Executive Summary

Q1 2023: UPNEEQ net product sales rose 49% year over year to $8.83M, while total revenues declined to $8.83M given no Santen licensing revenue this quarter (vs. $15.5M licensing in Q1’22); gross margin was 74% versus 90% a year ago due to the prior-year licensing mix .
Operating leverage improved: SG&A fell 32% YoY to $16.20M; Adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed to $(8.66)M from $(18.90)M YoY, driven by cost reductions and higher product-only margins .
Commercial KPIs strengthened: 54% of aesthetic orders were reorders; cumulative unique medical aesthetics practices reached ~4,800 (+12% QoQ); cumulative pharmacy-paid prescribers reached ~19,900 (+8% vs. YE22) .
Liquidity/debt: $32.64M cash at 3/31/23; senior secured debt principal $70.7M (carried at fair value of ~$56.3M), highlighting the importance of continued operating scale-up and cash discipline .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- UPNEEQ growth and channel momentum: “monthly pharmacy prescriptions reached an all-time high during the first quarter of 2023… momentum in aesthetics continued, with growth in the percentage of reorders and in new account openings” .
- Operating expense discipline: SG&A decreased by $7.6M YoY to $16.2M, reflecting lower compensation/training (salesforce reductions), professional fees, share-based comp, and marketing spend .
- Product-only profitability improved YoY: excluding licensing, gross margin on net product sales was 74% vs. 64% in Q1’22 due to lower royalty/earnouts and better overhead absorption .
What Went Wrong
- Total revenue down YoY: $8.83M vs. $21.44M in Q1’22, entirely due to no licensing revenue in 2023; Q1’22 included $15.5M of Santen milestone revenue .
- Sequential revenue softness: Q1’23 net product sales of $8.83M were below Q4’22 net product sales of $9.81M (post-methodology refinement) despite the $2.3M of Direct Dispense sales shifted into Q1’23 recognition from Q4’22, implying underlying demand variability amid channel mix/methodology effects .
- Net loss widened YoY: $(11.61)M vs. $(6.82)M in Q1’22 as the prior-year had high-margin licensing revenue; EPS $(0.12) vs. $(0.08) .

Financial Results

Metric (USD)	Q1 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023
Net Product Sales ($M)	$5.94	$9.81	$8.83
Royalty & Licensing Revenue ($M)	$15.50	$0.00	$0.00
Total Revenues ($M)	$21.44	$9.81	$8.83
Cost of Goods Sold ($M)	$2.14	$2.56	$2.30
Gross Profit ($M)	$19.30	$7.25	$6.53
Gross Margin (%)	90%	74%	74%
SG&A ($M)	$23.83	$17.60	$16.20
R&D ($M)	$0.86	$0.88	$0.63
Operating Loss ($M)	$(5.40)	$(24.55)	$(10.29)
Adjusted EBITDA ($M)	$(18.90)	$(9.32)	$(8.66)
Net (Loss) ($M)	$(6.82)	$(18.32)	$(11.61)
Diluted EPS ($)	$(0.08)	$(0.18)	$(0.12)
Cash & Equivalents ($M, period-end)	$26.34	$44.54	$32.64
Senior Secured Debt (Principal, $M)	—	$75.0	$70.7

Notes:

Q4’22 UPNEEQ net product sales finalized at $9.81M after a refinement recognizing Direct Dispense revenues upon delivery (not shipment); $2.3M that was preliminarily included in Q4’22 was recognized in Q1’23 .
Product-only gross margin: 74% in Q1’23 vs. 64% in Q1’22 .

Segment/Product revenue breakdown:

Revenue Component ($M)	Q1 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023
UPNEEQ Net Product Sales	$5.94	$9.81	$8.83
Licensing/Milestones	$15.50	$0.00	$0.00
Total Revenues	$21.44	$9.81	$8.83

KPIs and commercial metrics:

KPI	Q3 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023
Cumulative unique medical aesthetics practices (quarter-end)	~3,500	~4,300	~4,800
Aesthetic orders that were reorders	—	~50%	54%
Cumulative pharmacy-paid prescribers (quarter/period-end)	~17,000	>20,000	~19,900
Eye care prescriber mix (Optometry/Ophthalmology)	68% / 32%	—	68% / 32%

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
UPNEEQ Net Product Sales	Q4 2022	$12–$14M (issued Nov 2022)	None provided in Q1’23 materials	N/A
All other financial metrics (revenue, margins, OpEx, OI&E, tax, dividends)	2023	—	None provided in Q1’23 materials	N/A

Context: Company refined revenue recognition for Direct Dispense shipments crossing period-end; $2.3M moved from preliminary Q4’22 into Q1’23 actuals .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Note: A Q1’23 earnings call transcript was not available in the document set searched.

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q3’22 and Q4’22)	Current Period (Q1’23)	Trend
eCommerce / Elevate portal	Planned launch/new eCommerce platform communicated (Q3’22); rollout planned (Q4’22)	July rollout of Elevate expected; intended to broaden reach, improve CX, enable analytics	Advancing toward launch
Multi-channel strategy (eye care, aesthetics, telemedicine)	Medical aesthetics expansion, strong reorder traction; telemedicine selectively opened in H2’22	Multi-channel “delivering favorable results”; all-time-high monthly prescriptions in Q1 despite no personal promo	Strengthening
Aesthetic account growth and reorder rate	3,500 aesthetics practices; ~1,000 reorders by Q3’22; Q4 prelim reorder ~50%	4,800 cumulative practices; 54% of aesthetic orders were reorders	Improving breadth/quality
Cost discipline/operating leverage	SG&A declined YoY in Q3’22/Q4’22	SG&A down 32% YoY; EBITDA loss markedly improved YoY	Positive leverage
Telemedicine	Selectively opened in H2’22	Cited as a contributor to multi-channel access; methodology refinement affected Q4/Q1 allocation	Embedded
Liquidity/debt	Cash $59.8M at Q3’22; $44.5M at YE22; $75M principal debt	Cash $32.6M; $70.7M debt principal (FV ~$56.3M) at 3/31/23	Tighter liquidity; deleveraging via FV

Management Commentary

“RVL is off to a great start on the year… monthly pharmacy prescriptions reached an all-time high during the first quarter of 2023, despite the absence of personal promotional support… momentum in aesthetics continued, with growth in the percentage of reorders and in new account openings” — Brian Markison, CEO .
“We believe the July rollout of Elevate, our next-generation e-commerce portal, will be a powerful step that will broaden our reach, improve the customer experience and facilitate enhanced access to UPNEEQ” .
Prior quarter positioning: “UPNEEQ is well positioned as a first-in-class cash pay product with no direct competition… focused on… rollout of Elevate… and business development” .

Q&A Highlights

A Q1 2023 earnings call transcript was not available in the searched documents; therefore, Q&A details, guidance clarifications, or tone shifts could not be evaluated from a transcript source.

Estimates Context

Consensus estimates from S&P Global for RVLPQ were unavailable at the time of analysis due to missing mapping, so beats/misses versus Street could not be assessed. Where estimates are required for comparison, note explicitly that S&P Global consensus was unavailable.

Key Takeaways for Investors

UPNEEQ unit economics and channel breadth are improving: product-only gross margin at 74% and rising reorder share (54%) indicate healthier recurring demand and better absorption/royalty dynamics .
Sequential sales softness (Q1’23 $8.83M vs. Q4’22 $9.81M) is notable given that Q1 includes $2.3M of revenue deferred from Q4 under refined recognition; monitoring underlying trend ex-methodology effects is prudent .
Operating discipline is working: SG&A is structurally lower, and Adjusted EBITDA loss improved by ~$10.2M YoY; further operating leverage hinges on sustained volume growth across channels .
Liquidity has tightened (cash $32.6M; debt principal $70.7M); Elevate rollout and continued reorder-driven growth are key catalysts to support cash generation and de-risk the balance sheet .
With no current guidance and unavailable Street estimates, investors should anchor on execution KPIs (practice adds, reorder mix, prescriber growth) and July Elevate launch milestones as near-term stock catalysts .
Prior-year licensing makes YoY comp noisy; focus on product-only trends (margins, channel productivity, reorder rates) for a cleaner view of core performance .

RVL Pharmaceuticals plc (RVLPQ)·Q1 2023 Earnings Summary