11/10/2025

speaker
Julian
Operator

And welcome to Virtra's third quarter 2025 earnings conference call. My name is Julian, and I will be your operator for today's call. Joining us for today's presentation are the company's CEO, John Givens, and CFO, Alana Boudreaux. Following their remarks, we will open the call for questions. Before we begin the call, I would like to provide Virtra's safe harbor statement that includes cautions regarding forward-looking statements made during this call. During this presentation, management may discuss financial projections, information, or expectations about the company's products and services, or markets, or otherwise make statements about the future, which are forward-looking and subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. The company does not undertake any obligation to update them as required by law. Finally, I'd like to remind everyone that this call will be made available for replay via a link in the investor relations section on the company's website at www.vertra.com. Now, I'd like to turn the call over to Vertra's CEO, Mr. John Givens. Thank you. You may proceed, sir.

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Thank you, Julian, and thank you, everyone, for joining us this afternoon. After the market closed today, we issued a press release that provided our financial results for the quarter and nine months ending. September 30th, 2025, along with highlighted business accomplishments. In Q3, Virtra continued to manage through a slower federal funding cycle while keeping strong engagement with our customers and expanding our reach. The timing of federal award and customer acceptance affected revenue recognition in Q3, but our backlog grew again during the quarter. We also entered Q4 with a larger pipeline of opportunities tied to grant awards. Our operational discipline and continued focus on sales and marketing position us well as funding flows improve and pent-up demand converts to orders and deliveries. The operating environment is still being shaped by federal funding delays. Agency procurement cycles are still moving slower than normal as agencies wait for budget clarity and grant awards. While this timing has affected the short-term revenue recognition, agency engagement remains strong and we see demand building in the background. Regarding the funding environment, the Department of Justice COPS Grants Program has already identified the agency slated to receive funding based on applications that closed on June 30. Announcements were delayed by the federal shutdowns. We believe VRTRA will be among the beneficiaries once those awards are posted and spending authority normalizes We've also seen progress as key federal director roles are being filled, which should facilitate authorizations and releases of funds. We've been active in Washington, D.C., helping policymakers understand the importance of the immersive training and supporting funding initiatives that benefit our customers. When the government shutdown ends, the grant awards resume, we expect revenue conversions to improve. We made solid progress in Q3 in how we reach and support customers. Our redesigned website launched in September and the early results are encouraging. Visitors are spending more time evaluating products and requesting information, and we are generating more qualified leads than ever. Meanwhile, our sales model continues to improve accountability and responsiveness across territories. We've made targeted personnel changes to ensure we have the right people in the right roles, which is strengthening our customer engagement and follow-through. We also remain positioned to benefit from our recent entry into the GSA procurement cycle of channel, which streamlines sales processes and shortens delivery timelines. This is another positive step forward in our long-term go-to-market strategy. In parallel, our marketing cadence has increased as we placed a greater focus on press, trade events, and targeted industry awareness such as law enforcement leadership gatherings. I also want to note that we've appointed Grant Barber to our advisory board. Grant brings over three decades of financial leadership, including public company CFO experience, to our board. He will be instrumental in supporting our team as we scale. Turning to STEP, the program remains a strong selling point, especially for smaller agencies that may not have access to full federal funding. Agencies are using STEP to ensure they have the critical training they need, which has driven consistent adoption and high renewal rates. It also creates reoccurring revenue for Virtra and provides us with stronger baseline revenue performance from quarter to quarter. On the product side, our focus remains on delivering best-in-class training for agencies of all sizes. At the IACP last month, we introduced the V1 portable simulator designed specifically for smaller departments. The early response reinforces how important it is to offer high-quality training across a wide range of budgets. This product expands our addressable market and positions us to serve departments that may have previously been priced out of advanced simulation technology. Our focus on product quality continues to be a major differentiator. Customers consistently report that our systems deliver superior training capabilities and withstands years of rigorous real-world use. This validation reinforces our reputation as trusted long-term training partner and helps drive repeated business and renewals. It's worth noting that we are driving initiatives in our sales organization to accelerate adoption of our new systems. We continue to strengthen our value proposition, ensuring that virtual remains well positioned to win and retain customers across multiple market segments. International markets continue to gain momentum in Q3. As we more than doubled revenue compared to the same period last year, while international activity can be lumpy, we're encouraged by new developments in Canada and Colombia These wins demonstrate the growing global recognition of Virtra's training solutions as they diversify our revenue beyond our core U.S. market. Our military work is also progressing. Early this month, we demonstrated our next-generation Soldier Virtual Trainer, or SVT, system for the U.S. Army at our Orlando training facility. The system exceeded expectations and showed how our portable V-100, can deliver a complete, ready-to-deploy solution for weapon skills, joint fires, and the use of force training. We also introduced our new analytics platform, APEX, which tracks performance in real time, measuring accuracy, reaction time, and decision making. APEX gives commanders valuable insight into soldier readiness. Every new virtual simulator will now include APEX at no additional cost. further demonstrating our commitment to provide data-driven, science-based training aligned with the Army's modernization goals. While these sales cycles are longer than our traditional law enforcement market, we are building strong relationships with our military partners as part of our long-term growth strategy. Overall, Q3 showed continuous progress despite ongoing funding timing challenges. Our core law enforcement business remains a central focus as we are seeing stronger engagement across our customer base. Our meaningful backlog expanded, product portfolios, improved marketing foundation, and international momentum give us a solid base to convert opportunities into revenue as grant awards and customer acceptance pick back up. With that, I'll turn it over to Alana for the details of the financial review. Alana?

speaker
Alana Boudreaux
CFO

Thank you, John, and good afternoon, everyone. Now let's review our unaudited financial results for the third quarter and nine months ended September 30th, 2025. Our total revenue for the third quarter was 5.3 million compared to 7.5 million in the prior year period. The decrease can primarily be attributed to lower revenues from the government sector due to those funding delays. Breaking this down by market, our government revenue for the third quarter was 4.1 million compared to 6.9 million in the prior year period. International revenue for the third quarter was 1.2 million compared to 0.4 million in the prior year period. Our total revenue for nine months was 19.5 million compared to 20.9 million in the prior year period. Gross profit for the third quarter was 3.5 million or 66% of total revenue. compared to $5.5 million or 73% of total revenue in the prior year period. Last year's unusually high gross margin reflected capitalized labor on development of the XR and the IVAS program and a greater mix of high margin service and step revenue. Our gross profit for the nine months was $13.5 million or 69% of total revenue. compared to 15.7 million or 75% of total revenue in the prior year period. The change in gross margin reflects that higher mix of capital sales in 2025 relative to the service and staff revenue as well as the absence of unusual low cost of sales recorded in 2024 due to the capitalized labor and development projects. Our net operating expense for the third quarter was 4 million down 16% from $4.7 million in the prior year period. Our net operating expense for the nine months was $11.7 million or down 11% from the $13.2 million in the prior year period. These decreases reflect our disciplined cost management while maintaining investment in our core growth initiatives. The operating loss for the third quarter was $0.5 million compared to operating income of $0.8 million in the prior year period. Operating income for the nine months was $1.8 million compared to $3.3 million in the prior year period. Net loss for the third quarter was $0.4 million or three cents per diluted share compared to net income of $0.6 million or five cents per diluted share in the prior year period. Net income for the nine months was $1.1 million or nine cents per diluted share compared to $2.3 million or 21 cents per diluted share in the prior year period. Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP metric, was $0.1 million for the third quarter and $2.5 million for the first nine months of 2025. As of September 30th, our cash and cash equivalents totaled $20.8 million compared to $18 million at December 31st, 2024. Working capital was $32.9 million, and we maintained a debt-light balance sheet. Bertra that defines bookings as the total of newly signed contracts, awarded RSTs, and purchase orders received in a given period. Bookings through the third quarter was $8.4 million, up from $4.6 million in Q2. Bertra defines backlog as the accumulation of bookings from signed contracts and purchase orders that are not yet started or are incomplete in their performance obligations, and therefore cannot yet be recognized as revenue until delivered in a future period. We segment these backlog into three primary categories. Capital, which includes our simulator systems, accessories, installation, training, custom content, and design work. Service, which is primarily extended warranties and support contracts. And Step, our long-term subscription-based program. Our backlog as of September 30th, 2025, stood at 21.9 million. This includes 10.2 million in capital, 5.3 million in service, and 6.4 million in step contracts. Additionally, we are continuing to track renewable step contract options, which are not yet included in the backlog total. New capital bookings are largely expected to convert to revenue in the upcoming quarters due to customers having requested deferred deliveries. As always, our ability to convert backlog into revenue remains dependent on customer-driven installation timelines, which can shift based on factors outside of our control. So, in review, our backlog, recurring revenue base, and strong balance sheet provide flexibility as funding will resume. Looking forward, we believe the combination of our disciplined cost management and enhanced contract structures and ongoing demand recovery will support support continued progress. Our updated STEP program, with its three-year commitments and strong 95% renewal trends, improves recurring revenue, visibility, and reinforces long-term customer relationships and positions Bertra for sustainable growth. That concludes my prepared remarks, and I'll turn the call back over to John for his closing comments. John?

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Thank you, Alana. As we finish out 2025 and look towards 2026, We stand ready to deliver critical training tools to our law enforcement partners when budgets open back up. We have remained focused on improving our sales process, products, and operations to strengthen our foundation. We look forward to re-accelerating our business growth in the quarters ahead.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

That concludes my prepared remarks. Operator? Thank you. And with that, we will now be conducting a question and answer session.

speaker
Julian
Operator

If you'd like to ask a question, please press star 1 on your telephone keypad. The confirmation tone will indicate that your line is in the queue. You may press star 2 to remove yourself from the queue. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up the handset before pressing the star keys.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

One moment while we poll for questions. And our first question comes from the line of Richard Baldry with Roth Capital Partners.

speaker
Julian
Operator

Please proceed with your question.

speaker
Richard Baldry
Analyst, Roth Capital Partners

Thanks. Looking at the booking strengths in the quarter, can you talk a bit about, you know, were there any multi-year deals that skewed that result or is it, you know, a fairly typical cadence versus prior? And then maybe, you know, was a lot of that international versus domestics or disproportionately?

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Alani, you'll take that.

speaker
Alana Boudreaux
CFO

Yeah, actually, at the end of the quarter was when we received a booking of about $4.8 million that we anticipate most of becoming revenue in 2026, and it did skew to the international customer.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Okay.

speaker
Richard Baldry
Analyst, Roth Capital Partners

And then how does the shutdown or the funding backdrop impact military and your prospects there versus your typical police agency business?

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Well, it affects both proportionally. Most of the agencies that we're dealing with have, they rely a lot on government funding, whether it's full funding for the system under the COPS or some of these grant programs, or if it's a matched funding, it affects them pretty significantly. As far as the military goes, when it's shut down, we get no funding. The 4.8 that came in from the Columbia deal that we looked at was from INL, which is International Narcotics Law Enforcement, and there was a window where everything started to open up. They awarded it very quickly, and then we went into the shutdown. So there's a lot of pent-up demand, and there's a lot of folks looking at our systems and wanting to talk. The SVT program that we reported on, they continued even during the shutdown asking questions and us providing information. So we're gaining a lot of traction there. Unfortunately, that probably moves the slowest, but it's the most rewarding. So we'll see some activity here coming forward as the shutdown ends and the funding continues to open up. The other side of that, though, Rich, is that A lot of these agencies that we have been talking to and the ones that have funding and that we have quotes in or have had deep discussions, a lot of them, since the new administration came in last January, haven't had their official directors there, so they've been very hesitant to award or use any of the funds, whether they do not have the authority or whether they don't want to take the responsibility. So we're seeing a lot of the directors are now being assigned so that the government opening up and the funding starting to open. I think that was the trifecta that put us in bad shape, but it's all coming together now. So we should see a lot of positivity moving forward in the next several quarters.

speaker
Richard Baldry
Analyst, Roth Capital Partners

Okay. And is there a way to think about the backlog in terms of what is actually funded, but maybe waiting certain milestones or something deployable on the client side versus what's awaiting funding to try to get a feel for how much that you can convert to revenue near term before the bottlenecks hopefully open up?

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Yeah, that's a good question. Remember, several years ago, we decided to break up the backlog So it gave you a little better idea of what was in the backlog. So when you look at those components, the capital, capital is 10.5. Let me scroll back. 10.2. 10.2 in capital. The only thing that affects the conversion of that and has happened to us on several occasions is the customer purchasing it. It's setting on our docs, but for some reason, whether right now some of it's funding or whether the building is ready to take it or whether they have everything lined up that they can take it. Sometimes it's as little as 30 days and we've had some there as long as a year. So those are the items that we talked about out of the control. The 5.3 in service contracts go, we don't break it down up. We have warranty of service in there for 2026, 2027, 2028, the three years out. we don't break that down. So there's a portion of that that would also be recognized. And the same thing for the STEP program. The STEP program, since we've changed our contracts and it's not an option for the STEP, but more of a obligation, we can now recognize out years. So again, there's up to three years worth of STEP contract in the 6.4. So if you have to look at it, you could do, as you look at it, Rich, a good portion of the 10.2 minus things we can't foresee. And maybe a third and a third would be something very, very rough for services and stuff because of the out years. And we do have some remaining on the five-year step, which may be two more years out. That's about as much as I can break down for you.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Yeah, got it.

speaker
Richard Baldry
Analyst, Roth Capital Partners

So, you know, even in a pretty tough quarry, managed to be slightly a bit dot positive. I'm sort of curious, you know, the balance sheet's well-funded. During this period, would you view, you know, acquisitions or something as a way to, you know, bolster your offerings waiting for things to move forward or buybacks or you feel like, you know, first we want to see the bottlenecks ease up and then we start to think about what to do strategically with the balance sheet?

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Yeah, we've thought strategically for several years now and with our board and other advisors, we've We've looked at, there was too much uncertainty to make a move into the market. So we're just waiting to see as this clears up. But just like any good company, we'll eye technologies, companies that would add something that's accretive to the balance sheet, accretive to our product offering, without veering too far off from our main focus. So we're always on the look and always for the hunt for those. But I think the steps sit back slightly and find out where it's going first is probably the safest bet and most protective for the shareholders at this moment.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Great. Thanks for answering my questions. Thanks, Rich, for your questions. Thank you.

speaker
Julian
Operator

And our next question comes from the line of Jason Schmidt with the Lake Street Capital Markets. Please proceed with your questions.

speaker
Jason Schmidt
Analyst, Lake Street Capital Markets

Thanks for sharing my questions. I'm just curious if you could give an update on the VXR and if you're seeing the same kind of headwinds you're seeing in the broader business and this market as well.

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Yeah, the VXR is fully developed when it comes to training using our, I would say, the library of training scenarios that we have along with our That's the certified training courses through the nationally recognized IATLIS program. There's over 105 hours of certified courses that they can get what would be called their equivalent to continuing education. We're seeing the same headwinds for funding. It really doesn't matter how much it is, whether it's the funding or directorship or the leadership making those decisions. A lot of good market acceptance. It's just released at a time where things were a little tight. But we see a lot of good comments from the sector and from the space, and we're looking forward to all this opening up and selling more.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Okay. That makes sense.

speaker
Jason Schmidt
Analyst, Lake Street Capital Markets

And then just as a follow-up, I mean, gross margin, understanding the dynamics on the step back in Q30, but what should we be thinking about gross margin going forward?

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Go ahead, Ilona.

speaker
Alana Boudreaux
CFO

I would anticipate that our gross margins stay similar to what we are seeing in this quarter and potentially going down a little bit more. Like we've always kind of talked about the fact that we'd like it to be somewhere between 60 and 65%, right? And that's where, you know, so anything above that for us is a win.

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Yeah, Jason, the only caveat I would make to that, and I've reported in the past, I'm willing to sacrifice a little bit of gross margin to gain market share, especially in our segment as we start offering some of these new products. For our first-to-market in a certain space with our type of content offering, I'd like to just jump in there so we get the first foothold on that market segment. with that type of product, especially as the new technology comes out.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

Okay. That makes a lot of sense. Thanks a lot, guys. Thanks, Jason. Thank you.

speaker
Julian
Operator

And with that, at this time, this does conclude today's question and answer session.

speaker
Moderator
Conference Host

I'd now like to turn the call back over to Mr. Givens for his closing remarks.

speaker
John Givens
CEO

Thank you for joining us today and for your continued support of Virtra. We've made meaningful progress so far this year. We'll stay focused on execution, customer success, and advancing our growth initiatives. We do appreciate your trust and look forward to updating you on our continued progress in the corners to come. God bless you all, and let's continue to make great strides together.

speaker
Julian
Operator

Thank you for joining us today for Virtua's third quarter 2025 conference call. You may now disconnect your lines and have a wonderful day.

Disclaimer

This conference call transcript was computer generated and almost certianly contains errors. This transcript is provided for information purposes only.EarningsCall, LLC makes no representation about the accuracy of the aforementioned transcript, and you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the information provided by the transcript.

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