BioLife Solutions Inc (BLFS) 2024 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the BioLife Solutions Q4 2024 shareholder and analyst conference call. (Operator Instructions). As a reminder, today's call is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference call over to Troy Wichterman, Chief Financial Officer of BioLife Solutions.

女士們、先生們，早安，謝謝你們的支持。歡迎參加 BioLife Solutions 2024 年第四季股東和分析師電話會議。（操作員指令）。提醒一下，今天的通話正在錄音。現在，我想將電話會議交給 BioLife Solutions 財務長 Troy Wichterman。

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the BioLife Solutions 2024 fourth-quarter earnings conference call. On this call, we will cover business highlights, financial performance for the quarter and full year 2024 and present 2025 revenue guidance. Earlier today, we issued a press release announcing our financial results and our operational highlights for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024 and 2025 revenue guidance, which is available at biolifesolutions.com.

謝謝您，接線生。大家早安，感謝您參加 BioLife Solutions 2024 年第四季財報電話會議。在本次電話會議上，我們將討論業務亮點、2024 年本季和全年的財務業績，並提供 2025 年的收入指引。今天早些時候，我們發布了一份新聞稿，宣布了我們的財務業績以及 2024 年第四季度和全年的營運亮點以及 2025 年的收入指引，可在 biolifesolutions.com 上查閱。

As a reminder, during this call, we will make forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that can be found in our SEC filings. These statements speak only as of the date given, and we undertake no obligation to update them. We will also speak to non-GAAP or adjusted results. Reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP or adjusted financial metrics are included in the press release we issued this afternoon.

提醒一下，在本次電話會議中，我們將做出前瞻性陳述。這些聲明受到我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中所述的風險和不確定性的影響。這些聲明僅代表截至指定日期的觀點，我們不承擔更新這些聲明的義務。我們也將討論非公認會計準則或調整後的結果。我們今天下午發布的新聞稿中包含了 GAAP 與非 GAAP 或調整後的財務指標的對帳。

Now, I'd like to turn the call over to Rod de Greef, Chairman and CEO of BioLife.

現在，我想將電話轉給 BioLife 董事長兼執行長 Rod de Greef。

Thanks, Troy. Good morning, and thank you for joining us for BioLife's fourth-quarter and full year 2024 conference call. 2024 was a pivotal year for BioLife. Over the last 12 months, we strategically reshaped our portfolio, establishing BioLife as a leading pure-play enabler of cell and gene therapies, strengthening our long-term growth trajectory and unleashing the attractive financial profile of our streamlined operations.

謝謝，特洛伊。早上好，感謝您參加 BioLife 2024 年第四季和全年電話會議。 2024 年對 BioLife 來說是關鍵的一年。在過去的 12 個月中，我們策略性地重塑了我們的投資組合，將 BioLife 打造為領先的細胞和基因療法純業務推動者，加強了我們的長期成長軌跡，並釋放了我們精簡營運的誘人財務狀況。

We executed in our core business, evidenced by quarterly sequential cell processing revenue growth, including Q4, bringing us to five consecutive quarters of growth and exceeding the high end of our already raised full year guidance for that platform. In parallel, we repositioned the company and optimized our portfolio, divesting noncore product lines to drive gross margin and adjusted EBITDA margin expansion.

我們的核心業務表現優異，包括第四季度在內的每個季度的細胞處理收入連續增長證明了這一點，這使我們連續五個季度實現增長，並超過了我們已經提高的該平台全年指導的最高水平。同時，我們重新定位了公司並優化了產品組合，剝離了非核心產品線，以提高毛利率和調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率。

By completing the sale of two freezer product lines and our BioStorage business, we not only emerged much more focused operationally, but also with a stronger and cleaner balance sheet, which when combined with positive cash flow from operations, makes us self-sufficient. I believe we are better positioned today than at any other time in our long history.

透過完成兩條冷凍機產品線和生物儲存業務的出售，我們不僅在營運上變得更加專注，而且資產負債表也更加強大和清晰，再加上來自營運的正現金流，使我們能夠自給自足。我相信，我們今天所處的地位比我們悠久歷史上的任何時候都要好。

A summary look at our 2024 results from continuing operations when compared with our as-reported results in 2023 highlights the positive and material impact to our go-forward financial profile these divestitures have had. Although total revenue in 2024 was $82 million compared with $143 million in 2023 due to divestitures, our GAAP gross margin leveled from 31% in '23 to 62% in '24, which generated absolute GAAP gross margin dollars of $51 million compared with $44 million in 2023.

與我們 2023 年報告的業績相比，總結我們 2024 年的持續經營業績，可以發現這些資產剝離對我們未來財務狀況的正面和重大影響。儘管由於資產剝離，2024 年的總收入為 8,200 萬美元，而 2023 年為 1.43 億美元，但我們的 GAAP 毛利率從 23 年的 31% 上升至 24 年的 62%，產生的絕對 GAAP 毛利率為 5,100 萬美元，而 2023 年為 4023 年。

Our adjusted EBITDA in 2024 was positive $16 million or 19% of revenue compared with negative $5 million in 2023. We also doubled our cash balance with the sale of noncore assets, ending 2024 with $109 million in cash compared with $45 million in 2023, while also paying down $5 million of principal on our $20 million year-end '23 bank debt. We have a strong foundation in place, are self-sufficient and well positioned strategically and financially moving into 2025.

我們 2024 年的調整後 EBITDA 為正 1,600 萬美元，佔營收的 19%，而 2023 年為負 500 萬美元。我們也透過出售非核心資產使現金餘額翻了一番，到 2024 年底，我們的現金餘額為 1.09 億美元，而 2023 年為 4,500 萬美元，同時還償還了 23 年底 2,000 萬美元銀行債務的 500 萬美元本金。我們已打下堅實的基礎，能夠自給自足，並且在邁向 2025 年時在戰略和財務上都處於有利地位。

Moving to the fourth quarter results. Our cell processing platform revenue was $20.3 million, up 7% over Q3 and a year-over-year increase of 37%. For the full year, cell processing revenue totaled $74 million, a record high increasing 12% when compared to '23 driven by high single-digit growth in bio-preservation media or BPM, and higher percentage growth in our other tools, although from a much smaller base.

轉向第四季業績。我們的細胞處理平台營收為 2,030 萬美元，比第三季成長 7%，年增 37%。全年細胞處理收入總計 7,400 萬美元，創歷史新高，與 23 年相比增長了 12%，這得益於生物保存介質或 BPM 的高個位數增長，以及其他工具的百分比增長，儘管基數要小得多。

In Q4 and for the full year, our top 20 customers continue to represent approximately 80% of our BPM revenue with about 40% coming from distribution versus 60% direct. Approximately 36% of total BPM revenue came from those customers with commercial therapy with a caveat that a portion of that demand is likely going to clinical pipeline programs and process development validation versus patient dosing. These metrics are, in general, consistent with what we saw in 2023.

在第四季和全年，我們的前 20 名客戶繼續占我們 BPM 收入的約 80%，其中約 40% 來自分銷，而 60% 來自直接收入。BPM 總收入的約 36% 來自那些擁有商業療法的客戶，但需要注意的是，其中一部分需求可能會用於臨床管道計劃和製程開發驗證，而不是患者劑量。總體而言，這些指標與我們在 2023 年看到的情況一致。

At the end of '24, our BPM was utilized in a total of 17 unique cell and gene therapies. And during the year, we had a combined total of 17 unique therapy approvals, geographic expansions, additional indications or earlier lines of treatment. As we have previously stated, we believe our BPM products are utilized in 70%-plus of relevant commercially sponsored CGT trials in the US. And at this point, we have not been able to identify any commercial freeze media used in this set of clinical trials. So home brew formulation continues to remain the only form of competition.

截至 24 年底，我們的 BPM 共用於 17 種獨特的細胞和基因療法。在這一年中，我們總共獲得了 17 項獨特療法的批准、地理擴展、額外適應症或更早期的治療方案。正如我們之前所說，我們相信我們的 BPM 產品已在美國 70% 以上的相關商業贊助 CGT 試驗中使用。目前，我們還無法確定在這組臨床試驗中使用了任何商業冷凍培養基。因此，自釀配方仍然是唯一的競爭形式。

To drive sustained growth in our cell processing business, a key commercial priority this year is to continue to deepen our relationship with existing BPM customers, both in commercial and clinical trial settings. While leveraging those partnerships to create cross-sell opportunities and increase adoption of our broader cell processing portfolio.

為了推動細胞處理業務的持續成長，今年的關鍵商業重點是繼續深化與現有 BPM 客戶的關係，包括商業和臨床試驗環境。同時利用這些合作夥伴關係來創造交叉銷售機會並增加我們更廣泛的細胞處理產品組合的採用。

For instance, while our cell field vials are already incorporated in an established commercial therapy, and utilized the numerous clinical trials, there is a significant opportunity to scale these products over time. We see this as a significant mid- to long-term growth lever as additional products integrated into commercial therapies can materially enhance our revenue potential.

例如，雖然我們的細胞場小瓶已被納入成熟的商業療法，並利用了大量的臨床試驗，但隨著時間的推移，這些產品仍有很大的擴展機會。我們認為這是一個重要的中長期成長槓桿，因為融入商業療法的附加產品可以大大提高我們的收入潛力。

Said differently, if these products are spec-ed into a commercial therapy, they can increase our revenue per patient dose by a factor of 2 to 3x compared to our BPM products alone. As we enter 2025, we are cautiously optimistic that the modest improvement in the underlying industry fundamentals that emerged in 2024 will continue.

換句話說，如果這些產品被指定用於商業療法，那麼與單獨使用 BPM 產品相比，它們可以使我們的每位患者劑量的收入增加 2 到 3 倍。進入 2025 年，我們謹慎樂觀地認為，2024 年出現的行業基本面的溫和改善將會持續下去。

With respect to the 2025 guidance we issued this morning, we anticipate an acceleration of growth when compared to the 8% realized in 2024. We expect total 2025 revenue of $95.5 million to $99 million, representing growth of 16% to 20% compared to 2024, with growth primarily driven by our cell processing platform. We anticipate that cell processing revenue will grow between 18% to 21% to $86.5 million to $89 million largely due to projected increases in BPM sales to our commercial CGT customers. We expect this in turn will drive solid adjusted EBITDA margin expansion for the full year.

關於我們今天早上發布的 2025 年指引，我們預計與 2024 年實現的 8% 相比，成長將會加速。我們預計 2025 年總收入將達到 9,550 萬美元至 9,900 萬美元，較 2024 年增長 16% 至 20%，成長主要得益於我們的細胞處理平台。我們預計細胞處理收入將成長 18% 至 21%，達到 8,650 萬美元至 8,900 萬美元，這主要歸因於我們預計對商業 CGT 客戶的 BPM 銷售額將增加。我們預計這反過來將推動全年調整後 EBITDA 利潤率穩健擴張。

Now I'll hand the call over to Troy, who will provide an overview of our full 2024 results and '25 guidance. Troy?

現在我將電話交給特洛伊，他將概述我們 2024 年的全部表現和 2025 年的指導。特洛伊？

Thank you, Rod. Today, we will be reviewing current and prior period financials from continuing operations for Q4 2024, which excludes financial results from Stirling, SciSafe and CBS. We reported total Q4 revenue of $22.7 million, representing an increase of 31% year-over-year. The year-over-year increase was primarily related to a 37% increase in our cell processing platform. EVO and SAW platform revenue for Q4 was $2.4 million, a decrease of $200,000 or 8% from the same period in 2023. GAAP gross margins for Q4 2024 was 60% compared with 53% in Q4 2023.

謝謝你，羅德。今天，我們將回顧 2024 年第四季度持續經營的當前和前期財務狀況，其中不包括 Stirling、SciSafe 和 CBS 的財務業績。我們報告第四季總收入為 2,270 萬美元，年增 31%。年比增長主要與我們的細胞處理平台 37% 的增長有關。第四季 EVO 和 SAW 平台營收為 240 萬美元，較 2023 年同期減少 20 萬美元，降幅為 8%。2024 年第四季的 GAAP 毛利率為 60%，而 2023 年第四季為 53%。

Adjusted gross margins for the fourth quarter was 63% compared with 63% in the prior year. Adjusted gross margin was in line with prior year due to an increase in revenues offset by product and customer mix. GAAP operating expenses for Q4 2024 were $24.8 million versus $24.4 million in Q4 2023. Adjusted operating expenses for Q4 '24, totaled $15 million compared with $15.4 million in the prior year. GAAP operating loss for Q4 '24 was $2.1 million versus $7.6 million in the prior year.

第四季調整後的毛利率為 63%，去年同期為 63%。調整後的毛利率與去年持平，原因是產品和客戶組合抵消了收入的成長。2024 年第四季的 GAAP 營運費用為 2,480 萬美元，而 2023 年第四季為 2,440 萬美元。24 年第四季調整後的營運費用總計 1,500 萬美元，而去年同期為 1,540 萬美元。24 年第四季的 GAAP 營業虧損為 210 萬美元，去年同期為 760 萬美元。

Our adjusted operating loss for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $0.7 million compared with $5.1 million in Q4 2023. Our GAAP net loss was $2 million in Q4 or $0.04 per share compared to $7.2 million or $0.16 per share in the prior year. The decrease in operating loss and GAAP net loss was primarily due to increased revenue and decreased personnel costs, including stock-based comp. This was partially offset by an increase in performance-based bonus accrual, in addition to increased accounting fees related to divestitures and SOX.

我們 2024 年第四季的調整後營業虧損為 70 萬美元，而 2023 年第四季為 510 萬美元。我們第四季的 GAAP 淨虧損為 200 萬美元或每股 0.04 美元，而去年同期為 720 萬美元或每股 0.16 美元。營業虧損和 GAAP 淨虧損的減少主要是由於收入增加和人員成本減少（包括股票薪酬）。除了與資產剝離和薩班斯-奧克斯利法案相關的會計費用增加外，績效獎金累積的增加也部分抵消了這一增長。

Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $4 million compared with $3.7 million in the prior year. Our adjusted EBITDA increased primarily due to higher revenue, partially offset by a $900,000 increase in SOX consulting and accounting related fees due divestiture which we expect to be lower in future periods after Q1 2025.

2024 年第四季調整後 EBITDA 為 400 萬美元，去年同期為 370 萬美元。我們的調整後 EBITDA 增加主要是由於收入增加，但部分被因資產剝離而導致的 SOX 諮詢和會計相關費用增加 90 萬美元所抵消，我們預計 2025 年第一季之後的未來期間這些費用將會降低。

Turning to our balance sheet. Our cash and marketable securities balance at December 31, 2024, was $109.2 million compared with $34.1 million at September 30, 2024, and $52.3 million at December 31, 2023. Taking into consideration our adjusted EBITDA of $4 million -- our increase in cash during Q4 2024 was primarily related to the divestitures of SciSafe and CBS. Our SVB long-term debt balance at December 31, 2024, was $15 million compared to $20 million at December 31, 2023, with quarterly repayments of $2.5 million moving forward.

轉向我們的資產負債表。截至 2024 年 12 月 31 日，我們的現金及有價證券餘額為 1.092 億美元，而 2024 年 9 月 30 日為 3,410 萬美元，2023 年 12 月 31 日為 5,230 萬美元。考慮到我們調整後的 EBITDA 為 400 萬美元——我們在 2024 年第四季的現金增加主要與 SciSafe 和 CBS 的資產剝離有關。截至 2024 年 12 月 31 日，SVB 長期債務餘額為 1,500 萬美元，而截至 2023 年 12 月 31 日，該餘額為 2,000 萬美元，未來每季的還款額為 250 萬美元。

Turning to 2025 revenue guidance. Total revenue is expected to be $95.5 million to $99 million, reflecting an overall growth of 16% to 20% over 2024. Our cell processing platform is expected to contribute $86.5 million to $89 million or 18% to 21% growth over 2024. Our Evo and Thaw platform is expected to contribute $9 million to $10 million or 3% to 15% growth over 2024.

轉向 2025 年收入指引。預計總收入為 9,550 萬美元至 9,900 萬美元，比 2024 年整體成長 16% 至 20%。我們的細胞處理平台預計將在 2024 年貢獻 8,650 萬美元至 8,900 萬美元，成長 18% 至 21%。我們的 Evo 和 Thaw 平台預計將在 2024 年貢獻 900 萬至 1,000 萬美元或 3% 至 15% 的成長。

We expect adjusted gross margin for the full year to be in the mid-60s, a reduction in GAAP net loss and expansion in adjusted EBITDA margin in 2025 due to higher expected revenue, partially offset by increases in R&D expenses related to development projects. Finally, in terms of our share count, as of February 24, 2025, we had 47 million shares issued and outstanding and 49 million shares on a fully diluted basis.

我們預計全年調整後的毛利率將在 60% 左右，由於預期收入增加，2025 年 GAAP 淨虧損將減少，調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率將擴大，但與開發項目相關的研發費用增加將部分抵消這一影響。最後，就我們的股票數量而言，截至 2025 年 2 月 24 日，我們已發行在外股票數量為 4,700 萬股，完全稀釋後數量為 4,900 萬股。

Now I'll turn the call back to the operator to open up for questions.

現在我將把電話轉回給接線員，以便回答問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

Matt Stanton, Jefferies.

傑富瑞的馬特史丹頓。

Hey, thanks. Maybe first one just on the margins, particularly the EBITDA margins. Any kind of finer point you can put around the continued expansion? I think you talked about the improving top line and mix dynamics there, but also some investment dollars into R&D. So can you just talk a little bit about the pacing of that continued expansion through the year? And then any color maybe where we might look to exit the year here in '25 on the EBITDA margins. Thanks.

嘿，謝謝。也許第一個只是關於利潤率，特別是 EBITDA 利潤率。關於持續擴張，您能提出什麼更詳細的觀點嗎？我認為您談到了營業收入和混合動態的改善，以及對研發的一些投資。那麼，您能否稍微談談今年持續擴張的步伐？然後，我們可能會考慮以任何顏色在 25 年結束時實現 EBITDA 利潤率。謝謝。

Yeah, sure, Matt. I'll take that one. So if you look at some of the commentary we made in the earnings call, there was abnormal, I'd say, more onetime in nature type cost and G&A being related to SOX and the divestiture accounting cost thereof, which we'll see some leakage of that in Q1. But if you take that Q4 number as a good jumping off point for 2025 for SG&A, that would be a good jumping-off point.

是的，當然，馬特。我要那個。因此，如果你看一下我們在收益電話會議上發表的一些評論，你會發現其中存在異常，我想說的是，更多的是一次性性質的成本和與薩班斯-奧克斯利法案及其剝離會計成本相關的一般及行政費用，我們會在第一季度看到一些此類費用的洩漏。但如果您將第四季度的數字作為 2025 年銷售、一般及行政費用的良好起點，那麼這將是一個很好的起點。

And then for R&D, we didn't mention some development projects we're working on. So if you take that Q4 2023 baseline for R&D, that would be a better baseline than Q4 2024 due to those development projects. And then as far as EBITDA margin expansion, yeah, we would expect that pretty steady throughout 2025 as far as increasing compared to 2024 into that mid-20s that we mentioned.

對於研發，我們沒有提到我們正在進行的一些開發項目。因此，如果以 2023 年第四季作為研發基準，那麼由於這些開發項目，該基準將比 2024 年第四季更好。至於 EBITDA 利潤率擴張，是的，我們預計 2025 年 EBITDA 利潤率將保持相當穩定，與 2024 年相比將增長至我們提到的 20 年代中期。

Okay. Thanks, that's helpful. And then, Rod, you talked about the revenue opportunity to increase 2 to 3x by cross-selling the portfolio beyond just media. Obviously, that doesn't happen overnight. It sounds like it's a big focus in '25. Can you just kind of talk about either the products or the customers where you're seeing the most potential to do that? And when we could maybe start to see some of the benefits of that cross-selling of the portfolio over time here? Thanks.

好的。謝謝，這很有幫助。然後，羅德，您談到了透過交叉銷售媒體以外的產品組合來增加 2 到 3 倍的收入機會。顯然，這不是一朝一夕就能實現的。這聽起來像是 25 年的一個重點。您能否談談您認為最有潛力的產品或客戶？那麼，我們什麼時候才能開始看到投資組合交叉銷售的一些好處呢？謝謝。

Sure. Well, thanks for recognizing that. It definitely takes some time, right? Because our media market position is so strong and so large that for us to start to come close to that, it's going to take multiple years. That said, we have a commercial customer, a large company that utilizes both CryoStor and our Cryo sealed vials in their approved therapy. And that's, to us, the poster child of what something should look like.

當然。好吧，感謝您認識到這一點。這肯定需要一些時間，對吧？由於我們的媒體市場地位非常強大且規模龐大，因此我們要接近這一水平還需要花費數年時間。也就是說，我們有一個商業客戶，一家大型公司，在其批准的療法中同時使用 CryoStor 和我們的 Cryo 密封小瓶。對我們來說，這就是某些事物該有的樣子。

On top of that, they are evaluating our automated fill system as they're focused on automating in a closed system, their manufacturing process, they're looking at that piece of hardware, which really drives a lot of consumables as well. So it's really about targeting the clinical trial customers that we have, directing the half a dozen sales force, salespeople that we have to those accounts and put a focused push on introducing those products.

最重要的是，他們正在評估我們的自動填充系統，因為他們專注於在封閉系統中實現自動化，他們的製造過程，他們正在研究硬件，這實際上也驅動了很多消耗品。因此，這實際上是為了瞄準我們擁有的臨床試驗客戶，指導我們的六名銷售人員，負責這些客戶，並專注於推出這些產品。

We do have opportunity in our later-stage commercial customers, and the one I mentioned is one example. There's another one where we have good traction on a CryoCase evaluation, which again was introduced last year, not for their commercial product because as with the media, as you get further down the clinical development chain to a commercial product, then you end up making it extremely difficult and costly to make a switch like that, particularly on a container for the end product, for the final drug product.

我們在後期商業客戶中確實有機會，我提到的就是一個例子。另外，我們在 CryoCase 評估方面也取得了良好的進展，該產品也是去年推出的，但並不是針對其商業產品，因為與媒體一樣，隨著臨床開發鏈進一步深入到商業產品，最終會發現進行這樣的轉換會變得極其困難和昂貴，特別是在最終產品、最終藥品的容器上。

So we are in discussions with them about introducing CryoStor into their clinical pipeline, which is not insignificant. So we're going to attack it from both sides, the early stage where it's less expense -- or less expensive and easier to switch and on the pipeline for the commercial therapy customers.

因此，我們正在與他們討論將 CryoStor 引入他們的臨床管線，這並非無關緊要。因此，我們將從兩個方面來解決這個問題，在早期階段，費用較低——或者說費用較低，更容易轉換，並且適合商業治療客戶。

And just to clarify, Rod, just a CryoCase, not CryoStor for (inaudible).

需要澄清的是，Rod，這只是一個 CryoCase，而不是 CryoStor，（聽不清楚）。

Okay. Thank you.

好的。謝謝。

Does that makes sense?

這樣有道理嗎？

Yeah, that's helpful. Appreciate it, guys.

是的，這很有幫助。非常感謝，夥計們。

Anna Snopkowski, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Anna Snopkowski，KeyBanc 資本市場。

Hi. This is Anna on for Paul Knight. I want to ask on the momentum you are seeing in cell processing platform. You mentioned this is the fifth quarter of consecutive growth. So maybe just a little bit into what is driving this growth and increased visibility? Is it any one specific approved therapy? Or is it the overall health of the industry improving? Thanks.

你好。我是安娜，為保羅奈特 (Paul Knight) 主持。我想問一下您在細胞處理平台方面看到的勢頭。您提到這是連續第五個季度成長。那麼，我們是否可以稍微探討一下推動這種成長和知名度提高的因素？是否有任何一種特定的核准療法？還是整個產業的整體健康狀況正在改善？謝謝。

Anna, thanks. So we're seeing on -- start with the nonapproved therapy. So the clinical trial group of customers is slightly ahead, and we expect slight growth there. Distribution, we expect to see some growth. But the fundamental driver we see for biopreservation media and cell processing general in '25, is that group of 17 commercial customers that we have in our base. That's where the bulk of the revenue growth is going to come from in '25 .

安娜，謝謝。因此我們看到—從未經批准的療法開始。因此，臨床試驗客戶群略微領先，我們預計該領域將略有成長。分銷方面，我們預計會看到一些成長。但我們認為 25 年生物保存介質和細胞處理的根本驅動力是我們基地內的 17 個商業客戶群。2025 年大部分營收成長將來自於此。

Perfect. And then could we get an update on your outlook over the long term in terms of adjusted EBITDA margins. Now that we have moved past certain product lines and the pro forma business is coming into focus?

完美的。然後，我們能否了解一下您對調整後 EBITDA 利潤率的長期展望？現在我們已經超越了某些產品線並且形式業務開始成為焦點？

Yeah, sure. So like we said, for the full year 2025, we'd expect mid-20s for adjusted EBITDA. And then going outward it's really highly dependent on media growth. As you know, there's a tremendous flow-through on the revenue from media. So we could model out media growth at certain percentage points with that flow-through of, call it, 65% on revenue to get to an expanded EBITDA margin with not huge increases in OpEx. So if you do model that out, you can get to the 30s, call it, in 2026 time frame towards the end of '26 middle of '26.

是的，當然。因此，就像我們所說的那樣，對於 2025 年全年，我們預計調整後的 EBITDA 將達到 25% 左右。然後，從外部來看，它實際上高度依賴媒體的成長。如您所知，媒體收入的流通量龐大。因此，我們可以模擬出媒體在一定百分比的成長，其中流向收入的 65% 可以獲得擴大的 EBITDA 利潤率，而營運支出不會大幅增加。因此，如果你確實對此進行建模，那麼你可以在 2026 年時間範圍內，即 26 年末至 26 年中期達到 30 年代的水平。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Chad Wiatrowski, TD Cowen.

查德·維亞特羅夫斯基（Chad Wiatrowski），TD Cowen。

Hey, guys. I just wanted to dig in on sort of media growth and maybe less so for 2025, as you're mentioning, it's going to be approved therapies driving growth. But just like at a higher level, when you look at like catalysts and clinical trials as some of these newer modalities or expanding into larger indications, could you just speak to maybe how media is used differently between like a gene therapy, a CAR-T or like a TIL-based therapy and kind of how BioLife is positioned to benefit, respectively.

嘿，大家好。我只是想深入研究媒體的成長，但對於 2025 年來說可能就沒那麼重要了，正如你所提到的，獲得批准的療法將推動成長。但是，就像在更高的層次上，當您將催化劑和臨床試驗視為一些較新的治療方式或擴展到更大的適應症時，您能否分別談談在基因療法、CAR-T 或基於 TIL 的療法中，媒介的使用有何不同，以及 BioLife 如何從中受益。

Yeah, it's a good question. I think that really the product works across most cell types, in some instances, better in some than others. That said, I think that the difference between the modalities and the cell type really comes down to the amount of CryoStor used per dose. And so when you look at Iovance and AMTAGVI, which I think specifically states that they use CryoStor, I would say that they are the largest user per dose of CryoStor versus a CAR-T which would use less.

是的，這是個好問題。我認為該產品確實適用於大多數細胞類型，在某些情況下，對某些細胞類型比其他細胞類型更有效。話雖如此，我認為治療方式和細胞類型之間的差異實際上取決於每劑使用的 CryoStor 的量。因此，當您查看 Iovance 和 AMTAGVI 時，我認為它們明確指出使用 CryoStor，我會說它們是每劑量 CryoStor 的最大用戶，而 CAR-T 的使用量較少。

So it really comes down to the volume per dose. And we're -- many of our customers seem to think that, that's really confidential information. So it's sometimes difficult to get exactly how much of our product is used per dose, which is why I made the comments I did there earlier, whereas AMTAGVI, for instance, in their FDA insert pretty well, you can back into how much CryoStor is used very clearly.

因此，這實際上取決於每劑的體積。而且我們—我們的許多客戶似乎認為，這是真正的機密資訊。因此，有時很難確切地知道我們產品每劑使用了多少量，這就是我之前發表評論的原因，而例如 AMTAGVI 在其 FDA 說明書中很好地說明了 CryoStor 的用量。

Got it. And then just on the nonmedia cell processing tools that you're trying to cross-sell. If home-brew is really the only alternative for media, which has just created this dominant brand, could you speak to sort of the competitive profile of some of these other products? And what dynamics do you expect to come across just want trying to cross-sell? Thanks for the questions, guys.

知道了。然後只針對您嘗試交叉銷售的非媒體單元處理工具。如果自釀啤酒確實是媒體的唯一選擇，而媒體剛剛創造了這個主導品牌，您能否談談其他一些產品的競爭狀況？您認為在嘗試交叉銷售時會遇到哪些動態？謝謝大家的提問。

Sure. I think on the -- let's talk about CellSeal vials. So the vials, there are competitive vials out there. West comes to mind. They're a larger company. Our vials have certain attributes with respect to the materials used. The freezing profile, et cetera, when you have that frozen down with the final therapy on the CryoCase side, that's clearly a direct competitor to cryobags.

當然。我認為——我們來談談 CellSeal 小瓶。因此，市場上存在具有競爭力的小瓶。我想到的是西方。他們是一家較大的公司。我們的小瓶根據所用材料具有某些屬性。當您使用 CryoCase 端的最終療法進行冷凍時，冷凍概況等顯然是冷凍袋的直接競爭對手。

And they are very well established and no doubt the most used final dose container. And in that regard, it comes down to the benefits of our CryoCase, which include an easier to work with form factor, particularly prior to freezing. And reduction or mitigation of shattering the dose if it's dropped in a frozen state.

它們已經非常成熟，毫無疑問是最常用的最終劑量容器。在這方面，這歸功於我們的 CryoCase 的優勢，包括更易於使用的外形，特別是在冷凍之前。如果劑量在冷凍狀態下掉落，則可減少或減輕劑量破碎的情況。

So there's no question that we're up against some well entrenched I guess, products, product lines, and we feel pretty comfortable that the benefits that our products yield in combination with the push toward automation, which is another nice benefit that the CryoCase has relative to automating versus a bag. We think that those things, over time, will drive adoption in addition to the fact that we are a credible supplier to these large commercial therapy companies as well as a lot of earlier-stage companies.

因此，毫無疑問，我們面臨著一些根深蒂固的產品、產品線的競爭，我們對我們的產品與自動化推動相結合所產生的優勢感到非常滿意，這是 CryoCase 相對於自動化袋子的另一個好處。我們認為，隨著時間的推移，這些因素將推動採用，此外，我們是這些大型商業治療公司以及許多早期公司的可靠供應商。

Matt Hewitt, Craig-Hallum Capital Group.

馬特·休伊特，克雷格-哈勒姆資本集團。

Good morning and congratulations a strong finish to the year. Maybe first up, when you when you're talking about the growth this year, how much of that, if any, is related to some price increases? We've heard several companies here report over the past couple of weeks talk about implementing some price increases, call it, CPI adjustments, whatever. Are you including some of that into your model?

早安，恭喜您今年取得了圓滿的成績。首先，當您談論今年的成長時，其中有多少（如果有的話）與價格上漲有關？過去幾週，我們聽到幾家公司報告稱，他們計劃實施一些價格上漲措施，稱之為消費者物價指數調整，等等。您是否將其中一些內容納入您的模型中？

Yes. We do have our base price increase, which is sort of mid-single digits, lower than previous years. baked into that. And in addition to that, we've been on a push to alter some of the distribution and direct relationships that we have from a pricing standpoint given that they're legacy. Those won't really kick in until the back half of the year into '26. So pricing is definitely a factor, but the bulk of it is coming from the demand side in terms of volume.

是的。我們的基本價格確實有所上漲，漲幅大概在個位數的中等水平，低於前幾年。融入其中。除此之外，我們也正在努力從定價的角度改變現有的一些分銷和直接關係，因為它們已經過時了。這些要到 26 年下半年才會真正發揮作用。因此，定價肯定是一個因素，但從數量上看，其主要影響因素是需求方。

That's great. And then maybe kind of a follow-up to that. As you look to grow the vials and the rest of the product portfolio, given your strength with the media products, is there a way for you from a pricing perspective to kind of bundle the whole portfolio together, and maybe you're giving a little bit here, but you're taking more there. And ultimately, it's a win-win for everybody?

那太棒了。然後也許會對此進行某種跟進。當您尋求擴大小瓶和其餘產品組合時，請考慮到您在媒體產品方面的優勢，從定價角度來看，您是否有辦法將整個產品組合捆綁在一起，也許您在這裡給予一點點，但在那裡收穫更多。最終，這對每個人來說都是雙贏的？

Yeah, it's a good question as well. I think that those opportunities exist. I think that the decisions around, for example, utilizing CryoCase, it really goes beyond just the price because the benefits of using it would outweigh any kind of real price increase. And the fact of the matter is it may even be equal to or lower ASP per, let's say, per final dose on the container by switching to us. So we don't really feel the need to be discounting. In fact, what we're trying to do is go the other way and have the pricing that we have on our product line reflect the premium products that they truly are.

是的，這也是一個好問題。我認為這些機會是存在的。我認為，例如，使用 CryoCase 的決定實際上不僅僅是價格問題，因為使用它的好處將超過任何實際的價格上漲。事實上，透過轉換到我們這裡，容器上每個最終劑量的平均售價甚至可能等於或低於平均售價。所以我們確實不覺得有必要打折。事實上，我們正​​在嘗試反其道而行之，讓我們的產品線定價真正反映出產品的優質性。

That makes complete sense. Congratulations again to the strong year and must feel good looking out to this year and not necessarily having some of the distractions you were dealing with last year. So congratulations.

這完全說得通。再次恭喜您度過了強勁的一年，展望今年，您一定會感到很高興，並且不必再面對去年遇到的一些幹擾。恭喜你。

Thomas Flaten, Lake Street.

托馬斯·弗拉頓，湖街。

Hey, guys. I appreciate you taking the questions. Rod, just keeping in mind all the things you've noted about potential growth opportunities, particularly with the cross-selling. If you were to look at that 18% to 20% growth rate you've guided for 2025, where do you think that can go kind of in -- maybe not in an ideal world, but do you see that accelerating beyond that 21%?

嘿，大家好。感謝您回答這些問題。羅德，請記住你提到的所有潛在成長機會，特別是交叉銷售。如果您看一下您預測的 2025 年 18% 至 20% 的成長率，您認為這個成長率會達到什麼程度——也許這不是理想情況，但您是否認為這個成長率會超過 21%？

I think over time, it can. It's going to depend -- again, given that media represents approximately 90% of the cell processing line at this point in time, it really is going to be driven for the next few years at least. The bulk of the growth is going to be driven by bio-preservation media, and that really is dependent on the cadence of approvals and the old overall demand for these therapies down the road. So that's number one, and that's really not in our control. What's in our control is to make sure that we're in as many clinical trials as we can be as they come online.

我認為隨著時間的推移，這是可以的。這要取決於情況——再次強調，鑑於目前培養基約佔細胞處理線的 90%，至少在未來幾年內，它確實會受到推動。大部分成長將由生物保存介質推動，而這實際上取決於審批的節奏和未來對這些療法的整體需求。所以這是第一點，而且這確實不在我們的控制範圍內。我們能做的就是確保在臨床試驗上線後盡可能多地參與其中。

I think with respect to Sexton, the growth there will be higher over time. And really, it is going to take us, I would say, 24 to 36 months to get well established to the point where as these therapies move through the clinical journey and the volume increases, not just for media but for these other tools, then you're going to start to see an acceleration of revenue growth rates beyond, I think, where we are today. So I still -- I think we're about 24 to 36 months away from kind of any material change in growth rate would be what I would say.

我認為就 Sexton 而言，隨著時間的推移，那裡的成長將會更高。實際上，我想說，我們需要 24 到 36 個月的時間才能達到良好的狀態，隨著這些療法進入臨床階段，其數量不斷增加，不僅是媒體，還有其他工具的數量也在增加，然後你就會開始看到收入增長率加速，我認為，這將超過我們今天的水平。所以我仍然認為，我們距離成長率的任何實質變化還有大約 24 到 36 個月的時間。

Got it. I appreciate that. And then just on the business itself, now that you've been a couple of months past the deals in November, any more changes to the middle of the P&L that we should anticipate either positively or negatively?

知道了。我很感激。然後就業務本身而言，現在距離 11 月的交易已經過去了幾個月，我們應該預期損益​​表中間還會發生哪些正面或負面的變化？

No. The comments I made earlier still stand, Thomas, because those financials, as you know, are all continuing basis, right? So that does strip out any of the divestiture entities from those financials as well as some people that went with those divestitures. So it's a good baseline, as I mentioned, for Q4 annualized for SG&A. And then R&D, we will be putting more money into R&D this year compared to 2024.

不。湯瑪斯，我之前的評論仍然有效，因為如你所知，這些財務狀況都是持續的基礎，對嗎？因此，這確實從財務中剔除了任何剝離實體以及一些伴隨這些剝離的人。因此，正如我所提到的，對於第四季度的銷售、一般和行政費用年度化而言，這是一個很好的基準。然後是研發，與 2024 年相比，我們今年將在研發上投入更多資金。

Got it. Appreciate it, thank you.

知道了。非常感謝，謝謝。

Yi Chen, HC Wainwright.

陳毅，HC溫賴特。

Good morning. This is Eduardo on for Yi. I guess related to customer expansion, I had a question regarding any potential catalysts from your clients, Naturally, they got massive approvals or label expansions that would be really relevant for your guys' projections?

早安.愛德華多替補易建聯上場。我想與客戶擴展有關，我有一個關於來自您的客戶的任何潛在催化劑的問題，當然，他們獲得了大量批准或標籤擴展，這對您們的預測真的很重要嗎？

Correct. It's really -- from the clinical trial customer base that we have, it's movement through the -- from Phase 1 to Phase 2, et cetera, right? On the commercial side, once they're commercial, it's both time in terms of adoption, let's just say, in the United States. But then there are those other factors, geographic expansion around the world movement of the line of treatment. Those things are equally important to us in terms of the overall growth rate and adoption of those therapies as time goes by.

正確的。這確實是 - 從我們擁有的臨床試驗客戶群來看，它是從第 1 階段到第 2 階段等等的進展，對嗎？從商業方面來看，一旦它們實現商業化，就美國而言，就採用而言，是時候了。但還有其他因素，即治療路線在世界各地的地理擴張。隨著時間的推移，就這些療法的整體成長率和採用率而言，這些事情對我們來說同樣重要。

Also, a lot of the therapies end up several years later, getting additional indications using the same drug, and that also opens up that pool of patients.

此外，許多療法在幾年後才得以實現，使用同一種藥物獲得了額外的適應症，這也擴大了患者群體。

Right. And do you guys have visibility on whether or not any of those milestones or inflection points are happening in 2025 for your clients?

正確的。你們是否能夠預見 2025 年對你們的客戶來說是否會出現任何里程碑或轉折點？

Yeah. We think right now that we're -- we have visibility to what we believe are about eight of those -- of any one of those things happening in 2025. We track that as well as we can. The information is a bit opaque, and we're actually working with a third-party consultant to try to more formalize a review of that on an every six-month basis as opposed to trying to track it internally, which I think has given us less than fulsome data. So I think we'll get better at that. But right now, what we're seeing is about 8% over the next 12 months in the year of '25, I should say.

是的。我們現在認為，我們可以預見其中大約八項將在 2025 年發生。我們會盡力追蹤這一點。這些資訊有點不透明，我們實際上正在與第三方顧問合作，嘗試每六個月進行一次更正式的審查，而不是試圖在內部跟踪，我認為這並沒有給我們足夠的數據。所以我認為我們會做得更好。但目前，我們應該說，25 年內未來 12 個月的成長率約為 8%。

Got it. That's really helpful. And I know the clinical trial component of revenue isn't that significant. But just curious if you guys anticipate any complications with grant funding freezes potentially. I don't know if any of the clinical trials that your customers are running or dependent on government funding. But if you anticipate any complications associated with funding freezes?

知道了。這真的很有幫助。我知道臨床試驗的收入部分並不是那麼重要。但我只是好奇你們是否預計贈款資金凍結可能會帶來任何複雜情況。我不知道您的客戶正在進行或正在進行的臨床試驗是否依賴政府資助。但是，您是否預見到資金凍結會帶來任何複雜情況？

Yeah. Not at this point. We're aware of the uncertainty around NIH funding. Think that to the extent that there could be an impact of that, I would say that it shows up on the distribution side of our business. We have two large distributors.

是的。目前還不行。我們意識到 NIH 資金的不確定性。我認為，就其可能的影響而言，它將體現在我們業務的分銷方面。我們有兩家大型經銷商。

I think they're very much focused on academic institution early research. Those folks might have -- might be impacted by all of this. But in terms of our overall revenue, when we talk to those two distributors, we don't get any sense that they're concerned about it at this point. That may change throughout the year. But right now, I think it would come from a bit of a softening of demand on the distribution side versus the direct side. Most of our direct customers are privately funded.

我認為他們非常關注學術機構的早期研究。這些人可能已經——可能受到這一切的影響。但就我們的整體收入而言，當我們與這兩家經銷商交談時，我們並沒有感覺到他們目前對此感到擔憂。這種情況可能會在一年內發生變化。但目前，我認為這可能源自於分銷方面相對於直接方面的需求有所減弱。我們的直接客戶大多是私人出資的。

Got it. That's helpful. And then finally, I'm curious strategy for Evo and Thaw. And if there's any potential if you have bundling products, you talked a little bit previously about kind of bundling packages with cell processing. I'm curious if these two would also fit into a strategy there to kind of increase your footprint with those products and services as well?

知道了。這很有幫助。最後，我很好奇 Evo 和 Thaw 的策略。如果您有捆綁產品，那麼有任何潛力，您之前談到過帶有單元處理的捆綁包。我很好奇，這兩者是否也適合那裡的策略，以擴大這些產品和服務的影響力？

Yeah. So on the Thaw side, our Thaw device definitely could be viewed as almost a reverse razor-razor blade in the sense that it is designed now and has been modified to accept a CellSeal Vial product line, our own product line for our (inaudible) Thaw. So you can look at it almost as a -- it's a nice add-on if you're using our CellSeal vials, it could be yet another just benefit of doing so. And it could also be thought of as a razo-razor blade scenario in terms of if it gets placed, it can drive in some way, although I would say it's a pretty soft indirect way, the utilization or the adoption of the cryo seal.

是的。因此，在 Thaw 方面，我們的 Thaw 設備絕對可以被看作是幾乎反向剃須刀刀片，因為它現在經過設計並進行了修改，可以接受 CellSeal Vial 產品線，這是我們自己的（聽不清）Thaw 產品線。因此，您幾乎可以將其視為 - 如果您使用我們的 CellSeal 小瓶，這是一個很好的附加功能，這可能是這樣做的另一個好處。並且它也可以被認為是一種剃刀刀片場景，因為如果它被放置，它可以以某種方式驅動，雖然我會說這是一種非常溫和的間接方式，利用或採用低溫密封。

On the Evo side of things, very little chance. The people that are making decisions around utilizing Evo are very different than the people that would be utilizing the CellSeal or other products, including Thaw, the decision-makers are very different. So there's very little opportunity to do that.

從 Evo 方面來看，機會很小。決定使用 Evo 的人與決定使用 CellSeal 或其他產品（包括 Thaw）的人有很大不同，決策者也有很大不同。因此，這樣做的機會很少。

Got it. That's really helpful, thanks.

知道了。這真的很有幫助，謝謝。

Michael Okunewitch, Maxim Group.

Michael Okunewitch，Maxim 集團。

Hey, guys. Thank you so much for taking my questions today. Congratulations on all the progress. I just would like to see if we could drill down a little bit. You mentioned that you're looking at a bit more R&D spend going forward versus the fourth quarter. So could you provide just a little bit more color on how you're planning to allocate that additional spend? Is this more -- is this for new products or more just continued improvements on your existing product line?

嘿，大家好。非常感謝您今天回答我的問題。祝賀你取得的所有進展。我只是想看看我們是否可以深入探討。您提到，與第四季相比，您計劃在未來增加一些研發支出。那麼，您能否詳細說明一下您計劃如何分配這些額外支出？這是更多的——這是針對新產品還是只是對現有產品線的持續改進？

Yeah. It's really about expanding the consumable set of products that we have and acquired from Sexton. That would be the CryoCase, to do some additional work on that relative to some customer feedback. It would be modifying the CryoCase for our own internal use on the front end. In other words, shipping our CryoStor product out in a CryoCase. There are various benefits to that. It's about increasing the consumable line of products that are associated with our CT-5 automated fill device. So it's really, I would say, product line expansion as opposed to new products per se.

是的。這實際上是為了擴大我們現有的以及從 Sexton 獲得的可消耗產品系列。那就是 CryoCase，根據一些客戶回饋對其進行一些額外的工作。它將修改 CryoCase 以供我們在前端內部使用。換句話說，我們用 CryoCase 運送 CryoStor 產品。這樣做有多種好處。這是為了增加與我們的 CT-5 自動填充設備相關的消耗品系列。所以我想說，這實際上是一種產品線擴展，而不是新產品本身。

Okay. Thank you for that. And then just I wanted to see if you could remind us of your involvement with any mesenchymal stem cell-based products. I know that Mesoblast historically hasn't been a customer, but there has been a lot of gains of traction in that space. So any additional color with your involvement could be helpful here.

好的。謝謝你。然後我只是想看看您是否可以提醒我們您參與任何基於間質幹細胞的產品。我知道 Mesoblast 以前並不是我們的客戶，但在該領域已經取得了很大的進展。因此，您的參與所帶來的任何額外色彩都可能有所幫助。

Yeah. I don't know if I can give you any in real time, but I can certainly follow up with you on that after the fact. I'll sit with our folks that have managed the clinical trial side of things and have a chat with them and come back to you on that, Michael.

是的。我不知道我是否可以即時給您任何信息，但我肯定可以在事後跟進。我會和負責臨床試驗方面的人員坐在一起聊一聊，然後再告訴你，麥可。

Certainly. Thank you very much for taking my questions. And once again congrats on the progress.

當然。非常感謝您回答我的問題。再次恭喜您的進展。

And this concludes our question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the conference back over to Rod de Greef for closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。我想將會議交還給 Rod de Greef 並請他致閉幕詞。

Thank you, Rocco. In closing, 2024 was a year of strategic transformation and solid operational execution for BioLife. We see 2025 as an opportunity to solidify and leverage our market-leading position as an enabler of CGT therapies and position the company for long-term sustainable growth in both revenue and profitability.

謝謝你，羅科。總而言之，2024 年是 BioLife 策略轉型和穩健營運執行的一年。我們將 2025 年視為鞏固和利用我們作為 CGT 療法推動者的市場領先地位的機遇，並使公司在收入和盈利能力方面實現長期可持續增長。

Thank you for your time this morning, and we look forward to updating you as we move through the year as well as seeing some of you at the Cowen Conference this week and other conferences throughout the year. Thank you.

感謝您今天早上抽出時間，我們期待在新的一年向您通報最新情況，也期待在本週的 Cowen 會議和全年的其他會議上見到你們。謝謝。

Thank you. This concludes today's presentation. You may now disconnect your lines, and have a wonderful [day]

謝謝。今天的演講到此結束。現在您可以斷開線路，享受美好的一天