Allied Motion Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2020 Results

Allied Motion Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: AMOT) ("Allied Motion” or "Company”), a designer and manufacturer that sells precision and specialty controlled motion products and solutions to the global market, today reported financial results for its fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2020. Results include the Dynamic Controls Group ("Dynamic Controls”) acquisition that was completed on March 7, 2020.

"I am incredibly proud of the passion, teamwork and dedication shown throughout our organization as we navigated a difficult environment while advancing our strategic priorities and delivering solid results,” commented Dick Warzala, Chairman and CEO. "Our fourth quarter performance was supported by record orders from favorable trends within our Medical markets, and exceptional engagement and focus on executing a significant recovery in the powersports portion of our Vehicle markets. This demand, combined with supply chain constraints, resulted in some inefficiencies and unintended costs as our teams worked hard to meet our commitments. We also incurred additional tariffs given the expiration of certain exemptions during the fourth quarter. Ultimately, we believe we will mitigate these costs over time, though some impact is expected to continue over the coming quarters.

He added, "While the economic and operating outlooks for 2021 remain uncertain, we are in a strong financial and operational position. Our record level of backlog, diversified end market penetration and demonstrated agility positions us well to perform across varying market trends and gives us confidence that we can drive further profitable growth, efficiency and enhanced free cash flow, while delivering long-term value for our shareholders.”

Fourth Quarter 2020 Results (Narrative compares with prior-year period unless otherwise noted)

Revenue of $93.0 million was up 6%, reflecting strong demand in the Medical markets, which increased 69% and included the contribution from Dynamic Controls. The Vehicle market continued to show strength, growing 6.5% over the 2019 fourth quarter. Those increases were partially offset by lower sales in the A&D and Industrial markets, reflecting the continued impact on those sectors from the pandemic. The impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations on revenue was favorable $2.8 million for the fourth quarter. Revenue excluding the effect of foreign currency translation is a non-GAAP measure. The Company believes this measure is useful for analyzing organic sales results. See the attached table for a description of non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliation of Revenue to Revenue excluding foreign currency translation.

Gross margin was 27.9% compared with 30.1% in the fourth quarter of 2019. The decline was primarily attributable to an unfavorable mix, the under absorption of some fixed costs in certain facilities and nearly $800 thousand of higher costs as a result of increased tariffs and duties, along with additional freight due to supply chain disruptions and customer requirements. The Company is working to mitigate these costs but expects these headwinds to continue into 2021.

Operating costs and expenses as a percent of revenue were down 90 basis points to 22.8%, as higher volume more than offset incremental expenses related to Dynamic Controls. Operating income was $4.8 million, or 5.1% of sales, compared with $5.7 million, or 6.5%.

Given the weakening of the U.S. dollar during the fourth quarter and Allied’s expanded global production, the Company incurred $0.5 million of foreign currency losses on the revaluation of short-term assets and liabilities. Offsetting that amount was the return of a $0.4 million withholding tax that had been charged to the Company in the third quarter of 2019 due to tax assessments in a foreign jurisdiction for a previous acquisition. These two items offset each other within other expense, net in the condensed consolidated statements of income.

Fourth quarter net income was $2.7 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, compared with $3.5 million, or $0.37 per diluted share, in the 2019 fourth quarter. The effective tax rate for the quarter was 26.2%.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, stock-based compensation expense, business development costs, foreign currency gains/losses, and non-income based tax assessment ("Adjusted EBITDA”) was $9.9 million compared with $10.3 million in the prior-year period. As a percent of sales, Adjusted EBITDA was 10.7% versus 11.7%. The Company believes that, when used in conjunction with measures prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, Adjusted EBITDA, which is a non-GAAP measure, helps in the understanding of its operating performance. See the attached table for a description of non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliation table for Adjusted EBITDA.

Full Year 2020 Results (Narrative compares with prior-year unless otherwise noted)

Revenue of $366.7 million was down 1%, reflecting strong growth in Medical markets of more than 61%, which included the contribution from Dynamic Controls. All other market verticals saw reduced demand as a result of the global economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the year, the impact of FX fluctuations on revenue was $1.8 million favorable. Sales to U.S. customers were 53% of total sales compared with 57% for the same period last year, with the balance of sales to customers primarily in Europe, Canada and Asia.

Gross margin was 29.6% compared with 30.3% as productivity, cost containment efforts and the favorable impact of Dynamic Controls mostly offset the impact of lower revenue and higher tariffs, duties, and freight.

Operating costs and expenses as a percent of revenue were 23.3%, up 90 basis points, largely driven by the addition of Dynamic Controls and higher business development costs. As a result, operating margin declined 160 basis points to 6.3%.

Net income was $13.6 million, or $1.43 per diluted share, in 2020. Excluding atypical tax items, business development costs and foreign currency gains/losses, adjusted net income was $14.3 million, or $1.50 per diluted share, compared with $18.0 million, or $1.90 per diluted share in 2019. See the attached table for a description of non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliation table for Adjusted Net Income and Diluted Earnings per Share. The effective tax rate for 2020 was 27.3%. Allied Motion expects its income tax rate for full year 2021 to range between 27% to 29%.

Adjusted EBITDA was $43.1 million, or 11.8% of sales, compared with $47.6 million, or 12.8% of sales, in the prior year. See the attached table for a description of non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliation table for Adjusted Net Income.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Review

Cash and cash equivalents increased $9.7 million to $23.1 million compared with year-end 2019. The Company generated net cash from operations of $9.8 million in the fourth quarter and $24.8 million for the full year period.

Total debt of $120.1 million was up $10.3 million from year-end 2019, reflecting borrowings to acquire Dynamic Controls in March 2020. In the quarter, the Company paid down $4.6 million in debt and $16.9 million for the full year period. Debt, net of cash, was $96.9 million, or 40.4% of net debt to capitalization.

Capital expenditures were $9.4 million for the full year period and largely focused on new customer projects, advancing the large, previously-announced Vehicle market project wins and next-generation off-road vehicle steering capabilities. The Company expects 2021 capital expenditures to be approximately $12 million to $15 million, reflecting some capital projects that had been deferred from 2020.

Orders and Backlog Summary ($ in thousands)

Orders of $108.5 million reached a record level, increasing 26% over the 2019 fourth quarter. Foreign currency translation had a favorable $3.1 million impact on fourth quarter orders compared with the prior-year period. Backlog increased 14% sequentially and 13% year-over-year to a record $141.3 million. The time to convert the majority of backlog to sales is approximately three to six months. Included in the current backlog is approximately $8 million of the previously announced $325 million of Vehicle market awards. The Company has begun shipments for the first of four, seven-year awards, and all four awards are expected to concurrently be at full rate production in 2024.

Conference Call and Webcast

The Company will host a conference call and webcast on Thursday, March 11, 2021 at 10:00 am ET. During the conference call, management will review the financial and operating results and discuss Allied Motion’s corporate strategy and outlook. A question and answer session will follow.

To listen to the live call, dial (201) 689-8263. In addition, the webcast and slide presentation may be found at: www.alliedmotion.com/investor-relations

A telephonic replay will be available from 1:00 pm ET on the day of the call through Thursday, March 18, 2021. To listen to the archived call, dial (412) 317-6671 and enter replay pin number 13714999 or access the webcast replay via the Company’s website. A transcript will also be posted to the website once available.

About Allied Motion Technologies Inc.

Allied Motion (Nasdaq: AMOT) designs, manufactures and sells precision and specialty controlled motion products and solutions used in a broad range of industries within our major served markets, which include Vehicle, Medical, Aerospace & Defense, and Industrial. Headquartered in Amherst, NY, the Company has global operations and sells into markets across the United States, Canada, South America, Europe and Asia.

Allied Motion is focused on controlled motion applications and is known worldwide for its expertise in electro-magnetic, mechanical and electronic motion technology. Its products include brush and brushless DC motors, brushless servo and torque motors, coreless DC motors, integrated brushless motor-drives, gear motors, gearing, modular digital servo drives, motion controllers, incremental and absolute optical encoders, active (electronic) and passive (magnetic) filters for power quality and harmonic issues, and other controlled motion-related products.

The Company’s growth strategy is focused on being the controlled motion solutions leader in its selected target markets by leveraging its "technology/know how” to develop integrated precision solutions that utilize multiple Allied Motion technologies to "change the game” and create higher value solutions for its customers. The Company routinely posts news and other important information on its website at www.alliedmotion.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

The statements in this news release and in the Company’s March 11, 2021 conference call that relate to future plans, events or performance are "forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate, or imply future results, performance, or achievements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others, statements the Company makes regarding expected operating results, anticipated levels of capital expenditures, the Company’s belief that it has sufficient liquidity to fund its business operations, and expectations with respect to the conversion of backlog to sales. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on the Company’s current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of the Company’s business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of the Company’s control. The Company’s actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, general economic and business conditions, conditions affecting the industries served by the Company and its subsidiaries, conditions affecting the Company's customers and suppliers, competitor responses to the Company's products and services, the overall market acceptance of such products and services, the pace of bookings relative to shipments, the ability to expand into new markets and geographic regions, the success in acquiring new business, the impact of changes in income tax rates or policies, the severity, magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, including impacts of the pandemic and of businesses’ and governments’ responses to the pandemic on our operations and personnel, and on commercial activity and demand across our and our customers’ businesses, and on global supply chains; our inability to predict the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic and related impacts will continue to adversely impact our business operations, financial performance, results of operations, financial position, the prices of our securities and the achievement of our strategic objectives and other factors disclosed in the Company's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made. New risks and uncertainties arise over time, and it is not possible for us to predict the occurrence of those matters or the manner in which they may affect us. The Company has no obligation or intent to release publicly any revisions to any forward looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

FINANCIAL TABLES FOLLOW

ALLIED MOTION TECHNOLOGIES INC.
Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
(In thousands)
(Unaudited)

In addition to reporting revenue and net income, which are U.S. generally accepted accounting principle ("GAAP”) measures, the Company presents Revenue excluding foreign currency exchange rate impacts, and EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation expense, business development costs, foreign currency gains/losses, and non-income based tax assessment), which are non-GAAP measures.

The Company believes that Revenue excluding foreign currency exchange rate impacts is a useful measure in analyzing organic sales results. The Company excludes the effect of currency translation from revenue for this measure because currency translation is not under management’s control, is subject to volatility and can obscure underlying business trends. The portion of revenue attributable to currency translation is calculated as the difference between the current period revenue and the current period revenue after applying foreign exchange rates from the prior period.

The Company believes EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are often a useful measure of a Company’s operating performance and are a significant basis used by the Company’s management to evaluate and compare the core operating performance of its business from period to period by removing the impact of the capital structure (interest), tangible and intangible asset base (depreciation and amortization), taxes, stock-based compensation expense, business development costs related to acquisitions, foreign currency gains/losses on short-term assets and liabilities, and other items that are not indicative of the Company’s core operating performance. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA do not represent and should not be considered as an alternative to net income, operating income, net cash provided by operating activities or any other measure for determining operating performance or liquidity that is calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

The Company’s calculation of Revenue excluding foreign currency exchange impacts for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020 is as follows:

The Company’s calculation of Adjusted EBITDA for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 is as follows:

ALLIED MOTION TECHNOLOGIES INC.
Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income and Diluted Earnings per Share to
Non-GAAP Adjusted Net Income and Diluted Earnings per Share
(In thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)

The Company’s calculation of Adjusted net income and Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 is as follows:

Adjusted net income and diluted EPS are defined as net income as reported, adjusted for unusual non-recurring items. Adjusted net income and diluted EPS are not a measure determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States, commonly known as GAAP, and may not be comparable to the measure as used by other companies. Nevertheless, the Company believes that providing non-GAAP information, such as adjusted net income and diluted EPS are important for investors and other readers of the Company’s financial statements and assists in understanding the comparison of the current quarter’s and current year’s net income and diluted EPS to the historical periods’ net income and diluted EPS.

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