SAN DIEGO, March 16, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CV Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB:CVSI) (the “Company”, “CV Sciences”, “our”, “us” or “we”), a preeminent supplier and manufacturer of hemp cannabidiol (CBD) products, today announced its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2019.



Fiscal 2019 and Recent Operating Highlights



Revenue of $53.7 million for fiscal year 2019;



Total retail distribution increased to more than 5,500 stores as of December 31, 2019, a 148% increase from December 31, 2018 including new and/or expanded partnerships with national retail chains;



Broadened retail presence in the food, drug and mass channel (FDM) and in active discussions for further expansion of the PlusCBD™ Oil brand;



Expanded e-commerce sales to 19% of total net revenue, up from 14% for 2018;



Launched updated +PlusCBD™ Oil website in January 2020 to enhance customer experience and drive increased e-commerce sales;



Launched 18 new products during fiscal 2019;



Gross margin of 65% for fiscal year 2019; and



Maintained strong total cash balance of $9.6 million at year end.

“During 2019, revenue grew by 11% to $53.7 million driven by our expansion into new sales channels and distributions gains that produced a 148% increase in retail locations, including a strong presence in multiple national retailers. It was a year of significant business development, including distribution and product offering expansions, our first entry into the national food, drug and mass channel and establishing the foundation and infrastructure in anticipation of long-term growth of the hemp-derived CBD market. This past year demonstrated great progress and promise for the hemp CBD industry and CV Sciences, although the industry also faced challenging external forces. In the face of near-term headwinds, including regulatory ambiguities, heightened competition aided by a lack of regulatory clarity, and occasional unfavorable media attention as the regulatory environment develops, CV Sciences managed to achieve the highest annual sales in our company history. We are focused on further strengthening our brand, product offerings and adding new categories as we monitor the ongoing development of the market and position ourselves for future opportunities,” stated Joseph Dowling, Chief Executive Officer of CV Sciences. “We continue to work with the FDA to support market development and ensure CV Sciences is leading the industry in quality and safety. We are confident that FDA regulatory clarity will lead to a ‘flight to quality’ among both retailers and consumers and believe that CV Sciences is best positioned to secure long-term brand loyalty and trust due to our proven track record and relentless focus on quality, safety and regulatory compliance,” Mr. Dowling continued.

“As we look towards 2020, we are aggressively adapting to the business environment, working to manage costs while further building distribution and driving innovation. These efforts include a temporary delay of our drug development efforts. We anticipate that the near-term challenges will continue, but we are confident in our ability to navigate the market and align our financial model to the current environment. We remain focused on the long term and are committed to positioning our business to capitalize on the promising future for the hemp-derived CBD market.”

Operating Results - Full Year 2019 Compared to Full Year 2018

Sales for 2019 were $53.7 million, an increase of 11% from $48.2 million in 2018. Sales growth reflected the Company's continued organic expansion into all sales channels, including food drug and mass, natural product retail, specialty retail and direct-to-consumer channels. The second half of 2019 was impacted by increased market competition across all sales channels and the continued impact on retail customers as a result of the uncertain regulatory environment for CBD. The Company's retail store count increased to 5,567 stores nationwide as of December 31, 2019, up from 2,238 stores as of December 31, 2018.

The Company recognized an operating loss of $17.2 million in 2019, compared to an operating income of $10.2 million in the prior year. The decline in operating income is primarily related to additional stock-based compensation and payroll expense associated with the separation of the Company's founders of $11.1 million, and additional investment in sales, marketing and R&D activities.

Adjusted EBITDA for 2019 was $0.2 million, compared to $14.0 million in 2018.

Fourth Quarter 2019 - Sales

During the fourth quarter of 2019, sales declined 34% to $9.4 million compared to $14.2 million in the prior year period. Fourth quarter sales were impacted by increased market competition in the natural product category, and the continued impact on retail customers as a result of the uncertain regulatory environment for CBD.

Business Outlook

For the first quarter of fiscal 2020, the Company expects revenue to be in the range of $6 million to $8 million.

Conference Call and Webcast

The Company will host a conference call and webcast to discuss these results today at 4:30 pm EDT/1:30 pm PDT. The webcast of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Company's web site at https://ir.cvsciences.com/news-events and at http://public.viavid.com/index.php?id=138282. Investors interested in participating in the live call can also dial (877) 407-0784 from the U.S., or international callers can dial (201) 689-8560. A telephone replay will be available approximately two hours after the call concludes, and will be available through Monday, March 23, 2020, by dialing (844) 512-2921 from the U.S. or (412) 317-6671 from international locations, and entering confirmation code 13699659.

About CV Sciences, Inc.

CV Sciences, Inc. (CVSI) operates two distinct business segments: a consumer product division focused on manufacturing, marketing and selling plant-based CBD products to a range of market sectors; and a drug development division focused on developing and commercializing CBD-based novel therapeutics utilizing CBD. The Company’s PlusCBD™ Oil products are sold at more than 5,500 retail locations throughout the U.S. and it is the top-selling brand of hemp-derived CBD in the natural product retail market, according to SPINS, the leading provider of syndicated data and insights for the natural, organic and specialty products industry. CV Sciences’ state-of-the-art facility follows all guidelines for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and the Company’s hemp extracts are processed, produced, and tested throughout the manufacturing process to confirm the cannabinoid content meets strict company standards. With a commitment to science, PlusCBD™ Oil’s benefits in healthy people are supported by human clinical research data, in addition to three published clinical case studies available on PubMed.gov. PlusCBD™ Oil was the first hemp CBD supplement brand to invest in the scientific evidence necessary to receive self-affirmed Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status. CV Sciences, Inc. has primary offices and facilities in San Diego, California. Additional information is available from OTCMarkets.com or by visiting www.cvsciences.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risk and uncertainties.

Contact Information

Investor Contact:

ICR

Scott Van Winkle

617-956-6736

scott.vanwinkle@icrinc.com

Media Contact:

ICR

Cory Ziskind

646-277-1232

cory.ziskind@icrinc.com

CV SCIENCES, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (UNAUDITED) (in thousands, except per share data) Years ended December 31, 2019 2018 (*) Product sales, net $ 53,696 $ 48,244 Cost of goods sold 18,608 14,366 Gross Profit 35,088 33,878 Operating expenses: Research and development 5,877 1,885 Selling, general and administrative 46,451 21,746 52,328 23,631 Operating Income (Loss) (17,240 ) 10,247 Interest expense (income) (15 ) 153 Income (loss) before income taxes (17,225 ) 10,094 Income tax expense (benefit) (615 ) 93 Net Income (Loss) $ (16,610 ) $ 10,001 Weighted average common shares outstanding Basic 97,861 91,916 Diluted 97,861 114,470 Net income (loss) per common share Basic $ (0.17 ) $ 0.11 Diluted $ (0.17 ) $ 0.09

(*) The Company is working with its external tax advisors on some complicated tax matters related to the 2018 tax provision. These matters are not fully resolved at this point and could be material. As such, the Company filed an extension with the SEC via Form 12B-25 to file its Form 10-K.



CV SCIENCES, INC.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (UNAUDITED) (*)

(in thousands, except per share data) December 31,

2019 December 31,

2018 Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 9,107 $ 12,684 Restricted cash 501 251 Accounts receivable, net 2,177 3,340 Inventory 9,971 7,132 Prepaid expenses and other 10,611 2,059 Total current assets 32,367 25,466 Inventory — 1,418 Property & equipment, net 3,615 2,844 Operating lease assets 8,709 — Intangibles, net 3,766 3,801 Goodwill 2,788 2,788 Other assets 1,442 585 Total assets $ 52,687 $ 36,902 Liabilities and stockholders' equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 1,617 $ 1,245 Accrued expenses 10,856 2,673 Operating lease liability - current 723 — Notes payable, net — 474 Total current liabilities 13,196 4,392 Operating lease liability 9,517 — Deferred rent — 1,329 Deferred tax liability 421 1,065 Other liabilities 406 — Total liabilities 23,540 6,786 Commitments and contingencies Stockholders' equity Preferred stock, par value $0.0001; 10,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and

outstanding — — Common stock, par value $0.0001; 190,000 shares authorized, 99,416 and 94,940

shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively 10 9 Additional paid-in capital 70,774 55,134 Accumulated deficit (41,637 ) (25,027 ) Total stockholders' equity 29,147 30,116 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 52,687 $ 36,902

(*) The Company is working with its external tax advisors on some complicated tax matters related to the 2018 tax provision. These matters are not fully resolved at this point and could be material. As such, the Company filed an extension with the SEC via Form 12B-25 to file its Form 10-K.

CV SCIENCES, INC.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOW (UNAUDITED)

(in thousands) Years ended December 31, 2019 2018 (*) OPERATING ACTIVITIES Net income (loss) $ (16,610 ) $ 10,001 Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash flows provided by operating activities: Depreciation and amortization 716 519 Amortization of beneficial conversion feature of convertible debts — 51 Common stock issued for professional services — 295 Stock-based compensation 5,589 2,925 Stock-based compensation associated with founders employment settlement 9,531 — Bad debt expense 236 49 Inventory reserve 248 — Deferred tax expense (644 ) (10 ) Noncash lease expense 817 — Change in operating assets and liabilities: Accounts receivable 927 (1,882 ) Inventory (1,669 ) (60 ) Prepaid expenses and other current assets (3,016 ) (832 ) Accounts payable and accrued expenses 1,737 1,308 Deferred rent — 195 Net cash provided by operating activities (2,138 ) 12,559 INVESTING ACTIVITIES Purchase of equipment (1,207 ) (893 ) Tenant improvements to leasehold real estate (29 ) (351 ) Net cash flows used in investing activities (1,236 ) (1,244 ) FINANCING ACTIVITIES Repayment of convertible debt in cash — (660 ) Repayment of unsecured debt in cash (474 ) (1,026 ) Proceeds from exercise of stock options 521 514 Net cash flows used in financing activities 47 (1,172 ) Net increase in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash (3,327 ) 10,143 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period 12,935 2,792 Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period $ 9,608 $ 12,935 Supplemental cash flow disclosures: Interest paid, net of interest income $ 9 $ 153 Income taxes paid $ 99 $ 70 Purchase of property and equipment in accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 89 $ — Operating ROU lease assets obtained in exchange for operating lease liabilities $ 5,405 $ — Recognition of equity award and withholding obligation and receivable $ 6,409 $ — Purchase of insurance through issuance of note payable $ — $ 533

(*) The Company is working with its external tax advisors on some complicated tax matters related to the 2018 tax provision. These matters are not fully resolved at this point and could be material. As such, the Company filed an extension with the SEC via Form 12B-25 to file its Form 10-K.

CV SCIENCES, INC.

NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (UNAUDITED)

We prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles for the United States (GAAP). The non-GAAP financial measures such as net income and loss per share and Adjusted EBITDA included in this press release are different from those otherwise presented under GAAP. We use non-GAAP measures internally to evaluate our performance and make financial and operational decisions that are presented in a manner that adjusts from their equivalent GAAP measures or that supplement the information provided by our GAAP measures. The non-GAAP financial measures exclude non-cash compensation expense for stock options and other non-recurring items. When evaluating the performance of our business and developing short and long-term plans, we do not consider share-based compensation charges. Although share-based compensation is necessary to attract and retain quality employees, our consideration of share-based compensation places its primary emphasis on overall shareholder dilution rather than the accounting charges associated with such grants. Because of the varying availability of valuation methodologies and subjective assumptions, we believe that the exclusion of share-based compensation allows for more accurate comparison of our financial results to previous periods. In addition, we believe it useful to investors to understand the specific impact of the application of the fair value method of accounting for share-based compensation on our operating results.

Adjusted EBITDA is defined by us as EBITDA (net income (loss) plus depreciation expense, amortization expense, interest and income tax expense (benefit), further adjusted to exclude certain non-cash expenses and other adjustments as set forth below. We use Adjusted EBITDA because we believe it more clearly highlights trends in our business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on GAAP financial measures, since Adjusted EBITDA eliminates from our results specific financial items that have less bearing on our core operating performance.

We use Adjusted EBITDA in communicating certain aspects of our results and performance, including in this press release, and believe that Adjusted EBITDA, when viewed in conjunction with our GAAP results and the accompanying reconciliation, can provide investors with greater transparency and a greater understanding of factors affecting our financial condition and results of operations than GAAP measures alone. In addition, we believe the presentation of Adjusted EBITDA is useful to investors in making period-to-period comparison of results because the adjustments to GAAP are not reflective of our core business performance.

A reconciliation from our GAAP net income (loss) to non-GAAP net income (loss) for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 is detailed below:

Years ended

December 31, 2019 2018 (*) Net income (loss) - GAAP $ (16,610 ) $ 10,001 Stock-based compensation (1) 5,589 2,925 Common stock issued for professional services (2) — 295 Stock-based compensation associated with founders employment settlements (3) 9,531 — Payroll expense associated with founders employment settlements (4) 1,585 — Net income (loss) - non-GAAP $ 95 $ 13,221 Diluted EPS - GAAP $ (0.17 ) $ 0.09 Stock-based compensation (1) 0.06 0.03 Common stock issued for professional services (2) — — Stock-based compensation associated with founders employment settlements (3) 0.10 — Payroll expense associated with founders employment settlements (4) 0.01 — Diluted EPS - non-GAAP $ — $ 0.12 Shares used to calculate diluted EPS - GAAP 97,861 114,470 Shares used to calculate diluted EPS - non-GAAP 116,982 114,470

_____________

(1) Represents stock-based compensation expense related to stock options awarded to employees, consultants and non-executive directors based on the grant date fair value using the Black-Scholes valuation model.

(2) Represents common stock issued for professional services.

(3) Represents stock-based compensation expense related to accelerated vesting of RSU's, accelerated vesting of certain performance options and the modification of certain stock options associated with the settlement agreements with our founders.

(4) Represents accrued payroll and related benefits associated with the separation of our founders.

(*) The Company is working with its external tax advisors on some complicated tax matters related to the 2018 tax provision. These matters are not fully resolved at this point and could be material. As such, the Company filed an extension with the SEC via Form 12B-25 to file its Form 10-K.

A reconciliation from our net income (loss) to Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure, for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 is detailed below:

Year ended December 31, 2019 Year ended December 31, 2018 (*) Consumer Products Specialty Pharma Total Consumer Products Consumer Products Total (in thousands) Net income (loss) $ (12,793 ) $ (3,817 ) $ (16,610 ) $ 10,927 $ (926 ) $ 10,001 Depreciation 681 — 681 484 — 484 Amortization — 35 35 — 35 35 Interest expense (income) (15 ) — (15 ) 153 — 153 Income tax expense (benefit) (615 ) — (615 ) 93 — 93 EBITDA (12,742 ) (3,782 ) (16,524 ) 11,657 (891 ) 10,766 Stock-based compensation (1) 5,426 163 5,589 2,925 — 2,925 Common stock issued for professional services (2) — — — 295 — 295 Stock-based compensation associated with founder employment settlements (3) 9,531 — 9,531 — — — Payroll expense associated with founder employment settlements (4) 1,585 — 1,585 — — — Adjusted EBITDA $ 3,800 $ (3,619 ) $ 181 $ 14,877 $ (891 ) $ 13,986

_________________

(1) Represents stock-based compensation expense related to stock options awarded to employees, consultants and non-executive directors based on the grant date fair value using the Black-Scholes valuation model.

(2) Represents common stock issued for professional services.

(3) Represents stock-based compensation expense related to accelerated vesting of RSU's, accelerated vested of certain performance stock options, and the modification of certain stock options associated with the settlement agreements with our founders.

(4) Represents accrued payroll and related benefits associated with the separation of our founders.

(*) The Company is working with its external tax advisors on some complicated tax matters related to the 2018 tax provision. These matters are not fully resolved at this point and could be material. As such, the Company filed an extension with the SEC via Form 12B-25 to file its Form 10-K.