Niagen Bioscience, Inc.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by, and welcome to Chromadex Corporation's first quarter of 2024 earnings conference call. My name is Jericho, and I will be the conference operator today. At this time, all participants are in listening mode, only mode, and as a reminder, this conference call is being recorded. This afternoon, Chromadex issued a news release announcing the company's financial results for the first quarter of 2024. If you have not reviewed this information, both are available within the investor relations section of Chromadex website at www.chromadex.com. I would now like to turn the conference call over to Ben Shampson, Vice President of Litham Partners. Please go ahead, Mr. Shampson.

Thank you, good afternoon, and welcome to Chromadex Corporation's first quarter of 2024 results investor call. With us today are Chromadex's Chief Executive Officer, Rob Freed, Chief Financial Officer, Brianna Gerber, and Senior Vice President of Scientific and Regulatory Affairs, Dr. Andrew Hsiao, who will join the call for Q&A. Today's conference call may include forward-looking statements, including statements related to Chromadex's research and development and clinical trial plans and the timing and results of such trials, the timing of future regulatory filings, the expansion of the sale of TruNiGen in new markets, business development opportunities, future financial results, cash needs, operating performance, investor interests, and business prospects and opportunities, as well as anticipated results of operations. Forward-looking statements represent only the company's estimates on the date of this conference call and are not intended to give any assurances as to the actual future results. Because forward-looking statements relate to matters that have not yet occurred, these statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause Chromadex's actual activities or results to differ materially from the activities and results anticipated in forward-looking statements. These risk factors include those contained in Chromadex's quarterly report on Form 10-Q, most recently filed with the SEC, including results of operations, financial condition, cash flows, as well as global market and economic conditions on our businesses. Please note that the company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements after the date of this conference call to conform with forward-looking statements, actual results, or changes to its expectations. In addition, certain financial information presented in this call references non-GAAP financial measures. The company's earnings presentation and earnings press release, which were issued this afternoon and are available on the company's website, present reconciliations to the appropriate GAAP measures. Finally, this conference call is being recorded via webcast. The webcast will be available at the investor relations section of our website at www.chromadex.com. With that, it's now my pleasure to turn the call over to our Chief Executive Officer, Rob Reed.

Thank you, Ben, and good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us on today's investor call. I'm proud to announce that we delivered a solid start to 2024. delivering $22.2 million in revenue and positive adjusted EBITDA of $0.7 million. This is the fourth consecutive quarter in which we have generated positive adjusted EBITDA, which reflects our unwavering commitment to maintaining fiscal discipline while making strategic R&D investments to support innovations launching later this year. In the first quarter, we generated net positive operating cash flow and ended the first quarter with $27.6 million in cash and no debt. Our e-commerce business continues to be our largest and most reliable source of revenue. E-commerce sales for the first quarter were up 5% year over year as our marketing team continues to focus on initiatives and campaigns that drive direct and efficient returns and continues to implement strategies to build our own website. as the growth engine for the business. In the first quarter of 2023, we had invested in a brand campaign through Amazon's homepage takeover, which drove a significant increase in new-to-brand purchases on Amazon. In the first quarter of 2024, absent such a large campaign, we continued to see growth in our Amazon business and continued signs of stabilization in our website business, providing the foundation for growth in 2024. In the first quarter, our team committed to be less focused on price promotions and to focus on initiatives to build a robust base of subscribers to drive long-term customer value. While it is still too early to assess consumer behavior, we believe this is the right strategy going forward. For 2024, we're also allocating more resources to optimize influencer marketing. Also, retention strategies, content, and social media presence. which are important elements of our strategy going forward. Last month, we announced that we are partnering with two major specialty retail distributors, Sprouts Farmer's Market and Vitamin Shop. TruNiagen will be available in over 400 locations of Sprouts Farmer's Market as the first major grocery chain to carry TruNiagen and TruNiagen Immune. TruNiagen will also be available on the retail shelves of over 700 Vitamin Shop locations. Our new partnerships with Sprouts and Vitamin Shop broadens and diversifies the access of true nitrogen to a larger health and wellness-focused consumer base and aligns with our vision to help as many people as possible transform the way they age. I am proud that the teams at Chromadex continue to expand our network of partners who all share a passion to bringing solutions to consumers who wish to promote health spans. We believe we are and have always been the gold standard of the NAD industry. With over 30 peer-reviewed published human studies and over 100 published scientific studies, our Chromadex external research program, which we call SERP, continues to be key in establishing clinical studies to explore for the numerous health benefits Niagen can have on the human body. It's our last quarterly update. A number of preclinical trials have been completed that I want to highlight. First, a recent preclinical study was designed to assess the effectiveness of liposome-based delivery of NR for treating cerebral ischemia. The study utilized liposome encapsulated NR chloride given through IV injections in healthy mice and in cerebral ischemia model mice and examined its pharmacokinetics, organ distribution, and therapeutic impact between the mice models. The results demonstrated potential for NR liposomes for broader clinical application of neuroprotective agents beyond standard stroke therapy. The second preclinical study examined the impact of the combination of NR with resveratrol, the healing of diabetic ulcers caused by inflammation in a diabetic rat model. The results highlighted the potential of NR and resveratrol in accelerating wound healing. Another preclinical study investigated the causes of miscarriages and congenital malformations, particularly the role of NAD deficiency using a mouse model. Interestingly, researchers found that the risk of NAD deficiency is elevated during pregnancy. And results suggest that a sufficient NAD supply is required to ensure normal embryonic development. Further studies in human trials are needed to validate these observations, but the few preclinical study results I just highlighted are just some of many that illustrate the boundless potential positive health benefits NR Niagen can provide. I do not know of another dietary supplement company that has an innovation pipeline of NAD precursors that may have such profound therapeutic or prophylactic value in the pharmaceutical space as does Chromadex. We continue to invest in our science to further our understanding of the potential for Niagen and to further develop innovative ways Niagen can benefit longevity and healthy aging. As some of you may know, our partner Juvenis has launched a portfolio of skincare products powered by Niagen in South Korea and is looking into plans to launch in the United States. Additionally, we continue to work with Zestypaws to further research innovative products in the pet supplement market. As mentioned last quarter, we are increasingly close to announcing a new vertical for nitrogen that will illustrate Chromadex's unique position in the industry. While I acknowledge the development process has been long, I am proud of the teams at Chromadex for being diligent and thorough in the proper studies on safety and efficacy, compliance with regulatory bodies, and establishment of our supply chain infrastructure. As the global authority in NAD science, our mission at Chromadex is to improve as many lives as possible. Our unwavering commitment to this mission continues to drive our innovation pipeline to develop new NAD boosting products and delivery mechanisms that benefit the way humans age. This includes products that extend beyond dietary supplements. As I mentioned earlier, every one of us at Chromadex believes we represent the gold standard in the NAD industry. We will continue to represent the highest level of scientific integrity and use our position in the industry as a trusted partner to researchers, regulatory authorities, and world-class business partners to drive innovation. We recognize that research and development to support innovation takes some time. It may take more time than originally anticipated. While we are not yet ready to make any announcements, we look forward to sharing more details in our next update. And I would like to now turn the call over to Brianna to discuss the quarter's results in more detail. And then on to Q&A and closing remarks. Brianna?