Acxiom Corporation
(
ACXM
) reported diluted earnings per share of 21 cents in the fiscal
second quarter of 2013 (ended September 30, 2012) compared with
19 cents in the previous-year quarter and 17 cents in the
previous quarter, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 15
cents.
Revenues
Total revenue came in at $277.5 million; down 3.1% from the
last year quarter and 2.1% sequentially, although the revenue in
the quarter exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $275
million.
The Marketing and Data Services segment sales decreased
slightly by 0.7% year over year to $194.4 million. The company's
IT Infrastructure Management segment fell around 5% annually to
reach $70.1 million. Other Services revenues dropped nearly 23%
year over year to $13 million in the quarter.
Margins
Operating margin for the quarter came in at 10.9% versus 9.4%
in the previous year quarter and 9.4% in the last quarter. The
annual rise in margin was driven by the company's IT
infrastructure management segment and improved international
operations.
Marketing and Data Services operating margin was 12.0%
compared to 13.8% in the previous year quarter. The IT
Infrastructure Management segment produced an operating margin of
12.2%, rising from 6.9% in the second quarter of fiscal 2012.
Other Services operating margin came in at (12.4%) versus (15.7%)
in the previous year quarter.
Balance Sheet and Cash Flows
Acxiom ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of
$188.4 million, rising from $179.3 million at the end of the
previous quarter. Net trade accounts receivable came in at $166.7
million, rising from $172.5 million at the end of the first
quarter of fiscal 2013.
Long-term debt came in at $244.3 million, falling from $248.6
million at the end of the previous quarter. Deferred revenues
came in at $47.4 million, falling from $52.6 million at the end
of the previous quarter of fiscal 2013.
The net cash provided by operating activities was $39.2
million during the second quarter of fiscal 2013 compared to
$57.7 million in the previous year quarter. Capital expenditures
incurred came in at $8.2 million versus $12.1 million in the
year-ago quarter.
Share Repurchase
In the reported quarter, the company repurchased 800,000
shares worth $14 million. A total of 9 million shares were bought
back by Acxiom for $115 million since August 2011.
Outlook
For fiscal 2013, management expects that the revenue would
either remain consistent or go down compared with the prior
year.
The company raised its earnings per share guidance from 60
cents - 65 cents to 70 cents for the full year of fiscal
2013.
ACXIOM CORP (ACXM): Free Stock Analysis
Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment
Research