Raising 2019 Adjusted EBITDA Guidance
Research Triangle Park, NC – May 9, 2019 – ChannelAdvisor Corporation (NYSE: ECOM), a leading provider of cloud-based e-commerce solutions that enable brands and retailers to increase global sales, today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2019.
“First quarter revenues were within our previous guidance range, although variable revenue was somewhat impacted by a more pronounced deceleration in Amazon and eBay GMV growth than we previously anticipated, consistent with their recently reported results for the first quarter,” said David Spitz, Chief Executive Officer of ChannelAdvisor. “Despite this, we posted strong Adjusted EBITDA that was substantially better than the high-end of our guidance range, highlighting our solid expense discipline in the quarter. Given the GMV trends we saw in the first quarter, and incorporating the impact of slower sales in the first quarter attributable to a territory change we implemented, we are moderating our full-year revenue outlook. However, we are simultaneously raising our full-year Adjusted EBITDA guidance, demonstrating our commitment to driving margin growth while we continue investing in key strategic priorities.”
First Quarter 2019 Financial Results
- Revenue: Total revenue was $31.6 million for the first quarter 2019, an increase of 0.4% from the year-ago period. Fixed subscription fees were $25.5 million, or 80.6% of total revenue, an increase of 6.2% from the year-ago period. Variable subscription fees were $6.1 million, or 19.4% of total revenue, a decrease of 18.1% from the year-ago period.
- Gross Profit: GAAP gross profit was $24.0 million, representing a 76.2% gross margin for the first quarter 2019, compared with $24.1 million and 76.6%, respectively, for the year-ago period. Non-GAAP gross profit was $24.4 million, representing a 77.4% non-GAAP gross margin for the first quarter 2019, compared with $24.3 million and 77.3%, respectively, for the year-ago period.
- Net Loss: GAAP net loss was $(2.3) million for the first quarter 2019, compared with $(3.2) million for the year-ago period. GAAP net loss per share was $(0.08) based on 27.5 million weighted average shares outstanding for the first quarter 2019, compared with $(0.12) and 26.7 million shares then outstanding for the year-ago period. Non-GAAP net income was $1.1 million for the first quarter 2019, or $0.04 per share, compared with non-GAAP net loss of $(0.4) million, or $(0.02) per share, for the year-ago period. For a description of these and other non-GAAP measures included in this press release, including their potential limitations, see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below.
- Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure, was $2.6 million for the first quarter 2019, compared with $1.0 million for the year-ago period.
- Cash: Cash and cash equivalents totaled $48.4 million as of March 31, 2019, compared with $47.2 million as of December 31, 2018. Cash generated from operations was $1.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2019, compared with $2.0 million for the year-ago period.
Recent Operating Highlights
- Winning with Brands: Continued to expand the customer base and accelerate revenue growth for brands, a key customer segment. Added 50 net new brand customers for the twelve-month period ended March 31, 2019. Brands accounted for 20.0% of the Company’s customer base as of March 31, 2019, compared to 17.7% as of March 31, 2018 and brands revenue growth accelerated to 31.0% on a trailing twelve-month basis as of March 31, 2019, compared to 22.2% for the year-ago period.
- Launched New Platform User Interface: In April, launched a new user interface aimed at improving the ease of use of the marketplaces platform, serving to support further targeted improvements in customer retention and indirect sales channel efforts.
- Expanded Supported Marketplaces: Increased the number of marketplace integrations to 133 as of the end of first quarter 2019 from 107 as of the end of the first quarter 2018, including Target+, and partnered with Instagram to support its new marketplace.
- Average Revenue per Customer (ARPC): ARPC, calculated on a trailing twelve-month basis, was $46,530 for the twelve months ended March 31, 2019, an increase of 5.9% from the year-ago period.
- Customer Count: Total customer count was 2,774 at the end of the first quarter 2019, compared with 2,855 customers at the end of the first quarter 2018.
Financial Outlook
Based on the information available as of today, ChannelAdvisor is issuing guidance for its second quarter 2019 and updating guidance for the full year 2019 from amounts previously provided on February 13, 2019.
| (in millions) | Q2 2019 | Full Year 2019 (updated) | |
| Revenue | $31.5 – $32.0 | $131.0 – $134.0 | |
| Adjusted EBITDA | $1.5 – $2.0 | $15.0 – $17.0 | |
| Stock-based Compensation Expense | $2.5 – $2.9 | $11.5 – $12.5 | |
| Weighted Average Shares Outstanding | 27.9 | 28.0 |
Refer to the “Adjusted EBITDA Guidance Reconciliation” table included with the financial tables at the end of this release for the reconciliation to the most comparable GAAP financial measure.
Conference Call Information
| What: | ChannelAdvisor First Quarter 2019 Financial Results Conference Call |
| When: | Thursday, May 9, 2019 |
| Time: | 8:00 a.m. ET |
| Live Call: | (855) 638-4821, Passcode 8883256, Toll free |
| (704) 288-0612, Passcode 8883256, Toll | |
| Webcast: | https://ir.channeladvisor.com (live and replay) |
Key Financial and Operating Metrics
Average revenue per customer is revenue for a particular period divided by the average monthly number of customers during the period, which is calculated by taking the sum of the number of customers at the end of each month in the period and dividing by the number of months in the period.
Number of customers includes all customers who subscribe to at least one of our solutions.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
This press release contains the following non-GAAP financial measures: non-GAAP net income (loss) and adjusted EBITDA. Non-GAAP net income (loss) excludes non-cash stock-based compensation expense. Adjusted EBITDA excludes depreciation, amortization, income tax expense, net interest expense and stock-based compensation expense.
ChannelAdvisor believes that these non-GAAP measures of financial results provide useful information to management and investors relating to ChannelAdvisor’s financial condition and results of operations. The company’s management uses these non-GAAP measures to compare the company’s performance to that of prior periods for trend analyses, and for budgeting and planning purposes. The company believes that the use of these non-GAAP financial measures provides an additional tool for investors to use in evaluating ongoing operating results and trends and in comparing the company’s financial measures with other software companies, many of which present similar non-GAAP financial measures to investors, and that it allows for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by management in its financial and operational decision-making.
Management of the company does not consider these non-GAAP measures in isolation or as an alternative to financial measures determined in accordance with GAAP. The principal limitation of these non-GAAP financial measures is that they exclude significant expenses that are required by GAAP to be recorded in the company’s financial statements. In order to compensate for these limitations, management presents non-GAAP financial measures together with GAAP results. Non-GAAP measures should be considered in addition to results and guidance prepared in accordance with GAAP, but should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, GAAP results. Reconciliation tables of the most comparable GAAP financial measures to the non-GAAP financial measures used in this press release are included with the financial tables at the end of this release. ChannelAdvisor urges investors to review the reconciliation and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate the company’s business. In addition, other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate similarly named non-GAAP measures differently than we do, which limits their usefulness in comparing our financial results with theirs.
About ChannelAdvisor
ChannelAdvisor (NYSE: ECOM) is a leading e-commerce cloud platform whose mission is to connect and optimize the world’s commerce. For nearly two decades, ChannelAdvisor has helped brands and retailers worldwide improve their online performance by expanding sales channels, connecting with consumers around the world, optimizing their operations for peak performance and providing actionable analytics to improve competitiveness. Thousands of customers depend on ChannelAdvisor to securely power their sales and optimize fulfillment on channels such as Amazon, eBay, Facebook, Google, Walmart and hundreds more. For more information, visit www.channeladvisor.com.
Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to, statements regarding our financial outlook and guidance for the second quarter and full year 2019 and expectations regarding our growth and that of the e-commerce industry. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this release and are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections, as well as the current beliefs and assumptions of management. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond ChannelAdvisor’s control. ChannelAdvisor’s actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to, risks detailed in ChannelAdvisor’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q that will be filed for the quarter ended March 31, 2019, as well as other documents that may be filed by the company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These documents are available on the ‘SEC Filings’ section of the Investor Relations page of our website at https://ir.channeladvisor.com. In particular, the following factors, among others, could cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements: our reliance for a significant portion of our revenue on sales by our customers on the Amazon and eBay marketplaces and through advertisements on Google; our ability to respond to rapid changes in channel technologies or requirements; our ability to compete successfully against current and future competitors, which could include the channels themselves; our reliance in part on a pricing model under which a portion of the subscription fees we receive from customers is variable, based upon the amount of transaction volume that those customers process through our platform; our reliance on non-redundant data centers and cloud computing providers to deliver our SaaS solutions; the potential that the e-commerce market does not grow, or grows more slowly than we expect, particularly on the channels that our solutions support; challenges and risks associated with our increasing international operations; and security or privacy breaches. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent ChannelAdvisor’s views as of the date of this press release. ChannelAdvisor undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Accordingly, these forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing ChannelAdvisor’s views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.
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Investor Contact:
Traci Mangini
ChannelAdvisor Corporation
traci.mangini@channeladvisor.com
919-228-4886