Next Biometrics and OneSpan forecast modest revenue growth, Nice sees bigger gains in 2021 outlook

Next Biometrics has recorded 15 design wins since the fourth quarter of 2019 and rejuvenated its PC fingerprint sensor business, according to the company’s latest business update.

The company also sees traction in the payment and fintech market through its partnerships with Ngrave, Newland and Pagaria. Roughly 60 percent of the design wins are for FAP20 fingerprint biometric scanners.

In Q4 2020, Next Biometrics reports revenues of NOK 8.8 million (approximately US$1.04 million), down 5 percent from the same quarter in the previous year, but gross margins improved from negative 2 percent to 16 percent.

The cost-cutting and efficiency program carried out by the company resulted in an OPEX reduction of 73 percent, compared to a year earlier.

EBITDA excluding options was a loss of NOK 8 million ($.95 million), significantly reduced from a loss of NOK 44.3 million ($5.27 million) in Q4 2019.

“With a successful private placement completed a week ago, we are now in a strong financial position,” states Next Biometrics CEO Peter Heuman. “We expect to continue to report new design-wins and purchase orders as we go forward. Especially we have a strong belief in the future success of our FBI certified FAP20 sensor, which will enable us to disrupt a 1.5 billion USD market.”

For the full year, Next revenue fell to NOK 58.1 million ($6.92 million) from NOK 84.4 million ($10.05 million) in 2019, and gross margin fell from 24 percent to 15 percent.

In 2021 Next expects revenue and gross margin growth, and the company is part of bids on multiple tenders and contracts in India.

Nice reports record cash flow in 2020, strong demand for biometric fraud prevention

Nice has reported revenues of $435 million in the fourth quarter and $1,648 million for full-year 2020, growth of 1 percent and 5 percent respectively on a year-over-year basis.

Operating margins for Nice were down both in the quarter and the year, and diluted EPS fell during Q4, but grew by 3 percent for the year to $2.98. Non-GAAP fully-diluted earnings per share were $5.73 for the full year, up from $5.31 the previous year.

The company experienced growth in its cloud services, which exceeded 50 percent of its total revenue in the second half of the year, and record cash flow from operations of $480 million.

“Our market leading AI solution, Enlighten, experienced strong demand with many new deals and a fast growing pipeline,” said Nice CEO Barak Eilam of the company’s voice biometrics-powered fraud prevention solution for contact centers launched last year.

For 2021, Nice expects revenues of between $1,790 million and $1,810 million, and non-GAAP fully-diluted EPS between $6.12 and $6.32.

OneSpan recurring revenues up, totals down

OneSpan’s revenue declined by 25 percent in Q4 and 15 percent for 2020 to $215.7 million.

Recurring revenue, however, was up by 24 percent on the quarter and 26 percent for the year. Increasing recurring revenue from its remote bank transaction authentication business has been a focus for OneSpan this year.

“Improved demand for mobile security and continued strong demand for e-signature solutions resulted in record bookings of recurring revenue contracts and stronger than forecast revenue in the fourth quarter,” stated OneSpan CEO, Scott Clements.

Clements says OneSpan will continue to invest in its solution portfolio and expanding its market presence.

OneSpan forecasts further growth in its annual run rate of between 22 and 26 percent, and recurring revenue in the $215 million to $225 million range, with adjusted EBITDA approximately at the break-even mark.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital identity  |  fingerprint sensors  |  fraud prevention  |  Next Biometrics  |  NICE  |  OneSpan  |  stocks