MIAMI, March 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  Ayr Wellness Inc. (CSE: AYR.A, OTCQX: AYRWF) (“Ayr” or the “Company”), a leading vertically integrated U.S. multi-state cannabis operator (“MSO”), is reporting financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2022. Unless otherwise noted, all results are presented in U.S. dollars.

David Goubert, President & CEO of Ayr, said, “I’d like to thank our team for pulling together to deliver a strong fourth quarter, growing our adjusted EBITDA by 20% sequentially, and a second straight quarter of generating positive cash flow from operations. In the past few months, our team has begun the process of evaluating every aspect of our business with fresh eyes, conducting a thorough review of our markets, our people, and our processes, all in service seeking to maximize the financial health of our Company and better position Ayr as a retailer of choice and house of brands.”

“Throughout that process, we have implemented cost saving measures, stepped back from certain markets that didn’t align with our core business goals, and invested further into markets and activities that did meet those goals. By better prioritizing our time, our attention, and our capital, we find ourselves better positioned to capture growth opportunities in our existing and future footprint, which we anticipate will help us grow our cash flow profile, our revenue, and adjusted EBITDA margins consistently throughout 2023.”

Fourth Quarter Financial Summary ($ in millions, excl. margin items)

Full Year 2022 Financial Summary ($ in millions, excl. margin items)

¹Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Gross Profit and Adjusted EBITDA Margin are non-GAAP measures, and accordingly are not standardized measures and may not be comparable to similar measures used by other companies. See Definition and Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures below. For a reconciliation of Operating Loss to Adjusted EBITDA as well as Gross Profit to Adjusted Gross Profit, see the reconciliation table appended to this release.

²Based on the current market conditions, including the impact of price compression, the Company incurred a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $149M, reducing the carrying value of goodwill across all reporting units.

Fourth Quarter and Recent Highlights

• Retail Updates
  • Opened two new dispensaries in Florida during the fourth quarter and an additional two stores in the first quarter of 2023, bringing Ayr’s total footprint to 55 dispensaries across the state.
  • Began adult-use sales alongside the Company’s established medical sales at Ayr’s Somerville, Massachusetts retail dispensary.
  • Announced Ayr’s three retail locations in New Jersey, formerly known as Garden State Dispensary, are now operating under the AYR Dispensary brand.
• Brand/Product Updates
  • Introduced HAZE live resin concentrates and vapes across the Company’s footprint in Florida and Nevada.
  • Expanded Levia water-soluble tinctures to Ayr’s Florida retail menus.
  • Announced plans to rebrand all of the Company’s Florida stores from Liberty Health Sciences to AYR Cannabis Dispensary this summer.
• Corporate Updates
  • Announced mutual termination of Ayr’s proposed acquisition of the equity interests of Gentle Ventures, LLC d/b/a Dispensary 33, and certain of its affiliates that collectively own and operate two licensed retail dispensaries in Chicago, Illinois.
  • Signed a definitive agreement to sell Blue Camo, LLC which comprises the Company’s Arizona assets, to AZ Goat, LLC, a group consisting primarily of the former owners of Blue Camo.
  • Entered into an option to acquire two Ohio dispensary licenses from Daily Releaf, LLC and Heaven Wellness, LLC, to begin establishing a vertical integrated presence in the state.

Full Year 2022 Highlights

• Added 14 dispensaries across Ayr’s eight state footprint, bringing its total dispensary count to 80 stores.
• Launched adult-use retail sales in New Jersey and Massachusetts.
• Completed acquisitions of Cultivauna, LLC, the owner of Levia-branded cannabis infused beverages, and Herbal Remedies Dispensaries, LLC; Signed a management services agreement with Tahoe Hydroponics, LLC and NV Green, Inc.
• Won a provisional cultivation license in Connecticut alongside Ayr’s operating partner, which will also provide Ayr with two retail licenses in the state.
• Completed $114 million of real estate financing transactions at a blended cost of capital at closing of ~8.0% per annum.
• Completed construction of cultivation facilities in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Ohio.

Financing and Capital Structure

The Company deployed $3.6 million of capital expenditures in Q4 and ended the year with a cash balance of $80.6 million.

As of December 31, 2022, the Company had approximately 70.9 million fully diluted shares outstanding based on a treasury method calculation as of that date.ⁱ

Outlook

The Company anticipates its financial results in the first quarter of 2023 to be consistent with industry trends, expecting revenue and adjusted EBITDA in Q1 2023 to be in-line with Q4 2022. Ayr expects to further ramp revenue, adjusted EBITDA and operating cash flow thereafter.

Conference Call

Ayr management will host a conference call, followed by a question-and-answer period.

Conference Call Date: Thursday, March 9, 2023
Time: 8:30 a.m. ET
Toll-free dial-in number: (800) 319-4610
International dial-in number: (604) 638-5340
Conference ID: 10021221

Please dial into the conference call 5-10 minutes prior to the start time. An operator will register your name and organization. If you have any difficulty connecting with the conference call, please contact the Company’s investor relations team at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The conference will be broadcast live and available for replay here.

A telephonic replay of the conference call will also be available for one month beginning at 11:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, March 9, 2023.

Toll-free replay number: (855) 669-9658
International replay number: (412) 317-0088
Replay ID: 9867

Financial Statements

Certain financial information reported in this news release is extracted from Ayr’s Consolidated Financial Statements and MD&A for years December 31, 2022 and 2021. Ayr files its financial statements and MD&A on SEDAR and with the SEC. All financial information contained in this news release is qualified in its entirety by reference to such financial statements and MD&A.

Definition and Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures

The Company reports certain non-GAAP measures that are used to evaluate the performance of its businesses and the performance of their respective segments, as well as to manage their capital structures. As non-GAAP measures generally do not have a standardized meaning, they may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Securities regulators require such measures to be clearly defined and reconciled with their most comparable GAAP measures.

Rather, these are provided as additional information to complement those GAAP measures by providing further understanding of the results of the operations of the Company from management’s perspective. Accordingly, these measures should not be considered in isolation, nor as a substitute for analysis of the Company’s financial information reported under GAAP. Non-GAAP measures used to analyze the performance of the Company’s businesses include “Adjusted EBITDA” and “Adjusted Gross Profit.”

The Company believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide meaningful supplemental information regarding the Company’s performances and may be useful to investors because they allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by management in its financial and operational decision-making. These financial measures are intended to provide investors with supplemental measures of the Company’s operating performances and thus highlight trends in the Company’s core businesses that may not otherwise be apparent when solely relying on the GAAP measures.

Adjusted EBITDA

“Adjusted EBITDA” represents (loss) income from operations, as reported under GAAP, before interest and tax, adjusted to exclude non-core costs, other non-cash items, including depreciation and amortization, and further adjusted to remove non-cash stock-based compensation, impairment expense, the accounting for the incremental costs to acquire cannabis inventory in a business combination, acquisition related costs, and start up costs.

Adjusted Gross Profit

“Adjusted Gross Profit” represents gross profit, as reported, adjusted to exclude the accounting for the incremental costs to acquire cannabis inventory in a business combination, interest, depreciation and amortization and start-up costs.

A reconciliation of how Ayr calculates Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Gross Profit is provided in the tables appended below. Additional reconciliations of Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Gross Profit and other disclosures concerning non-GAAP measures are provided in our MD&A for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this MD&A are forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including, but not limited to, those statements relating to the Company and its financial capacity and availability of capital and other statements that are not historical facts. These statements are based upon certain material factors, assumptions, and analyses that were applied in drawing a conclusion or making a forecast or projection, including experience of the Company, as applicable, and perception of historical trends, current conditions, and expected future developments, as well as other factors that are believed to be reasonable in the circumstances. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of presenting information about management’s current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. These statements may include, without limitation, statements regarding the operations, business, financial condition, expected financial results, performance, prospects, opportunities, priorities, targets, goals, ongoing objectives, strategies, and outlook of the Company. Forward-looking statements are often identified by the words “may”, “would”, “could”, “should”, “will”, “intend”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “project”, “expect”, “target”, “continue”, “forecast”, “design”, “goal” or negative versions thereof and other similar expressions.

Forward-looking estimates and assumptions involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially. While Ayr believes there is a reasonable basis for these assumptions, such estimates may not be met. These estimates represent forward-looking information. Actual results may vary and differ materially from the estimates.

Assumptions and Risks

Forward-looking information in this release is subject to the assumptions and risks as described in our MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Additional Information

For more information about the Company’s Q4 and full year 2022 operations and outlook, please view Ayr’s corporate presentation posted in the Investors section of the Company’s website at www.ayrwellness.com.

About Ayr Wellness Inc.

Ayr is an expanding vertically integrated, U.S. multi-state cannabis operator. Based on the belief that everything starts with the quality of the plant, the Company’s mission is to cultivate the finest quality cannabis at scale and deliver remarkable experiences to its customers every day.

Ayr’s leadership team brings proven expertise in growing successful businesses through disciplined operational and financial management, and is committed to driving positive impact for customers, employees and the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.ayrwellness.com.

Company/Media Contact:

Robert Vanisko
VP, Corporate Communications
T: (786) 885-0397
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Investor Relations Contact:

Sean Mansouri, CFA
Elevate IR
T: (720) 330-2829
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ⁱ Includes pending M&A and excludes Ayr granted but unvested service-based LTIP shares totaling 5.3 million.