Digimarc Reports Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results

BEAVERTON, Ore.: #digitalwatermarks--Digimarc Corporation (NASDAQ: DMRC) reported financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024.

“Looking forward, Q3 was the most significant quarter I have witnessed since I joined the company,” said Digimarc CEO Riley McCormack. “We made significant progress on things underway and opened new areas of opportunity we previously didn’t believe addressable in the near term. Looking back, we acknowledge Q3 revenue doesn’t reflect the reality just described. The gap between what lies ahead and what lies behind has never been this large and we look forward to providing additional information to bridge that gap as soon as reasonably possible.”

Third Quarter Financial Results

Annual recurring revenue(1) as of September 30, 2024 decreased to $18.7 million compared to $19.6 million as of September 30, 2023. The $0.9 million decrease reflects a $5.8 million decrease due to the delayed timing in the anticipated renewal of a commercial contract, partially offset by new annual recurring revenue from entry into new commercial subscription contracts and increased subscription fees on existing commercial contracts.

Subscription revenue for the third quarter of 2024 increased to $5.3 million compared to $4.8 million for the third quarter of 2023, primarily reflecting higher subscription revenue from new and existing commercial contracts, partially offset by the delayed timing in the anticipated renewal of a commercial contract.

Service revenue for the third quarter of 2024 remained flat, compared to the third quarter of 2023, primarily reflecting higher service revenue from HolyGrail recycling projects, partially offset by lower service revenue from the Central Banks.

Total revenue for the third quarter of 2024 increased to $9.4 million compared to $9.0 million for the third quarter of 2023.

Gross profit margin for the third quarter of 2024 increased to 62% compared to 58% for the third quarter of 2023. Excluding amortization expense on acquired intangible assets, subscription gross profit margin increased to 86% from 85% and service gross profit margin increased to 61% from 54% for the third quarter of 2024 compared to the third quarter of 2023.

Non-GAAP gross profit margin for the third quarter of 2024 increased to 78% compared to 76% for the third quarter of 2023.

Operating expenses for the third quarter of 2024 increased to $17.3 million compared to $16.4 million for the third quarter of 2023, primarily reflecting $0.6 million of cash severance costs and $0.4 million of lower labor costs allocated to cost of revenue due to the amount and mix of billable labor hours incurred.

Non-GAAP operating expenses for the third quarter of 2024 increased to $14.1 million compared to $13.2 million for the third quarter of 2023.

Net loss for the third quarter of 2024 was $10.8 million or ($0.50) per share compared to $10.7 million or ($0.53) per share for the third quarter of 2023.

Non-GAAP net loss for the third quarter of 2024 was $6.1 million or ($0.29) per share compared to $5.9 million or ($0.29) per share for the third quarter of 2023.

At September 30, 2024, cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $33.7 million compared to $27.2 million at December 31, 2023.

Conference Call

Digimarc will hold a conference call today (Thursday, November 14, 2024) to discuss these financial results and to provide a business update. CEO Riley McCormack, CFO Charles Beck, and CLO George Karamanos will host the call starting at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time (2:00 p.m. Pacific time). A question and answer session will follow management’s prepared remarks.

The conference call will be broadcast live and available for replay here and in the investor section of the company’s website. The conference call script will also be posted to the company’s website shortly before the call.

For those who wish to call in via telephone to ask a question, please dial the number below at least five minutes before the scheduled start time:

Toll Free number: 877-407-0832

International number: 201-689-8433

Conference ID number: 13743904

About Digimarc

Digimarc Corporation (NASDAQ: DMRC) is the pioneer and global leader in digital watermarking technologies. For nearly 30 years, Digimarc innovations and intellectual property in digital watermarking have been deployed at a massive scale for the identification and the authentication of physical and digital items. A notable example is our partnership with a consortium of the world’s central banks to deter counterfeiting of global currency. Digimarc is also instrumental in supporting global industry standards efforts spanning both the physical and digital worlds. In 2023, Digimarc was named to the Fortune 2023 Change the World list and honored as a 2023 Fast Company World Changing Ideas finalist. Learn more at Digimarc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for historical information contained in this release, the matters described in this release contain various “forward-looking statements.” These forward-looking statements include statements identified by terminology such as “will,” “should,” “expects,” “estimates,” “predicts” and “continue” or other derivations of these or other comparable terms. These forward-looking statements are statements of management’s opinion and are subject to various assumptions, risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary materially from those expressed or implied from the statements in this release as a result of changes in economic, business and regulatory factors, including, without limitation, the terms and timing of anticipated contract renewals. More detailed information about risk factors that may affect actual results are outlined in the company’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and in subsequent periodic reports filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect management’s opinions only as of the date of this release. Except as required by law, Digimarc undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This release contains the following non-GAAP financial measures: Non-GAAP gross profit, Non-GAAP gross profit margin, Non-GAAP operating expenses, Non-GAAP net loss, and Non-GAAP loss per share (diluted). See below for a reconciliation of each non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. These non-GAAP financial measures are an important measure of our operating performance because they allow management, investors and analysts to evaluate and assess our core operating results from period-to-period after removing non-cash and non-recurring activities that affect comparability. Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures in evaluating its financial and operational decision making and as a means to evaluate period-to-period comparisons.

Digimarc believes that providing these non-GAAP financial measures, together with the reconciliation to GAAP, helps management and investors make comparisons between us and other companies. In making any comparisons to other companies, investors need to be aware that companies use different non-GAAP measures to evaluate their financial performance. Investors should pay close attention to the specific definition being used and to the reconciliation between such measures and the corresponding GAAP measures provided by each company under applicable SEC rules. These non-GAAP financial measures are not measurements of financial performance or liquidity under GAAP. In order to facilitate a clear understanding of its consolidated historical operating results, investors should examine Digimarc’s non-GAAP financial measures in conjunction with its historical GAAP financial information, and investors should not consider non-GAAP financial measures in isolation or as substitutes for performance measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. Non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed as supplemental to, and should not be considered as alternatives to, GAAP financial measures. Non-GAAP financial measures may not be indicative of the historical operating results of the Company nor are they intended to be predictive of potential future results.