Western Union today announced that it will be making
presentations to the equity investment community in preparation for
its planned September 29, 2006 spin-off from First Data Corp.
(NYSE:FDC). The meetings will be led by Christina Gold, President and
Chief Executive Officer of Western Union, David Barnes, Executive Vice
President of Finance and Strategic Development, and Scott Scheirman,
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. The company's
road show presentation is available at www.westernunion.com.
Financial Outlook
Western Union will provide financial guidance during the
presentations. Assuming completion of its separation from First Data
on September 29, 2006, Western Union expects revenue for 2006 of $4.4
billion to $4.5 billion, an increase of between 11% and 12% from 2005
revenue of $4.0 billion. For 2006, the company expects operating
income of $1.32 billion to $1.34 billion, excluding expenses related
to its spin-off from First Data, which is 4% to 6% higher than 2005.
For 2007, Western Union expects revenue growth in the range of 10%
to 12%, excluding acquisitions. In addition, the company expects
operating income growth of 6% to 9%, excluding the impact of expenses
related to its spin-off from First Data. A chart detailing the
company's guidance is attached to this release.
Western Union's long-term objective beyond 2007 is to deliver
revenue and operating profit growth of 10% to 12% on an annual basis
and annual EPS growth of 12% to 14%.
Ms. Gold said: "Western Union has a compelling long-term growth
story, with the proven strategy and track record, global agent
network, seasoned management team and financial strength to remain the
preeminent provider of money transfer services across the globe. The
separation from First Data creates rich new opportunities for the
company to invest its strong cash flow in continuing to expand
services in key growth regions of the world; in marketing efforts,
including our highly successful Gold Card Loyalty program; and in
continuing to enhance customer convenience and choice. We see
favorable long-term trends in the global money transfer market and, as
an independent company, will be better positioned to capture them."
Ms. Gold continued: "In the near term, we expect the company will
continue to be affected by softness in its U.S. domestic and U.S. to
Mexico consumer-to-consumer money transfer businesses. As previously
discussed, we believe the slower growth rates in these markets largely
reflect the uncertainty caused by the immigration debate and the
related activities in the U.S. In addition, our operating profits for
2006 and 2007 will reflect increased investment in the business to
address this issue, to secure future growth, as well as the shift in
our business mix, reflecting higher growth from our international
business, which carries lower profit margins."
Ms. Gold concluded: "We believe the slowdown related to the
immigration debate is a temporary issue, and our 2007 guidance assumes
revenue growth in the U.S. and U.S. to Mexico businesses will begin to
improve but will not reach levels experienced in 2005. In addition, we
expect that our international consumer-to-consumer money transfer
business, which currently represents 60% of our revenues and does not
include U.S. to Mexico transactions, will remain strong throughout
2006 and 2007. The geographic diversity of our business, which is a
key strength for Western Union, should enable us to generate solid
results despite the temporary issues we are addressing in the U.S. and
U.S. to Mexico markets."
Third Quarter Financial Update
During its road show presentation, Western Union will also provide
updates on several transaction growth rates excluding Vigo. For the
third quarter through September 14, the company's overall
consumer-to-consumer transactions grew 15% on a year-over-year basis.
International transactions grew 23% for the same period. In addition,
for the third quarter through September 14, Western Union-branded
transactions from the U.S. to Mexico grew 3% on a year-over-year
basis, while domestic transactions declined by 4%.
Western Union expects to issue its third quarter 2006 earnings
press release after the market close on October 23. The company will
also host a conference call.
Non-GAAP Measures
In certain circumstances results have been presented that are
non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) measures and
should be viewed in addition to, and not in lieu of, the company's
reported results. Reconciliations to comparable GAAP measures are
available in the accompanying schedule to this press release.
Safe Harbor Compliance Statement for Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding
projected future results. Forward-looking statements include all
statements that do not relate solely to historical or current facts,
and generally can be identified by the use of words such as "may,"
"believe," "will," "expect," "project," "estimate," "anticipate,"
"plan," "could," "would," "likely," "intend" or "continue." All
forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain as they are based
on various expectations and assumptions concerning future events and
they are subject to numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties
which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from
those projected. These factors include, but are not limited to: the
impact of our spin-off from First Data Corporation; changes in
immigration laws, patterns and other factors related to immigrants;
the integration of significant businesses and technologies we acquire
and realization of anticipated synergies from these acquisitions;
technological changes, particularly with respect to e-commerce; our
ability to attract and retain qualified key employees; changes in
laws, regulations or industry standards affecting our businesses;
changes in foreign exchange spreads on money transfer transactions;
changes in the political or economic climate in countries in which we
operate; continued growth at rates approximating recent levels for
consumer money transfer transactions and other product markets; our
ability to compete effectively in the money transfer industry with
respect to global and niche or corridor money transfer providers,
United States and international banks, card associations, card-based
payments providers and a number of other types of competitive service
providers; our ability to maintain our agent network; implementation
of Western Union agent agreements with governmental entities according
to schedule and no interruption of relations with countries in which
Western Union has or is implementing material agent agreements;
successfully managing the potential both for patent protection and
patent liability in the context of rapidly developing legal framework
for expansive software patent protection; successfully managing credit
and fraud risks from our agents and from consumers; unanticipated
developments relating to lawsuits, investigations or similar matters;
catastrophic events; and any material breach of security of any of our
systems. For more information on important factors upon which these
forward-looking statements are premised, please refer to The Western
Union Company Form 10, as amended, filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
About Western Union
Western Union, together with its affiliates Orlandi Valuta and
Vigo, are leaders in global money transfer, providing people with
fast, reliable and convenient ways to send money around the world, pay
bills and purchase money orders through a network of over 270,000
agent locations in more than 200 countries and territories. For more
information, visit www.westernunion.com.
Guidance Tables
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2006 Financial Guidance
6 Months
June 30, 2006 FY 2006
-------------------------------------
Total Revenue $2.2B (A) $4.4B - $4.5B
Growth 13% 11% - 12%
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Operating Income, excluding spin
expenses (C): non-recurring and
ongoing $641M (B) $1,320M - $1,340M (D)
Growth 5% 4% - 6%
(A) Includes $68 million of revenue related to the acquisition of Vigo
in October 2005.
(B) Includes $11 million of stock compensation, SFAS 123R expense.
(C) Spin expenses represent estimated incremental expenses associated
with operating as a stand-alone company. Ongoing spin expenses
relate to staffing additions and related costs to replace First
Data support, corporate governance, information technology,
corporate branding and global affairs, benefits and payroll
administration, procurement, and other expenses related to being a
stand-alone company. Non-recurring spin expenses relate to
recruiting and relocation expenses associated with hiring key
management positions new to our company, other employee
compensation expenses and temporary labor used to develop ongoing
processes. See reconciliation to Operating Income (GAAP) in
Appendix.
(D) Growth in Operating Income excluding spin expenses: non-recurring
and ongoing in Q3 06 is expected to be below the 4% - 6% range and
Operating Income excluding spin expenses in Q4 06 is expected to
be above the 4% - 6% range. Expense timing and other factors drive
the majority of the expected profit growth differences in Q3 and
Q4.
2007 Growth Outlook
Total Revenue 10% - 12%
Operating Income, excluding spin expenses (A):
non-recurring and ongoing 6% - 9%
(A) Spin expenses represent estimated incremental expenses associated
with operating as a stand-alone company. Ongoing spin expenses
relate to staffing additions and related costs to replace First
Data support, corporate governance, information technology,
corporate branding and global affairs, benefits and payroll
administration, procurement, and other expenses related to being a
stand-alone company. Non-recurring spin expenses relate to
recruiting and relocation expenses associated with hiring key
management positions new to our company, other employee
compensation expenses and temporary labor used to develop ongoing
processes. See reconciliation to Operating Income (GAAP) in
Appendix.
Note: Revenue and operating income guidance exclude any potential
impact from future acquisitions
Reg G Reconciliation - Operating Income
(in Millions)
6 Months
June 30,2006 FY 2006
-------------------------------------
Operating Income, $641 $1,320 to $1,340
excluding spin expenses: 4% 6%
non-recurring and ongoing
Less spin expenses
Non-recurring $2 20 20
Ongoing 20 20
-------------------------------------
Total spin expenses $2 40 40
Operating Income (GAAP) $639 $1,280 to $1,300
1% 2%
Operating Income excluding spin expenses: non-recurring and ongoing
has been displayed to allow the financial reader improved
comparability of 2006 financial performance. However, the financial
reader should be aware that ongoing spin expenses are part of the
company's future cost structure.
*T
