CoreCard Corp - Quarter Report: 2021 June (Form 10-Q)

Intelligent Systems Corporation

Index

Form 10-Q

Part I   FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. Financial Statements

Intelligent Systems Corporation

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

Intelligent Systems Corporation

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(unaudited, in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

Intelligent Systems Corporation

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

(unaudited, in thousands, except share amounts)

*At June 30, 2021, approximately $5,601,000 was authorized for future repurchases of our common stock.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

Intelligent Systems Corporation

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(unaudited, in thousands)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

Intelligent Systems Corporation

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(unaudited)

Basis of Presentation

Throughout this report, the terms “we”, “us”, “ours”, “ISC” and “company” refer to Intelligent Systems Corporation, including its wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries. The unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements presented in this Form 10-Q have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States applicable to interim financial statements. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and notes required for complete financial statements. In the opinion of ISC management, these Consolidated Financial Statements contain all adjustments (which comprise only normal and recurring accruals) necessary to present fairly the financial position and results of operations as of and for the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021 and 2020. The interim results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full year. These statements should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, as filed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K.

There have been no material changes in the Company’s significant accounting policies as compared to the significant accounting policies described in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments, to require financial assets carried at amortized cost to be presented at the net amount expected to be collected based on historical experience, current conditions and forecasts. Subsequently, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-19, Codification Improvements to Topic 326, to clarify that receivables arising from operating leases are within the scope of lease accounting standards. Further, the FASB issued ASU No. 2019-04, ASU No. 2019-05, ASU 2019-10 and ASU 2019-11 to provide additional guidance on the credit losses standard. The ASUs are effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2022, with early adoption permitted. Adoption of the ASUs is on a modified retrospective basis. We plan to adopt the ASUs on January 1, 2023. The ASUs are currently not expected to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Adopted

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. This standard simplifies the accounting for income taxes by eliminating certain exceptions to the guidance in Topic 740 related to the approach for intra-period tax allocation, the methodology for calculating income taxes in an interim period and the recognition of deferred tax liabilities for outside basis differences. The new guidance also simplifies aspects of the accounting for franchise taxes and enacted changes in tax laws or rates and clarifies the accounting for transactions that result in a step-up in the tax basis of goodwill and allocating consolidated income taxes to separate financial statements of entities not subject to income tax. This standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted. We adopted this standard in the first quarter of 2021 and the adoption did not have a material impact on the Consolidated Financial Statements.

In January 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-01, Investments-Equity Securities (Topic 321), Investments-Equity Method and Joint Ventures (Topic 323), and Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Clarifying the Interactions between Topic 321, Topic 323, and Topic 815 (“ASU 2020-01”), which clarifies certain interactions between the guidance to account for certain equity securities, investments under the equity method of accounting and forward contracts or purchased options to purchase securities under Topic 321, Topic 323 and Topic 815. For public entities, ASU 2020-01 is effective for fiscal years, including interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020. We adopted this standard in the first quarter of 2021 and the adoption did not have a material impact on the Consolidated Financial Statements.

We have considered all other recently issued accounting pronouncements and do not believe the adoption of such pronouncements will have a material impact on our Consolidated Financial Statements.

Disaggregation of Revenue

In the following table, revenue is disaggregated by type of revenue for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020:

Foreign revenues are based on the location of the customer. Revenues from customers by geographic areas for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020 are as follows:

Concentration of Revenue

The following table indicates the percentage of consolidated revenue represented by each customer that represented more than 10 percent of consolidated revenue in the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021 and 2020. Most of our customers have multi-year contracts with recurring revenue as well as professional services fees that vary by period depending on their business needs.

During the quarter ended September 30, 2017, we entered into a Loan Agreement with a privately-held identity and professional services company with ties to the FinTech industry. We committed to lend up to $1,500,000 all of which has been advanced. During 2018, we advanced $550,000 on three separate simple Promissory Note(s). As discussed in Note 4, we converted the Loan Agreement and all outstanding Promissory Notes to an equity ownership of 40 percent of the company. At the same time, we entered into and advanced a $1,000,000 Loan Agreement that bears interest at the rate of 6.0 percent annually with a maturity date of June 2021. In October 2019 and January 2020, we entered into Loan Agreements and advanced an additional $500,000 and $1,000,000, respectively, that bears interest at the rate of 6.0 percent annually with maturity dates of October 2021 and January 2022, respectively. In January 2021, we deferred payment of these Loans to December 2023 and have therefore classified the Loans as long-term.

In the quarter ended March 31, 2018, we entered into a Convertible Loan Agreement with a private limited India based company in the FinTech industry. We committed to lend up to $435,000 with an initial advance of $235,000. The loan bears interest at the rate of 5.0 percent annually with the maturity date on the third anniversary of funding of such Promissory Note. We are entitled to convert the principal on the initial note for up to ten percent ownership of shares of the company. For the quarter ended March 31, 2020, we determined that the principal and interest is likely not collectible and therefore recorded a valuation allowance of $259,000, included in investment loss on the Consolidated Statement of Operations.

In February 2021, we entered into and advanced a $550,000 Promissory Note with a privately held technology company and program manager in the FinTech industry, discussed further below in Note 4. The note bears interest at the rate of 4.6 percent annually with the maturity date of October 2023.

Beginning in 2017, and in subsequent periods we entered into a Loan Agreement and various Promissory Notes with a privately held identity and professional services company with ties to the FinTech industry. In June 2019, we converted the Loan Agreement and all Promissory Notes into equity resulting in ownership of 40 percent of the company. We account for our investment using the equity method of accounting which resulted in losses of $134,000 and $267,000 for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, respectively, included in investment loss on the Consolidated Statement of Operations. The carrying value of $1,654,000 is included in investments. A portion of the company’s business has been negatively impacted by the pandemic while other portions of its business have improved. We evaluate on a continuing basis whether any impairment indicators are present that would require additional analysis or write-downs of the investment. While we have not recorded an impairment related to this investment or determined that an impairment trigger existed at June 30, 2021, significant variations from current expectations could impact future assessments resulting in future impairment charges.

On December 30, 2016 we signed an agreement to invest $1,000,000 in a privately held technology company and program manager in the FinTech industry, with $500,000 of the investment held in escrow to pay future fees to CoreCard pursuant to a Processing Agreement entered into by the parties. The investment was funded on January 4, 2017. In the quarter ended June 30, 2018, we recorded an impairment charge of $250,000 to reduce the carrying value due to the investee’s limited funding to support its operation and sales and marketing efforts. In the quarter ended March 31, 2020, due to the uncertainty from the economic downturn resulting from the recent pandemic, we determined that the fair value of our investment was $0 and therefore we recorded an impairment charge of $750,000, included in investment loss on the Consolidated Statement of Operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2020. CoreCard remains in an ongoing business relationship with the company pursuant to a Processing Agreement and a Program Management Services Agreement. CoreCard is positioned to assume the program management aspects of the investee company if the need should arise to ensure their program(s) ongoing viability and the completion of the Processing Agreement with CoreCard. As program manager for this company, we receive cash periodically to fund the customer’s various programs. We held $919,000 and $3,335,000 at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively, in cash on behalf of this customer which is included in other current liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheet.

In the second quarter of 2021, we invested $1,000,000 in a privately held company that provides supply chain and receivables financing. The carrying amount of $1,000,000 is accounted for at cost and is included in investments on the Consolidated Balance Sheet.

The lease on our headquarters and primary facility in Norcross, Georgia is held by ISC Properties, LLC, an entity controlled by our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, J. Leland Strange. Mr. Strange holds a 100% ownership interest in ISC Properties, LLC. In March 2021, we signed a new lease for our headquarters facility for a 5 year term as disclosed on our Form 8-K dated April 1, 2021.

At June 30, 2021, we have three stock-based compensation plans in effect. In August 2020, shareholders approved the 2020 Non-Employee Directors’ Stock Incentive Plan (the “2020 Plan”), which authorizes the issuance of 200,000 shares of common stock to non-employee directors. We record compensation cost related to unvested stock awards by recognizing the unamortized grant date fair value on a straight-line basis over the vesting periods of each award. We have estimated forfeiture rates based on our historical experience. Stock option compensation expense for the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021 and 2020 has been recognized as a component of general and administrative expenses in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements. We recorded $198,000 and $61,000 of stock-based compensation expense for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $255,000 and $123,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

As of June 30, 2021, there is $74,000 of unrecognized compensation cost related to stock options. There were 0 and 67,500 options exercised during the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, respectively. During the quarter ended June 30, 2021, an aggregate of 4,443 shares totaling $150,000 were granted to the three independent members of our board of directors pursuant to the 2020 Plan. Pursuant to the terms of the 2020 Plan, the shares were granted at fair market value on the date of the Annual Meeting of Shareholders and vested upon issuance. No options expired unexercised during the quarter. The following table summarizes options as of June 30, 2021:

The estimated fair value of options granted is calculated using the Black-Scholes option pricing model with assumptions as previously disclosed in our 2020 Form 10-K.

The aggregate intrinsic value in the table above represents the total pre-tax intrinsic value (the difference between the company’s closing stock price on the last trading day of the second quarter of 2021 and the exercise price, multiplied by the number of in-the-money options) that would have been received by the option holders had all option holders exercised their options on June 30, 2021. The amount of aggregate intrinsic value will change based on the market value of the company’s stock.

The carrying value of cash, marketable securities, accounts receivable, notes receivable, accounts payable and certain other financial instruments (such as accrued expenses, and other current liabilities) included in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets approximates their fair value principally due to the short-term maturity of these instruments.

Financial instruments that potentially subject us to concentrations of credit risk consist principally of cash, marketable securities, trade accounts and notes receivable. Our available cash is held in accounts managed by third-party financial institutions. Cash may exceed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, insurance limits. While we monitor cash balances on a regular basis and adjust the balances as appropriate, these balances could be impacted if the underlying financial institutions fail. To date, we have experienced no loss or lack of access to our cash; however, we can provide no assurances that access to our cash will not be impacted by adverse conditions in the financial markets.

In determining fair value, the company uses quoted market prices in active markets. GAAP establishes a fair value measurement framework, provides a single definition of fair value, and requires expanded disclosure summarizing fair value measurements. GAAP emphasizes that fair value is a market-based measurement, not an entity specific measurement. Therefore, a fair value measurement should be determined based on the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability.

GAAP establishes a hierarchy for inputs used in measuring fair value that maximizes the use of observable inputs and minimizes the use of unobservable inputs by requiring that the most observable input be used when available.  Observable inputs are based on data obtained from sources independent of the company that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability.  Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the company’s assumptions about the estimates market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on the best information available in the circumstances. 

The hierarchy is measured in three levels based on the reliability of inputs:

Valuations based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that we have the ability to access. Valuation adjustments and block discounts are not applied to Level 1 instruments.

Valuations based on quoted prices in less active, dealer or broker markets. Fair values are primarily obtained from third party pricing services for identical or comparable assets or liabilities.

Valuations derived from other valuation methodologies, including pricing models, discounted cash flow models and similar techniques, and not based on market, exchange, dealer, or broker-traded transactions. Level 3 valuations incorporate certain assumptions and projections that are not observable in the market and significant professional judgment is needed in determining the fair value assigned to such assets or liabilities.

In instances where the determination of the fair value measurement is based on inputs from different levels of the fair value hierarchy, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the entire fair value measurement falls is based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.

The fair value of equity method investments has not been determined as it was impracticable to do so due to the fact that the investee companies are relatively small, early stage private companies for which there is no comparable valuation data available without unreasonable time and expense. The fair value of our cost method investments was determined using Level 3 inputs.

Leases

We have noncancelable operating leases for offices and data centers expiring at various dates through March 2026. These operating leases are included in other long-term assets on the Company's June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 Consolidated Balance Sheets and represent the Company’s right to use the underlying asset for the lease term. The Company’s obligation to make lease payments are included in other current liabilities and long-term lease obligation on the Company's June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 Consolidated Balance Sheets. Operating lease right-of-use assets and liabilities are recognized at commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. Because the rate implicit in each lease is not readily determinable, the Company uses its incremental borrowing rate to determine the present value of the lease payments.

Supplemental Information–Leases

Supplemental information related to our right-of-use assets and related lease liabilities is as follows:

For the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, cash paid for operating leases included in operating cash flows was $575,000 and $449,000, respectively.

Maturities of our operating lease liabilities as of June 30, 2021 is as follows:

Lease expense for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020 consisted of the following:

Legal Matters

On or about July 9, 2019, a securities class action complaint was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Case No. 1:19-cv-03949) by Michael Skrzeczkoski, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, against the company, and certain current and former directors and officers. The complaint alleges, among other things, that certain of our press releases and SEC filings were misleading as a result of the failure to disclose alleged related party transactions affecting revenue recognition and the absence of disclosure regarding certain allegations against former director Parker H. Petit in connection with his former position with MiMedx, Inc. The complaint seeks to recover attorney’s fees and costs and unspecified damages on behalf of purchasers who acquired our stock during the period from January 23, 2019, through May 29, 2019, and purportedly suffered financial harm as a result of the alleged misleading statements. On September 26, 2019, the Court appointed Edgardo Canez as lead plaintiff (“Lead Plaintiff”) on behalf of the putative class. On November 18, 2019, Lead Plaintiff, individually and on behalf of a putative class of persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired publicly traded company securities from May 23, 2014 through May 29, 2019, filed an amended class action complaint against the company, and certain current and former directors and officers (the “Amended Complaint”). The Amended Complaint alleges similar allegations in violation of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act as the previously filed complaint. The Amended Complaint seeks to recover attorney’s fees and costs and unspecified damages. On January 2, 2020, Defendants submitted a motion to dismiss, and on March 3, 2020, briefing on the motion to dismiss was completed. On April 6, 2021, the Court entered an order granting the motion to dismiss.

On or about February 14, 2020, two purported shareholders, derivatively and on behalf of the Company, filed substantially similar shareholder derivative actions in the Eastern District of New York against certain current and former directors and officers (the “Individual Defendants”), and the Company as a nominal defendant (together with the Individual Defendants, the “Defendants”). The complaints assert a claim against Messrs. Strange, Moise, Petit, Fuzzell and Chandler for a violation of Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act by issuing purportedly misleading statements in the Company’s 2017 and 2018 Proxies. The complaints also assert claims against the Individual Defendants for breaches of fiduciary duty, waste of corporate assets, and unjust enrichment arising out of, among other things, purportedly undisclosed related party transactions, other relationships, and certain allegations against former director Parker H. Petit in connection with his former position with MiMedx, Inc. and other companies. The relief sought in the complaints includes changes to the Company’s corporate governance procedures, unspecified damages, equitable relief, restitution, and attorney’s fees and costs. On April 20, 2020, the two derivative actions were consolidated and captioned, In re Intelligent Systems Corporation Stockholder Derivative Litigation, Lead Case No. 1:20-cv-00832, in the Eastern District of New York (the “Derivative Matter”). On June 19, 2020, Defendants filed their motion to dismiss, and briefing was subsequently completed. After a conference held on August 24, 2020, the parties agreed that Defendants’ motion to dismiss would be temporarily withdrawn without prejudice to refile after the conclusion of any discovery permitted by further Court order. On September 8, 2020, Plaintiffs moved for leave to conduct limited discovery (“Plaintiffs’ Motion for Discovery”). On December 23, 2020, the Court entered a stipulation among the parties whereby Plaintiffs’ Motion for Discovery shall be withdrawn, the Company will engage in limited discovery, and the parties agree that the Derivative Matter shall be stayed pending resolution of the motion to dismiss in the related above-mentioned securities litigation matter, among other things. The matter is currently stayed.

There are no other pending or threatened legal proceedings. However, in the ordinary course of business, from time to time we may be involved in various pending or threatened legal actions. The litigation process is inherently uncertain and it is possible that the resolution of such matters might have a material adverse effect upon our financial condition and/or results of operations. We accrue for unpaid legal fees for services performed to date.

We recognize deferred tax liabilities and assets for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been included in the financial statements or tax returns. Deferred tax liabilities and assets are determined based on the difference between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to reverse. Deferred tax assets are recognized, net of a valuation allowance, for the estimated future tax effects of deductible temporary differences and tax credit carry-forwards. A valuation allowance against deferred tax assets is recorded when, and if, based upon available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all deferred tax assets will not be realized.

There were no unrecognized tax benefits at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020. Our policy is to recognize interest and penalties accrued on any unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax expense. There were no accrued interest or penalties associated with any unrecognized tax benefits, nor was any interest expense recognized during the periods presented. We have determined we have no uncertain tax positions.

We file a consolidated U.S. federal income tax return for all subsidiaries in which our ownership equals or exceeds 80%, as well as individual subsidiary returns in various states and foreign jurisdictions. With few exceptions we are no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local or foreign income tax examinations by taxing authorities for returns filed more than three years ago.
 

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

In addition to historical information, this Form 10-Q may contain forward-looking statements relating to ISC. All statements, trend analyses and other information relative to markets for our products and trends in revenue, gross margins and anticipated expense levels, as well as other statements including words such as “anticipate”, “believe”, “plan”, “estimate”, “expect”, and “intend”, and other similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties including those factors described below under “Factors That May Affect Future Operations”, and that actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. ISC undertakes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes in future operating results.

For purposes of this discussion and analysis, we are assuming and relying upon the reader’s familiarity with the information contained in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, in the Form 10- K for the year ended December 31, 2020 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Overview

Our consolidated operations consist of our CoreCard Software subsidiary and its affiliate companies in Romania, India and the United Arab Emirates as well as the corporate office which provides significant administrative, human resources and executive management support to CoreCard.

We provide technology solutions and processing services to the financial services market, commonly referred to as the FinTech industry. We derive our product revenue from licensing our comprehensive suite of financial transaction management software to accounts receivable businesses, financial institutions, retailers and processors to manage their credit and debit cards, prepaid cards, private label cards, fleet cards, buy now pay later programs, loyalty programs, and accounts receivable and loan transactions. Our service revenue consists of fees for software maintenance and support for licensed software products, fees for processing services that we provide to companies that outsource their financial transaction processing functions to us, and professional services primarily for software customizations provided to both license and processing customers.

Our results vary in part depending on the size and number of software licenses recognized as well as the value and number of professional services contracts recognized in a particular period. As we continue to grow our Processing Services business, we continue to gain economies of scale on the investment we have made in the infrastructure, resources, processes and software features developed over the past number of years to support this growing side of our business. We are adding new processing customers at a faster pace than we are adding new license customers, resulting in steady growth in the processing revenue stream. However, we also receive license revenue and are experiencing growth in our professional services revenue due to the addition of Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. as a customer in 2018, referred to as “Customer A” in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. In total, this customer represented 71% and 65% of our consolidated revenues in the first six months of 2021 and 2020, respectively. We expect future professional services, maintenance, and license revenue from this customer in 2021 and future years; however, the amount and timing will be dependent on various factors not in our control such as the number of accounts on file and the level of customization needed by the customer. License revenue from this customer, similar to other license arrangements, is tiered based on the number of active accounts on the system. Once the customer achieves each tier level, they receive a perpetual license up to that number of accounts; inactive accounts do not count toward the license tier. The customer receives an unlimited perpetual license at a maximum tier level that allows them to utilize the software for any number of active accounts. They currently use the software for a single institution and additional license fees apply if multiple institutions are added, which we expect to occur in the second half of 2021. Support and maintenance fees are charged based on the tier level achieved and increase at new tier levels.

In 2020, we experienced the loss of a large customer due to insolvency. In October 2020, we opened offices in Dubai and Chennai and hired some of the insolvent customer’s employees. In April 2021, we completed an agreement to purchase computer hardware and customer intangible assets and collected previously unrecognized accounts receivable resulting in revenue of $0.6 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2021. We have collected and settled all outstanding receivables from this customer, and we do not anticipate receiving additional revenue from them in the future. In the second quarter of 2021, we converted one of their customers to our processing platform. We expect revenue for the remainder of 2021 and future years from servicing this new customer and adding other new customers in the region.

We typically receive revenue based on the number of active accounts on file rather than transaction volume and therefore the COVID-19 pandemic and related economic slowdown has had a muted impact on our results. Most of our employees in India have been working remotely throughout the pandemic which has primarily impacted our ability to hire and train new employees. We have been able to maintain key functions and business continuity while delivering growth in our professional services revenue; however, the hiring and training constraints could impact future growth in our professional services revenue. Additionally, with the recent increase in severity of the pandemic in India, we could experience operational disruptions or service delays which could impact the amount and timing of revenues for the remainder of the year.

The infrastructure of our multi customer environment is scalable for the future. A significant portion of our expense is related to personnel, including approximately 610 employees located in India, Romania and Dubai. In October 2020, we added new locations in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and Chennai, India to expand our international capabilities. Our ability to hire and train employees on our processes and software impacts our ability to onboard new customers and deliver professional services for software customizations. In addition, we have certain corporate office expenses associated with being a public company that impact our operating results.

Our revenue fluctuates from period to period and our results are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected in future periods. It is difficult to predict the level of consolidated revenue on a quarterly or annual basis for a number of reasons, including the following:

We continue to maintain a strong cash position. We intend to use cash balances to support the domestic and international operations associated with our CoreCard business and to expand our operations in the FinTech industry through financing the growth of CoreCard and, if appropriate opportunities become available, through acquisitions of businesses in this industry. In November 2018, our Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program of $5 million, all of which has been utilized. In April 2021, the Board authorized an additional $10 million for our share repurchase program, of which $4.4 million has been utilized. We made share repurchases of $7.8 million for the six months ended 2021, and no share repurchases in the six month period ended June 30, 2020. We have $5.6 million of authorized share repurchases remaining at June 30, 2021.

Results of Operations

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements presented in this quarterly report.

Revenue – Total revenue in the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021 was $13,355,000 and $22,267,000, respectively, which represents increases of 66 percent and 40 percent compared to the respective periods in 2020.

Cost of Revenue – Total cost of revenue was 42 percent and 45 percent of total revenue in the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021, respectively, compared to 46 percent and 45 percent in the corresponding periods of 2020. Cost of revenue includes costs to provide annual maintenance and support services to our installed base of licensed customers, costs to provide professional services, and costs to provide our financial transaction processing services. The cost and gross margins on such revenues can vary considerably from period to period depending on the customer mix, customer requirements and project complexity as well as the mix of our U.S. and offshore employees working on the various aspects of services provided. In addition, we continue to devote the resources necessary to support our growing processing business, including direct costs for regulatory compliance, infrastructure, network certifications, and customer support. Investments in our infrastructure in 2020 and 2021 are in anticipation of adding customers in future periods. As such, we will not experience economies of scale unless we add additional customers, as anticipated. This may be subject to change in the future if new regulations or processing standards are implemented causing us to incur additional costs to comply.

Operating Expenses – In the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021, total operating expenses from consolidated operations were higher than in the corresponding period in 2020 primarily due to higher research and development costs and higher  general and administrative expenses. Research and development expenses were 188 percent and 159 percent higher in three and six month periods in 2021, respectively, as compared to the same periods in 2020. In the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021, research and development expenses were higher mainly due to payroll for additional offshore technical personnel and hardship bonus payments related to the pandemic’s impact on our offshore employees. Additionally, we hired onshore technical personnel to work on the development of an updated platform. General and administrative expenses were 76 percent and 20 percent higher in the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2021, respectively, due to bonus accruals in the current period as well as a stock grant to the board in the second quarter of 2021 that was similarly granted in the third quarter in 2020. Marketing expenses increased 48 percent and 32 percent for the three and six month periods in 2021, respectively, as compared to the same periods in 2020. Our client base continues to increase with minimal marketing efforts as we continue to have prospects contact us via online searches; however, we will continue to re-evaluate our marketing expenditures as needed to competitively position the Processing Services business.  

Investment Income (Loss) – In the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, we recorded $134,000 and $267,000 of investment losses, respectively, compared to investment losses of $95,000 and $1,145,000 for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020, respectively. The 2020 investment losses primarily relate to first quarter 2020 impairment charges on investments resulting from the economic downturn caused by the recent pandemic and losses on equity method investments. We did not record any impairments in 2021.

Other Income (Loss) – In the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, we recorded income of $81,000 and $156,000, respectively, compared to income of $117,000 and $253,000 for the comparable 2020 periods. The decrease results from lower interest rates and lower cash balances in the 2021 period.

Income Taxes – Our effective tax rates for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 were 26.3 percent and 26.2 percent compared to effective tax rates of 19.3 percent and 22.5 percent for the respective periods in 2020.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our cash balance at June 30, 2021, was $26,210,000 compared to $37,956,000 at December 31, 2020. During the six months ended June 30, 2021, cash provided by operations was $405,000 compared to cash provided by operations of $9,714,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2020. The decrease is primarily due to lower deferred revenue balances, higher accounts receivable balances and a decrease in cash held for program management funding, partially offset by higher net income and higher depreciation. In addition, during the second quarter of 2021, we invested $1,000,000 in a privately held supply chain financing company which is described in more detail in Note 4 to the Consolidated Financial Statements. We used $2,612,000 of cash to acquire computer equipment primarily for continued investments in our existing processing environment in the U.S and technical resources added in our India office.

We expect to have sufficient liquidity from cash on hand as well as projected customer payments to support our operations and capital equipment purchases in the foreseeable future. Currently we expect to use cash in excess of what is required for our current operations for share repurchases and opportunities we believe will expand our FinTech business, as exemplified in transactions described in Notes 3 and 4, although there can be no assurance that appropriate opportunities will arise. In November 2018, our Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program of $5 million, all of which has been utilized. In April 2021, the Board authorized an additional $10 million for our share repurchase program, of which $4.4 million has been utilized. We made share repurchases of $7.8 million for the six months ended 2021, and no share repurchases in the six month period ended June 30, 2020. We have $5.6 million of authorized share repurchases remaining at June 30, 2021.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We do not currently have any off-balance sheet arrangements that are reasonably likely to have a current or future material effect on our financial condition, liquidity or results of operations.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based upon our Consolidated Financial Statements which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amount of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. We consider certain accounting policies related to revenue recognition and valuation of investments to be critical policies due to the estimation processes involved in each. Management discusses its estimates and judgments with the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors. For a detailed description on the application of these and other accounting policies, see Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020. Reference is also made to the discussion of the application of these critical accounting policies and estimates contained in Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for 2020. During the six month period ended June 30, 2021, there were no significant or material changes in the application of critical accounting policies.

Factors That May Affect Future Operations

Future operations are subject to risks and uncertainties that may negatively impact our future results of operations or projected cash requirements. It is difficult to predict future quarterly and annual results with certainty.

Among the numerous factors that may affect our consolidated results of operations or financial condition are the following:

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

Evaluation of Disclosure Control Over Financial Reporting

As of the end of the period covered by this report, the company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of the company’s management, including the company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the company’s disclosure controls and procedures pursuant to Rule 13a-15(b) under the Exchange Act. Based upon that evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the company’s disclosure controls and procedures are effective.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There were no significant changes in the company’s internal control over financial reporting or in other factors identified in connection with this evaluation that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the company’s internal control over financial reporting.

Part II. OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

On or about July 9, 2019, a securities class action complaint was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Case No. 1:19-cv-03949) by Michael Skrzeczkoski, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, against the company, and certain current and former directors and officers. The complaint alleges, among other things, that certain of our press releases and SEC filings were misleading as a result of the failure to disclose alleged related party transactions affecting revenue recognition and the absence of disclosure regarding certain allegations against former director Parker H. Petit in connection with his former position with MiMedx, Inc. The complaint seeks to recover attorney’s fees and costs and unspecified damages on behalf of purchasers who acquired our stock during the period from January 23, 2019, through May 29, 2019, and purportedly suffered financial harm as a result of the alleged misleading statements. On September 26, 2019, the Court appointed Edgardo Canez as lead plaintiff (“Lead Plaintiff”) on behalf of the putative class. On November 18, 2019, Lead Plaintiff, individually and on behalf of a putative class of persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired publicly traded company securities from May 23, 2014 through May 29, 2019, filed an amended class action complaint against the company, and certain current and former directors and officers (the “Amended Complaint”). The Amended Complaint alleges similar allegations in violation of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act as the previously filed complaint. The Amended Complaint seeks to recover attorney’s fees and costs and unspecified damages. On January 2, 2020, Defendants submitted a motion to dismiss, and on March 3, 2020, briefing on the motion to dismiss was completed. On April 6, 2021, the Court entered an order granting the motion to dismiss.

On or about February 14, 2020, two purported shareholders, derivatively and on behalf of the Company, filed substantially similar shareholder derivative actions in the Eastern District of New York against certain current and former directors and officers (the “Individual Defendants”), and the Company as a nominal defendant (together with the Individual Defendants, the “Defendants”). The complaints assert a claim against Messrs. Strange, Moise, Petit, Fuzzell and Chandler for a violation of Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act by issuing purportedly misleading statements in the Company’s 2017 and 2018 Proxies. The complaints also assert claims against the Individual Defendants for breaches of fiduciary duty, waste of corporate assets, and unjust enrichment arising out of, among other things, purportedly undisclosed related party transactions, other relationships, and certain allegations against former director Parker H. Petit in connection with his former position with MiMedx, Inc. and other companies. The relief sought in the complaints includes changes to the Company’s corporate governance procedures, unspecified damages, equitable relief, restitution, and attorney’s fees and costs. On April 20, 2020, the two derivative actions were consolidated and captioned, In re Intelligent Systems Corporation Stockholder Derivative Litigation, Lead Case No. 1:20-cv-00832, in the Eastern District of New York (the “Derivative Matter”). On June 19, 2020, Defendants filed their motion to dismiss, and briefing was subsequently completed. After a conference held on August 24, 2020, the parties agreed that Defendants’ motion to dismiss would be temporarily withdrawn without prejudice to refile after the conclusion of any discovery permitted by further Court order. On September 8, 2020, Plaintiffs moved for leave to conduct limited discovery (“Plaintiffs’ Motion for Discovery”). On December 23, 2020, the Court entered a stipulation among the parties whereby Plaintiffs’ Motion for Discovery shall be withdrawn, the Company will engage in limited discovery, and the parties agree that the Derivative Matter shall be stayed pending resolution of the motion to dismiss in the related above-mentioned securities litigation matter, among other things. The matter is currently stayed.

For information regarding our accounting for legal contingencies, see Note 9 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-Q.

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

Repurchases of Securities

The following table sets forth information regarding our purchases of shares of our common stock during the three months ended June 30, 2021:

¹This price includes per share commissions paid.

²In November 2018, our Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program of $5 million, all of which has been utilized. In April 2021, the Board authorized an additional $10 million for our share repurchase program, of which $4.4 million has been utilized. Under this publicly announced program, we are authorized to repurchase shares through open market purchases, privately-negotiated transactions or otherwise in accordance with applicable federal securities laws, including through Rule 10b5-1 trading plans and under Rule 10b-18 of the Exchange Act. The repurchase program does not have an expiration date and may be suspended or discontinued at any time.

Item 6. Exhibits

The following exhibits are filed or furnished with this report:

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.

EXHIBIT INDEX