Stockwatch Commentary Canadian cannabis grower Hexo Corp. (HEXO) lost five cents to 16.5 cents on 12.1 million shares, after doling out another ugly batch of quarterly financials. It is also going ahead with a painful share rollback at a ratio of 1 for 14.
For the fiscal first quarter ended Oct. 31, Hexo took in revenue of $35.7-million, a drop from $42.3-million in the fourth quarter and a disappointment next to analysts' predictions of $42-million. Indeed, this is Hexo's lowest revenue since the quarter ended April 30, 2021. This is all the more notable in light of the fact that Hexo spent the rest of 2021 closing three major takeovers (Zenabis, 48North and Redecan) valued collectively at $1.2-billion. While the splashy deals helped send Hexo's revenue to a peak of $52.7-million in the quarter ended Jan. 31, 2022, the gains clearly did not last.
Nor did they lead to profits. Today's financials showed a net loss for the October quarter of $52.0-million, and even after a heaping helping of accounting magic, adjusted EBITDA came to negative $600,000. Hexo's management, by now well practised at finding silver linings, pointed out that these numbers represent "incredible progress" from the fourth quarter, when net loss was $102.3-million and adjusted EBITDA was negative $7.4-million. It patted itself on the back for its "substantial" cost reductions and "laser focus" on improving its position.
Investors had their own area of laser focus, and did not like what they saw. Among the lasting effects of the 2021 shopping spree was the toll that it took on Hexo's balance sheet. The company was swimming in about $280-million of total debt as of Oct. 31 (although it repaid $40-million upon maturity earlier this month) and is worrisomely close to breaching a debt covenant that requires a minimum cash balance of $20-million (U.S.). With that in mind, its auditors have flagged "substantial doubt as to the ability of the company to meet its obligations as they come due." Hexo in turn indicated that an equity financing or perhaps another debt financing is all but imminent.
Speaking of equity, Hexo's shares are about to undergo their second rollback in as many years. Investors already went through a 1-for-4 rollback in December, 2020. The goal at the time was to rescue Hexo's imperiled U.S. listing, as the stock was then trading below the minimum threshold of $1 (U.S.). Alas, the stock once again fell below the minimum threshold earlier this year, prompting Hexo to mull another rollback of anywhere from 1 for 2 to 1 for 14. It will now go for the top end of the range with a 1-for-14 rollback this Monday, Dec. 19. The share count will then be 42.9 million, and the share price -- based on today's close -- will be a little over $2. For context, the stock's all-time high in 2019, once adjusted for both rollbacks, will effectively be $632.