Caliper Posts 12-Percent Increase in Q4 Revenue Atop Narrowed Losses

NEW YORK, Feb. 22 (GenomeWeb News) - Caliper Life Sciences today said that fourth-quarter revenues increased 12 percent atop a mild increase in R&D spending and a decline in net losses.

Total receipts for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2005, increased to $26.9 million from $24.1 million in the same period last year. "Areas of strength" included sales of the company's microfluidics products and liquid handling instruments.

"An important milestone" in the current quarter was Caliper's Oct. 3, 2005, acquisition of NovaScreen Biosciences, which increased the service component of Caliper's total revenue, and was a "revenue growth driver" for the fourth quarter, the company said.

Indeed, service revenue in the fourth quarter had the greatest year-over-year growth, increasing to $6.1 million from $3.4 million. By comparison, product revenue inched up to $18.2 million from $18 million year over year, and receipts from license fees and contracts declined to $2.6 million from $2.7 million in the year-ago period.      

R&D spending in the fourth quarter inched up to $4.8 million from $4.7 million in the same period in 2004.

Net loss for the quarter declined to $1.5 million, or $.04 per share, from $6.9 million, or $.23 per share, in the comparable period last year.

Caliper expects to generate between $21 million and $23 million in total revenue in 2006. The company also said it expects to complete the recently disclosed Xenogen acquisition by the end of the second quarter of 2006 and, "reflecting the effects of that transaction," anticipates between $120 million and $128 million in total revenues for 2006.

Caliper said it had around $8.6 million in cash and cash equivalents and $23.1 million in marketable securities as of Dec. 31, 2005.