The first half of 2010 has been very exciting for Luminex. Throughout the second quarter, we have continued to grow, executed our strategic global growth initiatives, and achieved solid operational and financial results. We finalized an acquisition that further expanded our global footprint and presence in important markets and entered a new partnership in custom gene expression. Luminex is also very pleased to launch our MAGPIX system, a new multiplexing instrument and our latest expansion of our platform product line that will bring Luminex’s technology to new users around the world. 

We are looking forward to the months ahead, and are excited about the opportunities we see on our horizon.

Second Quarter Results

Luminex’s financial and operational highlights for the second quarter included:

- Consolidated second quarter revenue of $33.2 million, a 20 percent increase over the second quarter of 2009

- Consolidated gross profit margin of 70 percent

- Operating income of $2.3 million, or seven percent of revenue, compared with operating income of $1 million, or four percent of revenue, for the same period last year

- System shipments of 219, which resulted in cumulative life to-date shipments of 7,183, up 15 percent from the same period a year ago

We also concluded our 7th Annual Planet xMAP USA Symposium in Baltimore, which brought together hundreds of scientists in the diagnostics and research fields to collaborate and share their experiences with xMAP Technology.

MAGPIX - Multiplexing for New Markets

Luminex was pleased to announce the launch of our new MAGPIX system on July 27, 2010. This new analytical instrument is capable of performing up to 50 tests on a single sample and providing scientists and laboratory professionals with 4,800 data points in under an hour. This innovative new instrument expands the reach of Luminex’s technology and introduces the power of multiplexing to a completely new market of researchers. 

MAGPIX was created with the needs of more distributed laboratories in mind.  It is compact – about the size of a desktop computer – easy-to-use and simple to install.  It is an ideal multiplexing solution for many labs including those with limited resources and bench space and those located in developing, high growth countries.

The affordable MAGPIX system provides fast, accurate and reproducible results and can advance research across many disciplines. It has great potential to improve the quality of results and outcomes while also reducing costs.

We were very pleased to sign an agreement with EMD Millipore as the first marketing partner for MAGPIX.

Expanding Our Global Footprint

On May 24, 2010, we finalized the acquisition of BSD Robotics, a Luminex Corporation Company.  BSD is based in Brisbane, Australia, and provides Luminex access to new technology and products, an innovative development team, and an established presence in important strategic markets.  The company specializes in automation and robotics in the field of dry sample handling. In addition to its established leadership positions in the worldwide newborn screening, forensics and human identification markets, BSD has developed leading positions in several molecular diagnostics markets including genetic testing and animal health.

This acquisition further establishes Luminex in the Asia-Pacific region. Our growing global presence allows us to better serve and support our customers and partners worldwide and introduce our innovative products, leading assays and multiplexing technology to many more scientists, researchers and medical professionals around the world.

A New Strategic Partnership

In May, Luminex announced a partnership with High Throughput Genomics (HTG), a company known for its quantitative Nuclease Protection Assay (qNPA™), to launch a new custom gene expression product called the qBead Gene Expression Assay.  We collaborated with HTG on the co-developed product and have signed an exclusive distribution agreement.

The new qBead Assay places HTG's proven qNPA™ chemistry on the Luminex xMAP Technology multiplexing platform to create a high-throughput assay with a simple workflow that requires no extractions, cDNA synthesis or amplifications.  The qBead assay was created for scientists who have an important but previously unmet need to obtain high quality gene expression data from degraded samples or difficult samples such as Formalin-Fixed Paraffin-Embedded (FFPE) and other fixed tissues where RNA quality is an issue.  Luminex is offering qBead Assays that are custom-tailored to researchers’ genes of interest and optimized for their desired sample type.

This new assay is an exciting development for Luminex’s life sciences research customers in the growing mid-plex custom gene expression research arena. It will be used to advance various research applications including oncology research that requires retrospective studies on large numbers of archived samples.

Looking Ahead

Looking toward the second half of 2010, we are optimistic that our current and future partnerships and long-term growth strategies will allow us to continue to strengthen our position and fulfill our mission. We are dedicated to improving the health, safety and well-being of people around the world, and we invite your ideas about how we can better pursue this mission.  We extend our sincere thanks to our loyal customers, employees, partners and shareholders and will continue to keep you all apprised of new and exciting developments at Luminex.

Patrick J. Balthrop, Sr.
President and Chief Executive Officer