Third Consecutive Sequential Improvement in Revenue, Operating Income and Operating Cash Flow
For more information, contact:
Katharine Boyce
Investor Relations Coordinator
Acxiom Corporation
(501) 342-1321
Investor.relations@acxiom.com
EACXM
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — May 13, 2010 — Acxiom®
Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM), a global leader in interactive marketing,
today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year
ended March 31, 2010. Acxiom will hold a conference call at 10:00 a.m.
CDT today to further discuss this information. Interested parties are
invited to listen to the call, which will be broadcast via the Internet
at www.acxiom.com.
John Meyer, Acxiom’s chief executive officer and president, said,
“Our performance in the fourth quarter demonstrates that we continue to
manage the business effectively in this economic environment. We
experienced our third consecutive quarterly increase in revenue,
operating income and operating cash flow. These results stem from the
superb job Acxiom professionals do serving our clients and bringing
value, while remaining focused on efficiency in our execution.”
Meyer continued, “We had a strong finish to our fiscal 2010. Our
operating income in the second half of the fiscal year was a significant
improvement over the first half and better reflected our traditional
seasonal pattern. While we anticipate improvement in the economic
outlook, we also expect a continued return to our seasonal revenue and
operating income patterns, where the first quarter is less than the
fourth quarter.”
Fourth Quarter 2010 Highlights:
- Revenue of $288.3 million in the current quarter, compared to $288.1
million, excluding an Information Products pass-through contract
(approximately $7.4 million), in the fourth quarter a year ago. GAAP
revenue, including the pass-through revenue in the prior-year quarter,
was $295.5 million. This contract was modified in the fourth quarter of
fiscal 2009, and the company no longer recognizes pass-through revenue
from this contract.
- Income from operations of $35.2 million in the current-year fourth
quarter, compared to income from operations of $41.6 million in the
fourth quarter last year. Income from operations included unusual gain
items of $1.8 million in the current year and $1.7 million in the prior
year.
- Earnings per diluted share of $0.21 in the fourth quarter of fiscal
2010, compared to earnings per diluted share of $0.29 in the fourth
quarter of fiscal 2009. The results included $0.02 and $0.04 in unusual
items in the current and prior periods, respectively. Excluding the
effect of the unusual items, diluted earnings per share would have been
$0.19 in the current year and $0.25 in the prior-year period.
- Operating cash flow of $87.9 million compared to $74.7 million in the fourth quarter a year ago.
- Free cash flow available to equity of $43.1 million, compared to
$38.4 million in the fourth quarter a year ago. Free cash flow available
to equity is a non-GAAP financial measure; a reconciliation to the
comparable GAAP measure, operating cash flow, is attached to this news
release.
Fiscal Year 2010 Highlights:
- Revenue of $1.099 billion in fiscal 2010, compared to $1.205
billion, excluding an Information Products pass-through contract
(approximately $71.3 million), in the prior year. GAAP revenue,
including the pass-through revenue, in the prior year was $1.277
billion. This contract was modified in the fourth quarter of fiscal
2009, and the company no longer recognizes pass-through revenue from
this contract.
- Income from operations of $98.8 million in fiscal year 2010,
compared to income from operations of $92.9 million last year. The
prior-year income from operations included $38.6 million in unusual loss
items. Before the effect of the unusual loss items, income from
operations for the prior year would have been $131.4 million.
- Earnings per diluted share of $0.56 for the current year compared to
earnings per diluted share of $0.48 in fiscal 2009. The prior-year
results included $0.28 in unusual loss items. Excluding the effect of
the unusual items, diluted earnings per share in the prior year were
$0.76.
- Operating cash flow of $239.3 million for the fiscal year, compared to $268.8 million a year ago.
- Free cash flow available to equity of $108.3 million for the fiscal
year, compared to $147.1 million a year ago. Free cash flow available to
equity is a non-GAAP financial measure; a reconciliation to the
comparable GAAP measure, operating cash flow, is attached to this news
release.
Operational Highlights:
- Information Services: Revenue for the quarter was $221.6 million,
compared to $218.9 million in the fourth quarter of the previous year.
For the 12 months ended March 31, 2010, revenue was $849.4 million,
compared to $920.3 million in the previous year. Income from operations
for the quarter was $27.6 million, compared to $32.9 million in the
fourth quarter of fiscal 2009. For the 12 months just ended, income from
operations was $91.0 million, compared to $117.4 million in the
previous 12-month period.
- Information Products: Revenue for the quarter was $66.8 million,
compared with $69.2 million, excluding the pass-through revenue of
approximately $7.4 million from the Information Products contract
referenced above, in the fourth quarter a year ago. GAAP revenue,
including the pass-through revenue, in the prior quarter was $76.6
million. For the 12 months ended March 31, 2010, revenue was $249.8,
compared to $285.0 million, excluding the pass-through revenue of
approximately $71.3 million from the Information Products contract
referenced above. GAAP revenue, including the pass-through revenue, in
the prior year was $356.3 million. Income from operations for the
quarter was $5.8 million, compared to income from operations of $7.0
million in the fourth quarter of the previous year. For the 12 months
just ended, income from operations was $6.9 million, compared to $14.0
million in the previous 12-month period.
Income from operations includes expenses that had previously been
included in corporate and other expenses. The company now allocates
selling, general and administrative expenses previously included in
corporate and other expenses to the two operating segments, Information
Services and Information Products. Prior-year results have been
reclassified to reflect the change.
Investor Day
Acxiom will host an investor day on June 2 where company management
will discuss operations and prospects. The event will be held at the
Hyatt Regency Boston and will be web cast. Further information will be
made available on our website at www.acxiom.com.
Web Link to Financials
You may link to http://www.acxiom.com/FY10_Q4_Financials for the detailed financial information we typically attach to our earnings releases.
About Acxiom
Acxiom is a recognized leader in marketing technology and services
that enable marketers to successfully manage audiences, personalize
consumer experiences and create profitable customer relationships. Our
superior industry-focused, consultative approach combines consumer data
and analytics, databases, data integration and consulting solutions for
personalized, multichannel marketing strategies. Acxiom leverages over
40 years of experience of data management to deliver high-performance,
highly secure, reliable information management services. Founded in
1969, Acxiom is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, USA, and serves
clients around the world from locations in the United States, Europe,
Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. For more information about Acxiom,
visit Acxiom.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This release and today’s conference call may contain forward-looking
statements including, without limitation, statements regarding an
improvement in the economic outlook, and a continued return to our
historical seasonal revenue and operating income patterns. Such
forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. The
following are factors, among others, that could cause actual results to
differ materially from these forward-looking statements: the possibility
that certain contracts may not generate the anticipated revenue or
profitability or may not be closed within the anticipated time frames;
the possibility that significant customers may experience extreme,
severe economic difficulty or otherwise reduce the amount of business
they do with us; the possibility that we will not successfully complete
customer contract requirements on time or meet the service levels
specified in the contracts, which may result in contract penalties or
lost revenue; the possibility that we may not be able to attract, retain
or motivate qualified technical, sales and leadership associates, or
that we may lose key associates to other organizations; the possibility
that we will not be able to continue to receive credit upon satisfactory
terms and conditions; the possibility that negative changes in economic
conditions in general or other conditions might lead to a reduction in
demand for our products and services; the possibility that there will be
changes in consumer or business information industries and markets that
negatively impact the company; the possibility that the historical
seasonality of our business may change; the possibility that we will not
be able to achieve cost reductions and avoid unanticipated costs; the
possibility that the fair value of certain of our assets may not be
equal to the carrying value of those assets now or in future time
periods; the possibility that changes in accounting pronouncements may
occur and may impact these forward-looking statements; the possibility
that we may encounter difficulties when entering new markets or
industries; and other risks and uncertainties, including those detailed
from time to time in our periodic reports filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, including our current reports on Form 8-K,
quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and annual report on Form 10-K,
particularly the discussion under the caption “Item 1A, RISK FACTORS” in
our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended March 31, 2009, which
was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 29, 2009.
With respect to the provision of products or services outside our
primary base of operations in the United States, all of the above
factors apply, along with the difficulty of doing business in numerous
sovereign jurisdictions due to differences in scale, competition,
culture, laws and regulations.
We undertake no obligation to update the information contained in this press release or any other forward-looking statement.
Acxiom is a registered trademark of Acxiom Corporation.