Revenues rising and cost reduction on track for NEXT Biometrics

NEXT Biometrics has reported revenues of NOK 27.5 million (roughly US$3.2 million) in its first fiscal quarter of 2019 for its fingerprint sensors, down slightly from the previous quarter but up 18 percent year-over-year amid a shift to revenue generation. A cost reduction program is also on track, NEXT says.

The company’s gross margin likewise was down slightly from 36 percent in Q4 2018 to 34 percent but well above the 19 percent from the same quarter a year ago. EBITDA excluding options for the quarter ending March 31 was NOK 35.4 million, including NOK 4.8 million ($550,000) in severance pay and one-offs.

Revenues are expected to climb, with NEXT’s sales pipeline in India delivering contracts and its smart card ecosystem in Asia expanding, according to the announcement. NEXT also raised NOK 179 million ($20.5 million) in a private placement announced along with its positive 2018 full-year earnings report.

“We are underway with our shift from product development to revenue generation,” comments NEXT CEO Ritu Favre. “The progress is reflected in revenue from a widening customer base and the signing of new design-in contracts which are expected to increase revenues from the second half of 2019. Our efforts in India are starting to show results with a strong lead pipeline for our Aadhaar-certified products. We will build on the strong momentum in adjacent government ID markets for our new large-size, government-grade and cost-effective FAP20 sensor. This product is on track for volume production later this year. Progress is also made with commercialization of our Dual Interface solution which will position us to tap into the emerging hypergrowth payment smart card market.”

Highlights for NEXT since the quarter’s close include a recent deal to supply fingerprint sensors to Newland for POS terminals.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  financial results  |  fingerprint sensors  |  Next Biometrics