On April 25, 2019 Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) reported its financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2019 (Press release, Illumina, APR 25, 2019, View Source [SID1234535403]).

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First quarter 2019 results:

Revenue of $846 million, an 8% increase compared to $782 million in the first quarter of 2018
GAAP net income attributable to Illumina stockholders for the quarter of $233 million, or $1.57 per diluted share, compared to $208 million, or $1.41 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2018
Non-GAAP net income attributable to Illumina stockholders for the quarter of $237 million, or $1.60 per diluted share, compared to $214 million, or $1.45 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2018 (see the table entitled "Reconciliation Between GAAP and Non-GAAP Net Income Attributable to Illumina Stockholders" for a reconciliation of these GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures)
Cash flow from operations of $198 million compared to $255 million in the first quarter of 2018
Free cash flow (cash flow from operations less capital expenditures) of $142 million for the quarter compared to $165 million in the first quarter of 2018
Gross margin in the first quarter of 2019 was 69.1% compared to 68.8% in the prior year period. Excluding amortization of acquired intangible assets, non-GAAP gross margin was 70.2% for the first quarter of 2019 compared to 69.8% in the prior year period.

Research and development (R&D) expenses for the first quarter of 2019 were $169 million compared to $137 million in the prior year period. R&D expenses as a percentage of revenue were 20.0%, including 0.8% attributable to Helix. This compares to R&D expenses as a percentage of revenue of 17.5% in the prior year period, including 0.8% attributable to Helix.

Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses for the first quarter of 2019 were $211 million compared to $183 million in the prior year period. Excluding acquisition-related expenses and amortization of acquired intangible assets, non-GAAP SG&A expenses as a percentage of revenue were 23.0%, including 0.7% attributable to Helix. This compares to 22.9% in the prior year period, including 1.1% attributable to Helix.

Depreciation and amortization expenses were $47 million and capital expenditures for free cash flow purposes were $56 million during the first quarter of 2019. At the close of the quarter, the company held $3.6 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, compared to $3.5 billion as of December 30, 2018.

"This was a strong start to the year, with $846 million in revenue and more than $1 billion in orders for the first time in Illumina’s history," said Francis deSouza, President and CEO. "Our growth is driven by a broad range of sequencing applications, with 14% sequencing consumable growth in the first quarter, including more than 20% growth in clinical sequencing consumables."

Updates since our last earnings release:

Launched the S Prime (SP) flow cell, enabling smaller batch sizes and lower output sequencing methods on the NovaSeq System
Launched TruSight Oncology 500 as a Research Use Only product, empowering laboratories with comprehensive genomic profiling
Authorized a share repurchase program to repurchase $550 million of outstanding common stock and repurchased approximately $63 million of common stock in the first quarter
Welcomed Susan E. Siegel to Illumina’s Board of Directors, adding leadership experience in personalized medicine and digital health
Accelerated Helix’s path to independence to allow Helix to address a broader opportunity in population and consumer genomics; as a result, Helix will be deconsolidated effective April 25, 2019
Financial outlook and guidance

The non-GAAP financial guidance discussed below reflects certain pro forma adjustments to assist in analyzing and assessing our core operational performance. Please see our Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Guidance included in this release for a reconciliation of the GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures.

For fiscal 2019, the company continues to expect revenue growth in the range of 13% to 14%, and now expects GAAP earnings per diluted share attributable to Illumina stockholders of $6.29 to $6.39 and non-GAAP earnings per diluted share attributable to Illumina stockholders of $6.63 to $6.73 due to the favorable impact of the Helix deconsolidation.

Except for acquisition-related expenses incurred during the first quarter of 2019 which are reflected in our GAAP guidance, this guidance excludes any impact from the pending acquisition of Pacific Biosciences, which we expect to close in mid-2019.

Quarterly conference call information

The conference call will begin at 2:00 pm Pacific Time (5:00 pm Eastern Time) on Thursday, April 25, 2019. Interested parties may access the live teleconference through the Investor Relations section of Illumina’s website under the "company" tab at www.illumina.com. Alternatively, individuals can access the call by dialing 1 (844) 647-5490, or 1 (615) 247-0295 outside North America, both with passcode 9153579.

A replay of the conference call will be posted on Illumina’s website after the event and will be available for at least 30 days following.

Statement regarding use of non-GAAP financial measures

The company reports non-GAAP results for diluted net income per share, net income, gross margins, operating expenses, operating margins, other income, and free cash flow in addition to, and not as a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. The company’s financial measures under GAAP include substantial charges such as amortization of acquired intangible assets, non-cash interest expense associated with the company’s convertible debt instruments that may be settled in cash, and others that are listed in the itemized reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release. Management has excluded the effects of these items in non-GAAP measures to assist investors in analyzing and assessing past and future operating performance. Additionally, non-GAAP net income attributable to Illumina stockholders and diluted earnings per share attributable to Illumina stockholders are key components of the financial metrics utilized by the company’s board of directors to measure, in part, management’s performance and determine significant elements of management’s compensation.

The company encourages investors to carefully consider its results under GAAP, as well as its supplemental non-GAAP information and the reconciliation between these presentations, to more fully understand its business. Reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP results are presented in the tables of this release.