Printer Friendly
The Free Library
5,675,470 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

RTW, Inc. Reports Third Quarter Financial Results.


Nineteenth Consecutive Profitable Quarter; Adds Two New Fortune 150 Customers; Increases Share Repurchase Share Repurchase

A program by which a company buys back its own shares from the marketplace, reducing the number of outstanding shares. This is usually an indication that the company's management thinks the shares are undervalued.
 Program by $1.0 Million

MINNEAPOLIS -- RTW (Release/Released To Web) A version of software that is ready to be sent, or has been sent, to a Web server for downloading by the public. See RTM. , Inc. (Nasdaq:RTWI RTWI Return to Work Initiative ), a leading provider of products and services to manage insured and self-insured workers' compensation workers' compensation, payment by employers for some part of the cost of injuries, or in some cases of occupational diseases, received by employees in the course of their work. , disability and absence programs, today reported net income of $1.0 million, or $0.17 per 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 for the third quarter ended September 30, 2006 compared to net income of $1.5 million, or $0.27 per diluted share for the third quarter of 2005.

Premiums earned in the third quarter totaled $10.8 million, down 14.3 percent from $12.7 million for the same period in 2005. Premiums in force at quarter end totaled $48.9 million compared to $52.9 million on December 31, 2005 and $55.9 million at September 30, 2005. Service revenue was flat at $1.4 million in the third quarter of 2006 compared to the third quarter of 2005.

"We continue to see downward pressure in insurance pricing," said Jeff Murphy, RTW's President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. . "Competitors continue to price insurance policies below what we believe are profitable rates, chasing growth and cash flow. The decline in premiums earned and premiums in force was the result of our decision to forgo business that did not meet our underwriting profit Underwriting profit is a term used in the insurance industry. It consists of the earned premium remaining after losses have been paid and administrative expenses have been deducted. It does not include any investment income earned on held premiums.  expectations. We will continue to be conservative in writing insurance business until we see strengthening in insurance rates.

"Our service revenue for the quarter also suffered from this soft insurance market as insurers aggressively targeted companies in the Minnesota Assigned Risk Plan An insurance plan created and imposed by state statute under which persons who normally would be denied insurance coverage as bad risks are permitted to purchase insurance from a pool of insurers who must offer coverage to such individuals.  ("ARP"), writing this business at rates lower than the ARP. The decreased premiums in the ARP resulted in a 31% decrease in our revenue from that customer compared to the same period in 2005. Excluding the ARP revenue, service revenues grew 89% over the same period in 2005. Our commitment to grow service revenue remains strong and I am excited about the future. We recently added a number of Absentia service customers, including two Fortune 150 companies. These relationships will begin to contribute to revenue in the fourth quarter of 2006.

"Our operating teams operating team Surgery The participants–surgeons, nurses, etc–in a sterile surgical procedure performed under general–less commonly, local anesthesia  continue to manage open claims effectively. We are positioning the company for the future, building infrastructure with a view to grow both service and insurance business. We are committed to increasing shareholder value over the long term by doing the right things today with our business."

Nine Month Results and Option Expense Impact

Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2006 totaled $3.4 million or $0.62 per diluted share versus $3.9 million or $0.69 per share for the comparable period in 2005. The 2006 third quarter and nine month earnings include after-tax charges totaling $68,000 and $288,000, or $0.01 and $0.05 per diluted share, respectively, attributable to FAS 123R, "Share-Based Payment," an accounting pronouncement requiring the expensing of stock-based compensation. Premiums earned decreased 13.9 percent to $32.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2006 compared to $38.0 million for the same period in 2005.

Further Operating Results Detail

Total revenue decreased to $13.6 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2006 compared to $15.2 million for the same period in 2005, and to $41.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2006, down from $44.9 million for the same period in 2005. For the quarter ended September 30, 2006, total revenue included investment income of $1.3 million compared to $1.2 million for the same period in 2005. For the nine months ended September 30, 2006, total revenue included investment income of $4.0 million compared to investment income of $3.4 million and realized investment gains of $580,000 for the same period in 2005.

General and administrative expenses include $76,000 and $308,000 for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2006, respectively, related to stock-based compensation.

Increase in Share Repurchase Program

RTW resumed its share repurchase program in April 2006. During the third quarter of 2006, RTW repurchased 50,000 shares of common stock under the repurchase re·pur·chase  
tr.v. re·pur·chased, re·pur·chas·ing, re·pur·chas·es
To buy (something) again.

n.
The act of buying something that one previously sold or owned.

Noun 1.
 program for a total purchase price of $522,000. Common shares repurchased under the $5.0 million repurchase program since 1998 total 540,000 at a total purchase price of $4.3 million. On October 25, 2006, the Board of Directors authorized au·thor·ize  
tr.v. au·thor·ized, au·thor·iz·ing, au·thor·iz·es
1. To grant authority or power to.

2. To give permission for; sanction:
 a $1.0 million increase in the program to $6.0 million. The company believes the current share price does not accurately reflect the true value of the company and will continue purchasing shares under the program.

Fourth Quarter 2006 Outlook and Guidance

* The company expects to continue to sacrifice historical niche, top-line insurance revenue in the fourth quarter to maintain acceptable levels of profitability in its insurance operations. This decrease will be partially offset by writing small accounts and new niche business under two new programs announced earlier this year. Premiums earned in the third quarter of 2006 were 14.3 percent under the third quarter of 2005. We expect to see a similar trend in the fourth quarter of 2006.

* The company expects that ARP premiums will continue to decrease slightly for the remainder of the year resulting in downward pressure on service revenue; however, we expect revenue from non-ARP customers to grow 60% to 70% over the fourth quarter of 2005, more than off-setting the decrease from the ARP. The company expects a low to mid single digit A single character in a numbering system. In decimal, digits are 0 through 9. In binary, digits are 0 and 1.

digit - An employee of Digital Equipment Corporation. See also VAX, VMS, PDP-10, TOPS-10, DEChead, double DECkers, field circus.
 increase in overall service revenue in the fourth quarter of 2006 compared to the fourth quarter of 2005.

Conference Call Information

RTW will host a conference call on Thursday, October 26, 2006, at 10:00 a.m. CDT CDT
abbr.
Central Daylight Time


CDT Central Daylight Time

CDT n abbr (US) (= Central Daylight Time) → hora de verano del centro;
(BRIT
. To access the conference call, participants should dial 1-800-240-6709. A replay of the conference call will be available from October 26, 2006 through October 28, 2006 by calling 1-800-405-2236 or 1-303-590-3000 and entering the Passcode 11065078#. Forward looking and material information may be discussed during the conference call.

The live audio broadcast of RTW's quarterly conference call will be available online through a link at the company's website at http://www.rtwi.com/investors/investors_main.htm. The online replay will be available for approximately ninety days.

About RTW, Inc.

RTW, Inc., based in Minneapolis, Minnesota “Minneapolis” redirects here. For other uses, see Minneapolis (disambiguation).
Minneapolis (pronounced IPA: /ˌmɪniˈæpəlɪs/) is the largest city in the U.S.
, provides disability and absence management services, primarily directed at workers' compensation to: (i) employers insured through our wholly-owned insurance subsidiaries, American Compensation Insurance Company and Bloomington Compensation Insurance Company; (ii) self-insured employers on a fee-for-service basis; (iii) state assigned risk plans on a percent of premium basis; (iv) other insurance companies; and (v) agents and employers on a consulting basis, charging hourly fees hourly fees

see fees.
. The company developed two proprietary systems to manage disability and absence: (i) ID15, designed to quickly identify those injured in·jure  
tr.v. in·jured, in·jur·ing, in·jures
1. To cause physical harm to; hurt.

2. To cause damage to; impair.

3.
 employees who are likely to become inappropriately dependent on disability system benefits, including workers' compensation; and (ii) The RTW Solution, designed to lower employers' disability costs and improve productivity by returning injured employees to work as soon as safely possible. The company supports these proprietary management systems with state-of-the-art technology and talented people dedicated to its vision of transforming people from absent or idle to present and productive. ACIC ACIC Arkansas Crime Information Center
ACIC Aeronautical Chart and Information Center (military aviation support organization)
ACIC Association of California Insurance Companies (Sacramento, CA) 
 writes workers' compensation insurance for employers primarily in Minnesota, Colorado and Michigan, but is growing in new markets including Florida, Texas, Kansas, Connecticut and Iowa. BCIC BCIC Breast Cancer Information Clearinghouse
BCIC Border Crossing Identification Card (I-586) 
 offers workers' compensation insurance to selected employers in Minnesota. In addition, through its Absentia(SM) division, RTW has expanded and provides non-insurance products and service offerings nationally. The company's services are effective across many industries. RTW, Inc. is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol RTWI. For more information on RTW, Inc., please visit www.rtwi.com.

Safe Harbor Safe Harbor

1. A legal provision to reduce or eliminate liability as long as good faith is demonstrated.

2. A form of shark repellent implemented by a target company acquiring a business that is so poorly regulated that the target itself is less attractive.
 Statement

Some of the statements made in this News Release, as well as statements made by us in periodic press releases and oral statements made by us to analysts and shareholders in the course of presentations about RTW, constitute "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.
" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) implemented several significant substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation and awards fees and  of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. The following important factors, among others, have affected and in the future could affect our actual results and could cause our actual financial performance to differ materially from that expressed in any forward-looking statement: (i) ACIC's and BCIC's ability to retain renewing policies and write new business with a B++ (Very Good, Secure) rating from A.M. Best; (ii) our ability to continue to extend our workers' compensation and absence management services to self-insured employers and other alternative markets and to operate profitably in providing these services; (iii) our ability to expand our insurance solutions to new markets and write small accounts and select association business through ACIC; (iv) our ability to maintain profitability and attract sufficient insurance opportunity in our traditional niche business during a soft insurance market cycle as other insurance carriers decrease prices; (v) our ability to maintain or increase rates on insured products in the markets in which we remain or alternatively non-renew or turn away improperly im·prop·er  
adj.
1. Not suited to circumstances or needs; unsuitable: improper shoes for a hike; improper medical treatment.

2.
 priced business; (vi) the ability of our reinsurers to honor As a verb, to accept a bill of exchange, or to pay a note, check, or accepted bill, at maturity. To pay or to accept and pay, or, where a credit so engages, to purchase or discount a draft complying with the terms of the draft.  their obligations to us; (vii) our ability to accurately predict claim development; (viii) our ability to provide ID15, The RTW Solution and other proprietary products and services to customers successfully; (ix) our ability to manage both our existing claims and new claims in an efficient and effective manner; (x) our experience with claims frequency and severity; (xi) medical inflation; (xii) competition and the regulatory environment in which we operate; (xiii) general economic and business conditions; (xiv) our ability to obtain and retain reinsurance The contract made between an insurance company and a third party to protect the insurance company from losses. The contract provides for the third party to pay for the loss sustained by the insurance company when the company makes a payment on the original contract.  at a reasonable cost; (xv) changes in workers' compensation regulation by states, including changes in mandated benefits mandated benefit Managed care A benefit that a health plan is required by law to provide Examples In vitro fertilization, defined days of inpatient mental health or substance abuse treatment, special-condition treatments. See Benefit, ERISA.  or insurance company regulation; (xvi) interest rate changes; and (xvii) other factors as noted in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This discussion of uncertainties is by no means exhaustive but is designed to highlight important factors that may affect our future performance.
[TABLE OMITTED]
[TABLE OMITTED]
COPYRIGHT 2006 Business Wire
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2006, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Publication:Business Wire
Date:Oct 26, 2006
Words:1690
Previous Article:DG FastChannel to Present at Susquehanna Financial Group Emerging Trends Conference on November 1.
Next Article:EMRISE CORPORATION Subsidiary Receives Additional Orders in Excess of $1.5 Million for On-Board Airline In-Flight Entertainment and Communications...
Topics:



Related Articles
Application of the Menninger Return-to-Work Scale among injured workers in a production plant.
Disability Management Perspectives.
Right-to-Work Laws: New Evidence from the Stock Market.
Relationships among lifting ability, grip force, and return to work. (Research Report).
Work table.(Spotlight)
TENNIS: AGASSI RETURNS TO BENZ CUP.(Sports)
Total realignment: centralized workers' comp claims hubs connect systems and people to ensure the best medical outcomes and cost savings.(Workers'...
RTW, Inc. Reports Second Quarter Financial Results; Eighteenth Consecutive Profitable Quarter.
ANA and Virgin Atlantic Launch Round the World Fare.
Right-to-work laws and manufacturing employment: the importance of spatial dependence.

Terms of use | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles