WISH Wishpond Technologies Ltd

• Wishpond achieved revenue of $6.1 million in Q1-2024, representing an annualized revenue run-rate⁽¹⁾ of over $24 million, driven by sales of the Company's next generation marketing platform, Propel IQ.
• Wishpond achieved Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $0.3 million in Q1-2024, an increase of 39% compared to Q1 of the prior year and the seventh quarter in a row of positive Adjusted EBITDA.
• The Company expects accelerated growth in the second half of 2024, driven by the rising sales of Propel IQ and the recent launch of SalesCloser AI, a virtual AI sales agent that can conduct sales calls and demos in multiple languages with minimal human intervention.

VANCOUVER, BC, May 22, 2024 /CNW/ - Wishpond Technologies Ltd. (TSXV: WISH) (OTCQX: WPNDF) (the "Company" or "Wishpond"), a provider of marketing-focused online business solutions, announces it has filed its interim consolidated financial statements (the "Interim Financial Statements") and management's discussion and analysis (the "MD&A") for Q1-2024, representing the three months ended March 31, 2024. Copies of the Interim Financial Statements and MD&A are available on the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

Ali Tajskandar, Wishpond's Founder and CEO commented, "The first quarter of 2024 marked another historic chapter in the Company's history as we successfully completed the development of our flagship, and much anticipated, SalesCloser AI product, which subsequently launched in April 2024. SalesCloser AI has generated immense interest within the industry, as we pioneer the future of sales calls and product demos through the use of artificial intelligence. We're confident that SalesCloser AI will lead the charge in reshaping how companies engage with their stakeholders, heralding a new era of efficiency and effectiveness in sales processes. With the combination of our Propel IQ all-in-one marketing platform, and SalesCloser AI, Wishpond is poised for its next phase of growth."

Ali Tajskandar further adds, "Despite the typical seasonal downturn expected in Q1-2024, I am pleased to report our revenues remained relatively stable in comparison to Q4-2023. In the first quarter, we achieved a 39% improvement in Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ compared to Q1 of last year, and we maintained our consistency in achieving our seventh consecutive quarter of positive Adjusted EBITDA. This improvement stems from the sustained momentum of our cost optimization initiatives initiated last year, coupled with the ongoing growth and profitability of Propel IQ. The Company's outlook for the remainder of 2024 remains promising as the transition of our sales team to Propel IQ is now bearing fruit."

David Pais, Wishpond's Chief Financial Officer commented, "I am extremely proud of the entire team at Wishpond as we consistently enhance our performance across all metrics while simultaneously driving positive EBITDA growth, growing Propel IQ and launching SalesCloser AI. Our cash position is expected to improve in the second half of 2024 as a result of higher revenues and because the Company has completely paid out all of its earn-outs related to prior acquisitions. We look forward to reporting higher revenue growth, profitability for the remainder of 2024."

First Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights:

• Wishpond achieved quarterly revenue of $6,050,263 during Q1-2024, compared to $5,623,817 generated in the same period of 2023 (Q1-2023), an increase of 8%. Revenue growth was primarily driven by organic growth resulting from stronger product demand, an increase in sales and marketing activities, and new product introductions.
• The revenue from a legacy customer reduced from $525,396 in Q1-2023 to $267,980 in Q1-2024. Without this decrease in revenue from email delivery services, revenue from the rest of the business would have increased by 13%.
• Wishpond achieved Gross Profit of $4,128,922 in Q1-2024 (Q1-2023: $3,689,338), representing a 12% increase from Q1-2023, driven by an increase in overall revenue.
• Wishpond achieved a Gross Margin percentage of 68% during Q1-2024 (Q1-2023: 66%).
• During Q1-2024, Wishpond achieved positive Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $290,304 (Q1-2023: $209,073), an increase of 39%.
• As at March 31, 2024, Wishpond had $2,086,823 in cash and had drawn down $1,959,474 from its credit facility (December 31, 2023: cash of $1,424,585 and $994,658 credit facility balance outstanding). The reduction in net cash was caused in part by earnout payments for businesses acquired in 2022, investment in the business and changes in working capital.

First Quarter 2024 Business Highlights:

• On February 7, 2024, the Company announced the beta launch of its proprietary AI-powered sales platform, SalesCloser AI ("SalesCloser"). The SalesCloser beta program had several hundred businesses signed up for its launch.
  
  
• On March 5, 2024, the Company provided an update on several key metrics for Propel IQ:
  • Since launch, the number of Propel IQ customers has increased to over 500 users.
  • Monthly Recurring Revenue ("MRR")⁽¹⁾ from Propel IQ customers has increased approximately 10-fold over the past year.
  • The customer churn rate⁽¹⁾ for Propel IQ customers is 30 to 40% lower in some cohorts compared to customers of other Wishpond solutions.
  • Customer lifetime value (LTV)⁽¹⁾ is over 20% higher than customers of other Wishpond solutions.

Business Highlights Subsequent to March 31, 2024:

• On April 4, 2024, the Company announced the launch of SalesCloser AI, a next generation virtual sales agent capable of delivering personalized, round-the-clock sales calls and product demos in a similar manner to a live human sales agent. The platform can work 24×7 to engage leads, close deals, and service customers in ten different languages. SalesCloser can also be adapted for use across a diverse range of industries such as software/SaaS, professional services, financial services, education, travel & hospitality, insurance, and more.

Outlook:
Wishpond expects to achieve record revenue and Adjusted EBITDA in 2024, driven by increasing traction of the Company's new Propel IQ bundled product, ramping up the size of its sales team, and new sales from the recently launched SalesCloser AI virtual agent. The Company continues to have an active pipeline of sales opportunities and robust demand for its products. Management is pleased to re-iterate the Company's key goals for 2024:

• Accelerate organic revenue growth and increase Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR).
• Achieve positive Adjusted EBITDA in each quarter in 2024.
• Leverage the Propel IQ platform to improve margins, decrease churn and increase long-term customer value.
• Ramp up sales of the new SalesCloser AI product.

Webinar Conference Call Details:

As previously announced, Wishpond will be hosting a webinar conference call to discuss its year-end financial results today at 10:00 AM (PT) / 1:00 PM (ET).

To register for the webinar, please visit the following URL: https://bit.ly/wpq1_financial_results

Please connect 5 minutes prior to the conference call to ensure time for any software download that may be required.

Selected Financial Highlights: 

The tables below set out selected financial information relating to Wishpond and should be read in conjunction with Wishpond's Interim Financial Statements and MD&A.

Reconciliation to Adjusted EBITDA

On Behalf of the Board of Wishpond
"Ali Tajskandar"
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

About Wishpond Technologies Ltd.

Based out of Vancouver, British Columbia, Wishpond is a provider of marketing-focused online business solutions. Wishpond is a leading provider of digital marketing solutions that empower entrepreneurs to achieve success online. The Company's Propel IQ platform offers an "all-in-one" marketing suite that provides companies with marketing, promotion, lead generation, ad management, referral marketing, sales conversion and outbound sales automation capabilities in one integrated platform. Wishpond replaces disparate marketing solutions with an easy-to-use product, for a fraction of the cost. Wishpond serves over 4,000 customers who are primarily small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in a wide variety of industries. The Company has developed cutting-edge marketing technology solutions, including an AI powered website builder, an AI email automation tool, an AI Sales Agent and continues to add new AI enabled features and applications. The Company employs a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) business model where most of the Company's revenue is subscription-based recurring revenue which provides excellent revenue predictability and cash flow visibility. Wishpond is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker "WISH", and on the OTCQX Best Market under the ticker "WPNDF". For further information, visit: www.wishpond.com.

Cautionary Statements, Summary Information

Information presented in this press release may be only a summary of all available information and does not purport to be a full representation of all figures, notes and discussions provided for in the Interim Financial Statements and MD&A. Readers are cautioned to read the entirety of the Interim Financial Statements and MD&A, and to not rely only on the information presented in this press release. In the event of conflict between the provisions of this press release on the one hand, and the Interim Financial Statements and MD&A on the other hand, the information in the Interim Financial Statements and MD&A shall govern.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In this press release, Wishpond has used the following terms ("Non-GAAP Financial Measures") that are not defined by IFRS, but are used by management to evaluate the performance of Wishpond and its business, including: gross profit, gross margin, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("Adjusted EBITDA"), MRR, annualized revenue run-rate, customer churn rate and customer LTV. These measures may also be used by investors, financial institutions and credit rating agencies to assess Wishpond's performance and ability to service debt. Non-GAAP Financial Measures do not have standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Securities regulations require that Non-GAAP Financial Measures are clearly defined, qualified and reconciled to their most comparable IFRS financial measures. Except as otherwise indicated, these Non-GAAP Financial Measures are calculated and disclosed on a consistent basis from period to period. Specific items may only be relevant in certain periods. See the disclosure under the heading "Additional GAAP and Non-GAAP Measures" in Wishpond's MD&A for a discussion of Non-GAAP Financial Measures and certain reconciliations to GAAP financial measures. The intent of Non-GAAP Financial Measures is to provide additional useful information to investors and analysts, and the measures do not have any standardized meaning under IFRS. The measures should not, therefore, be considered in isolation or used as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. Other issuers may calculate Non-GAAP Financial Measures differently. Non-GAAP Financial Measures are identified and defined as follows:

• Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an alternative to net earnings, cash flow from operating activities or other measures of financial results determined in accordance with GAAP as an indicator of the Company's performance. The Company defines "Adjusted EBITDA" as Loss before income taxes less interest, depreciation and amortization, remeasurement of contingent consideration liability, filing fees, credit facility setup fees, earn-out remuneration, foreign currency losses (gains), acquisition related expenses, net other expenditures (income), reverse takeover listing expense, and stock-based compensation. The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA is a meaningful financial metric as it measures cash generated from operations which the Company can use to fund working capital requirements, service future interest and principal debt repayments and fund future growth initiatives.
  
  
• Monthly recurring revenue: The Company uses monthly recurring revenue, or MRR, as a directional indicator of subscription revenue going forward assuming customers maintain their subscription plan the following month. MRR is the total of all monthly subscription plan fees paid by customers in effect on the last day of that period. If customers pay for more than one month upfront, the amount is divided by the number of months in the subscription period. Discounts are deducted prior to the calculation and one-time payments and metered based charges are excluded.
  
  
• Annualized revenue run-rate: The Company uses annualized revenue run-rate as an indicator of financial performance that takes the current revenue in the quarter and converts it to an annual figure to get the full-year equivalent.
  
  
• Customer churn rate: The Company defines customer churn rate as the percentage of customers who have canceled their subscriptions over time. Management believes customer churn rate to be a useful financial measure because it provides further insight as to what products have the ability to generate continuous customer engagement and revenue.
  
  
• LTV: The Company defines customer lifetime value, or LTV, as the average revenue that a customer generates before they churn. Management believes LTV is useful as a forward looking estimate of the average revenue that a customer will generate throughout its lifespan as a customer with Wishpond.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements that are not reported financial results or other historical information are forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding the Company, its subsidiaries and the industries in which they operate, including statements about, among other things, all information contained under the heading "Outlook" herein, references to expected results from future operations, future growth of the Company's products and platforms, the future development and increased use of products incorporating artificial intelligence, including SalesCloser AI, improvement in the Company's cash position and increased revenue generation, references to the growth of the Company's product portfolio and future profitability, including whether additional products or features may be developed in the future, and the functionality and timing of such products, financial results or operational activities that may be undertaken by the Company, the results of the Company's cost-savings, research and development and other initiatives, any future acquisitions or other activities done to grow the Company both organically or inorganically, expectations, beliefs, plans, future operations, the impact of broader economic factors including inflation and other general economic risks on the Company, business and acquisition strategies, opportunities, objectives, prospects, assumptions, including those related to trends and prospects, and future events and performance. Sentences and phrases containing or modified by words such as "expect", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "intend", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "predict", "potential", "targets", "projects", "is designed to", "strategy", "should", "believe", "contemplate" and similar expressions, and the negative of such expressions, are not historical facts and are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those contemplated by forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements in this press release are reasonable and are based on, among other things, the expectations and analysis of current market trends and opportunities of management of the Company, such forward-looking statements has been based on expectations, factors and assumptions concerning future events which may prove to be inaccurate and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the Company's control, including, but not limited to, risks associated with changes to Propel IQ and SalesCloser AI's revenue and profitability, changes to customer preferences, competition, use cases for Propel IQ and SalesCloser AI, economic uncertainty and instability as a result of the ongoing inflation and supply chain issues, higher interest rate climate, tightening of credit availability and recessionary risks, pandemic related risks, wars, instability in global commodity and securities markets, shifts in consumer and institutional spending and marketing strategies, risks related to data breaches and privacy, the changing global market and competition for the products and services supplied by the Company, and the additional risk factors discussed in the continuous disclosure materials of the Company which are available under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and are made as of the date hereof. The Company disclaims any intention and has no obligation or responsibility, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wishpond-reports-q1-2024-financial-results-with-ongoing-revenue-growth-and-39-improvement-in-adjusted-ebitda1-302152268.html

SOURCE Wishpond Technologies Ltd.