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8/10/2021
Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Acreage Holdings second quarter conference call. Joining me today is Peter Caldini, our chief executive officer. This call is being recorded and will be archived on our investor relations website at investors.acreageholdings.com. Today's call contains forward-looking statements subject to various risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those forward-looking statements. Any such information and statements should be taken in conjunction with cautionary statements in our press releases and risk factors discussions in our public filings found on CDAR and EDGAR, as well as our investor website. Any forward-looking statements reflect management's expectations as of today's date, and we assume no obligation to update them other than as may be required by applicable securities law. I will now turn the call over to Peter. Thank you, Steve, and good morning, everyone. I am once again pleased with our financial performance in the second quarter as we reported our second consecutive quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA. Additionally, our revenue growth accelerated to 63% growth year over year and 15% sequentially versus the first quarter of 2021, while our gross margin remained strong at 54%. On an operating basis, our team continues to be focused on both driving profitability and accelerating our growth in our core markets. Looking deeper into operational performance, our second quarter reported retail revenue was $28.4 million, a 43% increase year-over-year. Part of this growth was driven by the acquisition and consolidation of our New Jersey locations in June 2020 and certain main locations during the second quarter of 2021. But this was somewhat offset by the negative sales performance of our organ locations that are being held for sale. Excluding these, our existing stores that have been open for more than 12 months achieved same-store sales growth of 6%. New dispensary growth, same-store sales growth, and continued growth of our portfolio brands were the primary drivers of our retail sales performance. In our wholesale business, we reported revenue of $15.5 million, which was a 117% increase year over year. Wholesale revenue for the second quarter of 2021 represented over 35% of our total revenue. Greater strategic focus on the wholesale markets in Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Massachusetts allowed us to take advantage of opportunities in these markets to drive additional revenue and profits. Additionally, we have begun developing stronger wholesale relationships in both New York and New Jersey in preparation for additional supply coming online once our cultivation expansion projects in these markets are complete. We continue to have high expectations for our wholesale business throughout 2021 and beyond. There are significant growth opportunities to increase product offerings and overall supply as our cultivation expansion projects in Illinois and Pennsylvania are now complete. In New Jersey, our cultivation projects in Egg Harbor and Sewell are underway and are on track, which will give acreage around 190,000 square feet of capacity in that state. We expect both projects to be completed by the first half of 2022. The expansion of our newer cultivation facilities in Syracuse has begun, and we expect to have this completed before the commencement of adult use sales in that state. We are further exploring opportunities to increase our cultivation capacity in both Pennsylvania through an expansion and Massachusetts through a new facility. And finally, in Massachusetts, we continue to build out our Edibles Kitchen in Leominster, which will lead to increased wholesale sales for us in that state. In addition to the improved financial performance during the second quarter of 2021, there were also some operational achievements that I would like to highlight. First, in Illinois, we completed the expansion of our cultivation and processing facilities in the second quarter of 2021. This facility encompasses 80,000 square feet of cultivation and drying rooms and includes state-of-the-art extraction capabilities for production of a wide assortment of derivative products and edibles. In addition to supporting a larger wholesale business, this increased production availability and selection that drives sales increases across our retail locations in Illinois. Since completion of the expansion, we have already launched distillate vapes in 13 flavors, and cured concentrates under the Innocent brand. In Pennsylvania, with the recent completion of the expansion of the existing facility, we were able to increase production capacity by 20% in the quarter. Along with the expanded cultivation capacity, we also released nine new distinctive cultivars in the second quarter. Our prime brand in Pennsylvania has been extremely well perceived by patients who appreciate the high quality and consistency of our products. Our growth in the state of Pennsylvania is currently only limited by our production capacity, which we will address with an expansion project in the future. We have taken steps to build upon our already strong customer relationships in both Maine and Connecticut. In Maine, We responded to consumer demand by converting two of our dispensary locations to adult use during the quarter. This allowed us to take advantage of growth in the market and expand our current market-leading position. In Connecticut, we introduced an enhanced loyalty program to increase traffic and reward loyal customers, which ultimately led to improved profitability. In Ohio, our partners continue to lead the state in terms of retail sales and achieving full vertical integration. During the second quarter of 2021, we had our first ever harvest that will enable us to build out our wholesale business in Ohio. Our partners in Ohio continue to rapidly grow the Botanist brand with the launch of several new edible products. We have begun the process for the final license transfers and consolidation of Ohio operations two acreage and expect these transactions to be completed in the later part of 2021. Finally, we successfully completed the sale of our Florida operations in the second quarter of 2021. As you know, we previously determined that our operations in this state were not core to our focus strategy and negotiated sale of these operations for a total consideration of $60 million. The sale of our Florida operations, which closed in the second quarter of 2021, has the benefits of removing a drag on our earnings, eliminating non-productive use of management's time, and contributing additional capital that can be used to support other activities. I will now turn the call over to Steve to discuss the financial results in more detail. Thank you, Peter, and good morning to everyone again. Last night we reported our second quarter 2021 results. Our reported revenue was $44.2 million, which increased $17.1 million, or 63%, compared to the second quarter of 2020. This also represented an acceleration versus our first quarter 2021 revenue growth of 58%. On a sequential basis, our reported revenue increased by $5.8 million, or 15%, compared to the first quarter of 2021. Our revenue growth for the second quarter of 2021 was primarily driven by two main factors. First, the acquisition of CCF in New Jersey in June 2020, the conversion to adult use and acquisition of certain main dispensaries during the second quarter of 2021, and the acquisition of CWG in California in May 2021 contributed $7.6 million in additional revenue during the second quarter of 2021 compared to the comparable period of 2020. Second, the same-store growth of our stores that have been open for more than 12 months and the recently opened stores, together with an increased strategic focus on the wholesale market in Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts, further drove revenue increases. Somewhat offsetting these revenue increases in the current quarter were divestitures and closures over the past 18 months, including the sale of Acreage Florida and negative revenue performance at the company's Oregon operations that are being held for sale. In aggregate, these items negatively impacted revenue by $1.1 million in the quarter on a comparative basis. Excluding these acquisitions, divestitures, and closures, and the impact of revenue declines in the company's Oregon operations, total revenue increased by $10.6 million, or 44%, in the second quarter of 2021 as compared to the corresponding period of fiscal 2020. Gross profit during the quarter was $23.9 million. which was an increase of $12.7 million or 113% compared to the second quarter of 2020. Both the growth in revenue and efficiencies achieved at our production facilities drove the increase in gross profit. In addition, wholesale cost of goods sold for the comparative period were driven by the initial set of costs and consequential expansion impact of various cultivation and processing facilities that did not occur in the current period. Gross profit during the second quarter of 2021 also benefited from the increased vertical integration of the company's operations. As compared to the prior period, a greater portion of the products sold at the company's retail dispensaries is sourced internally from the company's production and processing operations. Gross profit generated from this internally produced product includes both the wholesale and retail margins and does not contain the external wholesale margin that would be paid if the company had to source the same product from external vendors. Gross margin during the quarter was 54%, which was a 1260 basis point improvement compared to the second quarter of 2020. and a continuation of the strong gross margin achieved in the first quarter of 2021. I am pleased to note this reported gross margin of 54% offers further validation that our refocus strategy is working. Total operating expenses for the second quarter of 2021 were $30.6 million, a decrease of $19.9 million or 39% from the corresponding period of fiscal 2020. excluding equity-based compensation expenses, losses, and write-downs and depreciation and amortization expenses, all of which are non-cash in nature. Total operating expenses for the second quarter of 2021 decreased 3.6 million, or 17%, compared to the corresponding period of fiscal 2020. Cost optimization activities over the past 12 months, together with our accelerated revenue growth, have helped to bring G&A and compensation expenses to more sustainable levels. The company continues to ensure that its cost base is appropriate to support the business and expected growth while working to drive its profitability. We expect to gain additional operating leverage from these expenditures as our revenue continues to grow in future periods. EBITDA during the second quarter of 2021 was $6.7 million. which was a significant improvement compared to our EBITDA loss of $37.8 million in the second quarter of 2020. Our adjusted EBITDA, which excludes impairments, equity-based compensation expense, and unusual items that are not expected to recur in future periods, was $8.1 million for the current quarter. This represents a significant improvement compared to the adjusted EBITDA loss of 6.5 million in the second quarter of 2020, and a sequential improvement from the adjusted EBITDA of 1.6 million in the first quarter of 2021. Finally, adjusted EBITDA from core operations, excluding markets where the company has entered into definitive agreements to exit, and startup ventures such as beverages and CBD, was $9.8 million for the second quarter of 2021, up sequentially from $3.1 million in the first quarter of 2021, and indicating the company's core markets are still being negatively impacted by its non-core operations. On a year-to-year basis, total revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2021, increased by $31.3 million, or 61%, as compared to the corresponding period of fiscal 2020. Excluding acquisitions, divestitures, and closures, and the impact of revenue declines in the company's Oregon operations, which are being held for sale, total revenue increased by $21.1 million, or 47%, for the six months ended June 30th, 2021, as compared to the corresponding period of fiscal 2020. Consolidated EBITDA for the six months ended June 30th, 2021 was 8.3 million, which was a significant improvement compared to a consolidated EBITDA loss of 286.9 million in the year ago comparable period. Adjusted EBITDA for the six months ended June 30th, 2021 was 9.7 million, which was also a significant improvement compared to the adjusted EBITDA loss of 18.9 million in the year-ago comparable period. I would now like to briefly discuss the results of our managed entities. During the second quarter of 2021, our managed entities generated $16.9 million in net sales, which slightly increased compared to the second quarter of 2020. The increase, driven primarily by same-store sales growth of 87%, was offset by the transitioning of New Jersey and certain main locations from managed entities to our consolidated results. On a geographic basis, Ohio was once again the biggest contributor of revenue growth as our partners there continued to deliver strong performance. Our managed entity second quarter EBITDA was $4.8 million. an increase of $1.8 million compared to EBITDA of $3.2 million in the second quarter of 2020. This year-over-year EBITDA growth was driven primarily by Ohio, as again, our partners there continued to deliver strong performance. Moving to our balance sheet, we ended the quarter with $37.8 million in cash and restricted cash on hand. As Peter indicated, during the second quarter of 2021, we closed on the previously announced sale of our Florida operations for total consideration of $60 million. $25 million in cash, $28 million in notes receivable due in future periods, and $7 million in shares of the acquiring entity were received from the purchaser of Acreage Florida as consideration. After the sale of Acreage Florida, the company sold the notes receivable for $26 million. a value at the top end of the fair value range provided to the company by an independent external advisor. The cash provided by this sale, including the proceeds from the subsequent sale of notes receivable received from the buyer of the Florida operation as consideration, and together with restricted cash, were used to repay $44.1 million in debt during the second quarter of 2021. While our cash position has strengthened considerably, improving the overall strength of our balance sheet continues to be a priority for the organization. Our goal is to once again build the acreage balance sheet as a strength so we can accelerate our organic growth in our core footprint and be well positioned to take advantage of all market opportunities that come up. And finally, we continue our discussions to invest our remaining health for sale assets in California, Michigan, and Oregon. That concludes my prepared remarks. I will now turn the call back over to Peter. Thank you, Steve. As I look forward, the rapidly changing regulatory environment continues to shape the US cannabis industry. In the last several months, there have been many regulatory advances that have the potential to benefit both acreage and our industry. At the federal level, earlier this year, the Safe Banking Act passed the House of Representatives for the fourth time, and more recently, Senator Schumer, Booker, and Wyden released a new draft bill now titled the Cannabis Administration and Opportunities Act or CAOA. This draft bill is an encouraging step forward as it takes a comprehensive approach in crafting regulatory structure and serves as a solid foundation for federal legalization. The bill itself has been drafted thoughtfully and there are components that appeal to all stakeholders. We are excited to weigh in during this common period and support the development of the bill. We are thrilled with the political momentum and applaud Senators Booker, Wyden, and Schumer for their leadership. We continue to be energized by the changes in Washington that put cannabis on a clear path moving forward. It is no longer a matter of if, but rather when. The CAOA comprehensive draft bill is now receiving comments, and we look forward to the formal introduction of the bill, which addresses all aspects of legalization of cannabis, including provisions related to social justice and social equity later this year. Although cannabis regulatory reform on the federal level is very important, we also continue to focus on progress at the state level, where we continue to see strong movement. On our last earnings call a couple of months ago, we indicated that New York had joined New Jersey in legalizing adult use cannabis. Acreage has a strong footprint in both of these densely populated states, and we're building out additional infrastructure in preparation for adult use. We expect to command significant leadership positions in both states and be in a great position to capitalize on the significant growth potential from adult use sales. In New York, We were happy to see that the legislation included provisions that would improve the existing medical program, allow vertically integrated operators to continue and wholesale their products to any retailer that allows operators to increase the number of their dispensaries. We expect adult use sales to begin in New York in late 2022 after the regulatory commission is established and regulations are finalized. The bill to allow adult use cannabis sales in New Jersey was signed into law in February 2021, and the Cannabis Regulatory Commission was stood up in April. Regulations are expected to be released in the third week of August. Although this puts us on a path to start selling it into the adult use market in New Jersey in Q4 this year, we expect some delays and anticipate sales most likely beginning in early 2022. Moving very quickly, adult use was legalized in Connecticut in June of this year, with the law becoming effective in July. We expect the rollout of adult use in Connecticut to begin in the second half of 2022. We currently operate three successful dispensaries in Connecticut, and we will ensure that these are ready for the expanded market when it does open. The final two states we're watching carefully are Ohio and Pennsylvania. Although no concrete announcements have been made yet in these two key states, we expect the push for adult use will continue. This could lead to adult use sales in these states in 2023 or 2024. This bodes well for acreage as these states are the epicenter of our core footprint and the strength of our investment thesis longer term. As I said in our last call, we have developed a focused strategy that Acreage will follow as it pursues its near-term goals. We remain focused on three key strategic objectives, driving profitability, strengthening our balance sheet, and accelerating our growth in our core markets. The successful execution of our plan against these objectives will lead to a continued improvement in our financial performance which will benefit all of Acreage's stakeholders over the long term. Since the beginning of the year, the entire leadership team has been charting a clear path that will allow us to successfully achieve our near-term goals. First, we needed to articulate our strategy clearly and concisely, both internally and externally. This was necessary to focus the organization only on those things that would make a successful organization and to help our stakeholders understand our path forward. This step was completed in the first quarter of 2021 and communicated as part of our Q1 earnings release. Next, we had to ensure that our focus strategy would have meaningful impacts on our profitability. In the first quarter of 2021, Acreage achieved its first quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA ever. We built upon this in the second quarter of 2021 with the financial results that we just communicated. It is our intention and expectation we will continue to show sequential improvements in our adjusted EBITDA over the coming quarters. Once our EBITDA was trending in the right direction, we took steps to strengthen our balance sheet. The sale of our floor operation and the cash flow that it provided allowed us to reduce our overall debt in the second quarter of 2021 and put cash on our balance sheet to fund future operations and expansions. We still believe, however, that we can make further improvements to our balance sheet. The financial profile of Acreage has improved dramatically in the last few quarters, and we believe that opportunities exist in the market for additional sources of capital at attractive rates and terms. We continue to explore options to further bolster our balance sheet to the point that it's the core strength for the company once again. The final step on our path is accelerating our growth and our core markets. In this regard, we have recently undertaken several key actions. In New Jersey, we are currently one of the only New Jersey operators to have fully built out our dispensary footprint. Our aim is to complement this retail presence with strong cultivation capabilities. We're on schedule to complete the expansion of our Egg Harbor and Sewell cultivation facilities in the first half of 2022. These facilities will supply all of the product required for sale at our retail dispensaries, as well as allow us to expand our presence in the wholesale market. We are on track to be the leader in New Jersey as soon as belt news sales begin. In New York, we're gearing up for the introduction of adult use in 2022. We intend to increase our retail presence and are currently sourcing additional retail locations in key areas. We have also begun the expansion of Syracuse cultivation facility that will see us become one of the premier cultivators in the state. While we have very strong businesses and attractive markets in New Jersey and New York, and are gearing up for the launch of adult use in those states. We are also exploring other opportunities to accelerate our growth in our core markets. In Pennsylvania, where we have produced a high-quality premium brand which achieves significant patient demand, we're exploring opportunities to expand our production capabilities. In Massachusetts, we will soon complete the construction of our Lemonster Edibles kitchen and are also exploring opportunities to expand both our retail presence and cultivation capacity in the state. These projects will enable us to expand our premium brands and deliver higher revenue in both these higher growth markets. Since the end of Q2, we have launched a new brand in Illinois called Super Flux, which is available in both our dispensaries as well as over 50 wholesale dispensary partners. The Superflux premium brand is intended to target the high-value cannabis connoisseur by celebrating the craft of cannabis with live resin vapes and concentrates. We have plans to roll it out in additional states in the coming months. In addition, we are working to complete the purchase and integration of our managed service partners operation in Ohio. Once this is complete, our financial results will include the operations of a market leader in that state. We have the right to win in these attractive markets, and we are well positioned to take very strong leadership positions in all these states, which should drive outside shareholder value for the foreseeable future. We expect to accelerate our growth in our core markets, primarily through new dispensary openings and cultivation expansion projects, and we may also explore bolt-on acquisitions where it makes sense. I would like to close by recapping the most important items from today's call. Our financial performance continues to improve. The second quarter of 2021 showed continued sequential improvements in both revenue and adjusted EBITDA. Our adjusted EBITDA of $8.1 million for the quarter and our adjusted EBITDA margin of 18.3% established new benchmarks for ACRDS that we will strive to beat in the upcoming quarters. We have strengthened our balance sheet and have plans to continue with that exercise. Finally, we have taken several steps to accelerate our growth in our core markets through continued capital investment and renewed marketing and product innovation initiatives. The future continues to look bright for Acreage and its shareholders. Finally, I would like to thank our associates for their continued hard work and loyalty. The passion with which they serve our patients and customers is the main reason for our success, and it will serve as the foundation for our future growth and prosperity. With that, I will now have the operator open the line for questions.
At this time, if you would like to ask a question, please press star 1 on your telephone keypad. And your first question comes from the line of Vivian Acer with Cowan.
Hi, good morning. Very good operating leverage in the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA coming in well ahead of our expectations. Seems like your G&A has come down considerably. Surely that's a function of the portfolio cleanup that you guys have successfully conducted. But can you just comment on where you see kind of run rate expenses? Is there anything one-off in nature where we should expect a sequential kind of normalization of your G&A expense? Thanks.
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