09/05-2018 08:55:14: (NATTO.OAX) NattoPharma market update
Revenue growth exceeding 50% as NattoPharma continues to respond to market
demands
Oslo, Norway (9 May 2018) - NattoPharma has had a solid start to the year, with
increased brand exposure via strong commercial partnerships, and growing demand
across all major markets, both from new and existing customers.

Revenue growth for the first four months of the year was just over 50% versus
the same period in 2017, and ahead of the anticipated annual growth rate of
between 40%-50%.

A key driver has been the pace of development in the US market, which has been
expanding at a rate more than double that of the prior year and expects to
recognize up to 15% top line revenue growth from the commercialization of its
MenaQ7® Full Spectrum K2 product alone. This is an exclusive technology that no
other company can offer: a comprehensive Vitamin K2 raw material that delivers
menaquinones 6, 7 & 9.

In China, NattoPharma quickly responded to regulatory changes by introducing a
fully compliant soy-based product line, MenaQ7® Natto K2, in 2017. This
thoughtful strategy created great commercial momentum the company continues to
enjoy in 2018: revenues for 2018 are set to reach NOK 4-6 million, with much
greater long-term potential. There are also several exciting product launches
planned for the European market later this year and these should also result in
a strong sales performance for this region.

The increased product demand in the initial stages of the year has prompted
acceleration of NattoPharma's production capacity expansion plans, leading to
higher product costs than initially forecasted. As a result, the margin in the
first four months ended in the mid-40s, compared to 49% in the same period in
2017. For 2018, the gross margin is now expected to be in the 40% to 45% range,
trending up to be between 45% to 50% once the new production facilities are
fully operational.

"Our decision to bring forward the addition to our production lines demonstrates
our commitment to meeting the needs of our customers, and will at the same time
provide the platform needed to seize the exciting growth opportunities
available," says Peter Stahl, NattoPharma COO.

Adjusted EBITDA for the period January to April has also been impacted by the
pressure on product margins, but still shows improvement, up from 2% to 4%,
representing the sixth consecutive quarter with positive adjusted EBITDA for the
supplement business. This is the outcome of a disciplined and consistent
approach to cost management, which saw operating expenses as a percentage of
revenue fall by two percentage points, compared with the same period in 2017,
and will improve profitability and drive shareholder value in the longer term.

"We are confident that our strategy to respond quickly to market developments
will enable us to capitalise on the opportunity to increase our market share and
further solidify our position as the market leader in the coming years," says
Kjetil Ramsøy, NattoPharma CEO. "We are on track to achieve our sales goals and
remain committed to our revenue guidance for the 2018 financial-year."

X X X

About NattoPharma and MenaQ7®

NattoPharma ASA, based in Norway, is the world's leader in vitamin K2 research
and development. NattoPharma is the exclusive international supplier of MenaQ7®
Vitamin K2 as MK-7, the best documented, vitamin K2 as menaquinone-7 (MK-7) with
guaranteed actives and stability, clinical substantiation, and international
patents granted and pending; and now the new MenaQ7® Full Spectrum, which
delivers menaquinones 6, 7, and 9. The company has a multi-year research and
development program to substantiate and discover the health benefits of Vitamin
K2 for applications in the marketplace for functional food and dietary
supplements. With a global presence, the company established its North American
subsidiary, NattoPharma USA, Inc., in Edison, NJ, and NattoPharma R&D Ltd. in
Cyprus. For more information, visit www.nattopharma.com or www.menaq7.com.

For more information, please contact:

Kjetil Ramsøy

CEO/CFO, NattoPharma

E-mail: kjetil.ramsoy@nattopharma.com

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5
-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

This information is information that NattoPharma ASA (publ) is obliged to make
public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted
for publication through the agency of the contact person set out above at 8:55
am CET on May 9th, 2
Ekstern link: http://www.newsweb.no/index.jsp?messageId=450974

Nyheten er levert av OBI.