D&B Expects 2002 EPS Growth of 18 to 20% and Core Revenue Growth of 3 to 5%.

Business Editors

MURRAY HILL, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 12, 2002

D&B (NYSE: DNB) will announce today at a presentation to investors that it expects 2002 diluted earnings per share growth in the range of 18 to 20 percent before one-time items.

The Company expects full year 2002 revenue growth from its core businesses to be in the range of 3 to 5 percent before the effect of foreign exchange. D&B's core businesses include D&B Risk Management Solutions, D&B Sales & Marketing Solutions, D&B Supply Management Solutions, and D&B E-Business Solutions.

On February 6, 2002, the Company reported 2001 diluted earnings per share of $1.75, an increase of 17 percent from the prior year, and revenue from core businesses of $1.2 billion, a 1 percent increase before the effect of foreign exchange.

"In October 2000, we launched our Blueprint for Growth strategy. Since that time, we have created a flexible business model that enables us to invest for growth and create value for our shareholders," said Allan Z. Loren, D&B Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President. "We believe the investments we are making to enhance our business will drive revenue growth in 2002 and beyond. We are confident that the continued execution of our strategy will enable us to achieve our aspiration to become a growth company with an important presence on the Web."

Earnings per share growth in 2002 is expected to be driven by revenue growth, margin improvement resulting from ongoing financial flexibility initiatives, lower interest and tax rates, and fewer shares outstanding. Since D&B began trading as a new company in October 2000, shares outstanding have been reduced by 6.8 million or 8 percent.

The Company also said the next phase of its financial flexibility program is expected to be announced in April of 2002. Resulting actions are expected to produce approximately $65 million in additional funds that can be reallocated in 2003, and to involve a restructuring charge in the second quarter of 2002. These reallocated funds are in addition to the $200 million in reallocated funds available for investment in 2002 as a result of the first two phases of the financial flexibility program.

Further with respect to guidance for full year 2002, the Company expects that:

-- profitability of its international operations will continue to improve with
margins of 10 to 12 percent of core revenue in 2002, up from 7 percent in 2001;


-- capital expenditures and capitalized software costs will be between $50 and
$55 million;

-- depreciation and amortization expense will be between $70 and $80 million;
and

-- its effective tax rate will be about 38 percent.

The Company expects the adoption of FASB 142 and the resulting change in the accounting for goodwill will contribute approximately 6 cents to 2002 earnings per share.

Management Presentation

D&B's Management Presentation will be held today at 8:30 a.m. (EST). Investors may access this presentation via a live webcast at http://investor.dnb.com. The webcast replay will be available at http://investor.dnb.com until March 12, 2002.

D&B (NYSE: DNB) provides the information, tools and expertise to help customers Decide with Confidence. D&B enables customers quick access to objective, global information whenever and wherever they need it. Customers use D&B Risk Management Solutions to manage credit exposure, D&B Sales & Marketing Solutions to find profitable customers and D&B Supply Management Solutions to manage suppliers efficiently. D&B's E-Commerce Solutions are also used to authenticate and verify potential trading partners online, increasing trust and confidence in e-commerce transactions. Over 90 percent of the Business Week Global 1000 rely on D&B as a trusted partner to make confident business decisions. For more information, please visit www.dnb.com.

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements. Statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. In addition, words such as "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "plans," "guidance" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are based on D&B's reasonable expectations at the time that they are made. However, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance as they involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that may prove to be incorrect and that may cause D&B's actual results and experience to differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements. The risks, uncertainties and assumptions that may affect D&B's performance include: the possibility that economic or other conditions might lead to a reduction in the demand for D&B products and services worldwide; the possibility that the current economic slowdown may worsen and/or persist for an unpredictable period of time; D&B's ability to successfully implement its Blueprint for Growth, including the ability to achieve its financial flexibility objectives on terms and conditions contemplated by D&B; changes in the business information and risk management industries and markets, including changes in customer preferences for products and product delivery formats resulting from advances in information technology; competitive pressures causing price reductions and/or loss of market share; risks associated with investments and operations in foreign countries, including foreign economic conditions, exchange rate fluctuations, regulatory environment, and cultural factors; D&B's ability to successfully integrate recent and future acquisitions, alliances and investments; D&B's ability to protect its proprietary information and technology or to obtain necessary licenses on commercially reasonable terms; the potential loss of key business assets, including data center capacity, or interruption of telecommunication links or power sources; changes in the legislative, accounting, regulatory and commercial environments affecting D&B's ability to collect, manage, aggregate and use data; D&B's ability to attract and retain key employees; and the competitive implications that the conversion to the euro may have on D&B's pricing and marketing strategies. D&B undertakes no obligations to update any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.