Benson Hill, Inc.

Full-year 2023 consolidated revenue was $473 million, up 24% year over year, driven by 52% growth in proprietary revenue and 18% growth in non-proprietary grain products. Gross profit was $23 million, more than tripling the prior year, and adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $48 million, improving more than 40% year over year. Free cash use was $87 million, a $13 million improvement versus the prior year, and the company ended the year with approximately $49 million in cash and marketable securities. Management said 2024 will have much lower revenue because the soy processing assets were divested, gross profit will decline proportionally with revenue, and losses from continuing operations and adjusted EBITDA should improve as operating expenses fall and partnerships/licensing ramp. Dean Freeman said 2024 cash OpEx and CapEx should run at about $55 million to $60 million, with room for improvement.

Deanie Elsner framed 2023 as a successful reset year in which Benson Hill completed the liquidity improvement plan, divested processing assets, retired debt, and cut recurring OpEx and CapEx by more than 33%. She emphasized an asset-light strategy built around the company's soy genetics, CropOS, and Crop Accelerator, saying the company is validated in animal feed and positioned to expand into biofuel over time. Her tone was confident and promotional about the technology, repeatedly saying the business is at an inflection point and that strategic partnerships will be the main revenue bridge going forward.

Dean Freeman said the company met or beat almost all 2023 guidance metrics despite a difficult market. He cited $473 million of revenue, $23 million of gross profit, a $48 million adjusted EBITDA loss, and $87 million of free cash use, and noted the year included about $19 million of goodwill impairment and about $13 million of nonrecurring severance and divestiture-related charges. For 2024, he said revenue will be much lower after the divestitures, gross profit will fall with revenue during the transition, but losses from continuing operations and adjusted EBITDA should improve as expenses come down. He also said the company is exploring additional financing and strategic alternatives to extend liquidity through 2024 and beyond, and that cash OpEx plus CapEx should stay around $55 million to $60 million on a run-rate basis.

The main analyst question was how investors should track the business over the next 12 to 18 months now that revenue visibility is lower. Management said the key milestones are finishing the legacy-business transition and, more importantly, announcing and executing strategic partnerships and licensing deals, which they expect to be the main indicators of future revenue. On deal structure, they said some partnerships may include upfront exclusivity or technology-access fees, while others may be offtake or broader licensing arrangements, and they stressed that demand for UHP-LO seed may outpace their ability to produce seed over the next two years.