This story has been updated to include information from Twist's earnings call.
NEW YORK – Twist Bioscience on Monday morning reported 27 percent year-over-year growth in fiscal fourth quarter revenues and a 28 percent jump in full-year revenues, driven by its next-generation sequencing (NGS) target enrichment and synthetic biology businesses.
"Our team delivered a record quarter in revenue and margin growth, ending the year with a strong cash balance," Twist Cofounder and CEO Emily Leproust told investors in a conference all recapping the company's financial results. "We exceeded our guidance in every metric, including total revenue, growth, margin, capital expenditure, and ending cash balance."
For the three months ended Sept. 30, the South San Francisco, California-based company reported revenues of $84.7 million compared to $66.9 million a year ago, beating the Wall Street consensus estimate of $82.7 million. The company received $88.2 million in orders in Q4, up 24 percent year over year compared to $71.1 million last year.
Of the total, synthetic biology revenues grew 28 percent to $33.9 million from $26.5 million in the prior-year period. Synthetic biology orders increased to $36.3 million for the quarter, according to CFO Adam Laponis.
NGS revenues were $45.5 million, up 23 percent from $37.1 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023. NGS orders increased to $46.0 million, serving 620 customers for the quarter.
Biopharma revenues increased 56 percent to $5.3 million in fiscal Q4 compared to $3.4 million for the same period of fiscal 2023. Orders in this segment were $5.9 million, and the company started 68 new programs during the quarter, Laponis noted.
By geography, revenues from the Americas increased to approximately $52.7 million for the fourth quarter, a 21 percent increase compared to $43.7 million in the same period of fiscal 2023. For Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), revenues were $25.5 million for the fourth quarter, up 48 percent from $17.2 million in the same period last year. Revenues in Asia-Pacific (APAC) increased by 8 percent to $6.5 million in the fourth quarter compared to $6.1 million in the same period in fiscal 2023.
Twist's fiscal Q4 net loss was $34.7 million, or $0.59 per share, compared to a net loss of $46.2 million, or $.81 per share, a year ago. On average, analysts had expected a loss per share of $.69.
Twist lowered its fiscal Q4 R&D expenses by 11 percent to $21.1 million from $23.7 million in Q4 of 2023. The company increased its SG&A spending by 12 percent to $53.1 million from $47.4 million a year ago.
For fiscal year 2024, Twist booked $313.0 million in revenues, up 28 percent from $245.1 million in 2023 and in line of its guidance, beating analysts' average estimate of $310.8 million.
Synthetic biology revenues for the fiscal year grew 26 percent to $123.5 million compared to $98.2 million for fiscal 2023. NGS revenues were $169.1 million, representing a 37 percent increase from $123.7 million in fiscal 2023. Biopharma revenues were down 13 percent to $20.3 million from $23.2 million last year.
The Americas accounted for 62 percent of total revenues in fiscal year 2024, while EMEA represented 30 percent and APAC 8 percent. China continues to be "a relatively small" portion of revenues, accounting for approximately 2 percent in fiscal 2024, Laponis noted.
Twist received $344.2 million in orders during the fiscal year, a 30 percent increase from $263.8 million in fiscal 2023.
Twist's full-year net loss was $208.7 million, or $3.60 per share, compared to a net loss of $204.6 million, or $3.60 per share, in fiscal year 2023. On average, analysts had expected a full-year loss per share of $3.44.
Full-year R&D spending shrunk 15 percent in fiscal 2024 to $90.9 million from $106.9 million in 2023, while SG&A expenses grew 15 percent to $218.4 million from $189.7 million.
The company finished the year with $226.3 million in cash and cash equivalents and $50.1 million in short-term investments. According to Laponis, Twist entered into a royalty purchase agreement with Xoma Royalty for $15 million cash in October, which is not included in the company's year-end financials.
For fiscal year 2025, Twist expects total revenues between $367.0 million and $377.0 million, representing approximately 17 percent to 20 percent growth compared to the past year.
Synthetic biology revenues are projected to be $142.0 million to $146.0 million, delivering growth of approximately 15 percent to 18 percent. For the NGS business, the company estimates revenues in the range of $204.0 to $209.0 million, up 20 percent to 24 percent from the past year. Lastly, the biopharma business is expected to generate $21.0 to $22.0 million in revenues, approximately 3 percent to 8 percent more than in fiscal 2024.
For Q1 of fiscal 2025, Twist expects revenues of approximately 87 million, representing approximately 22 percent year-over-year growth.
Of these, synthetic biology revenues will be approximately $34.0 million, representing approximately 26 percent year-over-year growth. NGS revenues are estimated to grow 22 percent compared to Q1 of fiscal 2024 to approximately $48.0 million, while biopharma revenues are estimated to be approximately $5.0 million.
In afternoon trading on the Nasdaq, shares of Twist were up 12 percent at $41.34.