LIVEPERSON REPORTS POSITIVE EBITDA FOR FIRST QUARTER 2002
Contact:
Tim Bixby
LivePerson, Inc.
212-609-4200
bixby@liveperson.com
CASH BALANCE INCREASES FROM PRIOR QUARTER TO $10.4 MILLION
NEW YORK, NY—May 2, 2002 — LivePerson, Inc. (Nasdaq: LPSN), a leading Application Service Provider (ASP) of technology facilitating real-time sales and customer service for companies doing business on the Internet, today announced financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2002.
Revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2002 was $1.8 million, a 2% increase from the prior quarter ended December 31, 2001, and down from $2.4 million in the corresponding period of 2001.
EBITDA, or earnings/(loss) before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, for the three months ended March 31, 2002, was $47,000, as compared to $(283,000) for the three months ended December 31, 2001, and $(8.2) million in the corresponding quarter of 2001. EBITDA per share was $0.00 as compared to $(0.01) per share for the quarter ended December 31, 2001, and $(0.24) per share in the corresponding quarter of 2001.
Commenting on the results for the first quarter, Chief Executive Officer Robert LoCascio said, “We continue to be pleased with the Company’s consistent operating progress. We achieved positive EBITDA for the full quarter and announced a number of new customers in the quarter, including new contracts or added business with Ameritrade, Radian Guaranty and Republic Bank. While we expect revenues to be flat in the second quarter, we are seeing much stronger interest from larger companies than we saw during the latter half of 2001 and early 2002. We are beginning to gain better visibility into the second half of the year as we are seeing a strong and growing roster of clients entering testing and pilot programs with our products.”
For the three months ended March 31, 2002, loss before the cumulative effect of an accounting change was $(108,000). The Company adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standard No. 142 – “Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets”, effective January 1, 2002. The standard eliminates goodwill amortization upon adoption and requires an initial assessment for goodwill impairment within six months of adoption and at least annually thereafter.
Adopting this standard resulted in a non-cash expense related to goodwill impairment of $5.3 million. Net loss including the effect of this accounting change was $(5.4) million, as compared to $(1.2) million for the three months ended December 31, 2001, and $(8.2) million in the corresponding quarter of 2001. In addition, net loss includes non-cash goodwill amortization of approximately $0.7 million for both the quarter ended December 31, 2001 and the quarter ended March 31, 2001.
Basic and diluted net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2002, before the cumulative effect of the accounting change, was $(0.00) per share. The impact of the accounting change was a loss of $(0.16) per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2002. Net loss including the effect of the accounting change was $(0.16) per share, as compared to $(0.03) per share for the three months ended December 31, 2001, and $(0.24) per share for the corresponding quarter in 2001. In addition, net loss includes non-cash goodwill amortization of $(0.02) per share for both the quarter ended December 31, 2001 and the quarter ended March 31, 2001.
The Company’s cash balance increased to $10.4 million at March 31, 2002, from $10.1 million at December 31, 2001.
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