Q1 2023 Highlights
(unless otherwise noted, all financial amounts in this news release are expressed in U.S. dollars)

• Q1 2023 revenue of $135.5 million.
• Operating loss of $4.0 million in the quarter.
• Adjusted Net Loss⁽¹⁾ of $9.0 million, or $(0.19) per share.
• Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $0.8 million which included a charge of $5.6 million for inventories during the quarter.
• Cash balance of $145.7 million after distributing $3.4 million in dividends to shareholders, a net cash improvement of $12.2 million from December 31, 2022.
• On April 19, 2023, Neo announced the completion of its acquisition of 90% of the outstanding share capital of SG Technologies Group Limited (“SGTec“), one of Europe’s leading advanced, specialty manufacturers of rare-earth-based and other high-performance magnets for industrial and commercial markets.
• On April 24, 2023, Neo announced that the Government of Greenland had approved the transfer of an exploration license covering a portion of the Sarfartoq Carbonatite Complex in southwest Greenland, a prospective magnetic rare earth property, from Hudson Resources, Inc. to Neo North Star Resources Inc. (“NNSR“), a subsidiary controlled by Neo, and that purchase of the license has been completed. The License has been transferred to NNSR, on May 3, 2023, upon endorsement of a license addendum by the government of Greenland.
• A quarterly dividend of Cdn$0.10 per common share was declared on May 10, 2023 for shareholders of record at June 20, 2023, with a payment date of June 29, 2023.

TORONTO, May 12, 2023 /CNW/ – Neo Performance Materials Inc. (“Neo“, the “Company“) (TSX: NEO) released its first quarter 2023 financial results. The financial statements and management’s discussion and analysis (“MD&A“) of these results can be viewed on Neo’s web site at www.neomaterials.com/investors/ and on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

HIGHLIGHTS OF Q1 2023

For the three months ended March 31, 2023, consolidated revenue was $135.5 million compared to $166.3 million for the same period in the prior year.  Neo reported a net loss of $10.7 million, or $(0.23) per share, compared to a net income of $22.7 million, or $0.55 per share, in the same period of 2022.  Adjusted Net Loss⁽¹⁾ totaled $9.0 million, or $(0.19) per share, compared to an Adjusted Net Income⁽¹⁾ of $23.5 million, or $0.57 per share, in the corresponding period of the prior year.  Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ was $0.8 million, compared to Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $33.1 million in the first quarter of 2022.  Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was negatively impacted by $5.6 million of provisions for inventories during the quarter, compared to $0.6 million during the corresponding period in 2022.

As of March 31, 2023, Neo had cash and cash equivalents of $145.7 million plus restricted cash of $1.2 million, compared to $147.5 million plus $1.2 million as at December 31, 2022.  In the three months ended March 31, 2023, Neo distributed $3.4 million in dividends to its shareholders.  Neo generated positive net cash of $12.2 million in the period.

SELECTED FINANCIAL RESULTS

Neo reported operating loss of $4.0 million and net loss of $10.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. Operating income in the three months ended March 31, 2023, was higher as compared to the prior-year period in the Rare Metals segment but was lower in both the Magnequench and C&O segments.

Adjusted EBITDA^(I) also was higher in the quarter as compared to the prior-year period in Rare Metals but was lower in C&O and Magnequench.

MAGNEQUENCH SEGMENT RESULTS

Volumes in the three months ended March 31, 2023 were lower primarily due to the impact of slower economic activity in China which experienced a slowdown after the removal of the COVID-19 zero tolerance from December 2022.  This lower economic activity (particularly in durable goods) continued through the balance of the quarter.  Volumes were also negatively impacted by the continued semi-conductor chip shortages, primarily in the automotive industry.

Margins for Magnequench were lower in the quarter due to the decline in rare earth magnetic prices in the quarter and lower volume affecting absorption of production costs.  Magnequench has pass-through agreements on the vast majority of its contracts so that in the long term, Magnequench expects to earn steadier margins on its value-add conversion activities.  However, in the first quarter of 2023, with declining rare earth magnetic prices, Magnequench has been passing through the lower replacement costs while utilizing some of the higher cost inventory on hand.  Pass-through is a key strategic focus of Magnequench and ensures that Magnequench focuses on generating long term sustainable and value-added margins.

CHEMICALS & OXIDES (“C&O”) SEGMENT RESULTS

The C&O segment was negatively impacted by a steep decline in rare earth prices during the quarter.  Rare earth finished good prices, particularly for the magnetic elements, declined 20%-30% from December 2022.  This rapid decline had a negative impact on rare earth separation margins as C&O processed raw materials purchased three to five months ago (at higher raw material input costs).  The rapid decline, primarily in March 2023, also necessitated C&O to record a $6.4 million provision for inventories in the first quarter of 2023.  Volumes in rare earth separation were also slower in the quarter related to the slow down in the magnetics industry in China.

Volumes in the emissions catalyst business were down slightly from prior year with a significant decline in volumes in China (for the reasons noted above) while other regions demonstrating growth.  C&O’s environmentally protective water treatment solutions business continues to perform well with higher volume and new customer adoption.

RARE METALS SEGMENT RESULTS

Rare Metals continued its strong earnings growth trend with a strong first quarter of 2023.  Hafnium pricing, in particular, has continued its upward trajectory which began in the fourth quarter of 2021.  The recycling purchases and activities of Rare Metals were particularly impactful to maintaining lower raw material costs resulting in additional margins.

The Rare Metals business continues to make progress in several key strategic initiatives, including selling more products outside of the aerospace industry, expanding its customer base, and diversifying its total end-market exposure.  Key progress continues to be made in expanding the capacity of key products (with minimal capital investment) and refocusing the sales pipeline and manufacturing capacity toward more profitable end products that require higher purity and more demanding specifications.

CONFERENCE CALL ON FRIDAY MAY 12, 2023 AT 10 AM EASTERN

Management will host a teleconference call on Friday May 12, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) to discuss the first quarter 2023 results.  Interested parties may access the teleconference by calling (416) 764-8650 (local) or  (888) 664-6383 (toll-free long distance) or by visiting https://cnw.en.mediaroom.com/events.  A recording of the teleconference may be accessed by calling (416) 764-8677 (local) or (888) 390-0541 (toll-free long distance), and entering pass code 029840# until June 12, 2023.

NON-IFRS MEASURES

This news release refers to certain non-IFRS financial measures and ratios such as “Adjusted Net Income”, “EBITDA”, “Adjusted EBITDA”, and “Adjusted EBITDA Margin”.  These measures and ratios are not recognized measures under IFRS, do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS, and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Rather, these measures and ratios are provided as additional information to complement IFRS financial measures by providing further understanding of Neo’s results of operations from management’s perspective. Neo’s definitions of non-IFRS measures used in this news release may not be the same as the definitions for such measures used by other companies in their reporting.  Non-IFRS measures and ratios have limitations as analytical tools and should not be considered in isolation nor as a substitute for analysis of Neo’s financial information reported under IFRS.  Neo uses non-IFRS financial measures and ratios to provide investors with supplemental measures of its base-line operating performance and to eliminate items that have less bearing on operating performance or operating conditions and thus highlight trends in its core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS financial measures.  Neo believes that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS financial measures and ratios in the evaluation of issuers.  Neo’s management also uses non-IFRS financial measures in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period. For definitions of how Neo defines such financial measures and ratios, please see the “Non-IFRS Financial Measures” section of Neo’s management’s discussion and analysis filing for the three months ended March 31, 2023, available on Neo’s web site at www.neomaterials.com and on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

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(1)}Neo reports non-IFRS measures such as “Adjusted Net Income”, “Adjusted Earnings per Share”, “Adjusted EBITDA”, “Adjusted EBITDA Margin” and “EBITDA”. Please see information on this and other non-IFRS measures in the “Non-IFRS Measures” section of this news release and in the MD&A.

TABLE 5: CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION

TABLE 6: CONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Comparison of the three months ended March 31, 2023 to the three months ended March 31, 2022:

⁽¹⁾Neo reports non-IFRS measures such as “Adjusted Net Income”, “Adjusted Earnings per Share”, “Adjusted EBITDA”, “Adjusted EBITDA Margin” and “EBITDA”. Please see information on this and other non-IFRS measures in the “Non-IFRS Measures” section of this news release and in the MD&A.

TABLE 7: RECONCILIATION OF NET (LOSS) INCOME TO EBITDA, ADJUSTED EBITDA AND FREE CASH FLOW

TABLE 8: RECONCILIATION OF NET (LOSS) INCOME TO ADJUSTED NET (LOSS) INCOME

Information Contacts

Ali Mahdavi
SVP, Corporate Development and Capital Markets
(416) 962-3300
Email: a.mahdavi@neomaterials.com

Jim Sims
Media Relations
(303) 503-6203
Email: j.sims@neomaterials.com

neomaterials.com
info@neomaterials.com

About Neo Performance Materials

Neo manufactures the building blocks of many modern technologies that enhance efficiency and sustainability.  Neo’s advanced industrial materials – magnetic powders and magnets, specialty chemicals, metals, and alloys – are critical to the performance of many everyday products and emerging technologies. Neo’s products help to deliver the technologies of tomorrow to consumers today.  The business of Neo is organized along three segments: Magnequench, Chemicals & Oxides and Rare Metals. Neo is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; with corporate offices in Greenwood Village, Colorado, United States; Singapore; and Beijing, China. Neo has a global platform that includes 9 manufacturing facilities located in China, the United States, Germany, Canada, Estonia, and Thailand, as well as one dedicated research and development centre in Singapore.  For more information, please visit www.neomaterials.com.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws in Canada. Forward-looking information may relate to future events or future performance of Neo. All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, with respect to Neo’s objectives and goals, as well as statements with respect to its beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations, anticipations, estimates, and intentions, are forward-looking information. Specific forward-looking statements in this discussion include, but are not limited to, the following: expectations regarding certain of Neo’s future results and information, including, among other things, revenue, expenses, sales growth, capital expenditures, and operations; statements with respect to current and future market trends that may directly or indirectly impact sales and revenue of Neo; expected use of cash balances; continuation of prudent management of working capital; source of funds for ongoing business requirements and capital investments; expectations regarding sufficiency of the allowance for uncollectible accounts and inventory provisions; analysis regarding sensitivity of the business to changes in exchange rates; impact of recently adopted accounting pronouncements; risk factors relating to intellectual property protection and intellectual property litigation; risk factors relating to national or international economies (including the impact of COVID-19), and other risks present in the jurisdictions in which Neo, its customers, its suppliers, and/or its logistics partners operate, and; expectations concerning any remediation efforts to Neo’s design of its internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. Often, but not always, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “continues”, “forecasts”, “projects”, “predicts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “believes”, or variations of, or the negatives of, such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “should”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. This information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. Neo believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking information included in this discussion and analysis should not be unduly relied upon. For more information on Neo, investors should review Neo’s continuous disclosure filings that are available under Neo’s profile at www.sedar.com.

For further information: Ali Mahdavi, SVP, Corporate Development & Capital Markets, (416) 962-3300, Email: a.mahdavi@neomaterials.com; Jim Sims, Director of Corporate Communications, (303) 503-6203, Email: j.sims@neomaterials.com, Website: www.neomaterials.com, Email: info@neomaterials.com