Guardant Health Reports Third Quarter 2020 Financial Results

On November 5, 2020 Guardant Health, Inc. (Nasdaq: GH), a leading precision oncology company focused on helping conquer cancer globally through use of its proprietary blood tests, vast data sets and advanced analytics, reported financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 (Press release, Guardant Health, NOV 5, 2020, View Source [SID1234570071]).
Recent Highlights
•Revenue of $74.6 million for the third quarter of 2020, an increase of 23% over the corresponding period of 2019
◦Precision oncology revenue of $60.4 million, an increase of 16% over the corresponding period of 2019
◦Development services and other revenue of $14.2 million, an increase of 63% over the corresponding period of 2019
•Reported 16,950 tests to clinical customers and 3,071 tests to biopharmaceutical customers in the third quarter of 2020, representing an increase of 28% and a decrease of 42%, respectively, over the third quarter of 2019
•Received FDA-approval for Guardant360 CDx, becoming the first liquid biopsy test for comprehensive tumor mutation profiling across all solid cancers
•Launched enhanced version of Guardant360 including tumor mutational burden (TMB) and expanded homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) and fusion gene set
•Study published in Nature Medicine shows evidence of Guardant360 liquid biopsy accelerating clinical trial enrollment compared to tissue biopsy
"Our strong performance in the third quarter is a testament to our team’s dedication, as they stay focused on executing for our customers and on our pipeline programs," said Helmy Eltoukhy, PhD, co-founder and CEO. "While we expect to continue to see impacts related to the pandemic in the fourth quarter, we are confident that the fundamentals of our business are firmly intact. With the FDA approval of Guardant360 CDx behind us and as we look forward to 2021, I am more confident than ever in the opportunity that lies ahead for Guardant to transform patient care across the cancer care continuum."
Third Quarter 2020 Financial Results
Revenue was $74.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2020, a 23% increase from $60.8 million for the three months ended September 30, 2019. Precision oncology revenue grew 16% driven predominantly by an increase in average selling price. There were 16,950 clinical tests and 3,071 biopharmaceutical tests performed during the third quarter of 2020. Development services and other revenue increased 63% primarily related to the timing of project related milestones for companion diagnostic development programs.
Gross profit, or total revenue less cost of precision oncology testing and cost of development services and other, was $53.4 million for the third quarter of 2020, an increase of $11.0 million from $42.3 million for the corresponding prior year period. Gross margin, or gross profit divided by total revenue, was 72%, as compared to 70% for the corresponding prior year period.
Operating expenses were $127.6 million for the third quarter of 2020, as compared to $59.8 million for the corresponding prior year period, an increase of 113%.
Net loss attributable to Guardant Health, Inc. common stockholders was $77.7 million for the third quarter of 2020, as compared to $12.8 million for the corresponding prior year period. Net loss per share attributable to Guardant Health, Inc. common stockholders was $0.78 for the third quarter of 2020, as compared to $0.14 for the corresponding prior year period.
Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA was $14.6 million loss for the third quarter of 2020, as compared to $9.0 million loss for the corresponding prior year period.
Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities were $1.1 billion as of September 30, 2020.
2020 Guidance
Guardant Health is not providing 2020 financial guidance due to the continued uncertainties from the impact of COVID-19.
Webcast Information
Guardant Health will host a conference call to discuss the third quarter 2020 financial results after market close on Thursday, November 5, 2020 at 1:30 PM Pacific Time / 4:30 PM Eastern Time. A webcast of the conference call can be accessed at View Source The webcast will be archived and available for replay for at least 90 days after the event.
Non-GAAP Measure
We believe that the exclusion of certain income and expenses in calculating non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA can provide a useful measure for investors when comparing our period-to-period core operating results, and when comparing those same results to that published by our peers. To derive Adjusted EBITDA, we remove from GAAP results the impact of income (expenses) attributable to material non-cash items, specifically stock-based compensation and fair value remeasurements due to the subjectivity, management judgment, and market fluctuations involved around these amounts. We exclude certain other items because we believe that these income (expenses) do not reflect expected future operating expenses. Additionally, certain items are inconsistent in amounts and frequency, making it difficult to perform a meaningful evaluation of our current or past operating performance.
This non-GAAP financial measure is not intended to be considered in isolation from, as substitute for, or as superior to, the corresponding financial measure prepared in accordance with GAAP. There are limitations inherent in non-GAAP financial measures because they exclude charges and credits that are required to be included in a GAAP presentation, and do not present the full measure of our recorded costs against its revenue. In addition, our definition of the non-GAAP financial measures may differ from non-GAAP measures used by other companies.
Definition of Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA
"Adjusted EBITDA" is defined as net loss attributable to Guardant Health, Inc. common stockholders before: (i) interest income,(ii) interest expense (iii) provision for (benefit from) income taxes, (iv) depreciation and amortization expense, (v) other (income) expense, net, (vi) stock-based compensation expense, (vii) adjustments relating to non-controlling interest and contingent consideration and, if applicable in a reporting period, and (viii) acquisition-related expenses, and other non-recurring items.

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