EX-99.1 2 exhibit991-q4andfy2022earn.htm EX-99.1 Document

Exhibit 99.1
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MeridianLink® Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2022 Results
Fourth quarter revenue of $70.6 million grows 10% year-over-year

COSTA MESA, Calif., March 1, 2023 — MeridianLink, Inc. (NYSE: MLNK), a leading provider of modern software platforms for financial institutions and consumer reporting agencies, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.
“Our solid fourth quarter performance highlights the strength of our multi-product platform, MeridianLink® One,” said Nicolaas Vlok, chief executive officer of MeridianLink. “More financial institutions are taking advantage of bundling MeridianLink offerings to create seamless digital lending experiences. With that, our revenue grew 10% year-over-year to $70.6 million with 33% adjusted EBITDA margins. Lending software solutions revenue grew 26% year-over-year to $55.0 million, now accounting for 78% of total revenue. I’d like to thank the team for their ongoing dedication and innovation.”

Quarterly Financial Highlights:
Revenue of $70.6 million, an increase of 10% year-over-year
Operating income of $0.6 million, or 1% of revenue and Non-GAAP operating profit of $8.5 million, or 12% of revenue    
Net loss of $(5.5) million, or (8)% of revenue, and Adjusted EBITDA of $23.2 million, or 33% of revenue
Cash flow from operations of $7.4 million and free cash flow of $5.2 million

2022 Fiscal Year Financial Highlights:
Revenue of $288.0 million, an increase of 8% year-over-year
Operating income of $28.6 million, or 10% of revenue and Non-GAAP operating profit of $55.9 million, or 19% of revenue    
Net income of $1.3 million, or 0.4% of revenue, and Adjusted EBITDA of $111.2 million, or 39% of revenue
Cash flow from operations of $74.6 million and free cash flow of $65.2 million

Business and Operating Highlights:
MeridianLink finished the quarter with record software bookings, both for Q4 and in company history.
In the quarter, MeridianLink signed ten existing MeridianLink® Consumer customers on the MeridianLink® Mortgage solution, demonstrating the powerful cross-sell capabilities of the MeridianLink® One platform.
In support of our strategic investment to accelerate services, fuel Go-to-Market, and enhance product innovation, we restructured our operations team and cost profile to serve more customers with greater efficiency in 2023.
The Company completed enhancements to our marketing automation solution, MeridianLink® Engage. These new features save time in launching targeted, personalized marketing campaigns, often resulting in triple-digit ROI for the customer.
Building on the innovative functionality acquired through the StreetShares® Atlas Platform®, the Company completed our business lending offering, MeridianLink® Business, to optimize the business lending process in a digital environment.
Through the Company’s extensive Partner Marketplace, we announced new integrations to partners such as Equifax®, Ferretly, and FirstClose, which help differentiate our lending and data verification customers in the market.
MeridianLink secured another strong roster of new logo customers as a result of our lending capabilities that best serve customers in our mid-market sweet spot, enabling a more frictionless lending process and empowering customer growth.

Business Outlook
Based on information as of today, March 1, 2023, the Company issues first quarter financial guidance and initiates full year 2023 financial guidance as follows:

First Quarter Fiscal 2023:
Revenue is expected to be in the range of $72.0 million to $75.0 million
Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be in the range of $23.0 million to $26.0 million

Full Year 2023:
Revenue is expected to be in the range of $304.0 million to $310.0 million



Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be in the range of $109.0 million to $115.0 million

Conference Call Information
MeridianLink will hold a conference call to discuss our fourth quarter and fiscal year results today, March 1, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Time). The conference call can be accessed by dialing (888) 396-8049 from North America toll-free or the Participant Local number of (416) 764-8646 with Conference ID 05813207. A live webcast of the conference call can be accessed from the investor relations page of MeridianLink’s website at ir.meridianlink.com. An archived replay of the webcast will be available at the same website following the conclusion of the call. A telephonic replay will be available until approximately 3:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Time) on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, at (877) 674-7070 from North America or (416) 764-8692 as a Participant Local with Playback Passcode 813207.
For More Information:

Press Contact
Becky Frost
(714) 784-5839
becky.frost@meridianlink.com

Investor Relations Contact
Erik Schneider
(714) 332-6357
InvestorRelations@meridianlink.com

About MeridianLink

MeridianLink® (NYSE: MLNK), headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, powers digital lending and account opening for financial institutions and provides data verification solutions for consumer reporting agencies. MeridianLink’s scalable, cloud-based platforms help customers build deeper relationships with consumers through data-driven, personalized experiences across the entire lending life cycle.

MeridianLink enables customers to accelerate revenue growth, reduce risk, and exceed consumer expectations through seamless digital experiences. Its partner marketplace supports hundreds of integrations for tailored innovation. For more than 20 years, MeridianLink has prioritized the democratization of lending for consumers, businesses, and communities.

Learn more at www.meridianlink.com.

Operational Measures Definitions
We reference bookings, which is an internal operational measure of the business. Bookings is defined as the total of the minimum annual contracted value for newly sold capabilities of our software-as-a-service, or SaaS, products over a given time period, inclusive of any corresponding vendor fees owed to Third Parties.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To supplement the financial measures presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, we provide certain non-GAAP financial measures, such as adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA margin; non-GAAP operating income (loss); non-GAAP net income (loss); non-GAAP cost of revenue; non-GAAP sales and marketing expenses; non-GAAP research and development expenses; non-GAAP general and administrative expenses; and free cash flow. The presentation of these financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for, or superior to, financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP. Rather, we believe that these non-GAAP financial measures, when viewed in addition to and not in lieu of our reported GAAP financial results, provide investors with additional meaningful information to assess our financial performance and trends, enable comparison of financial results between periods, and allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics utilized internally in analyzing and operating our business. The following definitions are provided:
Adjusted EBITDA: net income (loss) before interest expense, taxes, depreciation and amortization, share-based compensation expense, employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions, certain expenses associated with our



IPO, sponsor and third-party acquisition related costs, losses resulting from early repayment of debt, lease termination charges, and deferred revenue reductions from purchase accounting for acquisitions prior to 2022
Non-GAAP operating income (loss): GAAP operating income (loss), excluding the impact of share-based compensation, employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions, and sponsor and third-party acquisition-related costs
Non-GAAP net income (loss): GAAP net income (loss), excluding the impact of share-based compensation, employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions, and sponsor and third-party acquisition-related costs
Non-GAAP cost of revenue: GAAP cost of revenue, excluding the impact of share-based compensation, employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions, and amortization of developed technology
Non-GAAP operating expenses: GAAP operating expenses, excluding the impact of share-based compensation, employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions, and depreciation and amortization
Free cash flow: GAAP cash flow from operating activities less GAAP purchases of property and equipment (Capital Expenditures) and capitalized costs related to developed technology (Capitalized Software)
Reconciliations to comparable GAAP financial measures are available in the accompanying schedules, which are posted as part of this earnings release on our website. No reconciliation is provided with respect to certain forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures as the GAAP measures are not accessible on a forward-looking basis. We cannot reliably predict all necessary components or their impact to reconcile such financial measures without unreasonable effort. The events necessitating a non-GAAP adjustment are inherently unpredictable and may have a significant impact on our future GAAP financial results.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains, and our above-referenced conference call and webcast will contain, statements which are not historical facts and are considered forward-looking within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Generally, these statements can be identified by the use of words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “projects,” “seeks,” “should,” “will,” and variations of such words or similar expressions, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Further, statements describing our strategy, outlook, guidance, plans, intentions, or goals are also forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect our predictions, expectations, or forecasts, including, but not limited to, statements regarding, and guidance with respect to, our strategy, our future financial and operational performance, future economic conditions, our strategic initiatives, including anticipated benefits and integration of an acquisition, our restructuring plan, including expected associated timing, benefits, and costs, the potential benefits of our migration to the public cloud, our stock repurchase program, including the execution and amount of repurchases, our development or delivery of new or enhanced solutions, our market size and growth opportunities, our competitive positioning, projected costs, technological capabilities and plans, and objectives of management. Actual results may differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements and will be affected by a variety of risks and factors that are beyond our control including, without limitation, risks related to our business and industry, as well as those set forth in Item 1A. Risk Factors, or elsewhere, in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year, any updates in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed for periods subsequent to such Form 10-K, and our other SEC filings. These forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions as of the date hereof. The plans, intentions, or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements may not be achieved, and you should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We undertake no obligation, other than as required by applicable law, to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.



Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(in thousands, except share and per share data)

As of
December 31, 2022December 31, 2021
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents$55,780$113,645
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts 32,90524,913
Prepaid expenses and other current assets9,4479,398
Escrow deposit30,000
Total current assets128,132147,956
Property and equipment, net4,2455,989
Right of use assets2,185
Intangible assets, net297,475298,597
Deferred tax assets, net13,9394,286
Goodwill608,657564,799
Other assets4,5244,266
Total assets$1,059,157 $1,025,893
Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable $1,249$2,335
Accrued liabilities32,50024,667
Deferred revenue16,94514,707
Current portion of long-term debt, net of debt issuance costs3,5052,139
Total current liabilities54,19943,848
Long-term debt, net of debt issuance costs423,404425,371
Long-term deferred revenue1,141
Deferred rent396
Other long-term liabilities1,322
Total liabilities480,066469,615
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ Equity
Preferred stock, $0.001 par value; 50,000,000 shares authorized; zero shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2022 and 2021
Common stock, $0.001 par value; 600,000,000 shares authorized, 80,644,452 and 79,734,984 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively12888
Additional paid-in capital621,396596,542
Accumulated deficit(42,433)(40,352)
Total stockholders’ equity579,091556,278
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity$1,059,157$1,025,893




Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except share/unit and per share/unit data)

Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Revenues, net$70,551 $64,024 $288,046 $267,676 
Cost of revenues:
Subscription and services22,486 19,025 90,778 77,103 
Amortization of developed technology4,266 3,329 15,553 12,519 
Total cost of revenues26,752 22,354 106,331 89,622 
Gross profit43,799 41,670 181,715 178,054 
Operating expenses:
General and administrative22,233 21,057 82,649 85,160 
Research and development12,178 8,529 42,592 36,336 
Sales and marketing7,139 4,305 23,658 18,122 
Acquisition related costs1,679 — 4,228 781 
Total operating expenses43,229 33,891 153,127 140,399 
Operating income570 7,779 28,588 37,655 
Other (income) expense, net:
Other income(357)(10)(1,063)(49)
Interest expense, net7,578 5,542 24,227 32,615 
Loss on debt repayment and extinguishment— 5,593 — 9,944 
Total other expense, net7,221 11,125 23,164 42,510 
Income (loss) before provision for income taxes(6,651)(3,346)5,424 (4,855)
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes(1,188)(133)4,130 5,141 
Net income (loss)(5,463)(3,213)1,294 (9,996)
Class A preferred return— — — (20,944)
Net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders$(5,463)$(3,213)$1,294 $(30,940)
Net income (loss) per share:
Basic$(0.07)$(0.04)$0.02 $(0.48)
Diluted(0.07)(0.04)0.02 (0.48)
Weighted average common stock outstanding:
Basic80,749,744 79,596,418 80,454,356 63,813,770 
Diluted80,749,744 79,596,418 82,403,679 63,813,770 




Net Revenues by Major Source
(unaudited)
(in thousands)

Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Subscription fees$60,004$55,757$248,864$235,489
Professional services8,2505,89529,32022,707
Other2,2972,3729,8629,480
Total$70,551$64,024$288,046$267,676

Net Revenues by Solution Type
(unaudited)
(in thousands)

Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Lending software solutions$55,041$43,759$208,290$176,793
Data verification software solutions15,51020,26579,75690,883
Total (1)
$70,551$64,024$288,046$267,676
% Growth attributable to:

Lending software solutions
18%12%
Data verification software
(7)%(4)%
Total % growth
10%8%

(1) % Revenue related to mortgage loan market:

Lending software solutions10%9%8%9%
Data verification software59%68%64%70%
Total % revenue related to mortgage loan market21%27%23%30%




Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(in thousands)

Year Ended December 31,
20222021
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income (loss)$1,294$(9,996)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization53,98250,453
Amortization of debt issuance costs2,7603,413
Share-based compensation expense22,76130,736
Loss on disposal of fixed assets678524
Loss on sublease liability405
Loss on debt repayment and extinguishment9,944
Gain on change in fair value of earnout(162)
Other adjustments(18)
Deferred income taxes1,9054,926
Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions:
Accounts receivable(7,005)1,619
Prepaid expenses and other assets297(5,726)
Accounts payable(1,564)117
Accrued liabilities(2,281)(302)
Deferred revenue1,9223,834
Deferred rent(94)
Net cash provided by operating activities74,58789,835
Cash flows from investing activities:
Acquisition, net of cash acquired – Beanstalk Networks L.L.C.(61,830)
Acquisition, net of cash and restricted cash acquired – StreetShares, Inc.(23,137)
Acquisition, net of cash and restricted cash acquired – Saylent Technologies, Inc.(35,945)
Acquisition, net of cash acquired – TazWorks, LLC(84,605)
Escrow deposit(30,000)
Capitalized software additions(8,228)(4,906)
Purchases of property and equipment(1,136)(843)
Net cash used in investing activities(124,331)(126,299)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Repurchases of common stock(3,375)
Repurchases of Class A Units(54)
Repurchases of Class B Units(1,887)
Proceeds from initial public offering, net of underwriters’ discounts and commissions247,307
Proceeds from exercise of stock options2111,714
Payment due to effect of corporate conversion(6)
Proceeds from employee stock purchase plan1,777
Taxes paid related to net share settlement of RSUs(206)
Proceeds from long-term debt535,000
Principal payments of long-term debt(3,263)(631,255)
Payment of Regulation A+ investor note(3,265)
Payments of debt issuance costs(7,207)
Payments of Class A cumulative preferred return(12)
Payments of deferred offering costs(4,790)
Payment to sellers of Saylent Technologies, Inc.(775)
Payment to sellers of Teledata Communications, Inc(2,142)
Holdback payment to sellers of MeridianLink(25,665)
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities(8,121)110,228
Net (decrease) increase in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash(57,865)73,764
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period113,64539,881
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period$55,780$113,645




Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(in thousands)

Year Ended December 31,
20222021
Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information:
Cash paid for interest$21,348$29,242
Cash paid for income taxes1,343306
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Regulation A+ investor note assumed in business combination$3,265$
Initial recognition of operating lease liability3,791
Initial recognition of operating lease right-of-use asset3,047
Share-based compensation expense capitalized to software additions311111
Shares withheld with respect to net settlement of RSUs206
Effect of corporate conversion319,868
Related party receivable net against holdback payment to prior shareholders4,335
Deferred offering costs in prepaid expenses and other current assets as of December 31, 2020 offsetting payments of deferred offering costs423
Vesting of RSAs and RSUs4094
Debt issuance costs included in accrued expenses90
Purchases of property and equipment included in accounts payable and accrued expenses7281



Reconciliation from GAAP to Non-GAAP Results
(unaudited)
(in thousands, except share/unit and per share/unit data)
Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Operating income$570$7,779$28,588$37,655
Add: Share-based compensation expense6,2603,90122,76130,736
Add: Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions201635095
Add: Sponsor and third-party acquisition related costs1,679254,2282,348
Non-GAAP operating income$8,529$11,721$55,927$70,834
Non-GAAP operating margin
12%18%19%26%
Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Net income (loss)$(5,463)$(3,213)$1,294$(9,996)
Add: Share-based compensation expense6,2603,90122,76130,736
Add: Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions201635095
Add: Sponsor and third-party acquisition related costs1,679254,2282,348
Non-GAAP net income$2,496$729$28,633$23,183
Non-GAAP basic net income per share$0.03$0.01$0.36$0.36
Non-GAAP diluted net income per share0.030.010.350.35
Weighted average shares used to compute Non-GAAP basic net income per share
80,749,74479,596,41880,454,35663,813,770
Weighted average shares used to compute Non-GAAP diluted net income per share82,413,71282,358,07982,403,679 67,130,479
Non-GAAP net income margin4%1%10%9%
Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Net income (loss)$(5,463)$(3,213)$1,294$(9,996)
Interest expense
7,5785,54224,22732,615
Taxes
(1,188)(133)4,1305,141
Depreciation and amortization
14,23412,79953,98250,453
Share-based compensation expense6,2603,90122,76130,736
Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions201635095
Expenses associated with IPO
424
Sponsor and third-party acquisition related costs
1,679254,2282,348
Loss on debt prepayment5,5939,944
Deferred revenue reduction from purchase accounting for acquisitions prior to 202251109227733
Lease termination charges879
Adjusted EBITDA$23,171$24,639$111,199$123,372
Adjusted EBITDA margin33%38%39%46%

Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Cost of revenue$26,752$22,354$106,331$89,622
Less: Share-based compensation expense1,0631,0174,6306,478
Less: Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions61273
Less: Amortization of developed technology4,2663,32915,55312,519
Non-GAAP cost of revenue$21,417$18,008$86,021$70,622
As a % of revenue
30%28%30%26%







Reconciliation from GAAP to Non-GAAP Results
(unaudited)
(in thousands)
Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
General & administrative$22,233$21,057$82,649$85,160
Less: Share-based compensation expense2,5521,6949,49914,558
Less: Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions6148173
Less: Depreciation expense5995602,3192,303
Less: Amortization of intangibles9,3698,91036,11035,631
Non-GAAP general & administrative$9,707$9,879$34,640$32,595
As a % of revenue14%15%12%12%
Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Research and development$12,178$8,529$42,592$36,336
Less: Share-based compensation expense2,0141,0956,4727,453
Less: Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions61028
Non-GAAP research and development$10,158$7,434$36,018$28,875
As a % of revenue14%12%13%11%

Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021
Sales and marketing$7,139$4,305$23,658$18,122
Less: Share-based compensation expense631952,1602,247
Less: Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions224011
Non-GAAP sales and marketing$6,506$4,208$21,458$15,864
As a % of revenue9%7%7%6%


Three Months Ended December 31,Year Ended December 31,
2022202120222021

Net cash provided by operating activities$7,352$20,823$74,587$89,835
Less: Capitalized software1,9051,3168,2284,906
Less: Capital expenditures 2471511,136843
Free cash flow$5,200$19,356$65,223$84,086