Inforte Corp. Remains Comfortable with March 2001 Quarter Guidance
CHICAGO, March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Strategic technology consultancy Inforte Corp. (Nasdaq: INFT) today announced comfort with March 2001 quarter revenue and earnings per share guidance given on January 25, 2001. Inforte will host its previously announced mid-quarter update conference call Thursday March 8, 2001 at 5:30 pm Eastern to update investors on events transpiring since its January conference call. The call will also be broadcast live and archived on Inforte's web site at inforte.com .
Phil Bligh, Inforte's chairman, president and chief executive officer said, "We are pleased to report comfort with guidance previously announced for the March 2001 quarter. Over the five quarters of our public life, our industry has experienced very high demand, followed by a period of normal demand, and now, due to macro economic factors, low demand. We are very proud of the fact that Inforte has navigated these demand peaks and valleys each quarter while remaining profitable and delivering revenue and earnings in line or ahead of our guidance. This achievement is not accidental. It is the result of many years of systematically building business and financials controls that give us the visibility to make course corrections very quickly. These controls are the key to running our business profitably and successfully for the long term.
"Recent market research with clients and partners confirms that Inforte's skills are well matched with industry needs and that our business strategy remains sound. We look forward to a stable economic environment, which historically has provided high demand for our services. The factors that should drive solid growth for us over the long term remain in place, namely increasing adoption of technology by businesses, increasing complexity of that technology and an increasing need to use outside specialists to implement technology. Therefore, we are using the current environment to aggressively build our infrastructure and further improve our business processes. This effort will enhance our ability to grow rapidly once economic growth resumes."
According to Nick Padgett, chief financial officer, "Given the negative economic and sector news that has occurred in the six weeks since our last conference call, we do expect the revenue and earnings results for March 2001 quarter to be around the bottom of, but not below, our previously announced guidance ranges, barring any unforeseeable events during the remainder of the quarter. This implies revenue around $14 million and earnings around $0.06 per diluted share. At this point in the quarter, we expect other key metrics such as cash flow from operations, days sales outstanding, and voluntary turnover to be in line with previously announced guidance. When we release actual earnings after the close on April 12, we will comment on expectations for the remainder of 2001."
For the quarter ended March 31, 2001 Inforte currently expects:
-- Voluntary employee turnover below our target range of 15%-20%.
-- Cash flow from operations to be slightly negative due to year-end bonus payments as discussed in our January conference call. Inforte had 83.0 million of cash as of December 31, 2000, equal to $6.53 per basic share.
-- Days sales outstanding to rise from the 3-day result in the December 2000 quarter, but to remain at an industry-low level, as discussed in our January conference call.
-- Utilization below our target range of 70%-80%, as discussed in our January conference call.
-- Client concentration statistics consistent with previous quarters.
On April 12, 2001 Inforte will provide:
-- Actual results for the March 2001 quarter.
-- Details regarding any stock repurchased by Inforte Corp. during the March 2001 quarter.
-- Company expectations for the remainder of fiscal year 2001.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The March 2001 data provided in this press release represent the quarter's estimated results. The estimate is based on actual results for January and February and our estimates and forecasts for the month of March. Actual results may differ from forward-looking results for a number of reasons, including but not limited to, Inforte's ability to: (i) effectively train professional staff with advanced technology and business strategy skills; (ii) attract and retain clients and satisfy our clients' expectations; (iii) recruit and retain qualified professionals; (iv) reliably forecast revenue when information technology services spending is less certain; (v) accurately estimate the time and resources necessary for the delivery of our services; (vi) build and maintain marketing relationships with leading software vendors; and (vii) estimate the financial results for the month of March 2001, as well as other factors discussed from time to time in our SEC filings. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, estimated, or projected. All forward-looking statements included in this document are made as of the date hereof, based on information available to Inforte on the date thereof, and Inforte assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
About Inforte Corporation
Strategic technology consultancy Inforte Corp. (Nasdaq: INFT) helps create long-term return on investment and sustainable advantages for clients by capitalizing on the convergence of business strategy and technology across the value chain. Inforte delivers strategic technology consulting, comprehensive demand chain management solutions, plus solutions that optimize supply chain integration. Inforte's client advocacy approach and rigorous delivery methodologies have garnered the trust of Global 2000 clients, produced industry-leading project-efficiency metrics and helped Inforte earn references from 100 percent of its clients. Founded in 1993, Inforte is headquartered in Chicago and has offices in Atlanta, Dallas, London, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. For more information, contact Inforte at 800-340-0200 or visit its Web sites at inforte.com and estrategy.com .
Contact: Investor Relations, Katie Spring, Managing Director, Hill and Knowlton, 312-475-5987, e-mail, kspring@hillandknowlton.com.
Go to inforte.com to access the 3/8/01 Investor Conference Call Webcast.
Contact: Maurissa Kanter, Director of Public Relations of Inforte Corp., 312-540-0900, or email, Maurissa.Kanter@Inforte.com .
SOURCE Inforte Corp.
CO: Inforte Corp.
ST: Illinois
IN: CPR FIN
SU:
03/08/2001 16:00 EST prnewswire.com |
