Luna Innovations Incorporated (NASDAQ:LUNA) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Scott Graeff: I don’t know whether we talked about it publicly. We internally talk about it. It’s just not the way that we manage the business. We break out and we show €“ I think we show that the different revenues as it relates to geographically. We show the U.S. and Asia, Europe and the rest of North America and South America, like Canada, things like that. So we break some things out geographically, but as it relates to some of the sensing and comms test business, many of that commingles and that’s not how we really manage the business. So that’s not why we report €“ we don’t report it out that way because that’s not how we really manage it. We have sales guys that really go across both of those segments. So we really don’t run it as a segment oriented business.

Jim Marrone: Great. I guess in the end of the day, it’s all fiber optics, right? So it’s pure-play fiber optics company.

Scott Graeff: It really is. It’s just €“ we’re using them differently. And there’s a customer that would be buying an OBR as well as buying a HYPERION system, to be on a piece of infrastructure, whether it’s a bridge or a tunnel. So it’s hard to say and that may come through in one sale, so you’d have to go into that PO and break it out and say, well, this was €“ and that’s just not €“ we’re managing that from a customer basis rather than from a segment basis.

Jim Marrone: All right. Fair enough. And given that your focus is being a pure-play fiber optics company, then what’s your appetite for 2023 in terms of acquisition? Are you looking to probably €“ possibly do another one with regards to geographical footprint or vertically integrating? Just wondering what your thoughts on your appetite?

Scott Graeff: I think our philosophy is, and we talk about it at the Board and we just had our three-year strategic plan that we presented to the Board earlier this year. We are constantly looking, and I would say, eyes down range and looking at things. Anytime you go and you’re bidding on a project, for example, and you have three, four €“ two, three others at the table, you’d like to say that there’s only one at the table and that’s Luna. So I think we continue to look at things to gain more market share. But we believe in the organic growth that we experienced here and will continue to experience. So we don’t feel like we need to be in a rush on anything, but certainly, are looking to the future in inorganic growth would certainly be a part of our strategy.

Jim Marrone: Okay. Very good. Thank you for that insight. I’ll pass the call over to the others.

Scott Graeff: Thanks, Jim.

Operator: Thank you. And the next question is from Alex Henderson from Needham. Please go ahead.

Alexander Henderson: Great. Thanks. So it’s a little difficult looking at the history of the company to ascertain what the seasonal patterns are in some of your expenses, given how much has changed over the years. Can you talk a little bit about €“ you’ve said that the seasonally weak on the revenue side and more back half weighted, but is that also then going to impact the gross margins, which would then be under a little bit of seasonal pressure? And similarly, if I look at the sales and marketing R&D lines, I’m assuming those are relatively stable on the R&D side and generally tick down a little bit on the sales and marketing side. Is that kind of the right seasonal pattern we should be thinking about?