Shares of Livongo Health (LVGO), maker of remote patient-monitoring solutions, soared 12% to an all-time high Thursday after the company reported first-quarter results. Revenue grew 115% to $68.8 million, better than the preliminary results of $65.5 million to $66.5 million that the company released a month ago.
GAAP net loss was $5.6 million, or $0.06 per share, as compared to a $14.4 million loss in the period a year ago. Excluding amortization, some one-time tax charges, and over $8 million in stock compensation expense, the company had non-GAAP earnings of $0.03, while analysts were expecting a loss on that basis.
Livongo makes a virtual-care platform that enables remote monitoring of patients with chronic health problems. Its smartphone-based software collects information from wirelessly connected monitors, provides information to patients, and connects them to health coaches and medical professionals. The company has partnered with DexCom for blood glucose monitoring in diabetes patients and connects to blood-pressure monitors for patients with hypertension (high blood pressure).
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COVID-19 is accelerating Livongo's virtual-care solutions
The company said on the conference call that the pandemic accelerated the virtual-care delivery model, and the company's user numbers certainly bear that out. Livongo enrolled 105,827 new members in the first quarter after adding only 14,868 in Q4. There are now 328,510 enrolled Livongo members, about twice the total of a year ago.
People with chronic health conditions such as diabetes and hypertension are at greater risk for complications with COVID-19, so Livongo's corporate clients, which are healthcare systems and employers that sign contracts to make the platform available to their members, looked to the company to help protect their most vulnerable populations. Livongo signed a record 380 new clients in the quarter for a total of 1,252 -- 77% growth year over year.
The company also said it had recently signed one of the largest contracts in its history. The company was selected by the Government Employee Health Association, a non-profit provider of medical and dental plans covering over 2 million federal employees, retirees, and their dependents.
Livongo has added solutions for diabetes prevention and behavioral health, and growth from those new products should add to strong growth in the company's core product for diabetes monitoring. According to the chief financial officer, 18% of its clients have bought more than one solution from Livongo, indicating that it's having some success cross-selling its newer offerings.
Looking forward
Livongo expects the rapid growth to continue this year. The company guided for revenue in the second quarter between $73 million and $75 million, compared with the analyst consensus of $73.7 million. For the full year, Livongo raised its revenue forecast to $290 million to $303 million, or growth of 70% to 78%, compared with the 73% growth Wall Street is expecting.
The company says that it expects to be profitable in 2021 on an "adjusted EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization]" basis, which many people would say doesn't quite meet the standard of real profit. But the company is in strong financial condition, with $219 million in cash and no long-term debt, and it only consumed $10 million in operating cash flow in Q1.
Livongo was on a path of rapid growth before this, but results in the first quarter showed that the COVID-19 pandemic is another strong tailwind for the healthcare company. Investors were appreciating that and bidding up the stock price Thursday.
