Trading Statement

RNS Number : 8592F

Experian plc

15 October 2008

 



Experian plc

Trading update, first half

Experian, the global information services company, today issues an update on trading for the six months to 30 September 2008.

Commenting on the performance of Experian, Don Robert, Chief Executive Officer, said:

'In a challenging environment, Experian saw acceleration in second quarter growth, to give a good overall performance for the first half, benefiting from the balance, diversity and countercyclicality that has been built into the portfolio. Total revenue growth for the half was 13%, with organic revenue growth of 3% (Q1 +1%, Q2 +5%).

'This is a dynamic time for the global economy. Our markets are in the midst of significant change, which we expect to last for some time. This new environment will require our clients to strengthen risk management and optimise collections activities across their organisations. We have adapted our business to meet our clients' priorities quickly, utilising the breadth of Experian products. We remain vigilant on costs and are focused on driving profit growth.'

Experian plc 

% change in revenue year-on-year for the six months to 30 September 2008

Continuing activities only1	Total   growth       %	Total growth %	Organic growth  %
	At actual exchange rates2	At constant exchange rates	At constant exchange rates
North America	2	2	1
Latin America	157	119	22
UK and Ireland	1	4	1
EMEA/Asia Pacific	33	21	8
Experian	13	11	3

1 The transaction processing activities in France have been treated as discontinued for the six months to 30 September 2008 following the disposal agreement (see separate announcement). As such, associated revenue has been excluded from continuing activities. This has enhanced organic revenue growth by c. 50bp for the six month period.  Continuing activities also exclude the contributions of UK account processing, Loyalty Solutions and other smaller discontinuing activities

2 Experian is reporting in US dollars

In the six months to 30 September 2008, revenue from continuing activities at Experian increased by 11% at constant exchange rates. Group organic revenue growth was 3% year-on-year. Revenue grew organically at Decision Analytics (up 7%) and at Interactive (up 9%), while at Credit Services and Marketing Services it was flat, a solid performance considering unprecedented market turbulence. Acquisitions contributed 8% to revenue growth.  

North America

Revenue in North America increased by 2% in total. Organic revenue growth was 1%. The acquisition of Hitwise (acquired in June 2007) accounts for the difference.

Organic revenue declined by 5% at Credit Services, with slight strengthening in the second quarter compared to the first, against challenging conditions for financial services. Strength in account management and collections helped mitigate depressed conditions within mortgage and pre-screen. Meanwhile, Experian's market position was strengthened by new client wins and renewals.  At Decision Analytics, organic revenue was flat against significant one-off revenue last year. Organic revenue growth in Marketing Services was 2%, reflecting strong performances across new media activities offsetting declines in traditional activities. In Interactive, organic revenue growth was 6%. Consumer Direct experienced excellent growth, while Experian Interactive Media continued to suffer from weak mortgage conditions. PriceGrabber, in line with the trend in consumer spending in the US, has seen a slowdown in recent trading.

Latin America

Revenue for Latin America increased by 119% in total. Organic revenue growth was 22%. The acquisitions of Informarketing (in April 2007) and Serasa (acquired in June 2007) contribute the balance. 

There was strong organic revenue growth at Credit Services of 18%, driven by excellent growth in both consumer information and business information services. Revenue growth at both Decision Analytics and Marketing Services benefited from cross-sell opportunities across the new shared salesforce. Organic revenue growth at Decision Analytics was up 23%, while Marketing Services revenue more than doubled, benefiting from a number of new client wins. 

UK and Ireland

Revenue in UK and Ireland from continuing activities increased by 4% at constant exchange rates. Organic revenue rose 1%, with acquisitions, including Tallyman (acquired in May 2007), Hitwise, The pH Group (acquired in July 2007) and N4 Solutions (acquired in July 2007), contributing the balance. 

Organic revenue at Credit Services declined by 4%. Weakness in consumer information across the financial services sector was partly offset by good growth in public sector revenue. Decision Analytics performed strongly, up 8% organically, as clients sought countercyclical products for collections, and benefiting from some one-off software deliveries towards the end of the period. At Marketing Services, progress in new media activities is encouraging, helping to offset financial services marketing cutbacks; organic revenue was down 7%. Interactive again performed very strongly, up 46% organically, driven by strength in new CreditExpert memberships. 

EMEA/Asia Pacific

At constant exchange rates, revenue in EMEA/Asia Pacific increased by 21%. Organic revenue growth was 8%, with acquisitions, mainly Emailing Solution (acquired in May 2007), Tallyman and Hitwise contributing the balance. 

Organic revenue at Credit Services rose 4%, reflecting good bureau progress and a number of new client wins. Major new client wins in Spain, Russia and South Korea, as well as collections strength in Holland helped drive good performance at Decision Analytics, with organic revenue growth of 10%. Marketing Services again performed well, with strength in email services, contact data management and internet marketing intelligence (Hitwise) contributing to organic growth of 13%. 

Future announcements

Experian will issue its Half-Yearly Report for the six months to 30 September 2008 on 19 November 2008.

Enquiries

Experian

Paul Brooks                     Chief Financial Officer               [phone] 

Nadia Ridout-Jamieson     Director of Investor Relations

Alex Brog                         Head of Media Relations

Finsbury

Rollo Head                                                                     [phone]

Don Hunter

This announcement is available on the Experian website, www.experianplc.com. There will be two conference calls today to discuss this update, at 9.00am and at 3.00pm (UK time). Both will be broadcast live on the website with a recording available later.

All financial information is based on unaudited management accounts. Certain statements made in this trading update are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on current expectations and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from any expected future events or results referred to in these forward-looking statements. 

 

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