Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Revenue for Q2 2021 was $31.2 million, representing a 62% increase year-over-year and an 11% sequential increase [9][37] - Orders totaled $41.7 million, a 69% increase year-over-year and a 24% sequential increase [10][37] - Gross margin for the quarter was 39%, up from 30% in the same quarter last year [38][51] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Synthetic Biology (synbio) revenue was $12.9 million, with orders exceeding $20 million for the quarter [10][41] - Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) revenue reached $17 million, a 120% year-over-year increase [44] - Biopharma revenue was $1.3 million, reflecting only a portion of the upfront fees from partnerships [27][47] - Data Storage engineering progress was made towards achieving $100 per terabyte [32][93] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - Americas revenue was $18.6 million, up from $12.1 million year-over-year [48] - EMEA revenue was $10 million, compared to $6.2 million in the same period last year [48] - APAC revenue increased to $2.7 million from $0.9 million, indicating a strong rebound in Asia [49] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focusing on expanding its customer base and product mix in synthetic biology [11][12] - Plans to operationalize the "Factory of the Future" in Portland by 2022 to support growth [13][14] - The competitive landscape is being monitored, particularly regarding enzymatic synthesis technologies [15][16] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management noted strong revenue growth and order trends across all business segments despite the ongoing pandemic [8][9] - The company is optimistic about continued growth in NGS and synbio, with expectations for further diversification of revenue streams [63] - There are concerns regarding supply chain headwinds, but these have been factored into the financial guidance [56][89] Other Important Information - The company has increased its fiscal year 2021 revenue guidance from $110 million to a range of $121 million to $129 million [57] - The gross margin guidance for the year has been raised to 36% to 38% [58] - The company ended the quarter with approximately $555 million in cash and short-term investments [38][55] Q&A Session Summary Question: Competitive landscape regarding distributed models for oligos and gene synthesis - Management indicated that the distributed model is currently not competitive due to quality differences, with their offerings being superior [68][69] Question: Increase in gross margin guidance - The increase is attributed to a higher share of NGS products and leveraging fixed costs [71] Question: Academic customer trends and geographic dynamics - Academic sector orders improved significantly, particularly in Asia and Europe, indicating a strong recovery [73][74] Question: Biopharma partnership expectations and development timelines - The biopharma funnel is strong, with ongoing partnerships and programs, although timelines are dependent on partners [79][103] Question: Academic market rebound and its impact on NGS - Academic orders increased by approximately 20%, which positions the company well for the second half of the year [81][82] Question: Supply headwinds and guidance - Supply chain issues are included in the guidance, and the company is actively working to resolve them [88][89] Question: Data storage milestones and cost metrics - The company is progressing towards its goal of $100 per terabit, having achieved significant engineering milestones [93][96]
Twist Bioscience(TWST) - 2021 Q2 - Earnings Call Transcript