Turtle Beach Reports Record Second Quarter 2018 Results And Increases 2018 Outlook
4:05 pm ET August 6, 2018 (PR Newswire) Print
Turtle Beach Corporation (NASDAQ: HEAR), the leading gaming headset and audio accessory brand, reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018.
Second Quarter Highlights vs. Year-Ago Quarter:
-- Net revenue increased 218% to $60.8 million from $19.1 million;
-- Gross margin increased 30 basis points to 33.3% from 33.0%;
-- Net income up significantly to $6.3 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $7.1 million, or $(0.57) per share; and
-- Adjusted EBITDA increased $12.6 million to $9.8 million from $(2.8) million.
-- Net revenue, net income and adjusted EBITDA were the highest levels for any second quarter since becoming public in 2014.
"The strong start to 2018 has only gained momentum in the second quarter, with another period of record results, enabling us to recently pay down $5 million of our subordinated debt from cash flow," said Juergen Stark, CEO, Turtle Beach. "Our growth continues to be driven by a healthy console gaming headset market and our market share gains. The successes of Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, and their innovative battle royale format, has driven new gamers into the market at significantly higher headset attach rates than we have experienced in the past. In addition, our better-than-expected execution in keeping up with consumer demand for our products allowed us to exceed our expectations.
"The strong market, and our outperformance, can be seen in NPD's latest U.S. and Canada console headset update. Year-to-date through June 2018, we grew our revenue share 570 basis points to 45.5% from 39.8% in the same period in 2017. While the market was up 86% on a sell-through basis during the same time, Turtle Beach was up 112%.
"Given our record results in the first half of 2018, and our expectation of a continued strong console headset market in the second half, we have significantly raised our 2018 financial outlook. We believe these positive developments have us in a strong position to accelerate selective growth investments and further reduce our debt over time."
Second Quarter 2018 Financial Results
Net revenue in the second quarter of 2018 increased 218% to a record $60.8 million compared to $19.1 million in the year-ago quarter. This was due to continued strong market demand for console gaming headsets and the Company's increase in market share over last year.
Gross margin in the second quarter of 2018 increased 30 basis points to 33.3% compared to 33.0% in the second quarter of 2017. The increase was primarily due to higher volumes driving fixed cost leverage, partially offset by approximately $4 million in expedited air freight costs (roughly $2.8 million incremental to normal freight) given robust consumer demand.
Operating expenses in the second quarter of 2018 increased 7% to $12.0 million compared to $11.3 million in the 2017 period due primarily to variable sales-based commissions and compensation, higher volume-based web costs, and an increase in marketing costs relative to last year.
Net income in the second quarter of 2018 increased significantly to a record $6.3 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $7.1 million, or $(0.57) per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. The improvement was primarily driven by the significant revenue growth.
Adjusted EBITDA (as defined below in "Non-GAAP Financial Measures") in the second quarter of 2018 increased $12.6 million to a record $9.8 million compared to $(2.8) million in the year-ago quarter.
Balance Sheet Highlights
At June 30, 2018, the Company had $9.1 million of cash and cash equivalents with no amount outstanding under its revolving credit facility, compared to $1.2 million of cash and cash equivalents with $5.2 million outstanding under its revolving credit facility at June 30, 2017. The increase in cash and the reduction in amounts outstanding under its revolving credit facility resulted from the improved operational performance in 2018.
Total outstanding debt principal at June 30, 2018, decreased to $32.4 million compared to $39.7 million at June 30, 2017. The debt at June 30, 2018, consisted of $19.9 million in subordinated debt and $12.5 million in term loans. The Company's senior debt leverage ratio, defined as total term loans outstanding and average trailing twelve-month revolving debt, divided by consolidated trailing twelve month adjusted EBITDA, improved significantly to 0.7x at June 30, 2018, compared to 2.1x at December 31, 2017, and 6.8x at June 30, 2017.
On August 3, 2018, Turtle Beach paid down a portion of its subordinated debt by $5.0 million using cash on hand, bringing the subordinated debt balance to $15.1 million and total outstanding debt principal to $27.6 million.
Increased 2018 Outlook
For the third quarter of 2018, Turtle Beach expects net revenue to increase 81% to approximately $65 million compared to $36.0 million in the third quarter of 2017. Net income is expected to improve to approximately $0.44 per diluted share compared to a net loss of $(0.04) per diluted share in the third quarter of 2017. Adjusted EBITDA is expected to more than triple to approximately $11 million compared to $3.3 million in the third quarter of 2017.
For the full year 2018, Turtle Beach now expects net revenue to increase 71% to approximately $255 million (up from $205 million in its May outlook) compared to $149.1 million in 2017. Net income in 2018 is now expected to improve to approximately $1.95 per diluted share (up from net income of $0.95 per share in its May outlook) based upon 15.5 million estimated fully diluted shares outstanding. This is compared to a net loss of $(0.26) per share in 2017. Adjusted EBITDA in 2018 is now expected to be approximately $45 million (up from $26 million in its May outlook). This compares to $11.6 million in adjusted EBITDA in 2017.
