TMCnet News
22nd Century Group Files 2017 Annual Report and Announces Conference Call to Provide Business Update22nd Century Group, Inc. (NYSE American: XXII), a plant biotechnology company that is focused on tobacco harm reduction and hemp research, announced today that the Company filed its 2017 Annual Report on Form 10-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company will provide a business update for investors on a conference call to be held Thursday, March 8th, at 4:00 PM (EST). Henry Sicignano, III, President and Chief Executive Officer of 22nd Century Group, together with John T. Brodfuehrer, Chief Financial Officer, will conduct the call. Interested parties are invited to participate in the call by dialing: (800) 289-0517 and using Conference ID 8956616. The conference call will consist of an overview of recent business highlights and a summary of the financials presented in the Company's 2017 Annual Report. Immediately thereafter, there will be a question and answer segment open to callers. Recent Business Highlights
Subsequent to the close of the fourth quarter of 2017, 22nd Century also announced: On February 22, 2018, 22nd Century announced its participation at the 2018 Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) Annual Meeting. The Company presented results from a survey conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of 22nd Century Group. Completed just two months before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the Agency's plan to mandate that all cigarettes sold in the United States contain only minimally or non-addictive levels of nicotine, the survey found that nearly 3 of every 4 adults in the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom agree that the government should mandate that all cigarettes have very low, non-addictive levels of nicotine. 2017 Financial Summary The Company is in its strongest financial position in its history due to a successful capital raise in October of 2017 that produced net cash proceeds of approximately $50.7 million. As a result, the Company had cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investment securities of $62.6 million as of December 31, 2017; an amount the Company believes will be adequate to sustain operations and meet all current obligations as they come due for a number of years. Net sales revenue for the year ended December 31, 2017, the highest in the Company's history, was $16,600,000, an increase of $4,320,000, or 35.2%, over net sales revenue of $12,280,000 for the year ended December 31, 2016. Net sales revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2017, also the highest in the Company's history, was $5,941,000, an increase of $2,605,000, or 78.1%, over net sales revenue of $3,336,000 for the three months ended December 31, 2016. For the year ended December 31, 2017, the Company reported an operating loss of $13,300,000 as compared to an operating loss of $11,388,000 for the year ended December 31, 2016, an increase in the operating loss of approximately $1,912,000, or 16.8%. The increase in the operating loss is primarily due to an increase in gross loss on product sales in the amount of $278,000, an increase in cash-based operating expenses of approximately $1,499,000, and an increase in non-cash operating expenses (equity-based compensation, depreciation, and amortization) in the approximate amount of $135,000. The Company's net loss for the year ended December 31, 2017 was $13,029,000, or ($0.13) per share, as compared to a net loss of $11,581,000, or ($0.15) per share, for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase in the net loss of $1,448,000, or 12.5%, was primarily the result of an increase in the Company's operating loss of approximately $1,912,000, offset by an increase in net other income of approximately $464,000. The results for the year ended December 31, 2017 included non-cash expenses consisting of equity-based compensation totaling $942,000 and depreciation and amortization in the amount of $947,000. Adjusted EBITDA (as described in the paragraph and table below) was a negative $11,411,000, or ($0.11) per share for the year ended December 31, 2017, and it was a negative $9,634,000, or ($0.12) per share, for the year ended December 31, 2016. Below is a table containing information relating to the Company's Adjusted EBITDA for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, including a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA for such periods.
Adjusted EBITDA is a financial measure not prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). In order to calculate Adjusted EBITDA, the Company adjusts the net loss for certain non-cash and non-operating income and expense items listed in the table above in order to measure the Company's operating performance. The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA is an important measure that supplements discussions and analysis of its operations and enhances an understanding of its operating performance. While management considers Adjusted EBITDA to be important, it should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for or superior to, other measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with GAAP, such as operating (loss) income, net loss and cash flows from operations. Adjusted EBITDA is susceptible to varying calculations and the Company's measurement of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to those of other companies. About 22nd Century Group, Inc. 22nd Century is a plant biotechnology company focused on technology which allows it to increase or decrease the level of nicotine in tobacco plants and the level of cannabinoids in hemp plants through genetic engineering and plant breeding. The Company's primary mission in tobacco is to reduce the harm caused by smoking. The Company's primary mission in hemp is to develop proprietary hemp strains for important new medicines and agricultural crops. Visit www.xxiicentury.com and www.botanicalgenetics.com for more information. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking information, including all statements that are not statements of historical fact regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of 22nd Century Group, Inc., its directors or its officers with respect to the contents of this press release, including but not limited to our future revenue expectations. The words "may," "would," "will," "expect," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "intend" and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be considered with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, including the securities laws of the United States, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect actual results, later events or circumstances, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. You should carefully review and consider the various disclosures made by us in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, filed on March 7, 2018, including the section entitled "Risk Factors," and our other reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission which attempt to advise interested parties of the risks and factors that may affect our business, financial condition, results of operation and cash flows. If one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results may vary materially from those expected or projected.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180307006097/en/ |