FY revenues exceed 2 BSEK, with growth in margins, adjusted EBITDA and cash generation
October - December
- Net sales amounted to SEK 582 (643) million, a decrease of 9.5 percent and an organic decrease of 11.0 percent.
- EBITDA amounted to SEK 223 (189) million and the EBITDA margin amounted to 38.3 percent (29.3). Revaluation of acquisition related additional considerations had a positive impact with SEK 61 million.
- Adjusted EBITDA amounted to SEK 167 (194) million and adjusted EBITDA margin amounted to 28.6 percent (30.2).
- Operating profit amounted to SEK 175 (143) million and the operating margin was 30.0 percent (22.2).
- Profit after tax amounted to SEK 159 (131) million.
- Earnings per share were SEK 1.98 (1.64) before and after dilution.
- Cash flow from operating activities increased to SEK 162 (154) million.
- Adjusted cash flow from operating activities* decreased to SEK 181 (186) million.
- Net cash as of December 31 was SEK 184 (335) million.
January - December
- Net sales amounted to SEK 2,056 (1,862) million, an increase of 10.5 percent and an organic increase of 1.0 percent.
- EBITDA amounted to SEK 568 (463) million and the EBITDA margin amounted to 27.6 percent (24.9).
- Adjusted EBITDA amounted to SEK 547 (518) million and adjusted EBITDA margin amounted to 26.6 percent (27.8).
- Operating profit amounted to SEK 383 (314) million and the operating margin was 18.6 percent (16.9).
- Profit after tax amounted to SEK 284 (246) million.
- Earnings per share were SEK 3.55 (3.34) before and 3.55 (3.33) after dilution.
- Cash flow from operating activities increased to SEK 413 (284) million.
- Adjusted cash flow from operating activities increased to SEK 579 (435) million.
- The Board of Directors intends to propose to the Annual General Meeting a dividend to the shareholders for 2024 of SEK 1.65 (1.60) per share, corresponding to 46 (48) percent of Earnings per share.
Message from the CEO
FY revenues exceed 2 BSEK, with growth in margins, adjusted EBITDA and cash generationn
In the fourth quarter we delivered sequential quarter on quarter growth in our Core Biotage business, while Astrea improved its gross & EBITDA margins and achieved double digit growth in revenue, gross margin and adjusted EBITDA for the full year.
While our growth for Q4 was negative 9.5%, driven by the high weighting of Astrea revenue in the comparable period, we are pleased to report a 10.5% growth for the full year.
Let me start by providing some colour on the Core Biotage business performance.
In Q4, this business continued to improve, delivering quarter on quarter growth of 1.8% and narrowing the full year decline to just -1.9%. Excluding China, the business grew 3.4% in the quarter and 1.3% for the full year. We are particularly pleased with the full year performance in the Americas, which delivered a solid mid-single digit growth thanks to its strong presence in the applied markets.
In Q4, systems revenues grew sequentially quarter on quarter and were at the highest level since Q4 2022. For the full year, systems revenues narrowed the decline to just 6%, compared to a 19% decline in 2023, driven by the contraction of our China business.
China continues to be a smaller proportion of our total business, just 4% in 2024 compared to 7% in 2023, and we believe we have now reached the low point of that business and remain cautiously optimistic about the region for 2025.
Our recurring revenues grew in the quarter by 0.9% and the full year by 1.2%.
Let me now comment on Astrea.
As indicated, Q4 2023 for Astrea was quite exceptional, delivering a very large proportion of its annual revenue in that quarter. We have previously commented it would be unlikely that Astrea would have a Q4 as strong as the prior year as our revenue was more evenly distributed throughout the year, with the business reporting a solid 23% growth on an annual basis.
The Astrea revenue will continue to be volatile through 2025 on a quarterly basis and is a direct consequence of us having a relatively young organisation with a smaller number of significant customers at a commercial stage. Orders from those customers can vary the business in a positive or negative direction on a quarter-by-quarter basis.
Our focus balances short-term needs such as aligning customer demand with our supply chain, with the long-term imperative to seed as many molecules as possible in the early phases of drug development. While we cannot predict if and when a molecule will evolve from clinical to commercial phase, we are confident that today's actions are critical to our long-term growth.
I want to emphasise that our disciplined focus on operational execution allows us to mitigate the impact on our profit and to deliver strong cash flow conversion.
In Q4 we improved our gross margins over the prior year and Q3, despite the ongoing headwind created by our Oligo service business.
We are taking decisive actions to fully realise our opportunities moving forward. This includes a further integration of the Astrea business, allowing us to realise cost and knowledge synergies as well as a strategic review of the Oligo service business.
We continue to focus on our long-term priorities such as peptide workflow and drug discovery enablement for various types of molecules from small molecules to new modalities. We are also broadening out the service offering in Astrea to command a greater share of the large molecule workflow.
Our full year adjusted EBITDA and excellent cash generation was driven by our strong fiscal discipline. It underscores the strength of our business fundamentals and our ability to navigate a volatile environment while staying aligned with our long-term strategic priorities.
We remain confident in our vision and long-term growth trajectory as we continue to innovate in sample preparation and seed customers in the early stages of drug development for downstream processing. As we look ahead in 2025, our focus is pivoting to profitability, optimizing synergies and ensuring operational excellence across the combined business.
As we release our full year earnings, I want to take a moment to thank each of our associates for their incredible dedication and hard work. Our strong performance in 2024, despite volatility and the challenging macroeconomic environment, was made possible by their commitment and resilience.
Thank you for your continued trust in our team.
Uppsala, February 19, 2025
Frederic Vanderhaegen
President and CEO
Report presentation
The report will be presented on February 19 at 09.00 CET by CEO Frederic Vanderhaegen and CFO Andrew Kellett at a conference call.
The presentation will be held in English. If you wish to participate via webcast, please use the link below. Via the webcast you can ask written questions. Q4 Report 2024
If you wish to participate via teleconference, please register on the link below. After registration you will be provided phone numbers and a conference ID to access the conference. You can ask questions verbally via the teleconference. Call Access
All public info will be available on: Biotage, Audiocast with teleconference, Q4, 2024 | Financial Hearings by Inderes
Contacts
Frederic Vanderhaegen, President and CEO
Andrew Kellett, CFO
e: ir@biotage.com
About Biotage
Biotage is the Global Go-To Separations Company, supporting customers from drug discovery and development through to diagnostics and analytical testing with intelligent and sustainable workflow solutions. Our expertise and top-tier separation solutions play a key role in streamlining our customers' workflows and improving their outcomes.
Headquartered in Sweden, Biotage operates globally with 700 employees, serving over 80 countries. Our company is listed on NASDAQ Stockholm (BIOT).
Website: www.biotage.com
This information is information that Biotage is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 2025-02-19 08:00 CET.
