Quarterhill Announces Q4 and Fiscal 2024 Financial Results
TORONTO, March 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - Quarterhill Inc. ("Quarterhill" or the "Company") (TSX:QTRH) (OTCQX:QTRHF), a leading provider of tolling and enforcement solutions in the Intelligent Transportation System ("ITS") industry, announces its financial results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024. All financial information in this press release is reported in United States ("US") dollars, unless otherwise indicated.
Q4 & Fiscal 2024 Highlights
Revenue for Q4 2024 and fiscal 2024 was $38.9 million and $153.3 million, compared to $43.0 million and $144.0 million in the same periods last year.
Adjusted EBITDA1 for Q4 2024 and fiscal 2024 was $1.2 million and $0.2 million compared to $2.3 million and $2.9 million in the same periods last year.
Revenue backlog3 was $495 million at December 31, 2024.
Cash generated from (used in) continuing operations for Q4 2024 and fiscal 2024 was $6.5 million and ($4.4) million compared to $32 thousand and ($14.0) million in the same periods last year.
Cash and cash equivalents increased to $31.9 million at December 31, 2024 from $23.1 million at September 30, 2024.
Acquired Red Fox for net proceeds of $4.9 million.
Sold its 50% interest in the Chinese joint venture, Xuzhou-PAT Control Technologies Limited for net cash proceeds of $4.4 million.
Appointed Pasquale T. (Pat) Deon, Sr. to its Board of Directors, and on February 19, 2025, appointed Robin Saunders to the Board of Directors.
On January 6, 2025, announced $40 million Renewal Contract to Upgrade Alameda CTC I-580 Express Lanes, with a potential four-year expansion valued at another $15 million.
"We made progress in 2024 on our turnaround efforts, delivering top-line growth and positive Adjusted EBITDA for the year, as well as positive cash from operations and growth in our cash balance in Q4," said Chuck Myers, CEO at Quarterhill. "For the past year, our focus has been to transform the business by integrating our strong operating assets, implementing leadership changes, developing our strategic plan, advancing our technology roadmap, expanding our sales pipeline and renegotiating certain tolling contracts. While there is still work to do, we made important progress on each of these fronts in 2024, which positions us well for revenue growth and margin expansion in 2025."
"Our vision is to become the number one or two player in the markets we operate in. We aim to achieve growth while generating reliable cash flows to build a healthy balance sheet capable of supporting both organic and acquisition-driven expansion. While we still have work to do in our turnaround, with a solid financial foundation, improved operational efficiency, and enhanced technological capabilities, we are confident in our strategy and ability to execute on our growth plans."
Q4 & Fiscal 2024 Financial ReviewQuarterhill's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024 and 2024 Annual Consolidated Financial Statements are available at the Company's website and at its profile at SEDAR+.
Financial statements for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023, have been prepared to reflect continuing operations, and therefore, exclude results during that period from Wi-LAN Inc. ("WiLAN"), which was sold by Quarterhill on June 15, 2023.
Revenues for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, were $38.9 million and $153.3 million, compared to $43.0 million and $144.0 million in the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023. The decrease in revenue for Q4 2024 was due primarily to the timing of revenues received from certain contracts and the disposition of non-core Latin American operations in December 2023. The increase in revenues for fiscal 2024 was primarily due to continued strong performance from the enforcement operations as well as increased contribution from tolling operations.
Gross profit2 as a value and as a percentage of revenues may be subject to significant variance in each reporting period due to the nature and type of contract and service work performed and currency volatility. Gross profit for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, was $7.8 million and $27.8 million, or 20% and 18%, as compared to $8.5 million and $30.1 million, or 20% and 21%, in the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023, respectively. The decrease in fiscal 2024 compared to fiscal 2023 was primarily due to reserves taken in Q3 2024 related to cost overruns on two tolling projects which was partially offset by continued strong margin performance from the enforcement operations.
Total operating expenses are comprised of selling, general and administrative costs ("SG&A"), research and development ("R&D") costs, depreciation, amortization of intangible assets and other charges. Total operating expenses for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, were $11.2 million and $43.7 million, compared to $15.8 million and $47.9 million in the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023, respectively. The decreases are primarily due to a reduction in other charges and lower R&D, which was offset in part by an increase in SG&A.
Adjusted EBITDA1 for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, was $1.2 million and $0.2 million, compared to $2.3 million and $2.9 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023, respectively. The decrease in Adjusted EBITDA for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, compared to the prior year periods, was due to the factors impacting revenue, gross margin and expenses, as previously described.
Net income (loss) from continuing operations for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, was $0.3 million and ($11.0) million, or $0.00 and ($0.10) per diluted share, compared to a net loss from continuing operations of ($11.5) million and ($32.4) million, or ($0.10) and ($0.28) per diluted share, for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023.
Cash generated from (used in) continuing operations for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, was $6.5 million and ($4.4) million, compared to $32 thousand and ($14.0) million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023.
Cash and cash equivalents were $31.9 million at December 31, 2024, compared to $23.1 million at September 30, 2024 and $42.7 million at December 31, 2023. Due to the nature of the Company's business activities, operating cash flows may vary significantly between periods due to changes and timing in working capital balances. Adjusted Working Capital4 was $66.2 million at December 31, 2024, compared to $78.9 million at December 31, 2023.
Conference Call and Webcast
Quarterhill will host a conference call to discuss its financial results on Monday, March 17, 2025, at 10:00 AM Eastern Time.
Webcast Information
Live audio webcast will be available at: https://app.webinar.net/jGx29Y2K0gl
Webcast replay will be available at: https://app.webinar.net/jGx29Y2K0gl
Traditional Dial-in Information
To access the call from the U.S. and Canada, dial 1.888.699.1199 (Toll Free)
To access the call from other locations, dial 1.416.945.7677 (International)
RapidconnectTo instantly join the conference call by phone, please use the following URL to easily register and be connected into the conference call automatically: https://emportal.ink/42rBzm7
Telephone ReplayTelephone replay will be available from March 17, 2025, until March 24, 2025, at: 1.888.660.6345 (Toll Free North America) or 1.646.517.4150.
Conference ID: 09879 and Replay Passcode: 09879#
Non-IFRS Financial Measures and Non-IFRS RatiosQuarterhill uses both IFRS and certain non-IFRS financial measures to assess performance. Non-IFRS financial measures are financial measures disclosed by a company that (a) depict historical or expected future financial performance, financial position or cash flow of a company, (b) with respect to their composition, exclude amounts that are included in, or include amounts that are excluded, from the composition of the most directly comparable financial measure disclosed in the primary financial statements of the company, (c) are not disclosed in the financial statements of the company, and (d) are not a ratio, fraction, percentage or similar representation. Non-IFRS ratios are financial measures disclosed by a company that are in the form of a ratio, fraction, percentage or similar representation that has a non-IFRS financial measure as one or more of its components, and that are not disclosed in the financial statements of the company.
These non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios are not standardized financial measures under IFRS, and, therefore, are unlikely to be comparable to similar financial measures presented by other companies. Management believes these non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios provide transparent and useful supplemental information to help investors evaluate our financial performance, financial condition, and liquidity using the same measures as management. These non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios should not be considered as a substitute for, or superior to, measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.
Adjusted EBITDA - Non-IFRS Financial Measures
We use the non-IFRS financial measure "Adjusted EBITDA" to mean net income (loss) adjusted for (i) income taxes, (ii) finance expense or income; (iii) amortization and impairment of intangibles; (iv) other charges and other one-time items; (v) depreciation of right-of-use assets and property, plant and equipment; (vi) stock-based compensation; (vii) foreign exchange (gain) loss; and (viii) other income which includes equity in earnings from joint ventures; (ix) dividends received from joint ventures; and * changes in fair value of derivative liability. Adjusted EBITDA is used by our management to assess our normalized cash generated on a consolidated basis. Adjusted EBITDA is also a performance measure that may be used by investors to analyze the cash generated by Quarterhill. Adjusted EBITDA should not be interpreted as an alternative to net income (loss) and cash flows from operations as determined in accordance with IFRS or as measure of liquidity. The most directly comparable IFRS financial measure is Net income (loss).
Adjusted EBITDA per share, Non-IFRS Ratio
Adjusted EBITDA per share is calculated as Adjusted EBITDA divided by the basic weighted average of common shares. Adjusted EBITDA per share is used by our management and investors to analyze cash generated by Quarterhill on a per share basis. The most comparable IFRS measure is earnings per share.
Adjusted Working Capital, Non-IFRS Financial Measure
Adjusted Working Capital is calculated as current assets minus current liabilities, adjusted for convertible debentures and derivative liability. Adjusted Working Capital reflects our net working capital expected to be settled in cash within twelve months. The most comparable IFRS measure is working capital.
Backlog - Non-IFRS Financial Measure
We use the non-IFRS measure "backlog" to mean the total value of work that has not yet been completed but that in management's experience of similar situations has: (a) a high certainty of being performed pursuant to existing contracts or work orders specifying job scope, value and timing; (b) an expectation of expansion of existing contracts due to expected extensions; and/or (c) been awarded to one or more of our ITS operating subsidiaries as evidenced by a binding contract or where the finalization of a binding contract is reasonably assured. Activities under such contracts may cover a period of up to 15 years. We do not include in "backlog", the value of any expected but unsigned change orders that management considers may apply to such contracts.
Supplementary Financial MeasuresSupplementary financial measures are financial measures disclosed by a company that (a) are, or are intended to be, disclosed on a periodic basis to depict the historical or expected future financial performance, financial position or cash flow of a company, (b) are not disclosed in the financial statements of the company, (c) are not non-IFRS financial measures, and (d) are not non-IFRS ratios. Key supplementary measures disclosed are as follows:
Gross margin %Calculated as gross profit as a percentage of revenue.
About QuarterhillQuarterhill is a leading provider of tolling and enforcement solutions in the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) industry. Our goal is technology-driven global leadership in ITS, via organic growth of our tolling and enforcement businesses, and by continuing an acquisition-oriented investment strategy that capitalizes on attractive growth opportunities within ITS and its adjacent markets. Quarterhill is listed on the TSX under the symbol QTRH and on the OTCQX Best Market under the symbol QTRHF. For more information: www.quarterhill.com.
Forward-looking InformationThis news release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements") regarding Quarterhill, its operating subsidiaries and their respective businesses. Such forward-looking statements relate to future events, conditions or future financial performance of Quarterhill based on future economic conditions and courses of action. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of any words such as "seek", "anticipate", "budget", "plan", "goal", and similar expressions. These statements involve known and unknown risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. The Company believes the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking statements pertaining to, but not limited to, the following: operational and financial expectations for the 2025 financial year, including revenue, gross margin and Adjusted EBITDA expectations; and the Company's business plan and strategy.
Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon assumptions which management of the Company believes to be reasonable, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. With respect to forward-looking statements contained in this news release, the Company has made assumptions regarding, but not limited to: the Company's ability to execute on its business plan; successful integration of acquisitions; general economic and industry trends; operating assumptions relating to the Company's operations; demand for the Company's products and services; cost estimates for fixed price contracts; and the other assumptions set forth in the Company's most recent annual information form available under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors including, but not limited to: changes in demand for the Company's products and services; general economic, political, market and business conditions, including fluctuations in interest rates, foreign exchange rates, stock market volatility; reliance on key management personnel; risks related to competition within the Company's industry and relating to technological advances; litigation risks; cyber-security risks; fixed price contracts may result in unexpected costs to the Company; risks of health epidemics, pandemics and similar outbreaks; and the other risks set forth in the Company's most recent annual information form and management's discussion and analysis for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024 available under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
The Company's actual results, performance or achievement could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements and, accordingly, no assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits the Company will derive therefrom. Readers are therefore cautioned that the foregoing lists of important factors are not exhaustive, and they should not unduly rely on the forward-looking statements included in this news release. All forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Quarterhill has no intention, and undertakes no obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
This news release contains "future-oriented financial information" and "financial outlooks" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws (collectively, "FOFI"), including about the financial results, revenue, gross margin and Adjusted EBITDA of Quarterhill for the year ended December 31, 2025. FOFI, as with forward-looking statements generally, are, without limitation, based on the assumptions and qualifications, and are subject to the risks, set out above in respect of forward-looking statements. Quarterhill's actual financial position and results of operations may differ materially from management's current expectations and, as a result, the Company's financial results may differ materially from the FOFI provided in this news release. The Company and its management believe that the FOFI has been prepared on a reasonable basis, reflecting management's best estimates and judgments and the FOFI contained in this news release was approved by management as of the date hereof, for purposes of providing further information about the Company's future business operations and results. However, because this information is subjective and subject to numerous risks and assumptions, it should not be relied on as necessarily indicative of future results. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update such FOFI. Readers are cautioned that the FOFI contained in this news release should not be used for purposes other than for which it is disclosed herein, and such information is presented for illustrative purposes only and may not be an indication of the Company's actual financial position or results of operations.
Consolidated Statements of Net Income (Loss) and Comprehensive Loss(in thousands and in United States dollars, except share and per share amounts)
Three months ended December 31,
Year ended December 31,
2024
2023
2024
2023
(restated)
(restated)
Revenues
$38,876
$42,961
$153,305
$143,987
Direct cost of revenues
31,099
34,496
125,528
113,882
Gross profit
7,777
8,465
27,777
30,105
Operating expenses
Selling, general and administrative expenses
6,913
6,737
28,486
25,954
Research and development expenses
306
722
1,377
3,163
Depreciation of right-of-use assets
369
375
1,450
1,518
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment
394
