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Merge Technologies Announces
Record Fourth Quarter Earnings: Revenues of $4.6
million on strong gross margins complete successful
year; Product innovation and solid financial foundation
provide platform for growth in 2002.
Milwaukee, WI, February 21, 2001
Merge Technologies Incorporated (NASDAQ: MRGE) today
announced the financial results for the quarter and
fiscal year ended December 31, 2001.
Revenues for the quarter ended December 31, 2001 were
$4,597,000, a 30% increase over revenues of $3,544,000
for the quarter ended December 31, 2000. Net income
for the quarter ended December 31, 2001 was $682,000,
generating $0.10 basic EPS and $0.07 diluted EPS compared
to a net loss of $1,555,000 and $(0.27) basic and diluted
EPS for the quarter ended December 31, 2000.
Revenues for fiscal 2001 were $15,741,000, a 25% increase
over revenues of $12,613,000 for fiscal 2000. Net income
for fiscal 2001 was $1,271,000, generating $0.18 basic
EPS and $0.15 diluted EPS compared to a net loss of
$5,707,000 and $(1.01) basic and diluted EPS for fiscal
2000.
Gross margin was 70% for the quarter ended December
31, 2001 and 68% for fiscal 2001. The range of gross
margin for the year represents a significant improvement
over gross margin of 58% for fiscal 2000. The company
also tightened operating expenses in fiscal 2001, which
decreased to $9,392,000 from $12,839,000 for fiscal
2000, due to restructuring and operational turnaround
initiatives.
The Company's liquidity position was strengthened
at December 31, 2001, with a current ratio of 2.18
compared to 1.06 at December 31, 2000. At December
31, 2001, the Company had a cash balance of $1,043,000
and no outstanding draws on its $3 million bank line
of credit, which was renewed through April 2003.
Analysis of Results:
"2001 represented an important turning point
for Merge as we executed on our strategies to achieve
profitability," stated Richard A. Linden, President
and CEO of Merge. "Complementing the financial
discipline we exercised this year was a new product
innovation model that allowed us to make substantial
progress in delivering a full radiology workflow solution
to our customers. Existing products and services were
realigned with newly developed technologies and were
packaged as a comprehensive suite of solutions marketed
as PACSbuilder. The modules of PACSbuilder provide
radiology workflow components to our OEM/VAR customers
and an integrated solution to our end-user healthcare
market."
"During the year, we maintained a strong focus
on servicing our customers, deploying our solutions
efficiently and continuing to build on our 15 year
reputation for exceptional integration, radiology workflow
and customer service skills. The evolution of our brand
continues and now includes a broader set of products
and services, well beyond our traditional core competencies," continued
Linden.
"Given these advances in 2001, I am pleased to
report that we have achieved our financial and organizational
goals outlined earlier in the year. We ended the year
with a solid financial foundation, a successful and
growing distribution strategy and a professional service
approach that consistently delivers on customer expectations.
In addition, our expanded offering of integrated radiology
workflow applications positions the Company for greater
market penetration and growth in 2002 and beyond," said
Linden.
"Supporting our anticipated growth next year
is the effective deployment of our working capital
and additional strategic partnerships that add complementary
products to our offerings," noted Linden. "While
we look to expand our product and market reach through
these strategies, we remain steadfast in maximizing
our productivity and maintaining our operational discipline
to support continued positive financial performance."
Guidance:
2002 represents a year of revenue growth and accelerated
earnings. We expect product innovation to successfully
introduce a new product every three to four months.
Additionally, our mix of business will continue to
shift toward higher-margin sales of software applications
and fully integrated radiology workflow solutions.
Finally, we will continue to increase our investment
in sales and marketing activities to expand the depth
of our distribution channels and our geographic coverage.
Based on these objectives, we anticipate revenues for
2002 to be in the range of $21 to $22 million, with
year-over-year quarterly growth of approximately 30%.
Gross margins are expected to be approximately 68%
to 70%, and diluted EPS is anticipated to be in a range
of $0.31 to $0.34.
Click
Here For 2001 Statement of Operations and Summary
Balance Sheet Data
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Attn: Beth Frost-Johnson
Merge Healthcare
6737 West Washington St.
Suite 2250
Milwaukee, WI 53214
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| Except for the historical information herein, the matters discussed in this news release include forward-looking statements that may involve a number of risks and uncertainties. When used in this press release, the words “will,” “believes,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “expects” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the forward-looking statements based on a number of factors, including, but not limited to, the uncertainty created by, the adverse impact on relationships with customers, potential customers, suppliers and investors potentially resulting from, and other risks associated with, the changes in the Company’s senior management; costs, risks and effects of the investigation by the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors; the impact of the restatement of financial statements of the Company and other actions that may be taken or required as a result of such restatement; the Company's inability to timely file reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission; risks associated with the Company's inability to meet the requirements of The NASDAQ Stock Market for continued listing, including possible delisting; costs, risks and effects of legal proceedings and investigations, including the informal, non-public inquiry being conducted by the Securities and Exchange Commission and class action, derivative, and other lawsuits; risks in product and technology development, market acceptance of new products and continuing product demand, the impact of competitive products and pricing, ability to integrate acquisitions, changing economic conditions, credit and payment risks associated with end-user sales, dependence on major customers, dependence on key personnel, and other risk factors detailed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as expressly required by the federal securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update such factors or to publicly announce the results of any of the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect future events, developments, or changed circumstances, or for any other reason.
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