First-quarter fiscal 2010 results announced by Escalon Medical

Escalon Medical Corp. (Nasdaq Market: ESMC) announced the results for its fiscal first quarter ended September 30, 2009.

For the first quarter of fiscal 2010, product revenue decreased approximately $234,000, or 2.7%, to $8,435,000 during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period last fiscal year. The Company reported the decreased net revenue of $8,434,000 compared with $8,669,000 in fiscal 2008. Revenue at Sonomed, Vascular, EMI and Medical/Trek decreased 20.8%, 6.7%, 2.3% and .9%, respectively, during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 when compared to the same period last fiscal year. These decreases were offset by increased sales at the Drew business unit of 9%, during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 compared to the same period last fiscal year.

Other revenue decreased approximately $9,000 or 32.1% during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period last fiscal year. This was attributable to decreased Bio-Rad royalties received in the Drew business unit.

Cost of goods sold as a percentage of product revenue decreased to approximately 54.4% of revenues during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009, as compared to approximately 55.9% of product revenue for the same period last fiscal year.

Marketing, General and Administrative expenses increased approximately 14.9% during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year. The Drew business unit had increased marketing, general and administrative expenses of 67.6% related to the acquisition of Biocode Hycel ("Biocode") on December 31, 2008 for the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year. This was offset by decreases of 21.7%, 6.6% and 30.8% at Sonomed, Vascular, EMI and Medical/Trek, respectively, for the same period. Research and development decreased 58.7%, 39.7%, and 33.3% at Drew, Sonomed and EMI, respectively, for the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period last year. These decreases were partially offset by a 62.9% increase at Vascular related to the completion of Vascular's modified VascuView product.

In the Drew business unit, product revenue increased $383,000, or 9.0%, as compared to the same period last fiscal year. The increase in product revenue is related to the acquisition of Biocode. Biocode generated $1,336,000 in revenue for the period ended September 30, 2009.

Product revenue decreased $535,000, or 20.8%, at the Sonomed business unit as compared to the same period last fiscal year. The decrease in product revenue was primarily caused by a significant contraction in the capital equipment marketplace related to the global economic recession.

Product revenue decreased $67,000, or 6.7%, to $931,000 in the Vascular business unit during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period last fiscal year. The decrease in product revenue in the Vascular business unit was primarily related to weaker sales of Vascular's core needle business. Vascular's modified VascuView was submitted for FDA clearance in September 2009. Vascular anticipates initial sales of the modified VascuView to take place in January 2010.

Product revenue decreased $12,000, or 2.3%, in the EMI business unit when compared to the same period last year. The decrease in sales is related to the weakening of the capital equipment market related to the global economic recession, offset by increased custom system sales during the three month period ended September 30, 2009.

In the Medical/Trek business unit, product revenue decreased $3,000, or 0.9%, to $320,000 during the three-month period ended September 30, 2009 as compared to the same period last fiscal year. The decrease in Medical/Trek product revenue is attributed to Medical/Trek's aging product line of Ispan Intraocular gases and fiber optic light sources.