22nd Century Group, Inc. (NYSE MKT:XXII) announced today that
the Company filed its first quarter 2015 report on Form 10-Q with
the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and will provide a
business update for investors on a conference call to be held
Tuesday, May 12th at 10:00 AM (EDT).
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: 877-852-6583 and
using Conference ID 7352193.
The conference call will consist of an overview summary of the
financials presented in the Company's first quarter 2015 Form 10-Q
and a discussion of business highlights and updates. Immediately
thereafter, there will be a question and answer segment open to all
callers.
As expected, revenues during the first quarter of 2015 were
strong. While not currently at full production capacity, in the
first quarter 2015 the Company’s factory began contract
manufacturing a third-party MSA cigarette brand, continued contract
manufacturing filtered cigars, and began producing RED SUN, our own
proprietary cigarette brand. As a result, 22nd Century reported net
revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2015 of $616,000 (as
compared to revenues of $529,000 for the entire year of 2014). The
Company reported a net loss for the three months ended March 31,
2015 of approximately $4.1 million (with approximately $2.6 million
of such amount consisting of non-cash expenses) and utilized cash
in operations of approximately $2.5 million with approximately $1.4
million of such amount representing the cash portion of the net
loss, and approximately $1.1 million of such amount being used for
working capital related to operations.
Going forward, the Company expects to generate revenue in excess
of $1.5 million in the second quarter of 2015, and substantially
more than $5 million in revenue for the year.
Business Highlights and
Updates
- The launch of MAGIC 0, the world’s
lowest nicotine tobacco cigarette, has thus far exceeded
expectations. As of late last week, MAGIC cigarettes are available
to consumers at approximately 1,137 retail shops across Spain. The
MAGIC cigarettes store count in Spain should exceed 2,500 by the
end of this year.
- Later this year, the Company
anticipates expanding distribution of MAGIC cigarettes across
Europe. Over the course of the next several months, management
intends to begin distributing MAGIC cigarettes in the U.K., France,
Italy and Belgium.
- As the first company in more than six
years approved to become a new signatory to the Master Settlement
Agreement between the tobacco industry and the 46 Settling States
(as a result of our acquisition of NASCO Products, LLC), 22nd
Century moved forward with the regulatory process of listing our
cigarette brands on the state tobacco directories of approved
products in the 50 states. To date, the Company has succeeded in
having RED SUN approved for sale in 49 states, in addition to the
District of Columbia. Approval for the final state, Louisiana, is
expected by this summer.
- This summer, 22nd Century’s marketing
team will add a significant consumer-oriented component to its
domestic RED SUN advertising efforts. Having achieved distribution
for RED SUN cigarettes in select markets across the U.S., the
Company is now planning to speak directly to consumers – in retail
stores in key demographic markets – in a campaign designed to
convert premium-brand smokers to RED SUN.
- As a part of this new consumer-focused
marketing effort, the Company recently launched social media
accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Links to each social
media platform are available on our website at
www.redsuncigarettes.com. Consumers can also find our social media
accounts directly by searching for “RED SUN Cigarettes” from each
social media site. For convenience, links to the Company’s Twitter
and Facebook accounts are below (Instagram is primarily a mobile
application; consequently it is not readily accessible from an
outside
link): https://twitter.com/redsuncigs https://www.facebook.com/pages/RED-SUN-Cigarettes/426836574134641
- The Company is on schedule to submit an
application to the FDA relating to its very low nicotine, modified
risk cigarettes in development. The Company expects to present a
completed application to the FDA this summer.
- 22nd Century continues to seek a
suitable joint venture partner to fund a Phase III clinical trial
for X-22, the Company’s tobacco-based smoking cessation aid in
development. Management has engaged in, and continues to engage in,
discussions with potential joint venture partners located in the
United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
- 22nd Century continues to move forward
with potential joint venture opportunities in Asia. The Company is
investigating potential business opportunities in China, South
Korea and Japan for the Company’s unique tobaccos and finished
cigarettes. The Company remains optimistic that it will be able to
announce one or more business contracts with Asian partners in
2015.
First Quarter 2015 Financial
Summary
For three months ended March 31, 2015, net revenue was $616,000
compared to $448,000 of net revenue for the three months ended
March 31, 2014. The first quarter 2015 net revenues of $616,000
were generated from the manufacture and sale of a third-party MSA
cigarette brand, filtered cigars, and our own proprietary cigarette
brand, RED SUN. The first quarter 2014 net revenues consisted of
$448,000 generated from the sale of SPECTRUM research cigarettes to
the National Institute on Drug Abuse (“NIDA”).
For the three months ended March 31, 2015, we reported an
operating loss of $4.1 million as compared to an operating loss in
the amount of $1.2 million for the three months ended March 31,
2014. The increase in the operating loss of $2.9 million is
primarily the result of increases in General and Administrative
expenses of approximately $2.6 million (of which $2.1 million of
the increase pertained to non-cash equity based compensation), and
Sales and Marketing expenses of approximately $100,000, and a
decrease in gross profit of approximately $300,000.
The Company’s net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2015
was $4.1 million, or ($0.06) per share, as compared to a net loss
of $5.3 million, or ($0.09) per share, for the three months ended
March 31, 2014; a decrease in the net loss of approximately $1.2
million. The reduction in the net loss is primarily attributable to
a decrease in the non-cash change in the fair value of derivatives
(warrant liability) in the approximate amount of $4.1 million,
partially offset by the $2.9 million increase in the operating loss
discussed in the previous paragraph.
Adjusted EBITDA (as described in the paragraph and tables below)
for the three months ended March 31, 2015 was a negative $1.5
million, or ($0.02) per share, and a negative $0.8 million, or
($0.01) per share, for the three months ended March 31, 2014.
Below is a table containing information relating to the
Company’s Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2015
and 2014, including a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA
for such periods.
Three Months
Ended March 31,
2015
2014
%
Change
Net loss $ (4,116,739 ) $ (5,315,128 ) -23 % Adjustments:
Warrant liability (gain) loss - net (59,213 ) 4,067,270 -101 %
Warrant amendment inducement expense - 144,548 -100 % Depreciation
and amortization 160,891 71,269 126 % Loss on equity investment
50,981 - 100 % Interest expense 5,508 1,749 215 % Stock based
compensation 2,441,205 356,684 584 % Gain on the sale of machinery
and equipment - (85,621 ) -100 %
Adjusted EBITDA $ (1,517,367 ) $
(759,229 ) 100 %
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 discussion 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, 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 Group is a plant biotechnology company focused on
technology which allows it to increase or decrease the level of
nicotine in tobacco plants through genetic engineering and plant
breeding. The Company’s mission is to reduce the harm caused by
smoking. 22nd Century owns or exclusively controls 128 issued
patents and 52 pending patent applications in 96 countries. The
Company’s strong IP position led to a licensing agreement with
British American Tobacco (“BAT”), the world’s second largest
tobacco company. Visit www.xxiicentury.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. 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
year ended December 31, 2014, filed on February 5, 2015, 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.
Investor Relations:IRTH CommunicationsAndrew Haag,
866-976-4784xxii@irthcommunications.comorRedington, Inc.Tom
Redington, 203-222-7399
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