Continued Growth in Biometrics Business in First Quarter WALL, N.J., May 15
WALL, N.J., May 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- BIO-key International, Inc.
(OTC Bulletin Board: BKYI), a leader in wireless public safety and
finger-based biometric identification solutions, today announced its financial
results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2008.
2008 First Quarter Consolidated Results
Total revenue from continuing operations for the three months ended
March 31, 2008 was $2.5 million representing a decrease of 3.8% from the
$2.6 million reported for the quarter ended December 31, 2007.
BIO-key's gross margin for the first quarter of 2008 was 82.6% compared to
85.6% for the previous quarter. Operating expenses from continuing operations
for the first quarter of 2008 remained flat at $3.0 million compared to the
quarter ended December 31, 2007. BIO-key's operating loss from continuing
operations for the first quarter of 2008 increased by $0.3 million to
($0.9 million) from ($0.6 million) reported in the previous quarter.
"Our quarterly results continue to reflect growing demand in our
biometrics business which we began to see several quarters ago," said Michael
DePasquale, BIO-key's Chief Executive Officer. "During the first quarter of
2008, the Company recognized revenue on several large commercial biometric
orders, as well as from an international voter registration order. We believe
these orders indicate an inflection point in the growth of our biometrics
business in the coming quarters of this year. We are also very excited about
the prospects for our recently deployed initiative with wireless carriers on
handheld devices tailored for public safety use. This business opportunity
enables us to leverage our broad installed base in public safety to drive
sales."
DePasquale concluded, "We are seeing unprecedented industry-wide interest
in biometrics and wireless applications. I believe the market is finally
catching up to our value proposition of biometrically secure identification.
We believe we are well positioned for profitability."
BIO-key's net loss was ($0.9 million) for the first quarter ended
March 31, 2008 compared to a net loss of ($0.6 million) for the fourth quarter
of 2007. The first quarter 2008 net loss per share was ($0.02) compared to a
net loss per share of ($0.02) for the previous quarter.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Consolidated cash and cash equivalents at March 31, 2008 was $0.6 million.
In addition, the Company held approximately $0.2 million in restricted cash at
the conclusion of the first quarter of 2008.
Conference Call Details
BIO-key has scheduled a call for Thursday, May 15th at 9:00 a.m. Eastern
Time to discuss 2008 first quarter financial results. Dialing 303-205-0033
and asking for the BIO-key call at least 10 minutes prior to the start time
can access the conference call live. The conference call will also be
broadcast live over the Internet by logging onto http://www.bio-key.com. A
telephonic replay of the conference call will be available through May 22,
2008 and may be accessed by dialing 303-590-3000 and using the pass code
11114279#. Additionally, an archive of the webcast will be available shortly
after completion of the call on the Company's website (http://www.bio-key.com)
for a period of three months.
About BIO-key
BIO-key International, Inc., headquartered in Wall, New Jersey, develops
and delivers advanced identification solutions and information services to law
enforcement departments, public safety agencies, government and private sector
customers. BIO-key's mobile wireless technology provides first responders
with critical, reliable, real-time data and images from local, state and
national databases. BIO-key's high performance, scalable, cost-effective and
easy-to-deploy biometric finger identification technology accurately
identifies and authenticates users of wireless and enterprise data to improve
security, convenience and privacy and to reduce identity theft. Over 750
police departments in North America use BIO-key solutions, making BIO-key the
leading supplier of mobile and wireless solutions for law enforcement.
(http://www.bio-key.com)
This news release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to
certain risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ
materially from those projected on the basis of these statements. The words
"estimate," "project," "intends," "expects," "believes" and similar
expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such
forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, as well as
assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management
pursuant to the "safe-harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. For a more complete description of these and other risk
factors that may affect the future performance of BIO-key International, see
"Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-KSB and its other
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are cautioned
not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak
only as of the date made. The Company also undertakes no obligation to
disclose any revision to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or
circumstances after the date made or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events.
Company Contact: BIO-key International, Inc.
Bud Yanak
732-359-1113
Investor Contact: DRG&E
Gus Okwu, Managing Director
404-532-0086
SOURCE BIO-key International, Inc.
