Acxiom Initiates Quarterly Cash Dividend.Business Editors LITTLE ROCK, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 4, 2004 The Board of Directors of Acxiom Acxiom is a customer and data information management company, offering a range of products and services including information technology outsourcing. It has been described as "one of the biggest companies you've never heard of. (R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM) today declared its first quarterly cash dividend. The dividend of four cents per share Cents per share The amount of a mutual fund's dividend or capital gains distributions that a shareholder will receive for each share owned. is payable on March 8, 2004 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on February February: see month. 16, 2004. Charles Charles, archduke of Austria Charles, 1771–1847, archduke of Austria; brother of Holy Roman Emperor Francis II. Despite his epilepsy, he was the ablest Austrian commander in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars; however, he was handicapped by D. Morgan Morgan, American family of financiers and philanthropists. Junius Spencer Morgan, 1813–90, b. West Springfield, Mass., prospered at investment banking. , Acxiom's Chairman and Company Leader, commented: "In light of our outstanding cash flow over the past 2 1/2 years and our confidence in the Company's expectation for continued strong cash flow, the Board of Directors initiated a quarterly cash dividend. The Board of Directors determined that paying a cash dividend is appropriate for managing capital and building shareholder value. We are pleased to provide our shareholders with an immediate cash return that will add to the total return realized by our shareholders." On January 21, 2004 Acxiom announced its third-quarter results, which included record cash flow performance. Operating cash flow Operating cash flow Earnings before depreciation minus taxes. Measures the cash generated from operations, not counting capital spending or working capital requirements. of $79.3 million and free cash flow of $59.9 million both set quarterly records for the Company and mark the 10th consecutive quarter of strong cash flow. The Company estimates that the four-cent per share cash dividend payable on March 8, 2004, will use approximately $3.4 million. Over the past 10 quarters, the Company has generated $621 million in operating cash flow and $462 million in free cash flow, an average of $62 million and $46 million per quarter, respectively. The Company plans to continue to make strong cash flow a major financial objective and to use a portion of cash flow to fund quarterly dividend payments to shareholders. While Acxiom intends to pay regular quarterly dividends for the foreseeable fore·see tr.v. fore·saw , fore·seen , fore·see·ing, fore·sees To see or know beforehand: foresaw the rapid increase in unemployment. future, all subsequent dividends will be reviewed quarterly and declared by the Board at its discretion. Acxiom also plans to continue to use cash flow to pay off debt, to fund potential future acquisitions and to fund its previously announced stock repurchase Stock repurchase A firm's repurchase of outstanding shares of its common stock. program depending on prevailing market conditions and other factors. Free cash flow is a non-GAAP financial measure, and reconciliation to the comparable GAAP GAAP See: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles GAAP See generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). measure, operating cash flow, is attached to this release. About Acxiom Acxiom Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM) integrates data, services and technology to create and deliver customer and information management solutions for many of the largest, most respected companies in the world. The core components of Acxiom's innovative solutions are Customer Data Integration (CDI CDI compact disc interactive: a system for storing a mix of software, data, audio, and compressed video for interactive use under processor control ) technology, data, database services, IT outsourcing (1) Contracting with outside consultants, software houses or service bureaus to perform systems analysis, programming and datacenter operations. Contrast with insourcing. See netsourcing, ASP, SSP and facilities management. , consulting and analytics, and privacy leadership. Founded in 1969, Acxiom is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock, Arkansas required military intervention to desegregate schools (1957–1958). [Am. Hist.: Van Doren, 556–557] See : Bigotry , with locations throughout the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. and Europe, and in Australia and Japan. For more information, visit www.acxiom.com. This release contains forward-looking statements forward-looking statement A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections. that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially; such statements include but are not necessarily limited to the following: 1) that the Company plans to continue to make strong cash flow a major financial objective; 2) that the Company plans to use a portion of cash flow to fund quarterly dividend payments to shareholders; 3) that Acxiom intends to pay regular quarterly dividends for the foreseeable future; and 4) that Acxiom plans to continue to use cash flow to pay off debt, to fund potential future acquisitions and to fund its previously announced stock repurchase program. The following are important factors, among others, that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements: The possibility that certain contracts may not be closed, or may not be closed within the anticipated time frames; the possibility that certain contracts may not generate the anticipated revenue or profitability; the possibility that negative changes in economic or other conditions might lead to a reduction in demand for our products and services; the possibility that the recovery from the previous three years' economic slowdown For articles with similar titles, see Slow Down (disambiguation). A slowdown is an industrial action in which employees perform their duties but seek to reduce productivity or efficiency in their performance of these duties. may take longer than expected or that economic conditions in general will not be as expected; the possibility that significant customers may experience extreme, severe economic difficulty; the possibility that the fair value of certain of our assets may not be equal to the carrying value Carrying Value Also know as "book value," it is a company's total assets minus intangible assets and liabilities, such as debt. Notes: This is different than market value, as it can be higher or lower depending on the circumstances. of those assets now or in future time periods; the possibility that sales cycles may lengthen length·en tr. & intr.v. length·ened, length·en·ing, length·ens To make or become longer. length  en·er n. ; the possibility that we may not be able
to attract and retain qualified technical and leadership associates, or
that we may lose key associates to other organizations; the possibility
that we won't be able to properly motivate our sales force or other
associates; the possibility that we won't be able to achieve cost
reductions and avoid unanticipated costs; the possibility that we
won't be able to continue to receive credit upon satisfactory terms
and conditions; the possibility that competent, competitive products,
technologies or services will be introduced into the marketplace by
other companies; the possibility that we may be subjected to pricing
pressure due to market conditions and/or competitive products and
services; the possibility that there will be changes in consumer or
business information industries and markets; the possibility that we
won't be able to protect proprietary information and technology or
to obtain necessary licenses on commercially reasonable terms; the
possibility that we may encounter difficulties when entering new markets
or industries; the possibility that there will be changes in the
legislative, accounting, regulatory and consumer environments affecting
our business, including but not limited to litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute.When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. , legislation, regulations and customs relating to relating to relate prep → concernant relating to relate prep → bezüglich +gen, mit Bezug auf +acc our ability to collect, manage, aggregate and use data; the possibility that data suppliers might withdraw data from us, leading to our inability to provide certain products and services; the possibility that we may enter into short-term Short-term Any investments with a maturity of one year or less. short-term 1. Of or relating to a gain or loss on the value of an asset that has been held less than a specified period of time. contracts which would affect the predictability of our revenues; the possibility that the amount of ad hoc For this purpose. Meaning "to this" in Latin, it refers to dealing with special situations as they occur rather than functions that are repeated on a regular basis. See ad hoc query and ad hoc mode. , volume-based and project work will not be as expected; the possibility that we may experience a loss of data center capacity or interruption INTERRUPTION. The effect of some act or circumstance which stops the course of a prescription or act of limitation's. 2. Interruption of the use of a thing is natural or civil. of telecommunication telecommunication Communication between parties at a distance from one another. Modern telecommunication systems—capable of transmitting telephone, fax, data, radio, or television signals—can transmit large volumes of information over long distances. links or power sources; the possibility that postal rates may increase, thereby leading to reduced volumes of business; the possibility that our clients may cancel or modify their agreements with us; the possibility that the services of the United States Postal Service postal service, arrangements made by a government for the transmission of letters, packages, and periodicals, and for related services. Early courier systems for government use were organized in the Persian Empire under Cyrus, in the Roman Empire, and in medieval , their global counterparts and other delivery systems may be disrupted dis·rupt tr.v. dis·rupt·ed, dis·rupt·ing, dis·rupts 1. To throw into confusion or disorder: Protesters disrupted the candidate's speech. 2. ; the possibility that the integration of our recently acquired businesses may not be successful; and the possibility that we may be affected by other competitive factors. With respect to the provision of products or services outside our primary base of operations Noun 1. base of operations - installation from which a military force initiates operations; "the attack wiped out our forward bases" base air base, air station - a base for military aircraft army base - a large base of operations for an army in the U.S., all of the above factors apply, along with the difficulty of doing business in numerous sovereign jurisdictions due to differences in culture, laws and regulations. Other factors are detailed from time to time in our periodic reports and registration statements filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. We believe that we have the product and technology offerings, facilities, associates and competitive and financial resources for continued business success, but future revenues, costs, margins and profits are all influenced by a number of factors, including those discussed above, all of which are inherently difficult to forecast. 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.
ACXIOM CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
RECONCILIATION OF FREE CASH FLOW TO OPERATING CASH FLOW
(Unaudited)
(Dollars in thousands)
Qtr ended Qtr ended Qtr ended Qtr ended Yr ended
6/30/2001 9/30/2001 12/31/2001 3/31/2002 3/31/2002
Net cash
provided by
operating
activities (39,280) 69,300 60,493 60,092 150,605
Proceeds
received from
disposition
of assets 127 - - 46 173
Capitalized
software (5,935) (5,464) (5,832) (6,890) (24,121)
Capital
expenditures (8,789) - (2,612) (3,474) (14,875)
Deferral of
costs (8,690) (18,012) (14,077) (7,352) (48,131)
Proceeds from
sale and
leaseback
transaction - 1,964 4,035 - 5,999
-------------------------------------------------------
Free cash
flow (62,567) 47,788 42,007 42,422 69,650
=======================================================
Qtr ended Qtr ended Qtr ended Qtr ended Yr ended
6/30/2002 9/30/2002 12/31/2002 3/31/2003 3/31/2003
Net cash
provided by
operating
activities 60,243 53,446 76,992 63,112 253,793
Proceeds
received from
disposition
of assets 45 155 - 93 293
Capitalized
software (8,652) (8,958) (8,726) (8,237) (34,573)
Capital
expenditures (1,916) (3,000) (5,893) (2,403) (13,212)
Deferral of
costs (3,240) (4,108) (3,796) (3,883) (15,027)
Proceeds from
sale and
leaseback
transaction - 7,729 - - 7,729
-------------------------------------------------------
Free cash
flow 46,480 45,264 58,577 48,682 199,003
========== ========== =========== ========== ==========
Forecast Forecast
Qtr ended Qtr ended Qtr ended Qtr ended Yr ended
6/30/2003 9/30/2003 12/31/2003 3/31/2004 3/31/2004
Net cash
provided by
operating
activities 48,125 49,909 79,282 43,000 220,316
Proceeds
received from
disposition
of assets 506 192 39 - 737
Capitalized
software (6,335) (7,296) (6,510) (7,000) (27,141)
Capital
expenditures (1,588) (3,036) (7,637) (6,000) (18,261)
Deferral of
costs (6,026) (4,006) (5,312) (5,000) (20,344)
-------------------------------------------------------
Free cash
flow 34,682 35,763 59,862 25,000 155,307
=======================================================
Forecast
Yr ended
3/31/2005
Net cash
provided by
operating
activities 200,000
Capitalized
software (28,000)
Capital
expenditures (18,000)
Deferral of
costs (19,000)
----------
Free cash
flow 135,000
==========
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