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Company Press Release
Electronic Clearing House Inc. Announces Record Revenues and Earnings for Fiscal Year 1998
Highlights: Net Income Increased 252 Percent Revenue Increased 13 Percent
AGOURA HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 23, 1998-- Electronic Clearing House Inc. (Nasdaq:ECHO - news) Monday announced record revenues and earnings for its fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 1998.
Revenue for the fiscal year 1998 totaled a record $21,063,000, a 13 percent increase over revenues of $18,623,000 for fiscal year 1997. Net income for the fiscal year 1998 rose to $1,154,000, $0.077 per basic share and $0.053 per diluted share, resulting in a 252 percent increase over comparable net income of $328,000, $0.025 per basic share and $0.017 per diluted share, in fiscal year 1997.
Revenue from bankcard processing and transaction processing increased from $16,007,000 in fiscal 1997 to a record $18,773,000 in fiscal 1998, a 17 percent increase. Terminal sales and lease revenue decreased from $2,348,000 in fiscal 1997 to $2,055,000 in fiscal 1998, a 12 percent decrease.
ECHO is a national transaction processor serving thousands of small- to medium-sized merchants and several thousand U-Haul dealers under a contract with U-Haul International. ECHO's transaction-based services generate ongoing revenue each month that provides a consistent and growing income stream. ECHO transaction services include credit card processing, electronic check generation, cash advance services to casinos, Internet settlement services and inventory tracking.
ECHO's Internet settlement services include direct acceptance of transactions over the Internet from a customer, a merchant or an Internet Service Provider (ISP) who serves many merchants. ECHO was one of the first and still one of the few processors who can directly and confidently accept Internet-based credit card transactions and electronically settle all funds distribution for both the customer and merchant without any active involvement by the merchant.
ECHO's Internet suite of products includes fulfillment monitoring and the ECHOlink service which allows a merchant to access and respond to all transaction activity, including chargeback and retrieval requests, using the Internet.
ECHO is also a system design specialist and develops software and proprietary hardware for major accounts who wish to automate their transaction processing activities. In addition to its own transaction processing systems, ECHO has designed transaction processing systems for American Express (money order issuance and tracking applications), U-Haul International (inventory and dealer payment tracking applications) and the United States Postal Service (money order issuance and daily accounting tracking systems).
''Our growth in earnings can be directly attributed to ECHO's proven ability to design, integrate, manage and sell services based on point-of-sale, Internet, and host-based financial transaction processing systems,'' stated Joel Barry, CEO of ECHO, ''and we believe ECHO's growing technical capabilities in these areas gives ECHO a distinctive advantage over other less technical processors.''
Electronic Clearing House provides credit card processing, check guarantee, inventory tracking services and various Internet services to more than 17,000 retail merchants and U-Haul dealers across the nation. Through its subsidiary, Computer Based Controls, ECHO designs, develops and manufactures software and point-of-sale hardware that is utilized as credit card processing terminals, automated money order dispensers, utility bill payment systems, and inventory tracking devices. |
