When exactEarth announced its quarterly earnings today it came with the added surprise that the company was being acquired Spire Global.
exactEarth said in a release that Spire would be acquiring them for $204.2 million in cash and equity.
Spire is a Virginia based provider of space-based data, analytics and space services founded in 2012 by Peter Platzer and was originally known as NanoSatisfi Inc.
In a separate press release Platzer said “Peter and I share a vision about the opportunity for space-based maritime data and the digitalization of the global maritime industry, and I look forward to pursuing that vision together. I have great respect for the highly experienced team at exactEarth and am excited to continue driving this digital transformation together, serving more customers with a more robust data and solutions platform.”
Peter Mabson, exactEarth CEO added “We will continue to provide world leading services to our existing customers and by joining forces with the Spire team we will be able to bring a new level of enhanced service performance and capabilities to the global maritime market. We believe this transaction provides significant value for our shareholders and reflects positively on the execution by our team to build a leader in the Satellite-AIS industry.”
Spire provided the following rationale on why the acquisition made sense:
- Increases Spire’s customer base by over 75%. In the maritime S-AIS (Satellite-Automatic Identification System) industry, exactEarth will accelerate Spire’s expansion by adding over 150 customers. These customers in the commercial and government sectors will provide substantial cross-selling opportunities of Spire’s data and analytics products.
- Minority indirect ownership stake in IoT provider Myriota, a fast growing player in the low-cost, low-power, secure direct-to-orbit satellite connectivity for Internet of Things. This affords Spire a solid first foothold in this high-growth industry of space-based IoT solutions. exactEarth will retain its board seat.
- Strong Addition to ARR. With approximately 90% of exactEarth’s US$18.2 million LTM revenue under subscription contracts, and a Net Retention Rate of approximately 130%, exactEarth will accelerate Spire’s growth in annual recurring revenue (ARR).
- Expands Historical Database to accelerate AI/ML driven product development. exactEarth’s 10-year archive of AIS data will substantially increase Spire’s historical maritime (AIS) data set, accelerating Spire’s new product offerings and solutions.
- Adds depth of experience to maritime and product development teams. With an average tenure of over 7 years, exactEarth’s experienced sales and product development team will enhance Spire’s global market capability and reach in the maritime industry.
- Expands Spire’s geographic footprint. exactEarth sells to 39 countries around the world.
exactEarth Q3 earnings
exactEarth provided the following Q3 and year-to-date fiscal 2021 highlights:
- Revenue was $6.0 million, up 26% compared to $4.8 million in Q3 2020; revenue Year-to-Date (“YTD”) was $17.3 million, up 30% compared to $13.3 million in the same period last year.
- Subscription Services revenue was $5.3 million, up 18% compared to $4.5 million in Q3 2020; Subscription Services revenue YTD was $15.3 million, up 26% compared to $12.2 million in the same period last year.
- Adjusted EBITDA was a gain of $661 thousand compared to a loss of ($130) thousand in Q3 2020; Adjusted EBITDA YTD was a gain of $2.4 million compared to a loss of ($429) thousand in the same period last year.
- Cash generated from operations was $395 thousand compared to $134 thousand in Q3 2020; Cash generated from operations YTD was $70 thousand compared to cash used in operations of ($3.0) million in the same period last year.
- Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments were $7.0 million at the end of Q3 2021 compared to $7.5 million at the end of Fiscal 2020.