Luminex Corporation
's (
LMNX
) third quarter 2012 adjusted (excluding one-time charges)
earnings of 4 cents per share were lower than the Zacks Consensus
Estimate of 7 cents per share as well as the year-ago earnings of
5 cents per share.
Profit generated was $1.7 million, down 13.1% from the prior-year
quarter, partly due to higher operating expenses associated with
the GenturaDx acquisition as well as income tax-related expenses.
Revenues
Revenues grew 10% in the reported quarter to $50 million, missing
the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $52 million, primarily driven by
solid sales in the Assay business.
Assay sales jumped 22% to $16.4 million, led by higher demand for
its advanced CE Marked gastrointestinal pathogen panel (GPP) and
NeoPlex4 assays.
Revenues from the System segment dropped 1% year over year to
$8.6 million. The company shipped 271 multiplexing analyzers
(including 127 MAGPIX systems) in the quarter, resulting in total
life-to-date dispatches of 9,433 analyzers, up 12.7% year over
year.
On a positive note, Consumable sales increased 8% to $12.9
million. Royalty and All Other revenues grew 3% and 10% to $7.7
million and $4.5 million, respectively.
Margins
Gross margin in third quarter 2012 was 70% versus 62.4% in the
prior-year quarter. Operating expenses were up 23.8% to $31.7
million, due to costs associated with the acquisition of
GenturaDx. Operating margin inched up to 6.7% from 6.2% in the
prior-year quarter.
Selling, general and administrative expenses (as a percentage of
sales) were higher at 39.8% versus 36.2% in the prior-year
quarter. Research and Development expenses were 21.4% compared
with 17.6% in the year-ago quarter.
Balance Sheet
Luminex ended third quarter 2012 with cash and cash equivalents
(including short-term investments) of $41.6 million, down 57%
year over year. Long-term debt was $2.1 million, down 24.8%.
Guidance
The company lowered its full year revenue forecast for 2012 to
the range of $200 million -$204 million from the earlier range of
$205 million - $215 million. Uncertain budgetary environment,
especially in Europe has led the company to trim its 2012
outlook.
Recent Developments
Luminex completed its acquisition of U.S.-based diagnostic
testing company, GenturaDx on July 11, 2012. The GenturaDx deal
is in line with Luminex's strategy of pursuing acquisitions to
drive growth. Its technology when combined with Luminex's
MultiCode chemistry will enable the company to develop
user-friendly advanced products for its customers.
Luminex also announced that the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
("DTRA") has awarded the company with $11.6 million to develop a
portable diagnostic device enabled with quick detection of
bio-threat agents. The contract has a term period of more than
three and a half years.
Our View
Luminex possesses an extensive product portfolio and a healthy
pipeline of novel assays, which are expected to support growth
going ahead. The company is awaiting Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) approval for its GPP and NeoPlex4 assays to drive future
growth. The company may benefit from its latest acquisitions if
it maintains integration synergies.
However, Luminex operates in a highly competitive life sciences
industry. The company competes with
Affymetrix
(
AFFX
),
Life Technologies
(
LIFE
) and
Sequenom
(
SQNM
), among others. Moreover, sluggish growth in its core markets as
well as the ongoing European austerity measures are challenges
faced by Luminex. We are currently Neutral on the stock, which
carries a short-term Zacks #4 Rank (Sell).
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