Itron Announces Third Quarter 2021 Financial Results

LIBERTY LAKE, Wash.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Nov. 4, 2021—Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) announced today financial results for its third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2021. Key results for the quarter include (compared with the third quarter of 2020):

• Revenue of $487 million, compared with $540 million;
• Gross margin of 27.7%; compared with 26.5%;
• GAAP net loss of $(2) million, compared with $(25) million;
• GAAP loss per share (EPS) of $(0.04), compared with $(0.63);
• Non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.21, compared with $0.61;
• Adjusted EBITDA of $26 million, compared with $40 million;
• Free cash flow of $11 million compared with $38 million; and
• Total backlog of $3.4 billion, compared with $2.8 billion.

"Despite the current component constraints that gated our third quarter results, we have been diligently executing on our strategy to drive stronger results as macro supply challenges abate," said Tom Deitrich, Itron's president and chief executive officer.

"Since our Investor Day on October 5, 2021, we announced the acquisition of SELC, growing our smart city and smart lighting solutions business. And yesterday, we announced a definitive agreement to sell our European Commercial and Industrial mechanical gas meter business; our gas stations metering and pressure regulation business; and our global gas regulator business. In conjunction with the sale, we have announced a restructuring project that drives reductions in certain locations and functional support areas."

Summary of Third Quarter Consolidated Financial Results
(All comparisons made are against the prior year period unless otherwise noted)

Revenue
Total third quarter revenue decreased 10% to $487 million, or 11%, excluding the impact of changes in foreign currency exchange rates. The decrease was primarily due to component constraints, which reduced revenue by approximately $100 million.

Device Solutions revenue decreased 14% and Networked Solutions revenue decreased 10% with the majority of the decline due to component constraints in the quarter. Outcomes revenue increased 5%.

Gross Margin
Consolidated company gross margin of 27.7% increased 120 basis points from the prior year, primarily due to favorable product mix.

Operating Expenses and Operating Income
GAAP operating expenses of $131 million decreased $36 million from the prior year, primarily due to lower restructuring expenses. Non-GAAP operating expenses of $119 million increased $5 million from the prior year primarily due to higher sales, general and administrative expenses, which includes higher variable compensation.

GAAP operating income of $4 million was $28 million higher than the prior year primarily due to lower operating expenses. Non-GAAP operating income of $16 million was $13 million lower than last year due to lower revenue and higher variable compensation.

Net Income (loss) and Earnings per Share
The net loss attributable to Itron, Inc. for the quarter was $(2) million, or $(0.04) per diluted share, an improvement from a net loss of $(25) million, or $(0.63) per diluted share in 2020. The improvement was driven by GAAP operating income in 2021 and lower interest expense, partially offset by a higher GAAP tax rate.

Non-GAAP net income, which excludes certain charges including amortization of intangible assets, amortization of debt placement fees, debt extinguishment, restructuring, loss on sale of business, corporate transition cost, acquisition and integration, and the income tax effect of those adjustments, was $9 million, or $0.21 per diluted share, compared with $25 million, or $0.61 per diluted share, in 2020. The lower year over year results were due to lower non-GAAP operating income and a higher non-GAAP effective tax rate due to fewer discrete benefits in the period.

Cash Flow
Net cash provided by operating activities was $18 million in the third quarter compared with $45 million in the same quarter of 2020. Free cash flow was $11 million in the third quarter compared with $38 million in the prior year. The year over year decrease in cash flow was primarily due to reduced non-GAAP EBITDA and lower cash inflows from working capital.

Other Measures
Total backlog was $3.4 billion and 12-month backlog was $1.4 billion, compared with $2.8 billion and $1.1 billion, respectively, in the prior year. Bookings in the quarter totaled $395 million.

Share Repurchase Program
On November 1, 2021, the Board of Directors at Itron authorized a new share repurchase program of up to $100 million of Itron's common stock over an 18-month period. Repurchases under the program will be made in the open market in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Earnings Conference Call
Itron will host a conference call to discuss the financial results and guidance contained in this release at 10 a.m. EDT on Nov. 4, 2021. The call will be webcast in a listen-only mode. Webcast information and conference call materials will be made available 10 minutes before the start of the call and will be accessible on Itron's website at investors.itron.com. A replay of the audio webcast will be made available at investors.itron.com. A telephone replay of the conference call will be available through Nov. 9, 2021. To access the telephone replay, dial 888-203-1112 or 719-457-0820 and enter passcode 6979258.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements
This release contains, and our officers and representatives may from time to time make, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are neither historical factors nor assurances of future performance. These statements are based on our expectations about, among others, revenues, operations, financial performance, earnings, liquidity, earnings per share, cash flows and restructuring activities including headcount reductions and other cost savings initiatives. This document reflects our current strategy, plans and expectations and is based on information currently available as of the date of this release. When we use words such as "expect", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "goal", "seek", "project", "estimate", "future", "strategy", "objective", "may", "likely", "should", "will", "will continue", and similar expressions, including related to future periods, they are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements rely on a number of assumptions and estimates. Although we believe the estimates and assumptions upon which these forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, any of these estimates or assumptions could prove to be inaccurate and the forward-looking statements based on these estimates and assumptions could be incorrect. Our operations involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside our control, and any one of which, or a combination of which, could materially affect our results of operations and whether the forward-looking statements ultimately prove to be correct. Actual results and trends in the future may differ materially from those suggested or implied by the forward-looking statements depending on a variety of factors. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Some of the factors that we believe could affect our results include our ability to execute on our restructuring plan, our ability to achieve estimated cost savings, the rate and timing of customer demand for our products, rescheduling of current customer orders, changes in estimated liabilities for product warranties, adverse impacts of litigation, changes in laws and regulations, our dependence on new product development and intellectual property, future acquisitions, changes in estimates for stock-based and bonus compensation, increasing volatility in foreign exchange rates, international business risks, uncertainties caused by adverse economic conditions, including, without limitation those resulting from extraordinary events or circumstances such as the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors that are more fully described in Part I, Item 1A: Risk Factors included in our 2020 Annual Report and other reports on file with the SEC. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward- looking statement, whether written or oral.

The impact caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic includes uncertainty as to the duration, spread, severity, and any resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic including other factors contributing to infection rates, such as reinfection or mutation of the virus, the effectiveness or widespread availability and application of vaccines, the duration and scope of related government orders and restrictions, impact on overall demand, impact on our customers' businesses and workforce levels, disruptions of our business and operations, including the impact on our employees, limitations on, or closures of, our facilities, or the business and operations of our customers or suppliers. Our estimates and statements regarding the impact of COVID-19 are made in good faith to provide insight to our current and future operating and financial environment and any of these may materially change due to factors outside our control. For more information on risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, please see our risk in Part I, Item 1A: Risk Factors in our 2020 Annual Report.

Non-GAAP Financial Information
To supplement our consolidated financial statements, which are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (GAAP), we use certain adjusted or non-GAAP financial measures, including non-GAAP operating expense, non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP net income, non-GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS), adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, constant currency, and free cash flow. We provide these non-GAAP financial measures because we believe they provide greater transparency and represent supplemental information used by management in its financial and operational decision making. We exclude certain costs in our non-GAAP financial measures as we believe the net result is a measure of our core business. We believe these measures facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period by eliminating potential differences caused by the existence and timing of certain expense items that would not otherwise be apparent on a GAAP basis. Non-GAAP performance measures should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, results prepared in accordance with GAAP. We strongly encourage investors and shareholders to review our financial statements and publicly-filed reports in their entirety and not to rely on any single financial measure. Our non-GAAP financial measures may be different from those reported by other companies.

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Itron Q3 2021 Earnings Statement