Orchid Cellmark Reports 15.4-Percent Decline in Q4 Revenues as Profits Turn to Loss

NEW YORK, May 19 (GenomeWeb News) - Orchid Cellmark reported today a 15.4-percent decrease in revenues and a 5.5-percent decrease in net income for the fourth quarter of 2005.

Revenues for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2005declined to $13.9 million from $16.5 million in the year-ago period. Orchid said revenues in the period were "primarily impacted" by a decline in the company's US forensic casework testing volume.

"This decline was primarily due to lower than anticipated production capacity in the company's new Dallas, Texas facility as a result of the transition of work to this facility from the company's Germantown, Maryland facility, which was closed in September 2005, and lower than expected DNA analyst staffing levels," Orchid said.

In addition, UK agricultural revenues declined by $1.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2005 with the expiration of the Maple Leaf contract. Orchid said fourth-quarter revenue grew in US private paternity, US CODIS database, and UK forensic DNA testing services.

R&D expenses for the fourth quarter grew 27.2 percent to 426,000 from 335,000 in Q4 2004.

Orchid Cellmark's net income for the fourth quarter declined to a loss of $3.8 million from a profit of $845,000 in Q4 2004.

As of Dec. 31, 2005, Orchid Cellmark had approximately $23.2 million in cash and cash equivalents.

Orchid on  April 7 said it would restate its earnings for the second and third quarters of 2005 due to a non-cash, non-operating income event during the second quarter.