Chembio Diagnostics, Inc. (OTCBB: CEMI), which develops, manufactures, markets and licenses point-of-care diagnostic tests, reported its first yearly profit since its merger in May 2004. Total revenues were $13.83 million for the year ended December 31, 2009, which compares to total revenues of $11.05 million for the year ended December 31, 2008, a 25% increase. The Company recorded net income of approximately $309,000, or less than $0.01 per share, for the year ended December 31, 2009, compared to a net loss of approximately $(1,949,000), or $(0.03) per share, for the year ended December 31, 2008. Total revenues were $3.55 million for the three months ended December 31, 2009, which compares to total revenues of $2.45 million for the three months ended December 31, 2008, a 45% increase. The Company recorded net income of approximately $217,000, or under $0.01 per share, for the three months ended December 31, 2009, compared to a net loss of approximately $550,000, or $0.01 per share, for the three months ended December 31, 2008.
The operating results in 2009 include $5.24 million of revenues from the sale of rapid HIV tests to Inverness Medical Innovations, Inc., the Companys exclusive U.S. marketing partner for its two FDA approved rapid HIV tests. This represents an increase of $3.13 million, or 148%, compared to $2.11 million for the year ended December 31, 2008. Sales to Inverness in the fourth quarter of 2009 were $1.83 million, an increase of $1.29 million, or 238%, as compared to the fourth quarter in 2008. The Company also realized a record amount of revenues related to research development contracts and grants, which increased 93% to $1.34 million in the year ended December 31, 2009 from $694,000 in the year ended December 31 2008. Also included in our 2009 product sales was $619,500 of DPP® product sales, an increase of 392%, or $493,500, as compared to $126,000 in 2008. The 2009 results also reflect significant overhead reductions as compared with the year of 2008 when the Company initiated a series of cost reductions. The Company has nevertheless over the same period increased its research development expenses, as more products based on the Companys patented DPP® technology were validated for manufacture and entered the clinical evaluation and regulatory approval process.
Commenting on the results, Chembios President, Lawrence A. Siebert, stated, “We are very pleased with our 2009 results, which included strong growth in our base business of lateral flow HIV tests, and record revenue from research and development contracts and grants, which enabled us to increase our investment in our new DPP product pipeline. I believe we are very well positioned to deliver continued growth in 2010 and beyond, as the growth from our base business is accelerated from the commercialization of our new DPP® rapid, point of care products.”
BOSTON — Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide estimates that insured
losses from the winter storm that impacted the East Coast of United
States between February 23 and 28 will be between USD 150 million and
USD 350 million. Total insured losses from two prior storms, which
occurred between February 4 and February 7 and February 9 and February
11, respectively, are estimated by AIR at between USD 400 million and
USD 1 billion.
“The third winter storm to slam the Northeast coast last month reached
its height on Friday, February 26, impacting nine states in the
mid-Atlantic and New England through Saturday,” said Dr. Peter Dailey,
director of atmospheric science at AIR Worldwide. “The storm, a
powerful low pressure system, originated off the mid-Atlantic coast,
intensifying as it came ashore. It moved slowly into New York Friday
morning and gradually dissipated over New England over the weekend
before moving out to sea.”
The storm combined heavy snowfall, flooding rain and impressive winds,
some of which reached hurricane-strength. In Manhattan, where nearly 21
inches of snow were recorded in a 36-hour period, the storm set an
all-time record for snow in the month of February. The storm also set a
record there for accumulation in a single day. Elsewhere, snowfall
totaled more than two feet over parts of eastern New York State and
western Massachusetts. West Halifax, Vermont, received 38.5 inches of
snow.
Dr. Dailey continued, “The repeated impact of winter storms in the
Mid-Atlantic region in recent weeks has been influenced in part by the
ongoing strong El Niño conditions. The presence of anomalously warm
waters in the east Pacific during El Niño shifts the global atmospheric
circulation in such a way as to displace the jet stream pattern over
North America to the south. The storms that form in these conditions are
more likely to impact states in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic areas.
This effect of El Niño, combined with the ability of strong storms to
pull in cold arctic air in their wake is responsible for unseasonably
cold temperatures in states like Florida.”
“Over the past month, the jet stream has remained in generally the same
location—aligned so that repeated storms have taken similar tracks
passing over the Mid-Atlantic. Exacerbating the problem is the fact that
storms in this region are often influenced by the nearby and warm Gulf
Stream waters, which provide additional energy and humidity.”
Reko International Group Inc. (TSX: REK) today announced results for its second quarter ended January 31, 2010.
The gross loss for the three months ended January 31, 2010, was $0.6 million, or 7.0% of sales, compared to a gross profit of $3.9 million in the prior year. The significant decrease in gross profit over the prior year, of approximately $4.5 million, relates to an inability to secure sufficient sales to absorb overhead. The gross loss for the six months ended January 31, 2010 was $0.5 million, or 2.6% of sales, compared to a gross profit of $6.3 million, or 20.8% of sales, in the prior year.
Selling and administrative expenses for the three months ended January 31, 2010 were $1.6 million, or 17.9% of sales, compared to $2.3 million, or 14.4% of sales for the same period in the prior year. While the selling, general and administrative expenses declined 34%, year over year, they increased as a percentage of sales reflecting the abnormally low sales volumes experienced by Reko in the second quarter of the current year. Selling and administrative expenses for the six months ended January 31, 2010 were $3.0 million, or 16.8% of sales, compared to $3.9 million, 12.8% of sales, in the prior year.
Net loss for the quarter was $1.9 million or $0.29 per share, compared to income of $0.9 million, or $0.12 per share, in the same period of the prior year. Net loss for the six months ended January 31, 2010 was $3.0 million, or $0.47 per share, compared to income of $1.3 million, or $0.18 per share, in the same period of the prior year.
Erik Chopin