Acxiom Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2011 Results 

For more information, contact:
Katharine Boyce
Acxiom Investor Relations
501-342-1321
investor.relations@acxiom.com
EACXM

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – May 11, 2011 — Acxiom® Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM), a recognized leader in marketing services and technology, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended March 31, 2011. 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. The company will reference presentation slides that will be available on the website prior to the call.

Jerry Gramaglia, Acxiom’s interim chief executive officer, said, “Our results for the fourth quarter and for the entire fiscal 2011 year were in line with our expectations expressed  in our March 30th announcement. In the fourth quarter and continuing into fiscal year 2012, Acxiom’s focus is on delivering exceptional value to the world’s top marketers. In turn, we continue to be rewarded with long term renewals and significantly expanded business relationships.” 

Fourth Quarter 2011 Highlights:

• Revenue increased by 3.6% in the current quarter ended March 31, 2011 to $298.8 million, compared to $288.3 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2010.
• Loss from operations of $53.0 million in the current-year fourth quarter compared to income from operations of $35.2 million in the fourth quarter of the prior year. Excluding the impact of unusual items, income from operations in the current quarter would be $34.9 million, a 4.3% increase over the prior-year quarter.
• Loss  per diluted share attributable to Acxiom stockholders of $0.83 in the current quarter, compared to earnings per share of $0.21 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010. Excluding the impact of unusual items in both periods, earnings per diluted share attributable to Acxiom stockholders would be $0.21 in the current period, a 10.5% increase over $0.19 the prior-year quarter.
• Operating cash flow of $42.0 million, compared to $87.9 million in the fourth quarter a year ago.
• Free cash flow available to equity of $14.7 million, compared to $43.1 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.

A schedule is attached to this release outlining the impact of the unusual items on the current and prior-year fourth quarter and current and prior-year full year results.

Goodwill/Asset  Impairment and Other Charges

Fourth-quarter loss per diluted share attributable to Acxiom stockholders of $0.83 includes $89.4 million or the equivalent of $1.04 per share in unusual expenses. The major components of the unusual expenses are:

• Goodwill/Asset Impairment of $79.7 million. $15.4 million related to European Services, $57.1 million related to European Products and $7.2 million related to Middle East, North Africa;
• Disposal of operations of $3.3 million related to the disposal of the Netherlands and Portugal operations, of which $1.1 million represents cash payments to be made in future periods; and
• Other charges of $6.5 million including $5.5 million to be paid in future periods.

Operational Highlights:

• Information Services: Revenue for the quarter ended March 31, 2011 was $224.6 million, up 1.4%, compared to $221.6 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Income from operations for the current fourth quarter was $21.2 million, down 23.4% compared to $27.6 million in the prior-year fourth quarter.
• Information Products: Revenue for the quarter increased 11.2% to $74.2 million, compared with $66.8 million in the fourth quarter a year ago. Income from operations for the quarter was $13.7 million, compared to $5.8 million in the fourth quarter of the previous year.

Fiscal Year 2011 Highlights:

• Revenue increased by 5.5% in fiscal 2011 to $1.160 billion, compared to $1.099 billion in fiscal 2010.
• Income from operations of $30.9 million in the current year compared to income from operations of $98.8 million in the prior year. Excluding the impact of unusual items, income from operations in the current year would be $115.2 million compared to income from operations of $97.9 million in the prior year, an increase of 17.7%.
• Loss per diluted share attributable to Acxiom stockholders of $0.29 in the current year, compared to income per share of $0.56 in fiscal 2010. Excluding the impact of unusual items in both years, earnings per diluted share attributable to Acxiom stockholders would be $0.68 in the current year, compared to $0.55 in the prior year, an increase of 23.6%.
• Operating cash flow of $166.2 million, compared to $239.3 million in the prior year.
• Free cash flow available to equity of $53.2 million, compared to $108.3 million in fiscal 2010. 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.

Web Link to Financials

You may link to http://www.acxiom.com/FY11_Q4_Financials for the detailed financial information we typically attach to our earnings releases.

About Acxiom

Acxiom is a recognized leader in marketing services and technology 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 in 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, the Middle East and South America. 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 future cash outlays included in unusual expenses recorded in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011, an improvement in the economic outlook, and the possibility of continued future growth. 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 data suppliers might withdraw data from us, leading to our inability to provide certain products and services to our clients, which could lead to decreases in our operating results; 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; the possibility that we may be unable to quickly and seamlessly integrate a new chief executive officer and chief financial officer; 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; the possibility that we could experience loss of data center capacity or interruption of telecommunication links; 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 reports on Form 10-K, particularly the discussion under the caption “Item 1A, RISK FACTORS” in our Annual Reports on Form 10-K for the year ended March 31, 2010, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 26, 2010.

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.