logo-loader

Vuzix sees 3Q revenue jump by 140%, driven by higher sales of smart glasses

Published: 09:34 10 Nov 2020 EST

Vuzix Corporation - Vuzix sees 3Q revenue jump by 140% driven by higher sales of smart glasses
The company had cash and cash equivalents of $24.9 million and an overall working capital position of $31 million as of end September

Vuzix Corporation (NASDAQ:VUZI) (FRA:V7XN) posted third-quarter results on Monday that saw its revenue jump 140% year-over-year on the back of higher sales of its smart glasses. 

For the period ended September 30, 2020, the Rochester, New York-based company, which provides smart glasses and Augmented Reality technologies, reported revenue of $2.8 million, compared to $1.2 million in the third quarter of 2019. 

The company chalked up the increase to higher sales of smart glasses, which rose $1.6 million, or 156% year-over-year.

READ: Vuzix smart glasses allow Newcastle University to carry out research on blood cells, COVID-19 virus

The firm’s product gross margins averaged 47% of sales, compared to 36% in the same period in 2019. The firm said the improvement was the result of higher margins earned on M400 smart glasses, compared to margins on the M300 series in 2019.

The firm’s R&D expense during the quarter fell 20% to $1.9 million, compared to $2.3 million for the same period in 2019. This was due to reduced external consulting fees linked to Blade software development as well as lower overall new product research and development costs.

"Our third-quarter revenue grew 140% over the comparable 2019 period largely due to our core enterprise smart glasses business. The coronavirus outbreak has impacted the day-to-day operations of many enterprise customers, including healthcare, manufacturing, logistics and field service, and has furthered adoption and overall acceptance of smart glasses within business operations,” said Vuzix CEO Paul Travers.

“We delivered a record $2.7 million of Vuzix smart glasses in the quarter, an increase of 156% year-over-year and up 15% sequentially over our previous record achieved in the second quarter of 2020, driven by both follow-on orders from existing customers and interest from new customers.”

Travers noted that Vuzix M400 Smart Glasses gained traction during the quarter as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic demanded innovative solutions to the way it works.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has become a catalyst for much broader acceptance of enterprise smart glasses, resulting in shorter evaluation periods and increased customer adoption," said Travers.

"The healthcare, field service and manufacturing sectors, which were all important growth contributors in our third quarter, continue to show strength. We expect these segments to remain robust growth drivers over the remainder of 2020 and beyond.”

The Vuzix boss said the fourth quarter is off to “a great start” with October setting a company record for the highest monthly sales.

“As a result, today we believe we are in a strong position to deliver continued smart glasses revenue growth in our fourth quarter," said Travers.

"The third quarter was also an active period for our OEM business group; we negotiated an engineering services project with a new major defense company that commenced in early October along with phase 2 project work with an existing major defense company,” added Travers.

The company said it is working actively on advancements of its next-generation near-eye waveguide and micro-display technologies.

Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive

Coniagas Battery Metals secures new key ground with focus on...

Coniagas Battery Metals (TSX-V:COS) CEO Frank Basa joined Steve Darling from Proactive to announce the company's strategic acquisition of key ground near SOQUEM’s Cardinal Property, located 80 km southeast of Chibougamau, Quebec. This acquisition underscores Coniagas’ commitment to capitalizing...

11 minutes ago