Execution and organizational development will be a key factor for the continued successful growth of Xebec. Management recognizes this and is fully focused on operational performance and the creation of an environment that will allow the company to scale. We are working on expanding our managerial capabilities by building strong results-driven teams that will deliver on the opportunities facing us.

Cleantech Systems

Our renewable gas solutions are growing in line with our expectations and delivering anticipated results. We continue to regard quotes as an early indicator for future order activity. Our quote log continues to increase and now exceeds $880.0 million and our order backlog stands at $71.0 million. Xebec has also been awarded a total of $26.0 million in tenders (including a landfill) that will be contracted into our backlog over the next 12 to 14 weeks. Landfill orders will be instrumental to our continued growth in 2020 and beyond. These numbers reflect the status as of November 11^th, 2019.

We maintain our 2019 guidance for RNG systems and equipment and expect segment growth between 130% to 150% in 2019, representing revenues in the $34 to $36 million range.

Industrial Service and Support

Xebec continues to pursue organic and inorganic growth opportunities in this segment and expects to double revenues from $6.1 million in 2018 to about $11 to $12 million in 2019. We are on track to hit these numbers. We have introduced new products in 2019 and will be adding further products over the coming months to help boost our overall revenues and gross margins.

Our first acquisition, Compressed Air International (CAI) in Ontario, has performed exceptionally well in the first three quarters and is on track to grow revenues by 25% this year. As previously stated, Xebec is working on its next two acquisitions and expects to announce one acquisition on the West Coast before the end of 2019. 

Renewable Gas Infrastructure

Canada has two provinces that currently offer renewable gas off-take agreements or GPAs (Gas Purchase Agreements) with terms of up to 20 years and prices of up to $30/GJ. The Liberal Government has just won re-election and consequently, Xebec expects the Canadian Clean Fuel Standard (CFS) to come into law by the middle of 2020. The CFS will create significant demand for RNG over the next 10 years and, according to Xebec’s own estimates, will require investment into renewable gas infrastructure of approx. $15 to $18 billion and demand for RNG systems of approx. $2.2 to $2.7 billion over the next 10 years.

In addition, Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) earlier this year announced a target of 20% RNG by 2030, offering further unique investment opportunities. As previously stated, Xebec is actively working on the establishment of its RNG Infrastructure business which will build, own and operate (BOO) high-quality renewable gas assets in Canada and the United States, and sell renewable natural gas to obligated parties and other third-party off-takers. Xebec continues to work towards a first project, and we continue to anticipate an announcement before year-end. No revenues or costs have yet been recorded.

Guidance for 2020

For 2020 Xebec expects continued growth and improved profitability. Given the current order backlog of $71.0 million and our $26.0 million in awarded tenders, we expect consolidated revenues for 2020 in the range of $80 to $90 million, net earnings of 7 to 9% and EBITDA margins of 11 to 13%.

More specifically, revenues in our Cleantech segment are expected to be $50 to $55 million and revenues from our Industrial Service & Support segment are expected to grow to $30 to $35 million with half attributed to acquisitions, and the rest to organic growth. Lastly, Xebec does not expect revenues to be recorded for our Renewable Gas Infrastructure segment in 2020.

Xebec to Host Live Investor Webinar to Discuss Q3 2019 Results

An investor webinar for shareholders, analysts, investors, media representatives, and other stakeholders will be held today, November 12, 2019 at 11:00AM EDT (8:00AM PDT).

The webinar can be accessed at: https://app.livestorm.co/xebec-adsorption-inc/2019-q3-investor-webinar

A recording of the webinar and supporting materials will be made available in the investor’s section of the Company’s website at www.xebecinc.com.

2019 Third Quarter Financial Statements and Management’s Discussion and Analysis
The complete financial statements, notes to financial statements, and Management’s Discussion and Analysis for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, are available on the company’s website at www.xebecinc.com or on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com

Related links:
https://www.xebecinc.com

For more information:
Xebec Adsorption Inc.
Brandon Chow, Investor Relations Specialist
+1 450.979.8700 ext. 5762  bchow@xebecinc.com

Kurt Sorschak, President and Chief Executive Officer
+1 450.979.8701 ksorschak@xebecinc.com

About Xebec Adsorption Inc.
Xebec is a global provider of gas generation, purification and filtration solutions for the industrial, energy and renewables marketplace. Well-positioned in the energy transition space with proprietary technologies that transform raw gases into clean sources of renewable energy, Xebec’s 1500+ customers range from small to multi-national corporations, governments and municipalities looking to reduce their carbon footprints. Headquartered in Montréal, Quebec, Canada, Xebec has several Sales and Support offices in North America and Europe, as well as two manufacturing facilities in Montréal and Shanghai. Xebec trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol XBC and on the OTCQX Exchange under the symbol XEBEF. For additional information on the company, its products and services, visit Xebec at xebecinc.com.

Cautionary Statement
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (together, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, are forward-looking statements, and subject to risks and uncertainties. Generally, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of terminology such as “plans”, “seeks”, “expects”, “estimates”, “intends”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “could”, “might”, “likely” or variations of such words, or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “will”, “could”, “would”, “might”, “will be taken”, “occur”, “be achieved” or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements, including statements concerning future capital expenditures, revenues, expenses, earnings, economic performance, indebtedness, financial condition, losses and future prospects as well as the expectations of management of Xebec with respect to information regarding the business and the expansion and growth of Xebec operations, involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to business and economic factors and uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements, including the relevant assumptions and risks factors set out in Xebec's public documents, including in the most recent annual management discussion and analysis and annual information form, filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Furthermore, should one or more of the risks, uncertainties or other factors materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements or information. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, among others, the uncertain and unpredictable condition of global economy, Xebec’s capacity to generate revenue growth, limited number of customers, and other factors. Although Xebec believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements, which only apply as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed times frames or at all. Except where required by applicable law, Xebec disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.