Cass Information Systems Reports 12.5% Rise in 1st Quarter 2003 Earnings.Business Editors ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 21, 2003 Cass Information Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :CASS), the nation's leading provider of freight and utility invoice An itemized statement or written account of goods sent to a purchaser or consignee by a vendor that indicates the quantity and price of each piece of merchandise shipped. A consular invoice is one used in foreign trade. payment, rating, auditing and information services See Information Systems. , reported first quarter earnings of 45 cents per fully diluted di·lute tr.v. di·lut·ed, di·lut·ing, di·lutes 1. To make thinner or less concentrated by adding a liquid such as water. 2. To lessen the force, strength, purity, or brilliance of, especially by admixture. share, a 12.5% increase over the 40 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. it reported for the same period of 2002. Net first quarter income was $1,518,000, a 12.8% increase over the $1,346,000 earned in the first quarter of 2002. The result was driven by a 20%, or $2,609,000, increase in revenue. Despite a lethargic economy, the addition of new customers enabled Cass to boost utility processing volume by 33% and transportation processing volume by 14%. Revenues also increased as a result of Cass consolidating the operating results of a software subsidiary, Government e-Management Solutions (GEMS). The subsidiary, which markets integrated financial, property and human resource management systems to the public sector, generated first quarter revenues of $1,778,000. Offsetting the boosts in information revenue was a $689,000 decrease in net investment income. The continuing effects of a low interest rate environment caused the decrease. In operating expenses Operating expenses The amount paid for asset maintenance or the cost of doing business, excluding depreciation. Earnings are distributed after operating expenses are deducted. , Cass reported a 22% increase, attributable mainly to the GEMS' consolidation. Prior to Dec. 31, 2002, GEMS was accounted for as an asset held for sale and its operating results were not consolidated with those of the company. Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 144, adopted by the company in 2002, now requires that GEMS be reclassified as an asset held and used. Consequently, Cass reclassified the entity's net assets Net assets The difference between total assets on the one hand and current liabilities and noncapitalized long-term liabilities on the other hand. net assets See owners' equity. and consolidated its operations with the parent company on Jan. 1, 2003. Excluding the effect of the consolidation, first quarter operating expenses were 6% higher than those reported in the same period of 2002. The increase was primarily attributable to higher salaries and benefits related to higher processing volumes. "The solid growth of our information processing information processing: see data processing. information processing Acquisition, recording, organization, retrieval, display, and dissemination of information. Today the term usually refers to computer-based operations. business is encouraging. It validates our strategy of focusing corporate resources on processing activities," stated Lawrence Lawrence. 1 City (1990 pop. 26,763), Marion co., central Ind., a residential suburb of Indianapolis, on the West Fork of the White River. It has light manufacturing. 2 City (1990 pop. 65,608), seat of Douglas co., NE Kans. A. Collett, chief executive officer and chairman of the board. "While the low interest rate environment continues to exact a toll, we hope to continue to offset it with higher processing revenues." Selected Consolidated Financial Data The following table presents selected unaudited consolidated financial data (in thousands, except share and per share data) for the periods ended March 31, 2003 and 2002.
Quarter Quarter
Ended Ended
3/31/03 3/31/02
Transportation Invoice Volume 5,666 4,967
Transportation Dollar Volume $2,053,912 $1,756,964
Utility Transaction Volume 1,033 779
Utility Dollar Volume $ 825,361 $ 612,091
Payment and Processing Fees $ 6,969 $ 5,551
Software Revenue 1,778 --
Net Investment Income 6,589 7,278
Other 555 453
----------- -----------
Total Revenues $ 15,891 $ 13,282
Salaries and Benefits $ 9,352 $ 7,606
Occupancy 436 364
Equipment 1,161 1,089
Other 2,828 2,265
----------- -----------
Total Operating Expenses $ 13,777 $ 11,324
Income before Income Taxes $ 2,114 $ 1,958
Provision for Income Taxes $ 596 $ 612
Net Income $ 1,518 $ 1,346
Average Earning Assets $ 534,316 $ 536,821
Net Interest Margin 5.27% 5.73%
Allowance for Loan Losses to Loans 1.25% 1.30%
Non-performing Loans to Total Loans .78% .40%
Net Loan Charge-offs to Loans -- --
Provision for Loan Losses $ 90 $ 90
Non-performing Loans $ 3,364 $ 1,528
Basic Earnings per Share $ .45 $ .40
Diluted Earnings per Share $ .45 $ .40
About Cass Information Systems Cass has been a leading provider of payables Payables Related: Accounts payable services and information support systems to companies throughout North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. since 1956. The company pays over $10 billion annually in freight and utility invoices on behalf of its customers from processing centers in St. Louis Louis, titular duke of Burgundy Louis, 1682–1712, titular duke of Burgundy; grandson of King Louis XIV of France. He became heir to the throne on the death (1711) of his father, Louis the Great Dauphin. , Mo., Columbus, Ohio Columbus is the capital and the largest city of the American state of Ohio. Named for explorer Christopher Columbus, the city was founded in 1812 at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers, and assumed the functions of state capital in 1816. and Boston, Mass. The support of its bank subsidiary, Cass Commercial Bank, founded in 1906, makes Cass Information Systems unique in the industry. Note to Investors Certain matters set forth in this news release may contain 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 provided to assist in the understanding of anticipated future financial performance. However, such performance involves risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in such statements. For a discussion of certain factors that may cause such forward-looking statements to differ materially from the company's actual results, see the company's annual report on Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. for the year ended December 31, 2002. |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion