ACB Aurora Cannabis Inc

• Delivers Positive Free Cash Flow¹ of $6.5 Million
• Increases Total Quarterly Net Revenue¹ by 12% YoY to $83.4 Million, Record Net Revenue¹ of $47.2 Million in Global Medical Cannabis 
• Generates Adjusted EBITDA¹ of $4.9 Million, a YoY increase of 87%
• Ends the Fiscal Quarter with a Debt-Free Cannabis Business² and a Cash Position of ~$182 Million

EDMONTON, AB, Aug. 7, 2024 /CNW/ - Aurora Cannabis Inc. (the "Company" or "Aurora") (NASDAQ: ACB) (TSX: ACB), a leading Canada-based global medical cannabis company, today announced its financial and operational results for the first quarter fiscal 2025.

"This was a milestone quarter for Aurora, as we delivered strong net revenue¹ growth, a substantial increase in adjusted EBITDA¹, and positive free cash flow¹. Our impressive performance was driven by record net revenue¹ in the rapidly growing global medical cannabis segment, and we look forward to building on our achievements in key markets such as Germany, Australia, and the UK throughout fiscal 2025 and beyond. The quarter was further supported by a record contribution from our Bevo plant propagation business, underscoring the strength of our diversified business model," said Chief Executive Officer Miguel Martin.

"The progress we made during the quarter sets a strong foundation for the rest of the fiscal year, and with our continued commitment to operational excellence and strategic growth, we are well-positioned to sustain this positive momentum. Our growth in global medical, the highest margin cannabis segment, alongside our strong balance sheet and ongoing fiscal discipline, are pivotal as we build on our achievement with respect to positive free cash flow," Mr. Martin concluded.

First Quarter 2025 Highlights

(Unless otherwise stated, comparisons are made between fiscal Q1 2025, Q4 2024, and Q1 2024 results and are in Canadian dollars)

Consolidated Revenue and Adjusted Gross Profit:
Total net revenue¹ was $83.4 million, as compared to $74.7 million in the prior year period. The 12% increase from the prior period was mainly due to 13% growth in our global medical cannabis business and 16% growth in our plant propagation business, slightly offset by lower quarterly revenue in our consumer cannabis.

Consolidated adjusted gross margin before fair value adjustments¹ was 43% in Q1 2025 and 44% in the prior year quarter. Adjusted gross profit before FV adjustments1 was $36.0 million in Q1 2025 vs $32.6 million in the prior year quarter, an increase of 10%.

Medical Cannabis:
Medical cannabis net revenue¹ was $47.2 million, a 13% increase from the prior year quarter, delivering 57% of Aurora's Q1 2025 consolidated net revenue¹ and 91% of adjusted gross profit before fair value adjustments¹.

The increase in net revenue1 of $5.6 million was primarily due to higher sales to Australia and a steady increase in sales in Canada to insurance covered patients and larger basket sizes.

Adjusted gross margin before fair value adjustments¹ on medical cannabis net revenue reached 69% for the three months ended June 30, 2024, compared to 61% in the prior year quarter. Our target range is 60% and above. The adjusted gross margins before fair value adjustments improved through sustainable cost reductions, higher selling prices in Australia, and improved efficiency in production operations, including sourcing for Europe from Canada due to the closure of the Aurora Nordic production facility.

Consumer Cannabis:
Aurora's consumer cannabis net revenue¹ was $11.5 million, a 10% decrease compared to $12.8 million in the prior year quarter. The decrease was due to our decision to prioritize the supply of our GMP manufactured products to our high margin international business rather than the consumer business, which offers lower margins.

Adjusted gross margin before fair value adjustments¹ on consumer cannabis net revenue¹ was 24%, decreasing from 26% compared to the prior year quarter. The decrease from the prior year comparative quarter is largely due to higher margin product sales.

Plant Propagation:
Plant propagation net revenue¹ was wholly comprised of the Bevo business, and contributed $23.1 million of net revenue¹, a 16% increase compared to $19.9 million in the prior year quarter. The increase was a result of organic growth and increased product offerings. Historically, approximately 65-75% of plant propagation revenue and up to 80% of EBITDA has been earned in the first half of the calendar year.

Adjusted gross margin before fair value adjustments¹ on plant propagation revenue was 18% for Q1 2025 and 22% for the prior year quarter. The fluctuations in the plant propagation adjusted gross margin before fair value adjustments is due to changes in product mix and a prolonged Spring season in the current quarter.

Selling, General and Administrative ("SG&A"):
Adjusted SG&A¹ was $31.4 million in Q1 2025, which excludes $4.9 million of business transformation costs. Adjusted SG&A¹ is likely to remain above our previous target of $30 million due to the incremental SG&A following the acquisition of MedReleaf Australia.

Adjusted R&D¹, was $1.0 million in Q1 2025, which is relatively consistent as compared to the prior year quarter at $1.1 million. Our investment in R&D and product innovation is partly opportunistic, as such these costs will vary quarter over quarter and year over year.

Net Income (Loss):
Net income from continuing operations for the three months ended June 30, 2024 was $4.8 million compared to net loss of $20.2 million for the prior year period.

Adjusted EBITDA:
Adjusted EBITDA¹ increased 87%to $4.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024 compared to $2.6 million for the prior year quarter.

Fiscal Q2 2025 Expectations:
We expect to see continued strong net revenue and adjusted gross margins across our cannabis business, supported by net revenue¹ growth in Europe and Australia.

For plant propagation, we expect to see seasonally reduced revenues and gross profit in Q2 2025 that will be in line with historical performance as 25% – 35% of revenues are normally earned in the second half of a calendar year.

Positive adjusted EBITDA is expected to continue while free cash flow is anticipated to be negatively impacted by several significant annual and one-time cash payments that typically occur in Q2 2025.

Key Quarterly Financial Results

Conference Call

Aurora will host a conference call today, Wednesday, August 7, 2024, to discuss these results. Miguel Martin, Chief Executive Officer, and Simona King, Chief Financial Officer, will host the call starting at 8:00 a.m. Eastern time | 6:00 a.m. Mountain Time. A question and answer session will follow management's presentation.

This weblink has also been posted to the Company's "Investor Info" link at https://www.auroramj.com/investors/ under "Events".

About Aurora Cannabis

Aurora is opening the world to cannabis, serving both the medical and consumer markets across Canada, Europe, Australia and South America. Headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, Aurora is a pioneer in global cannabis, dedicated to helping people improve their lives. The Company's adult-use brand portfolio includes Drift, San Rafael '71, Daily Special, Tasty's, Being and Greybeard. Medical cannabis brands include MedReleaf, CanniMed, Aurora and Whistler Medical Marijuana Co., as well as international brands, Pedanios, Bidiol, IndiMed and CraftPlant. Aurora also has a controlling interest in Bevo Farms Ltd., North America's leading supplier of propagated agricultural plants. Driven by science and innovation, and with a focus on high-quality cannabis products, Aurora's brands continue to break through as industry leaders in the medical, wellness and adult recreational markets wherever they are launched. Learn more at www.auroramj.com and follow us on X and LinkedIn.

Aurora's common shares trade on the NASDAQ and TSX under the symbol "ACB".

Forward Looking Statements

This news release includes statements containing certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law ("forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements made in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the  Company's Q1 FY2025 results, statements under the heading "Fiscal Q2 2025 Expectations", including  as related to net cannabis revenue growth and adjusted gross margins, revenue and gross profit in the plant propagation segment, and expectations for positive adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow, statements regarding the Company's continued commitment to operational excellence and strategic growth, sustained positive momentum, and expectations for SG&A and R&D expenses, as well as those statements regarding the Company's conference call to discuss results.

These forward-looking statements are only predictions. Forward looking information or statements contained in this news release have been developed based on assumptions management considers to be reasonable. Material factors or assumptions involved in developing forward-looking statements include, without limitation, publicly available information from governmental sources as well as from market research and industry analysis and on assumptions based on data and knowledge of this industry which the Company believes to be reasonable. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances could cause actual events, results, level of activity, performance, prospects, opportunities or achievements to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. These risks include, but are not limited to, the ability to retain key personnel, the ability to continue investing in infrastructure to support growth, the ability to obtain financing on acceptable terms, the continued quality of our products, customer experience and retention, the development of third party government and nongovernment consumer sales channels, management's estimates of consumer demand in Canada and in jurisdictions where the Company exports, expectations of future results and expenses, the risk of successful integration of acquired business and operations, management's estimation that SG&A will grow only in proportion of revenue growth, the ability to expand and maintain distribution capabilities, the impact of competition, the general impact of financial market conditions, the yield from cannabis growing operations, product demand, changes in prices of required commodities, competition, and the possibility for changes in laws, rules, and regulations in the industry, epidemics, pandemics or other public health crises, and other risks, uncertainties and factors set out under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form dated June 20, 2024 (the "AIF") and filed with Canadian securities regulators available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.com and filed with and available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. The Company cautions that the list of risks, uncertainties and other factors described in the AIF is not exhaustive and other factors could also adversely affect its results. Readers are urged to consider the risks, uncertainties and assumptions carefully in evaluating the forward-looking statements and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such information. The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities law.

The Company's AIF, MD&A and annual financial statements, which have been filed on SEDAR+ and with the SEC, are also available on the Company's website www.auroramj.com and shareholders may receive hard copies free of charge upon request by contacting aurora@icrinc.com.

Non-GAAP Measures

This news release contains reference to certain financial performance measures that are not recognized or defined under IFRS (termed "Non-GAAP Measures"). As a result, this data may not be comparable to data presented by other licensed producers of cannabis and cannabis companies. Non-GAAP Measures should be considered together with other data prepared in accordance with IFRS to enable investors to evaluate the Company's operating results, underlying performance and prospects in a manner similar to Aurora's management. Accordingly, these non-GAAP Measures are intended to provide additional information and to assist management and investors in assessing financial performance and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. The information included under the heading "Cautionary Statement Regarding Certain Non-GAAP Performance Measures" in the Company's management's discussion and analysis for the fiscal period ended June 30, 2024 (the "MD&A") is incorporated by reference into this news release. The MD&A is available on the Company's issuer profiles on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com and on the SEC's EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.

Net Revenue, Adjusted Gross Profit and Margin

Net revenue, adjusted gross profit before FV adjustments, and adjusted gross margin before FV adjustments are Non-GAAP Measures and can be reconciled with revenue, gross profit and gross margin, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, respectively, as follows:

Adjusted EBITDA

Adjusted EBITDA is a Non-GAAP Measure and can be reconciled with net income (loss), the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, as follows:

Adjusted SG&A

Adjusted SG&A is a Non-GAAP Measure and can be reconciled with sales and marketing and general and administrative expenses, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, as follows: 

Free Cash Flow

The table below outlines free cash flow for the periods ended:

Working Capital

Working capital is a Non-GAAP Measure and can be reconciled with total current assets and total current liabilities, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, as follows:

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SOURCE Aurora Cannabis Inc.