The Advisory Board Company Reports Results for Quarter Ended June 30, 2011

WASHINGTON, Aug. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Advisory Board Company (NASDAQ: ABCO) today announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, the first quarter of its 2012 fiscal year.  Revenue for the quarter increased 22.4% to $81.6 million, from $66.7 million in the quarter ended June 30, 2010.  Contract value increased 21.2% to $332.5 million as of June 30, 2011, up from $274.4 million as of June 30, 2010.  For the quarter ended June 30, 2011, net income was $3.9 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, compared to net income of $4.6 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2010.  For the quarter ended June 30, 2011, adjusted net income, non-GAAP earnings per diluted share, and adjusted EBITDA, all of which are non-GAAP financial measures, were $8.4 million, $0.50 per diluted share, and $14.6 million, respectively.  For the quarter ended June 30, 2010, adjusted net income, non-GAAP earnings per diluted share, and adjusted EBITDA were $7.1 million, $0.45 per diluted share, and $12.4 million, respectively.

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Robert Musslewhite, Chief Executive Officer of The Advisory Board Company, commented, "Our strong performance for the quarter highlights the sustained, urgent need for our products and services in the markets we serve.  As our members face continued change and unprecedented complexity, they consistently turn to us for comprehensive solutions to their most pressing challenges.  Our robust portfolio of offerings, excellent product quality, and measurable member impact in addressing these challenges were all key factors in achieving our strong revenue growth of 22% and contract value growth of 21% this quarter.  We are pleased that the superior start to calendar year 2011, along with the visibility inherent in our model, allows us to revise our outlook for the year, as we now increase our projections to revenue growth of 24%-26% and adjusted EBITDA of $60-$64 million for calendar year 2011.  It is exciting to have this momentum going into the second half of the calendar year, and I am confident that we have in place the right strategy and assets to continue this performance going forward."

Mr. Musslewhite continued, "I am also pleased today to announce the launch of the Crimson Practice Management Program, which provides actionable data to enhance the performance of physician practices and maximize their total health system contribution.  The program provides visibility into productivity, patient access, documentation and coding accuracy, and collections efficiency, facilitating physician participation in improvement initiatives in any practice setting, whether hospital-owned or independent.  The program was developed on our Crimson platform leveraging key intellectual property and expertise from Southwind, and it is an exciting example of the cross-program synergies we are generating throughout the company as we expand our portfolio in areas of key member need."  

Acquisition of PivotHealth

The Company announced the acquisition as of August 1, 2011 of substantially all the assets of PivotHealth, LLC, a leading physician practice management firm based in Nashville, Tennessee.  The transaction enhances The Advisory Board Company's existing physician practice management capabilities and provides new growth opportunities with the addition of PivotHealth's expertise in long-term physician practice management.

Robert Musslewhite commented, "We are thrilled to further deepen our portfolio in the physician management arena with the addition of PivotHealth's exceptional talent and superior expertise.   PivotHealth's long-term management offering is distinctive in the health care industry, providing a highly credible outsourced management solution for health system-sponsored physician practices.  We are looking forward to building on our Southwind business by adding PivotHealth's capabilities, which, in addition to longer-term practice management expertise, also include patient satisfaction surveys, and coding and compliance education." 

PivotHealth's President, John Phillips, added, "The PivotHealth team and I are very excited to join forces with the Advisory Board and Southwind to continue to build a powerful set of solutions to elevate physician performance. Together, we have ahead of us a large and exciting market opportunity, and I am confident that our collective work will meaningfully impact the health care industry."

Mr. Musslewhite concluded, "In a health care market that is increasingly focused on physician alignment, our members look to us for a full suite of services to elevate the performance of their physicians and affiliated practices.  We are excited to enhance our successful Crimson technology platform and Southwind physician alignment services with the addition of PivotHealth to offer a more comprehensive portfolio to support our members deeply in all aspects of physician integration."

Share Repurchase

During the three months ended June 30, 2011, the Company repurchased 44,036 shares of its common stock at a total cost of approximately $2.3 million.  As of June 30, 2011, the Company had repurchased 7,564,707 shares of its common stock at a total cost of approximately $318.6 million.

Outlook for Calendar Year 2011  

The Company is raising its revenue guidance for calendar year 2011 to a range of approximately $342 million to $349 million, up from a range of $318 million to $326 million.  The Company is also raising its guidance for calendar year 2011 adjusted EBITDA to a range of $60 million to $64 million, up from a range of $56 million to $60 million.  This guidance includes approximately $6 million to $7 million of revenue and $0.5 million of adjusted EBITDA from the acquisition of PivotHealth in calendar year 2011.  For calendar year 2011, the Company is increasing its guidance for non-GAAP earnings per diluted share to a range of approximately $2.00 to $2.13, up from a range of $1.85 to $2.00.  For calendar year 2011 the Company expects share-based compensation expense to be approximately $10 million, and amortization from acquisition-related intangible assets to be approximately $5 million. For the remainder of calendar year 2011, the Company expects an effective tax rate of approximately 37.5%. 

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release and the accompanying tables present information about adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, and non-GAAP earnings per diluted share, which are non-GAAP financial measures provided as a complement to the results provided in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP").  We define our non-GAAP financial measures as described below.  

The term "adjusted EBITDA" refers to a financial measure that we define as earnings before other income, net, which includes interest income and foreign currency losses and gains; income taxes; depreciation and amortization; amortization of acquisition-related intangibles and capitalized software included in cost of services; costs associated with acquisitions; share-based compensation expense; and fair value adjustments made to the Company's acquisition-related earn out liabilities.  The term "adjusted net income" refers to net income excluding the net of tax effect share-based compensation expense; amortization of acquisition-related intangibles; costs associated with acquisitions; and fair value adjustments made to the Company's acquisition-related earn out liabilities.  The term "non-GAAP earnings per diluted share" refers to net income per share excluding the net of tax effect of share-based compensation expense; amortization of acquisition-related intangibles; costs associated with acquisitions; and fair value adjustments made to the Company's acquisition-related earn out liabilities.  

The foregoing non-GAAP measures may be calculated differently from similarly titled measures used by other companies, which limits their usefulness as comparative measures, and should be considered in addition to financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP, but should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, GAAP measures or results as indicators of performance.  We use these non-GAAP financial measures for internal budgeting and other managerial purposes because they enable the Company's management to evaluate projected operating results on a basis that allows for comparability without regard to changes arising from applicable tax rates, variability in interest income and foreign currency exchange rates, periodic costs of certain capitalized tangible and intangible assets, share-based compensation expense, and certain non-cash and special charges.

There are limitations associated with these non-GAAP financial measures as indicators of performance, including that they do not reflect all changes in applicable tax rates, foreign currency exchange rates, share-based compensation expense, or the periodic costs of certain capitalized tangible and intangible assets used in generating revenue in our business.  

A reconciliation of the foregoing historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable historical GAAP financial measures is provided below for each of the periods indicated.  It is not practicable to provide a reconciliation of forecasted adjusted EBITDA and forecasted non-GAAP earnings per diluted share to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures because certain items required for the forecast of such GAAP financial measures cannot reasonably be estimated or predicted at this time.

Web and Conference Call Information

As previously announced, the Company will hold a conference call to discuss its first quarter performance this evening, August 2, 2011 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time.  The conference call will be available via live web cast on the Company's web site at www.advisoryboardcompany.com/IR.  To participate by telephone, the dial-in number is 866.270.6057 and the access code is 98112925.  Participants are advised to dial-in at least five minutes prior to the call to register.  The web cast will be archived for seven days from 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, August 2, until 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, August 9, 2011.

About The Advisory Board Company

The Advisory Board Company provides best practices research and analysis, business intelligence and software tools, and management and advisory services primarily to the health care industry, focusing on business strategy, operations, and general management issues.  The Company provides best practices and research through discrete programs to a membership of approximately 3,200 organizations, including leading hospitals, health systems, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, health care insurers, medical device and supply companies, colleges, universities, and other educational institutions.  Members of each program are typically charged a fixed annual fee and have access to an integrated set of services that may include best practice research studies, executive education seminars, customized research briefs, web-based access to the program's content database, and business intelligence and software tools.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These statements, including the Company's expectations regarding its revenue, adjusted EBITDA, and non-GAAP earnings per diluted share for calendar year 2011 and its effective tax rate for fiscal year 2012 are based on information available to the Company as of August 2, 2011, the date of this news release, as well as the Company's current projections, forecasts, and assumptions, and involve risks and uncertainties.  You are hereby cautioned that these statements may be affected by certain factors, including those set forth below.  Consequently, actual operations and results may differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements, and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance.  Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements include, among others, changes in the financial condition of the health care industry, our dependence on renewal of membership-based services, the need to attract new business and retain current members and qualified personnel, new product development, competition, risks associated with our software tools and installation support tools, our ability to license technology from third parties, risks associated with anticipating market trends, industry consolidation, variability of quarterly operating results, possible volatility in the Company's stock price, and various factors related to income and other taxes, including whether the District of Columbia withdraws the Company's status as a Qualified High-Tech Company, as well as those risks and uncertainties described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2011, which is available on the Company's website at www.advisoryboardcompany.com/IR and at the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov.  Additional information will also be set forth in the Company's report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, which will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in August 2011.  

Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements made in this news release, which speak only as of the date of this news release, and the Company does not undertake to update these statements, whether as a result of circumstances or events that arise after the date they are made, new information, or otherwise.

SOURCE The Advisory Board Company