IKONICS Releases Earnings and Market Status and Announces New Share Repurchase Authorization

DULUTH, Minn., Aug. 03, 2017 -- IKONICS Corporation (NASDAQ:IKNX), a Duluth-based imaging technology company, announced a 12% increase in sales for the second quarter of 2017 coupled with a loss of $0.05 per diluted share for the period as compared to earnings of $0.02 per diluted share for the second quarter of 2016. Sales for the first two quarters of 2017 increased from $8.2 million in 2016 to $8.3 million in 2017, while earnings for the first half of the year declined from a loss of $0.08 per diluted share in 2016 to a loss of $0.24 per diluted share in 2017. 

Bill Ulland, IKONICS CEO, said, “Although not reflected in earnings, the past quarter was an important one for the company.” Among the accomplishments Ulland noted are:

• “We completed a yearlong development project to create a unique and patent pending offering to the dye sublimation market.  We have a strong domestic distributor who is planning a major launch of this technology this fall.  This is a new market for IKONICS and a new technology for the industry. We believe the sales potential is $10 million worldwide with the market growing at a rate of 20% annually according to a 2016 industry survey.
•  “Our major aerospace customer began re-ordering, with the first shipment occurring in July. The customer has indicated that orders will continue on pace with the second half of last year, and we are adding other new aerospace customers.”
• “In the second quarter our automotive DTX business sold two inkjet printers, including one to an industry leader, with a third sale pending. Printer sales drive profitable sales of our patented substrates.”
•  “For the year our worldwide sales of screen print chemicals were essentially flat, with new distribution in China being an important contributor. IKONICS Imaging sales were down 9% year over year.  I expect that new sales to the dye sublimation market will contribute to another growth year for IKONICS Imaging.

Ulland concluded, “The temporary suspension of orders from a major aerospace customer got the year off to a rocky start. We anticipate that is now behind us, and we go into the second half of the year with aerospace returning to normal, growing profitable sales in our automotive segment and offering an exciting new product to the vibrant dye sublimation market.”

IKONICS also announced that its board of directors approved a share repurchase authorization for an additional 100,000 shares of the company’s common stock. This share repurchase authorization replaces all prior authorizations. Repurchases may be completed from time to time in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, subject to applicable laws and regulations. This authorization does not have an expiration date.

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding sales, gross profits, net earnings (losses), balance sheet position, industry trends, customer agreements, new products, technologies, markets and business initiatives that involve risks and uncertainties. The Company's actual results could differ materially as a result of downturns in the aerospace industry, unexpected production delays by the Company’s customers, lack of acceptance of new products and technologies, failure of customers to enter into anticipated agreements, introduction of new products or technologies by competitors, domestic and global economic conditions, inherent risk and uncertainty in the protection of intellectual property rights, the ability to control operating costs without impacting growth as well as the factors described in the Company's Forms 10-K, and 10-Q, and other reports on file with the SEC.

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Bill Ulland                                                                                 
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