Universal Display Corp \pa\: Form 10-Q for the period ended Sep 30, 2024

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes above.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This discussion and analysis contains some “forward-looking statements.” Forward-looking statements concern possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of our business strategies and customer relationships. These statements often include words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate,” “seek,” “will,” “may” or similar expressions. These statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our experience in the industry, as well as our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors that we believe are appropriate in these circumstances.

As you read and consider this discussion and analysis, you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. You should understand that these statements involve substantial risk and uncertainty and are not guarantees of future performance or results. They depend on many factors that are discussed further in the sections entitled (Risk Factors) in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as supplemented by disclosures in Item 1A of Part II below. Changes or developments in any of these areas could affect our financial results or results of operations and could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in the forward-looking statements.

All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this report or the documents incorporated by reference, as the case may be. We do not undertake any duty to update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this report or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

OVERVIEW

We are a leader in the research, development and commercialization of organic light emitting diode (OLED) technologies and materials for use in display applications, such as mobile phones, televisions, monitors, wearables, tablets, portable media devices, notebook computers, personal computers and automotive applications, as well as specialty and general lighting products. Since 1994, we have been engaged and expect to continue to be primarily engaged, in funding and performing research and development activities relating to OLED technologies and materials, and commercializing these technologies and materials. We derive our revenue primarily from the following:

• sales of OLED materials for evaluation, development and commercial manufacturing;
• intellectual property and technology licensing;
• technology development and support, including third-party collaboration efforts and providing support to third parties for commercialization of their OLED products; and
• contract research services in the areas of chemical materials synthesis research, development and commercialization for non-OLED applications.

Material sales relate to our sale of OLED materials for incorporation into our customers’ commercial OLED products or for their OLED development and evaluation activities. Material sales are generally recognized at the time title passes, which is typically at the time of shipment or at the time of delivery, depending upon the contractual agreement between the parties.

We receive license and royalty payments under certain commercial, development and technology evaluation agreements, some of which are non-refundable advances. These payments may include royalty and license fees made pursuant to license agreements and also license fees included as part of certain commercial supply agreements. These payments are included in the estimate of total contract consideration by customer and recognized as revenue over the contract term based on material units sold at the estimated per unit fee over the life of the contract.

On December 2, 2022, we entered into a commercial patent license agreement with Samsung Display Co., Ltd. (SDC), replacing a previous license agreement that had been in place since 2018. This agreement, which covers the manufacture and sale of specified OLED display materials, was effective as of January 1, 2023 and lasts through the end of 2027 with an additional two-year extension option for SDC. Under this agreement, we are being paid a license fee, which includes quarterly and annual payments over the agreement term of five years. The agreement conveys to SDC the non-exclusive right to use certain of our intellectual property assets for a limited period of time that is less than the estimated life of the assets.

At the same time that we entered into the current commercial license agreement with SDC, we also entered into a material purchase agreement with SDC, which lasts for the same term as the license agreement and is subject to the same extension option. This new material purchase agreement replaced a previous purchase agreement that had been in place since 2018. Under the material purchase agreement, SDC agrees to purchase from us a minimum amount of red and green phosphorescent emitter materials for use in the manufacture of licensed products. This minimum commitment is subject to SDC’s requirements for phosphorescent emitter materials and our ability to meet these requirements over the term of the supplemental agreement.

In 2015, we entered into an OLED patent license agreement and an OLED commercial supply agreement with LG Display Co., Ltd. (LG Display), which were effective as of January 1, 2015. The terms of these agreements were extended by a January 1, 2021 amendment through the end of 2025. The patent license agreement provides LG Display a non-exclusive, royalty bearing portfolio license to make and sell OLED displays under our patent portfolio. The patent license calls for license fees, prepaid royalties and running royalties on licensed products. The OLED commercial supply agreement provides for the sales of materials for use by LG Display, which may include phosphorescent emitters and host materials. The agreements provide for certain other minimum obligations relating to the volume of material sales anticipated over the life of the agreements as well as minimum royalty revenue.

In 2023, we entered into new long-term, multi-year agreements with BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd. (BOE). Under these agreements, we have granted BOE non-exclusive license rights under various patents owned or controlled by us to manufacture and sell OLED display products. We also supply phosphorescent OLED materials to BOE for use in its licensed products.

In 2019, we entered into an evaluation and commercial supply relationship with Wuhan China Star Optoelectronics Semiconductor Display Technology Co., Ltd. (CSOT). In 2020, we entered into long-term, multi-year agreements with CSOT. Under these agreements, we have granted CSOT non-exclusive license rights under various patents owned or controlled by us to manufacture and sell OLED display products. We also supply phosphorescent OLED materials to CSOT for use in its licensed products.

In 2024, we entered into new long-term, multi-year agreements with Visionox Technology, Inc. (Visionox). Under these agreements, we have granted Visionox non-exclusive license rights under various patents owned or controlled by us to manufacture and sell OLED display products. Additionally, we supply phosphorescent OLED materials to Visionox for use in its licensed products.

In 2016, we entered into long-term, multi-year OLED patent license and material purchase agreements with Tianma Micro-electronics Co., Ltd. (Tianma). Under the license agreement, we have granted Tianma non-exclusive license rights under various patents owned or controlled by us to manufacture and sell OLED display products. The license agreement calls for license fees and running royalties on Tianma’s sales of licensed products. Additionally, we supply phosphorescent OLED materials to Tianma for use in its licensed products. In 2021, we mutually agreed to extend the terms of both the patent license and material purchase agreements for an additional multi-year term.

In 2016, we acquired Adesis, Inc. (Adesis) which has operations in New Castle and Wilmington, Delaware. Adesis is a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) that provides support services on a contractual basis to third-party customers in the OLED, pharma, biotech, catalysis and other industries. As of September 30, 2024, Adesis employed a team of 137 research scientists, chemists, engineers and laboratory technicians. Prior to our acquisition of Adesis, we utilized more than 50% of Adesis’ technology service and production output. We continue to utilize a significant portion of its technology research capacity for the benefit of our OLED technology development, and Adesis uses the remaining capacity to operate as a CDMO by providing contract research services for non-OLED applications to third-party customers in the above-mentioned industries. Contract research services revenue is earned by providing chemical materials synthesis research, development and commercialization for non-OLED applications on a contractual basis for those third-party customers.

In June 2020, a wholly-owned subsidiary, OVJP Corporation (OVJP Corp), was formed as a Delaware corporation. Based in California, OVJP Corp was founded to advance the commercialization of our proprietary Organic Vapor Jet Printing (OVJP) technology. As of September 30, 2024, OVJP Corp employed a team of 26 research, mechanical, electrical and software engineers and laboratory technicians. As a direct printing technique, OVJP technology has the potential to offer high deposition rates for large-area OLEDs. In addition, OVJP technology reduces OLED material waste associated with use of a shadow mask (i.e., the waste of material that deposits on the shadow mask itself when fabricating an OLED). By comparison to inkjet printing, an OVJP process does not use liquid solvents and therefore the OLED materials utilized are not limited by their viscosity or solvent solubility. OVJP also avoids generation of solvent wastes and eliminates the additional step of removing residual solvent from the OLED device. We believe the successful implementation of the OVJP technology has the potential to increase the addressable market for large-size OLED panels while also serving another potential growth market for our proprietary PHOLED materials and technologies.

In February 2021, we announced the establishment of a new manufacturing site in Shannon, Ireland and an agreement between UDC Ireland Limited and PPG for the production of our OLED materials. We purchased the site during September 2023. When fully operational, the new facility is expected to double our production capacity and allow for the diversification of our manufacturing base for phosphorescent emitters. The first phase of facility improvements has been completed and operations commenced in June 2022.

We also generate technology development and support revenue earned from development and technology evaluation agreements and commercialization assistance fees.

We anticipate fluctuations in our annual and quarterly results of operations due to uncertainty regarding, among other factors:

• the timing, cost and volume of sales of our OLED materials;
• the timing of our receipt of license fees and royalties, as well as fees for future technology development and evaluation;
• the timing and magnitude of expenditures we may incur in connection with our ongoing research and development and patent-related activities; and
• the timing and financial consequences of our formation of new business relationships and alliances.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Comparison of the Three Months Ended September 30, 2024 and 2023

Revenue

Our total material sales were $83.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $92.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, a decrease of 10% with an increase in unit material volume of 1%. The decrease in material sales was primarily due to customer mix.

• Green emitter sales for the three months ended September 30, 2024, which include our yellow-green emitters, were $62.6 million as compared to $68.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, with unit material volumes decreasing by 1%.
• Red emitter sales for the three months ended September 30, 2024 were $20.1 million as compared to $22.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, with unit material volumes increasing by 6%.

Revenue from royalty and license fees was $74.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to $45.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of 62%. The increase was primarily the result of changes in customer mix and the change in the cumulative catch-up adjustment between periods as described below.

The cumulative catch-up adjustment recorded to revenue arising from changes in estimates of transaction price, net was an increase of $5.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to a decrease of $1.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023. For the three months ended September 30, 2024, the adjustment resulted from an increase in the average price per gram that was primarily due to the decrease in anticipated demand by several of our customers over the remaining lives of their contracts.

Contract research services revenue was $3.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to $2.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of 35%. The increase in contract research services revenue was primarily due to the timing of completion of several contract research projects by our subsidiary, Adesis, during the three months ended September 30, 2024. Revenue from contract research services consists of revenue earned by Adesis, which provides support services on a contractual basis to third-party customers in the pharma, biotech, catalysis and other industries.

Cost of sales

Cost of sales for the three months ended September 30, 2024 increased by $1.6 million as compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023, primarily due to product mix and an increase in unit material volume. As a result of the increase in revenue from royalty and license fees, partially offset by a decrease in revenue from material sales, gross margin for the three months ended September 30, 2024 increased by $19.0 million as compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023, with gross margin as a percentage of revenue increasing to 78% from 76%.

Research and development

Research and development expenses increased to $36.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $33.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023. The increase in research and development expenses was primarily due to higher operating costs, including increased PPG development activity.

Selling, general and administrative

Selling, general and administrative expenses decreased to $15.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $18.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023. The decrease in selling, general and administrative expenses was primarily due to lower employee-related expenses, including incentive and stock-based compensation expenses.

Amortization of acquired technology and other intangible assets

Amortization of acquired technology and other intangible assets was $4.6 million for both three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023.

Patent costs

Patent costs decreased to $2.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $2.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023.

Royalty and license expense

Royalty and license expense increased to $154,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $81,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2023.

Interest and other income, net

Interest income, net was $10.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $7.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023. The increase in interest income, net was primarily due to an increase in bond yields on available-for-sale investments held during the three months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023 as well as higher available-for-sale investment balances. Other income (loss), net primarily consisted of net exchange gains and losses on foreign currency transactions, net investment gains and losses, and rental income. We recorded other income, net of $3.8 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to other loss, net of $1.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023.

Income tax expense

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and foreign jurisdictions. The effective income tax rate was 17.9% and 4.4% for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and we recorded income tax expense of $14.5 million and $2.4 million, respectively, for those periods. During the third quarter of 2023, a change in the U.S. tax regulations associated with the ability to credit Chinese withholding taxes, as well as a change in the capitalization rules for research and development expenses resulted in a decrease in the effective income tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2023.

Comparison of the Nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023

Revenue

Our total material sales were $272.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $239.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of 13% with an increase in unit material volume of 19%. The increase in material sales was primarily due to strengthened demand for our emitter materials, partially offset by changes in customer mix.

• Green emitter sales for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, which include our yellow-green emitters, were $205.0 million as compared to $180.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, with unit material volumes increasing by 17%.
• Red emitter sales for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 were $63.3 million as compared to $54.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, with unit material volumes increasing by 27%.

Revenue from royalty and license fees was $202.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to $165.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of 22%. The increase in royalty and license fees was primarily the result of higher unit material volume and changes in customer mix.

The cumulative catch-up adjustment recorded to revenue arising from changes in estimates of transaction price, net was an increase of $6.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to $5.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, the adjustment resulted from an increase in the average price per gram that was primarily due to the decrease in anticipated demand by several of the Company's customers over the remaining lives of their contracts.

Contract research services revenue was $10.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to $12.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, a decrease of 15%. The decrease in contract research services revenue was primarily due to the timing of completion of several contract research projects by our subsidiary, Adesis, during the nine months ended September 30, 2024. Revenue from contract research services consists of revenue earned by Adesis, which provides support services on a contractual basis to third-party customers in the pharma, biotech, catalysis and other industries.

Cost of sales

Cost of sales for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 increased by $11.8 million as compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023, primarily due to an increase in the level of materials sales and product mix, partially offset by a $4.0 million decrease in inventory reserve expense. As a result of the increase in revenue from royalty and licenses fees and material sales, gross margin for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 increased by $55.5 million as compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023, with gross margin as a percentage of revenue increasing to 77% from 76%.

Research and development

Research and development expenses increased to $110.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $96.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase in research and development expenses was primarily due to higher operating costs, including increased PPG development activity, employee-related expenses and contract research costs.

Selling, general and administrative

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased to $54.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $50.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase in selling, general and administrative expenses was primarily due to an increase in employee-related expenses, including higher stock-based compensation and salaries expenses.

Amortization of acquired technology and other intangible assets

Amortization of acquired technology and other intangible assets was $13.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $11.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was due to the commencement of amortization expense associated with the Merck KGaA patent acquisition that was completed on April 28, 2023.

Patent costs

Patent costs decreased to $6.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $7.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023.

Royalty and license expense

Royalty and license expense increased to $1.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $414,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was due to a one-time expense of $1.5 million in connection with an amendment to our existing amended license agreement, effective as of October 9, 1997, with Princeton University and the University of Southern California.

Interest and other income, net

Interest income, net was $30.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $20.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase in interest income, net was primarily due to an increase in bond yields on available-for-sale investments held during the nine months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023 as well as higher available-for-sale investment balances. Other income (loss), net primarily consisted of net exchange gains and losses on foreign currency transactions, net investment gains and losses, and rental income. We recorded other income, net of $416,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 as compared to other loss, net of $3.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023.

Income tax expense

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and foreign jurisdictions. The effective income tax rate was 18.8% and 16.8% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and we recorded income tax expense of $40.8 million and $28.5 million, respectively, for those periods.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our principal sources of liquidity are our cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments. As of September 30, 2024, we had cash and cash equivalents of $79.6 million, short-term investments of $472.0 million, and long-term U.S. Government bonds investments of $378.8 million for a total of $930.4 million. This compares to cash and cash equivalents of $92.0 million, short-term investments of $422.1 million, and long-term U.S. Government bond investments of $285.5 million for a total of $799.6 million as of December 31, 2023.

Cash provided by operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 was $219.0 million resulting from $176.1 million of net income, $39.5 million from non-cash items including stock-based compensation, depreciation and amortization of intangibles, and $3.4 million due to changes in our operating assets and liabilities. Changes in our operating assets and liabilities related to a decrease in accounts receivable of $52.2 million and an increase in accounts payable and accrued expenses of $9.4 million, partially offset by an increase in other assets of $43.7 million, a decrease in deferred revenue of $10.0 million, a decrease in other liabilities of $4.3 million and an increase in inventory of $163,000.

Cash provided by operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 was $117.7 million resulting from $141.0 million of net income and $50.7 million from non-cash items including depreciation, stock-based compensation and amortization of intangibles, partially offset by $74.0 million reduction due to changes in our operating assets and liabilities. Changes in our operating assets and liabilities related to an increase in accounts receivable of $29.5 million, an increase in other assets of $29.4 million, a decrease in other liabilities of $28.7 million and a decrease in accounts payable and accrued expense of $32,000, partially offset by an increase in deferred revenue of $11.8 million and a decrease in inventory of $1.8 million.

Cash used in investing activities was $167.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $75.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was due to timing of maturities and purchases of investments resulting in net purchases of $137.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to net sales and maturities of $43.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, partially offset by a decrease in purchases of intangibles and property, plant and equipment of $88.8 million. The decrease in the purchases of intangibles and property, plant and equipment during the nine months ended September 30, 2024 was primarily due to the Merck KGaA patent acquisition on April 28, 2023.

Cash used in financing activities was $64.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to $56.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was due to an increase in the cash payment of dividends in the current year of $7.8 million and an increase in the payment of withholding taxes related to stock-based compensation to employees of $356,000, partially offset by an increase in the proceeds from the issuance of common stock of $244,000.

Working capital was $810.7 million as of September 30, 2024, as compared to $798.3 million as of December 31, 2023. The increase was primarily due to increases in short-term investments and other current assets, partially offset by a decrease in accounts receivable.

We anticipate, based on our internal forecasts and assumptions relating to our operations (including, among others, assumptions regarding our working capital requirements, the progress of our research and development efforts, the availability of sources of funding for our research and development work, and the timing and costs associated with the preparation, filing, prosecution, maintenance, defense and enforcement of our patents and patent applications), that we have sufficient cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments to meet our obligations for at least the next twelve months.

We believe that potential additional financing sources for us include long-term and short-term borrowings and public and private sales of our equity and debt securities. It should be noted, however, that additional funding may be required in the future for research, development and commercialization of our OLED technologies and materials, to obtain, maintain and enforce patents respecting these technologies and materials, and for working capital and other purposes, the timing and amount of which are difficult to ascertain. There can be no assurance that additional funds will be available to us when needed, on commercially reasonable terms or at all, particularly in the current economic environment.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our Consolidated Financial Statements, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. The preparation of these Consolidated Financial Statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect our reported assets and liabilities, revenues and expenses, and other financial information. Actual results may differ significantly from our estimates under other assumptions and conditions.

We believe that our accounting policies related to revenue recognition and deferred revenue, inventories, and income taxes are our “critical accounting policies” as contemplated by the SEC.

Refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, for additional discussion of our critical accounting policies.

Contractual Obligations

Refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 for a discussion of our contractual obligations.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of September 30, 2024, we had no off-balance sheet arrangements in the nature of guarantee contracts, retained or contingent interests in assets transferred to unconsolidated entities (or similar arrangements serving as credit, liquidity or market risk support to unconsolidated entities for any such assets), or obligations (including contingent obligations) arising out of variable interests in unconsolidated entities providing financing, liquidity, market risk or credit risk support to us, or that engage in leasing, hedging or research and development services with us.

We do not utilize financial instruments for trading purposes and hold no derivative financial instruments, other financial instruments or derivative commodity instruments that could expose us to significant market risk other than our investments disclosed in “Fair Value Measurements” in Note 4 to the Consolidated Financial Statements. We generally invest in investment grade financial instruments to reduce our exposure related to investments. Our primary market risk exposure with regard to such financial instruments is to changes in interest rates, which would impact interest income earned on investments. However, based upon the conservative nature of our investment portfolio and current experience, we do not believe a decrease in investment yields would have a material negative effect on our interest income.

Substantially all our revenue is derived from outside of North America. All revenue is primarily denominated in U.S. dollars and therefore we bear no significant foreign exchange risk.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of September 30, 2024. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report, are effective to provide reasonable assurance that the information required to be disclosed by us in reports filed or submitted under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is (i) recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and (ii) accumulated and communicated to our management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding disclosure. However, a controls system, no matter how well designed and operated, cannot provide absolute assurance that the objectives of the controls system are met, and no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within a company have been detected.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended September 30, 2024 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

There have been no material changes to the risk factors previously discussed in Part I, Item 1A “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.