Irobot Corp IRBT

Continues to Make Progress on "iRobot Elevate" Strategy 

Board of Directors Initiates Review of Strategic Alternatives

BEDFORD, Mass., March 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT), a leader in consumer robots, today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 28, 2024.

"2024 was a transformational year for iRobot, marked by the continued and successful execution of our five-point iRobot Elevate turnaround strategy as we've meaningfully reduced operating losses, improved gross margins and optimized cash flow," said Gary Cohen, iRobot CEO. "iRobot has defined the robotic floorcare category for more than 30 years, and we remain committed to growing and evolving our business across smart home categories amidst a dynamic operating landscape. As we move ahead, we will continue to take decisive action to reclaim our position as the industry leader and build on iRobot's strong foundation centered around our globally recognized, iconic brand, Roomba."

Mr. Cohen continued, "Yesterday, we announced the largest product launch in iRobot's history, better positioning iRobot as the leader in the category that we created. Importantly, this strong pipeline of breakthrough new products is expected to be margin-accretive compared to our legacy products and should begin to support year-over-year revenue growth in 2025. We plan to leverage that top-line growth with our lower cost structure to drive improved profitability, and we remain on track to achieve gross-margin expansion and improved cash flow from operations this year."

The Company has made notable progress strengthening its financial foundation over the past year. Since implementing its operational restructuring plan in January 2024, iRobot has significantly reduced its headcount by more than 50%, lowered and sharpened sales and marketing expense through centralization and consolidation, and decreased inventory and cash outflows. The Company also achieved a significant reduction in the cost of its products through strategically transforming its R&D and supply chain model and leveraging joint design and contract manufacturing partnerships while increasing innovation and improvements to product features, quality, and software. These collective actions contributed to a meaningful reduction in GAAP and non-GAAP operating expenses in 2024 compared with the prior year. As a continuation of the steps the Company has taken to date, iRobot's Board of Directors has also initiated a formal strategic review to evaluate a broad range of alternatives, including, but not limited to, refinancing the Company's debt and exploring a potential sale or strategic transaction. During this process, the Company remains squarely focused on executing its business strategy and meeting the evolving needs of its customers.

Marketing Highlights

• iRobot's 2025 lineup, available across North America and select European markets beginning on March 18, includes:
• Roomba^® 105 Vac Robot series, featuring 70x more power-lifting suction (as compared to Roomba® 600 series robots)*,
• Roomba^® 205 DustCompactor^™ Vac Robot and Roomba^® 205 DustCompactor^™ Combo Robot that devours dirt while the industry-leading DustCompactor^™ innovation packs away debris for months,
• Roomba^® Plus 405 Combo Robot + AutoWash^™ Dock that boasts intense suction, deep scrubbing and a maintenance-free dock, and
• Roomba® Plus 505 Combo Robot + AutoWash^™ Dock, featuring PerfectEdge^® Technology to get deep into corners, a hands-free multi-function dock that automatically empties debris, washes and heat-dries mop pads and self-cleans when finished.
  
  
• iRobot has continued to receive overwhelmingly positive media coverage and product reviews around the world, including in Forbes, Vanity Fair, ZDNet, PureWow, ASCII, La Vanguardia, Stuff, and Nord Domotique.

Fourth-Quarter 2024 Financial Results (in millions, except per share amounts and percentages)

Full-Year 2024 Financial Results (in millions, except per share amounts and percentages)

Additional Financial Highlights 

• As of December 28, 2024, the Company's cash and cash equivalents totaled $134.3 million, compared with $99.4 million as of the end of the third quarter of 2024. As previously announced, the Company elected to draw down $40 million of restricted cash to purchase inventory, and received those funds in the fourth quarter. This is reflected in the year-end 2024 total.
• As of December 28, 2024, the Company's inventory totaled $76.0 million, compared with $152.5 million as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2023.
• As of December 28, 2024, iRobot had reduced its total headcount by approximately 51% to 541 since year-end 2023.
• In the fourth quarter of 2024, revenue decreased 47% in the U.S., 34% in Japan, and 44% in EMEA, respectively, over the prior-year period. Excluding the unfavorable foreign currency impact, Japan revenue decreased 31% and EMEA decreased 42% over the prior-year period. Q4 2024 revenue was impacted by higher-than-anticipated promotional spending to stimulate sell-through prior to its 2025 product launch, timing of orders from its largest customer for the holiday season, which was pulled forward into the third quarter of 2024, and ongoing competitive challenges that the Company is addressing with its new product launches.    
• Revenue from mid-tier robots (with an MSRP between $300 and $499) and premium robots (with an MSRP of $500 or more) represented 83% of total robot sales in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with 82% in the same period last year.

Additional Information Regarding the Company's 10-K Disclosure

As will be noted in iRobot's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 28, 2024 (10-K), there can be no assurance that the new product launches will be successful due to potential factors, including, but not limited to consumer demand, competition, macroeconomic conditions, and tariff policies. Given these uncertainties and the implication they may have on the Company's financials, there is substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least 12 months from the date of the issuance of its consolidated 2024 financial statements. Additional information will be included in the 10-K that is filed with the SEC.

Additional Information Regarding the Strategic Review

As part of its continued efforts to further strengthen its liquidity and financial position, the Company has amended its existing term loan and is actively engaged in ongoing collaborative and constructive discussions with its primary lender as the Board continues its strategic review of alternatives for the business.

The Board has not set a timetable for the conclusion of this review, and there can be no assurance that the exploration of strategic alternatives will result in any agreements or transactions. The Company does not intend to disclose developments relating to this process until it determines that further disclosure is appropriate or necessary. The Board has engaged Canaccord Genuity and BofA Securities as its financial advisors for its strategic review.

In addition, the Company appointed Neal Goldman as an independent director to its Board. Mr. Goldman is a seasoned executive with extensive public company board experience and a deep background in strategic planning, financial management and corporate turnaround consulting across the technology and retail industries. The Company provided additional information in a separate press release issued today.

Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2024 Conference Call

In light of these developments, the Company has canceled its fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 results conference call and webcast, originally scheduled for today, March 12, 2025 at 8:30 a.m. ET, and is not providing a 2025 outlook at this time. 

About iRobot Corp.

iRobot is a global consumer robot company that designs and builds thoughtful robots and intelligent home innovations that make life better. iRobot introduced the first Roomba robot vacuum in 2002. Today, iRobot is a global enterprise that has sold more than 50 million robots worldwide. iRobot's product portfolio features technologies and advanced concepts in cleaning, mapping and navigation. Working from this portfolio, iRobot engineers are building robots and smart home devices to help consumers make their homes easier to maintain and healthier places to live. For more information about iRobot, please visit www.irobot.com. 

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which relate to, among other things: the Company's expectations regarding the financial profile and impact of newly launched products in 2025; plans to drive improved profitability; achievement of gross margin expansion and improved cash flow from operations; the Board's review of strategic alternatives for the business; and the Company's business plans and strategies and the anticipated impact thereof. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations, estimates and projections about its business and industry, all of which are subject to change. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance and financial condition, and often contain words such as "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "could," "seek," "see," "will," "may," "would," "might," "potentially," "estimate," "continue," "expect," "target," similar expressions or the negatives of these words or other comparable terminology that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes. All forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and are not guarantees of future results. These and other forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in such statements and, therefore, you should not place undue reliance on any such statements and caution must be exercised in relying on forward-looking statements. Important risk factors that may cause such a difference include, but are not limited to: (i) the Company's ability to obtain capital when desired on favorable terms, if at all; (ii) the Company's ability to realize the benefits of its operational restructuring; (iii) the impact of various global conflicts on the Company's business and general economic conditions; (iv) the Company's ability to implement its business strategy; (v) the risk that disruptions from the operational restructuring will harm the Company's business, including current plans and operations; (vi) the ability of the Company to retain and hire key personnel; (vii) legislative, regulatory and economic developments affecting the Company's business; (viii) general economic and market developments and conditions; (ix) the evolving legal, regulatory and tax regimes under which the Company operates; (x) potential business uncertainty, including changes to existing business relationships that could affect the Company's financial performance; (xi) unpredictability and severity of catastrophic events, including, but not limited to, acts of terrorism or outbreak of war or hostilities; (xii) current supply chain challenges; (xiii) the financial strength of our customers and retailers; (xiv) the impact of any applicable tariffs on goods imported into the United States; (xv) competition; and (xvi) the results and impact of the Board's strategic review of alternatives for the business, as well as the Company's response to any of the aforementioned factors. Additional risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements are included under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's most recent annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC and any subsequent reports on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q or Form 8-K filed from time to time and available at www.sec.gov. While the list of factors presented here is considered representative, no such list should be considered to be a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements. Consequences of material differences in results as compared with those anticipated in the forward-looking statements could include, among other things, business disruption, operational problems, financial loss, legal liability and similar risks, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial condition, results of operations, or liquidity. The forward-looking statements included herein are made only as of the date hereof. The Company does not assume any obligation to publicly provide revisions or updates to any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, should circumstances change, except as otherwise required by securities and other applicable laws.

iRobot Corporation
Explanation of Non-GAAP Measures

In addition to disclosing financial results in accordance with U.S. GAAP, this earnings release contains references to the non-GAAP financial measures described below. We use non-GAAP measures to internally evaluate and analyze financial results. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures provide investors with useful supplemental information about the financial performance of our business, enable comparison of financial results between periods where certain items may vary independent of business performance, and enable comparison of our financial results with other public companies, many of which present similar non-GAAP financial measures.

Our non-GAAP financial measures reflect adjustments based on the following items. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP, and the financial results calculated in accordance with GAAP and reconciliations from these results should be carefully evaluated.

Amortization of Acquired Intangible Assets: Amortization of acquired intangible assets consists of amortization of intangible assets including completed technology, customer relationships, and reacquired distribution rights acquired in connection with business combinations as well as any non-cash impairment charges associated with intangible assets in connection with our past acquisitions. Amortization charges for our acquisition-related intangible assets are inconsistent in size and are significantly impacted by the timing and valuation of our acquisitions. We exclude these charges from our non-GAAP measures to facilitate an evaluation of our current operating performance and comparisons to our past operating performance.

Net Merger, Acquisition and Divestiture (Income) Expense: Net merger, acquisition and divestiture (income) expense primarily consists of transaction fees, professional fees, and transition and integration costs directly associated with mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, including with respect to the iRobot-Amazon Merger. It also includes business combination adjustments including adjustments after the measurement period has ended. During the first quarter of fiscal 2024, the adjustment included the one-time net termination fee received as a result of the termination of the iRobot-Amazon Merger. The occurrence and amount of these costs will vary depending on the timing and size of these transactions. We exclude these charges from our non-GAAP measures to facilitate an evaluation of our current operating performance and comparisons to our past operating performance.

Stock-Based Compensation: Stock-based compensation is a non-cash charge relating to stock-based awards. We exclude this expense as it is a non-cash expense, and we assess our internal operations excluding this expense and believe it facilitates comparisons to the performance of other companies.

Restructuring and Other: Restructuring charges are related to one-time actions associated with realigning resources, enhancing operational productivity and efficiency, or improving our cost structure in support of our strategy. Such actions are not reflective of ongoing operations and include costs primarily associated with severance and related costs, charges related to paused work unrelated to our core business, costs associated with the Chief Executive Officer transition and other non-recurring costs directly associated with resource realignments tied to strategic initiatives or changes in business conditions. We exclude these items from our non-GAAP measures when evaluating our recent and prospective business performance as such items vary significantly based on the magnitude of the action and do not reflect anticipated future operating costs. In addition, these charges do not necessarily provide meaningful insight into the fundamentals of current or past operations of our business.

Gain/Loss on Strategic Investments: Gain/loss on strategic investments includes fair value adjustments, realized gains and losses on the sales of these investments and losses on the impairment of these investments. We exclude these items from our non-GAAP measures because we do not believe they correlate to the performance of our core business and may vary in size based on market conditions and events. We believe that the exclusion of these gains or losses provides investors with a supplemental view of our operational performance.

Debt Issuance Costs: Debt issuance costs include various incremental fees and commissions paid to third parties in connection with the issuance of debt. We exclude these charges from our non-GAAP measures to facilitate an evaluation of our current operating performance and comparisons to our past operating performance.

Income Tax Adjustments: Income tax adjustments include the tax effect of the non-GAAP adjustments, calculated using the appropriate statutory tax rate for each adjustment. We regularly assess the need to record valuation allowances based on the non-GAAP profitability and other factors. We also exclude certain tax items, including the impact from stock-based compensation windfalls/shortfalls, which are not reflective of income tax expense incurred as a result of current period earnings. We believe disclosure of the income tax provision before the effect of such tax items is important to permit investors' consistent earnings comparison between periods.

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SOURCE iRobot Corporation