Financial Highlights for the third quarter of 2011 compared to the third quarter 2010
Revenues decreased to $0.9 million from $2.0 million.
Gross margin decreased to $0.3 million from $0.5 million.
Operating expenses of $5.4 million compared to $5.8 million.
Net loss of $5.9 million compared to $5.3 million.
Year-to-date cash used in operating and investing activities of $13.9 million compared to $10.8 million.
Recent Highlights
On September 17, 2011 our Board of Directors appointed Dr. Frank Gibbard as President and Chief Executive Officer and appointed Stephen Huang as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer with an effective date of September 18, 2011.
On July 22, 2011 Altair closed the Canon transaction for $57.5 million.
For the 2011 third quarter, Altairnano reported revenues of $0.9 million, down from $2.0 million in the third quarter of 2010. The overwhelming driver for this reduction was the termination of our military business at the end of 2010 in order to close the Canon transaction. Additionally sales to Proterra were down from the prior year comparable quarter due to Proterra’s ramping back up their electric bus operations from a temporary shutdown earlier in 2011.
Net loss was $5.9 million, or $0.10 per share, compared to a net loss of $5.3 million, or $0.20 per share, for the third quarter of 2010. The basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding for the quarter were 60.2 million, compared to 26.8 million for the same period in 2010.
"During the third quarter we were successful in closing the Canon transaction. This relationship will help us open up market opportunities in Asia and gives us the financial resources to execute our sales strategy into power grids, electric buses and various OEM applications worldwide," said Dr. Frank Gibbard, Altairnano’s new president and chief executive officer.
For the quarter, gross profit declined by $0.2 million and operating expenses were lower by 7 percent, falling from $5.8 million in the third quarter of 2010 to $5.4 million for the same period this year. The primary driver for the reduced gross profit was the reduced sales volume associated with the elimination of our military sales in 2011.
Altairnano’s cash and cash equivalents increased by $48.7 million, from $4.7 million at December 31, 2010 to $53.4 million at September 30, 2011. This is primarily due to the total net proceeds of $61.9 million from our Canon transaction of $56.2 million and our earlier capital raise of $5.7 million in March 2011, less $13.9 million of cash used in operating and investing activities during 2011. The bulk of the cash used in operations went to cover normal compensation and non-labor expenses. Significant additional items adjusting our net loss to cash used in operations included asset depreciation and IP amortization expense included in net loss of $1.0 million, decrease of $1.0 million in deferred revenues, $.8 million of share-based compensation expense included in net loss and $.7 million reduction in accounts payable.
Third Quarter 2011 Conference Call
Altairnano will hold a conference call to discuss its third quarter 2011 results on Thursday, November 3, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). Shareholders and members of the investment community are invited to participate in the conference call. The dial-in number for both U.S. and international callers is +1 678-224-7719. Please dial in to the conference five minutes before the call is scheduled to begin. Ask the operator for the Altair Nanotechnologies call.
Post call, a phone-based audio replay will be available from 2:00 p.m. EDT, Thursday, November 3, 2011 until Midnight EST, November 10, 2011. It can be accessed by dialing +1 404-537-3406 and entering the conference number 23141599. Additionally, the conference call and replay will be available online, and can be accessed by visiting Altairnano’s web site, www.altairnano.com.
Headquartered in Reno, Nevada with engineering and manufacturing operations in Anderson, Indiana, Altairnano is a leading provider of energy storage systems for clean, efficient power and energy management. Altairnano’s Lithium-Titanate based battery systems are among the highest performing and most scalable, with applications that include complete energy storage systems for use in providing frequency regulation and renewables integration for the electric grid, and battery modules and cells for transportation and industrial applications.
