Fourth Quarter Total Revenue of $33.8 Million, a Year over Year Increase of 76%
AUSTIN, Texas--CS Disco, Inc. (“DISCO”) (NYSE: LAW) today announced financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.
“The legal industry is recognizing that cloud-native technology and applied artificial intelligence are game changers. As we close on our first calendar year as a public company, we believe our results demonstrate that DISCO is at the forefront of the industry’s modernization,” said Kiwi Camara, Co-Founder and CEO of DISCO. “Our ability to empower our customers to achieve better legal outcomes continues to drive demand for our offerings, as law firms and corporate legal departments turn to DISCO for our product innovation, for our expertise, and to use technology to transform the practice of law.”
Fourth Quarter 2021 Financial Highlights:
- Total revenue was $33.8 million, up 76% compared to the fourth quarter of 2020.
- GAAP net loss was $9.1 million, compared to $3.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2020.
- Adjusted EBITDA was ($5.3) million, compared to ($2.1) million in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Fiscal Year 2021 Financial Highlights:
- Total revenue was $114.3 million, up 67% compared to fiscal year 2020.
- GAAP net loss was $24.3 million, compared to $22.9 million in fiscal year 2020.
- Adjusted EBITDA was ($16.3) million, compared to ($19.9) million in fiscal year 2020.
- Dollar based net retention rate of 146%, compared to 127% in fiscal year 2020.
Recent Business Highlights:
- Built In Best Places to Work 2022: DISCO was recognized in the categories of Austin Best Places to Work, Austin Best Midsize Companies to Work For and Austin Best Paying Companies by Built In Austin.
- Greater Austin Business Awards 2021: Kiwi Camara, CEO of DISCO, was awarded a CEO Award from the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce.
First Quarter and Full Year 2022 Financial Outlook
As of February 24, 2022, DISCO is issuing the following outlook for the first quarter of 2022 and fiscal year 2022:
First quarter of 2022:
- Revenue in the range of $30.0 - $31.0 million, representing year-over-year growth between 42% and 47%.
- Adjusted EBITDA in the range of ($12.5) - ($11.5) million.
Fiscal year 2022:
- Revenue in the range of $146.8 - $150.8 million, representing year-over-year growth between 28% and 32%.
- Adjusted EBITDA in the range of ($51.5) - ($43.5) million.
DISCO’s first quarter and fiscal year 2022 financial outlook is based on a number of assumptions that are subject to change and many of which are outside of our control. If actual results vary from these assumptions, our expectations may change. There can be no assurance that we will achieve these results.
Reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA on a forward-looking basis to the most directly comparable GAAP measure is not available without unreasonable efforts due to the high variability and complexity and low visibility with respect to the charges excluded from this non-GAAP measure; in particular, the effects of stock-based compensation expense specific to equity compensation awards that are directly impacted by unpredictable fluctuations in our stock price. We expect the variability of the above charges to have a significant, and potentially unpredictable, impact on our future GAAP financial results.
Conference Call Information
DISCO will host a conference call and webcast at 4:00 p.m. CT (5:00 p.m. ET) today, February 24, 2022, to discuss its fourth quarter and fiscal year 2021 financial results and business highlights. The conference call can be accessed by dialing (833) 989-2979 from the United States or +1 (236) 714-3974 internationally with conference ID 9399144. The live webcast of the conference call and other materials related to DISCO’s financial performance can be accessed from DISCO’s investor relations website at ir.csdisco.com.
Following the completion of the call until 10:59 p.m. CT (11:59 p.m. ET) on Tuesday, March 17, 2022, a telephone replay will be available by dialing (800) 585-8367 from the United States, +1 (416) 621-4642 internationally with conference ID 9399144. A webcast replay will also be available at ir.csdisco.com for 12 months.
About DISCO
DISCO (NYSE: LAW) provides a cloud-native, artificial intelligence-powered legal solution that simplifies ediscovery, legal document review and case management for enterprises, law firms, legal services providers and governments. Our scalable, integrated solution enables legal departments to easily collect, process and review enterprise data that is relevant or potentially relevant to legal matters.
References to “DISCO,” the “Company,” “our” or “we” in this press release refer to CS Disco, Inc. and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
DISCO uses the following non-GAAP financial measures: Adjusted EBITDA, non-GAAP cost of revenue; non-GAAP gross profit; non-GAAP gross margin; non-GAAP research and development expense; non-GAAP sales and marketing expense; non-GAAP general and administrative expense; non-GAAP loss from operations; non-GAAP net loss attributable to common stockholders and non-GAAP net loss attributable to common stockholders per share (basic and diluted). Management believes that these non-GAAP financial measures are useful measures of operating performance because they exclude items that DISCO does not consider indicative of its core performance.
In the case of Adjusted EBITDA, DISCO adjusts net loss for such items as depreciation and amortization expense; provision for income taxes; interest and other, net; stock-based compensation expense; payroll tax expense on employee stock transactions; refund of sales and use taxes related to sales tax in prior periods and other one-time, non-recurring items, when applicable. In the case of non-GAAP cost of revenue, non-GAAP gross profit, non-GAAP gross margin, and non-GAAP operating expenses (research and development expense, sales and marketing, general and administrative), DISCO adjusts the respective GAAP balances for stock-based compensation expense. In the case of non-GAAP loss from operations, non-GAAP net loss attributable to common stockholders, and non-GAAP net loss attributable to common stockholders per share, DISCO adjusts the respective GAAP balances for stock-based compensation expense and refund of sales and use taxes related to sales tax in prior periods.
There are limitations associated with the use of these non-GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP financial measures are not prepared in accordance with GAAP, do not reflect a comprehensive system of accounting and may not be completely comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies due to potential differences in the exact method of calculation between companies. Certain items that are excluded from these non-GAAP financial measures can have a material impact on operating loss and net loss. As a result, these non-GAAP financial measures have limitations and should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for or superior to, the closest GAAP measures, or other financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP.
DISCO's management uses these non-GAAP measures as measures of operating performance; to prepare DISCO's annual operating budget; to allocate resources to enhance the financial performance of DISCO's business; to evaluate the effectiveness of DISCO's business strategies; to provide consistency and comparability with past financial performance; to facilitate a comparison of DISCO's results with those of other companies, many of which use similar non-GAAP financial measures to supplement their GAAP results; and in communication with our board of directors concerning DISCO's financial performance.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, among other things, statements regarding DISCO’s future financial performance. Words such as “may,” “should,” “will,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “target,” “project,” and similar phrases that denote future expectation or intent regarding DISCO’s financial results, operations, and other matters are intended to identify forward-looking statements. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events.
The outcome of the events described in these forward-looking statements is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause DISCO’s actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially, including (i) our history of operating losses; (ii) our limited operating history; (iii) our ability to maintain and advance our innovation and brand; (iv) our ability to effectively add new customers; (v) our ability to effectively increase usage and penetration with our existing customer base; (vi) our ability to expand our sales coverage and establish a digital sales channel; (vii) our ability to expand internationally; (viii) our ability to extend and strengthen our channel partnerships and integrations; (ix) our ability to expand our offering portfolio to a wider range of legal processes outside of our current core offerings; (x) our ability to pursue strategic acquisitions and strategic investments to expand the functionality and value of our solution; (xi) our ability to comply or remain in compliance with laws and regulations that currently apply or become applicable to our business in the jurisdictions in which we operate; (xii) the potential that our computer or electronic systems, applications or services, or those of any third parties on whom we depend, fail or suffer security or data privacy breaches or other unauthorized or improper access to, use of, or destruction of our proprietary or confidential data, employee data, or personal data; (xiii) our ability to compete effectively with existing competitors and new market entrants; (xiv) general market, political, economic, and business conditions; and (xv) the impact that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and any related economic downturn could have on our or our customers’ businesses, financial condition and results of operations.
The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to additional risks, uncertainties, and factors, including those more fully described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2021, filed with the SEC on November 10, 2021. Further information on potential risks that could affect actual results will be included in the subsequent periodic and current reports and other filings that we make with the SEC from time to time, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021.
Forward-looking statements represent DISCO’s management’s beliefs and assumptions only as of the date such statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.
To review CS Disco, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets, visit https://ir.csdisco.com/news/news-details/2022/DISCO-Announces-Fourth-Quarter-and-Fiscal-Year-2021-Financial-Results/default.aspx.