Trading Update

RNS Number : 4528M

Windward Ltd.

12 January 2023

 

12 January 2023

Windward Ltd.

("Windward", "the Company")

Trading update

Positive FY22 trading with 40% growth in US Government and Commercial segment ACV, delivering overall growth of 20% in ACV and 23% in revenue

Strategic initiative to reach EBITDA breakeven earlier than previously guided

Three-year contract win with American supermajor energy firm

Windward (LON: WNWD), the leading Maritime AI company, provides an update on trading for the year ended 31 December 2022 ("FY22").

The Company is pleased to report a year of positive momentum, with Annual Contract Value (ACV)¹ at 31 December 2022 increasing 20% to $25.5m, driven by new customer wins, including long-term contracts with some of the largest participants in maritime trade and expansion with existing customers.

The Company's strategic focus areas of US Government and Commercial segments have performed strongly, growing ACV at approximately 40% each through the year. The ROW government segment growth of 2% was below management expectations and impacted by higher churn and one contract renewal for $1.3m per annum, deferred into 2023 which negatively affected overall FY22 revenue and EBITDA. As a result of the strong growth in US Government and Commercial, including some multi-year contracts, these segments now account for more than 50% of ACV, demonstrating the Company's successful execution of its stated customer diversification and growth strategy and the accelerating appetite for Windward's platform across the broader maritime industry.

The Company expects to report revenue growth in 2022 of 23% to approximately $21.3m (2021: $17.3m) and an EBITDA loss of approximately $12.2m (2021: $8.6m), reflecting investment in headcount to support R&D and sales and marketing. These investments have resulted in the successful launch of three new offerings and capabilities: Ocean Freight Visibility, API Insights Lab and Vessel Fuel Consumption API and collectively have driven considerable growth in customer numbers, to over 130 (2021: 81). This expanded customer base provides a strong platform for growth and reduces customer concentration.

The Company remains well capitalised, with net cash of $22.2m at year end, significantly more than required to meet its expected costs and enters 2023 in an enhanced strategic position, due to its expanded offering, capabilities, broader customer base and supportive market drivers.

Having largely completed the planned investments outlined at the time of the Company's IPO, and in light of the current challenging wider economic climate, the Company believes it is prudent to maintain its cost base in 2023 at its 2022 level, and has taken cost reduction action across its operations, seeking to become cashflow positive and reach EBITDA breakeven earlier than as previously stated in 2024.

It is the belief of the Directors that the expectation for real-time, accurate insights to manage maritime risk is greater than ever. Supported by the Company's strong cash position, Windward remains focused on growing its revenues and customer base whilst managing its costs as it accelerates its path towards profitability.

Three year contract win with American supermajor

Windward is pleased to announce a three-year enterprise contract win, signed in late 2022, with one of the world's largest publicly traded international oil and gas companies. The customer will utilise Windward's solution to enhance its due diligence and streamline trade compliance processes, enabling it to conduct business as usual in the current precarious oil trading ecosystem in light of the recently implemented Russian crude oil price cap. Alongside Shell and BP, the customer becomes the latest blue-chip energy firm to use Windward's platform, validating the application of the Company's solution within the maritime market.

Ami Daniel, CEO and Co-Founder of Windward said:

"2022 has been another year of considerable operational and financial progress for Windward, with fantastic ACV growth in our Commercial and US Government customer segments, which we expect to be the growth engines for the business moving forward. Today's announcement of a major contract with one of the world's largest companies supports our belief in the potential for our platform across the maritime supply chain.

As we move into 2023, our mission to become the leading decision support platform for real-time maritime data intelligence through ground-breaking technologies remains unchanged. The increasing risks in maritime trade presented by the war in the Ukraine and ongoing supply chain delays are fuelling demand for our offering and we are confident we have the right team and technology in place to capture this significant opportunity."

For more information, please contact:

Windward Ltd.	Via Alma PR
Irit Singer, CMO
Canaccord Genuity (Nominated Adviser & Broker)	[phone]
Simon Bridges / Andrew Potts
Alma PR	[phone]
Caroline Forde / Kieran Breheny / Pippa Crabtree

About Windward

Windward (LSE:WNWD), a publicly-traded company on the London Stock Exchange, is a leading Maritime AI company, enabling organizations to achieve business and operational readiness. Windward's AI-powered solution allows stakeholders including banks, commodity traders, insurers, and major energy and shipping companies to make real-time, predictive intelligence-driven decisions, providing a 360° view of the maritime ecosystem and its broader impact on safety, security, finance, and business. For more information visit: https://windward.ai/. 

⁽¹⁾ ACV, as of a given date, is the total of the value of each contract divided by the total number of years of the contract.

Prior to publication the information communicated in this announcement was deemed by the Company to constitute inside information for the purposes of article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No 596/2014 as amended by regulation 11 of the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations No 2019/310 ('MAR'). With the publication of this announcement, this information is now considered to be in the public domain.

 

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