NICE Reports 19% Growth in Total Revenue for the Fourth Quarter and 17% Growth for the Full Year 2021

NICE (NASDAQ: NICE) today announced results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021.

Fourth Quarter 2021 Financial Highlights

Full Year 2021 Financial Highlights

"We ended 2021 on a high note and with great momentum. NICE is a fast growing, agile market leader at scale combined with blue-chip profitability," said Barak Eilam, CEO of NICE.

Mr. Eilam continued, "Fourth quarter financial results reflected outstanding execution across the board that led to 19% growth in total revenue, double-digit growth in every region and continued strength in profitability. Fueling this growth is our continued excellent performance in the cloud. Cloud revenue increased 30% in the quarter, which propelled our annual cloud revenue over the $1 billion mark, further establishing NICE as the clear cloud leader in our industry."

"The strong fourth quarter results echo our success throughout 2021 as we reported double-digit total revenue growth in every quarter, further drove our international expansion, gained massive scale in digital and transformed NICE from an analytics leader to an AI powerhouse with a fivefold increase in AI bookings.

"As we head into 2022 and beyond, we believe we are in the best competitive position in our history with the strategic assets firmly in place to achieve further success."

GAAP Financial Highlights for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year Ended December 31:

Revenues: Fourth quarter 2021 total revenues increased 18.6% to $515.5 million compared to $434.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 total revenues increased 16.6% to $1,921.2 million compared to $1,648.0 million for the full year 2020.

Gross Profit: Fourth quarter 2021 gross profit was $350.2 million compared to $288.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2020. Fourth quarter 2021 gross margin was 67.9% compared to 66.4% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 gross profit increased to $1,296.7 million compared to $1,086.1 million for the full year 2020. Full year 2020 gross margin was 67.5% compared to 65.9% for the full year 2020.

Operating Income: Fourth quarter 2021 operating income was $65.1 million compared to $65.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2020. Fourth quarter 2021 operating margin was 12.6% compared to 15.0% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 operating income increased to $263.9 million compared to $242.0 million for the full year 2020. Full year 2020 operating margin was 13.7% compared to 14.7% for the full year 2020.

Net Income: Fourth quarter 2021 net income was $51.2 million compared to $55.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2020. Fourth quarter 2021 net income margin was 9.9% compared to 12.6% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 net income was $199.2 million compared to $196.3 million. Full year 2021 net income margin was 10.4% compared to 11.9% for the full year 2020.

Fully Diluted Earnings Per Share: Fully diluted earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2021 was $0.76 compared to $0.83 in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Fully diluted earnings per share for the full year 2021 were $2.98 compared to $2.98 for the full year 2020.

Operating Cash Flow and Cash Balance: Fourth quarter 2021 operating cash flow was $112.7 million and full year operating cash flow was $461.8 million.
In the fourth quarter, $24.3 million were used for share repurchases and for the full year of 2021, $73.2 million were used for share repurchases. As of December 31, 2021, total cash and cash equivalents, short and long term investments were $1,424.8 million. Our debt, net of a hedge instrument, was 532 million dollars, resulting in net cash and investments of 893 million dollars.

Non-GAAP Financial Highlights for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year Ended December 31:

Revenues: Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP total revenues increased to $515.5 million, up 17.6% from $438.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Non-GAAP total revenues for the full year 2021 increased 16.2% to $1,925.7 million compared to $1,657.1 million for the full year 2020.

Gross Profit: Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP gross profit increased to $376.4 million compared to $316.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2020. Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP gross margin was 73.0% compared to 72.2% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 Non-GAAP gross profit increased to $1,397.6 million compared to $1,181.6 million for the full year 2020. Full year 2021 Non-GAAP gross margin was 72.6%, compared to 71.3% for full year 2020.

Operating Income: Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP operating income increased to $145.6 million compared to $131.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2020. Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP operating margin was 28.2% compared to 30.1% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 Non-GAAP operating income increased to $543.9 million compared to $470.4 million for the full year 2020. Full year 2021 Non-GAAP operating margin was 28.2% compared to 28.4% for the full year 2020.

Net Income: Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP net income increased to $116.7 million compared to $106.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2020. Non-GAAP net income margin totaled 22.6% compared to 24.4% for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 Non-GAAP net income increased to $436.3 million compared to $378.2 million for the full year 2020.
Full year 2021 Non-GAAP net income margin totaled 22.7% compared to 22.8% for the full year 2020.

Fully Diluted Earnings Per Share: Fourth quarter 2021 Non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share increased 7.5% to $1.73 compared to $1.61 for the fourth quarter of 2020.
Full year 2021 Non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share increased 13.8% to $6.52 compared to $5.73 for the full year 2020.

First Quarter and Full Year 2022 Guidance:

First Quarter 2022:
First quarter 2022 Non-GAAP total revenues are expected to be in a range of $505 million to $515 million.
First quarter 2022 Non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share are expected to be in a range of $1.65 to $1.75.

Full Year 2022:
Full year 2022 Non-GAAP total revenues are expected to be in a range of $2,140 million to $2,160 million, representing 12% growth at the midpoint compared to full year 2021.
Full year 2022 Non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share are expected to be in a range of $7.07 to $7.27, representing 10% growth at the midpoint compared to full year 2021.

Quarterly Results Conference Call

NICE management will host its earnings conference call today February 17^th, 2022 at 8:30 AM ET, 13:30 GMT, 15:30 Israel, to discuss the results and the company's outlook. To participate in the call, please dial into the following numbers: United States 1-877-407-4018 or +1-201-689-8471, United Kingdom 0-800-756-3429, Israel 1-809-406-247.
The call will be webcast live on the Company's website at https://www.nice.com/investor-relations/upcoming-event.

Explanation of Non-GAAP measures
Non-GAAP financial measures are included in this press release. Non-GAAP financial measures consist of GAAP financial measures adjusted to exclude share-based compensation, amortization of acquired intangible assets, acquisition related expenses, amortization of discount on debt and loss from extinguishment of debt and the tax effect of the Non-GAAP adjustments. The Company early adopted ASU 2021-08, Business Combinations, effective January 1, 2021. The amendments in ASU 2021-08 require acquiring entities to apply Topic 606 to recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities in a business combination. The Company applied the new guidance retrospectively to all business combinations for which the acquisition date occurred on or after January 1, 2021, therefore comparative financials were not adjusted. Through December 31, 2020 business combination accounting rules required the recognition of a legal performance obligation related to a revenue arrangement of an acquired entity as a liability. The amount assigned to such liability was based on its fair value at the date of acquisition. Comparative financials Non-GAAP adjustment for a revenue arrangement is intended to reflect the full amount of such revenue. The Company believes that these Non-GAAP financial measures, used in conjunction with the corresponding GAAP measures, provide investors with useful supplemental information about the financial performance of our business. We believe Non-GAAP financial measures are useful to investors as a measure of the ongoing performance of our business. Our management regularly uses our supplemental Non-GAAP financial measures internally to understand, manage and evaluate our business and to make financial, strategic and operating decisions. These Non-GAAP measures are among the primary factors management uses in planning for and forecasting future periods. Our Non-GAAP financial measures are not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for comparable GAAP measures and should be read only in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. These Non-GAAP financial measures may differ materially from the Non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. Reconciliation between results on a GAAP and Non-GAAP basis is provided in a table immediately following the Consolidated Statements of Income. The Company provides guidance only on a Non-GAAP basis. A reconciliation of guidance from a GAAP to Non-GAAP basis is not available due to the unpredictability and uncertainty associated with future events that would be reported in GAAP results and would require adjustments between GAAP and Non-GAAP financial measures, including the impact of future possible business acquisitions. Accordingly, a reconciliation of the guidance based on Non-GAAP financial measures to corresponding GAAP financial measures for future periods is not available without unreasonable effort.

About NICE
NICE (Nasdaq: NICE) is the worldwide leading provider of both cloud and on-premises enterprise software solutions that empower organizations to make smarter decisions based on advanced analytics of structured and unstructured data. NICE helps organizations of all sizes deliver better customer service, ensure compliance, combat fraud and safeguard citizens. Over 25,000 organizations in more than 150 countries, including over 85 of the Fortune 100 companies, are using NICE solutions. www.nice.com.

Trademark Note: NICE and the NICE logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of NICE. All other marks are trademarks of their respective owners. For a full list of NICE' marks, please see: http://www.nice.com/nice-trademarks.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "believe," "expect," "seek," "may," "will," "intend," "should," "project," "anticipate," "plan," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs, expectations and assumptions of the Company's management regarding the future of the Company's business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Examples of forward-looking statements include guidance regarding the Company's revenue and earnings and the growth of our cloud, analytics and artificial intelligence business.

Forward looking statements are inherently subject to significant economic, competitive and other uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond the control of management. The Company cautions that these statements are not guarantees of future performance, and investors should not place undue reliance on them. There are or will be important known and unknown factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors, include, but are not limited to, risks associated with changes in economic and business conditions, competition, successful execution of the Company's growth strategy, success and growth of the Company's cloud Software-as-a-Service business, difficulties in making additional acquisitions or effectively integrating acquired operations, products, technologies and personnel, the Company's dependency on third-party cloud computing platform providers, hosting facilities and service partners, rapidly changing technology, cyber security attacks or other security breaches against the Company, privacy concerns and legislation impacting the Company's business, changes in currency exchange rates and interest rates, the effects of additional tax liabilities resulting from our global operations, uncertainty related to COVID-19 and various other factors and uncertainties discussed in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC").

You are encouraged to carefully review the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our latest Annual Report on Form 20-F and our other filings with the SEC for additional information regarding these and other factors and uncertainties that could affect our future performance. The forward-looking statements contained in this presentation speak only as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise them, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by law.

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