Mazor Robotics Ltd. (Nasdaq: MZOR; TASE:MZOR) today announced that it had received 19 orders for its robot surgical systems in the second quarter of 2017. The company expects its second quarter revenue to reach $15.4 million, almost double its revenue in the second quarter last year.
16 of the orders are from US companies that bought the MazorX system, including seven upgrades of the company's previous Renaissance system. The other three orders are for the slightly cheaper Renaissance system: one in the US and two elsewhere.
The orders are not part of those to which Medtronic is obligated under its cooperation agreement with Mazor; they are a real increase in the number of Mazor's customers. The company's orders backlog remains 14 systems, meaning that the company has managed to install many of the systems it sold in the preceding quarters.
Mazor reported the cancelation of one order, but CEO Ori Hadomi explained to "Globes" that the order involved was by a hospital for a specific department, and had been canceled in order to enable the hospital to order a system for a different department, so the cancelation had no business significance.
The growth in the number of systems ordered increases the likelihood that Medtronic will exercise its option in the second stage of its investment-commercial cooperation agreement with Mazor, including an order for hundreds of systems (amounting to tens, or even hundreds, of millions of dollars).
Hadomi commented, "I have already said before that we are meeting all the milestones necessary for the exercise of the option in the agreement, and that I will not be surprised in it is exercised even before the deadline in February 2018. Medtronic did not expect marketing of the device to make such rapid progress.
"In an agreement like this, the profit on each system falls, but its strategic significance should be understood. The agreement prevents Medtronic from developing its robotics products for the spinal column for at least 3-4 years after the agreement ends. Since it is absolutely clear that the future of spinal surgery lies in robotics, the exercising of the agreement will signal that Medtronic has chosen to realize its strategy in the sector through us."
"Globes": What about an acquisition of you by Medtronic?
Hadomi: "I'm not bringing that up."
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on July 6, 2017
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2017