Funny thing is they are news releases by the company in conjunction with edgar filings and insider trades.
So what's wrong with the company. Have you called them? Also the company is making money.....
OTC BB: USTI
Recent Price: $ 0.13 52-week Range: $0.018 to $0.29 Outstanding Shares: 48.2 million Public Float: 15.4 million Market cap: $ 6.3 million Revenues (last 12 months): $2.1 million EPS (last 12 months): $0.01 PE: 13 Industry Average PE: 60.77 Holding By Management and Insiders: 70% Holding By Institution: 0.45% Insider Buying Trend Very Positive Company webpage: unitedsystech.com
Company Business Background:
USTI, founded in 1978, has been in the business of providing data processing systems and services to local governments and other public sector organizations for over 20 years. USTI is in the business of developing, managing and marketing application software for local governments and rural water districts throughout the US. The company's primary revenue stream is derived from the sales and updates as well as licensing of their software products. Their area of expertise is aimed at providing data processing systems and services to local governments. Amongst the list includes administrators, police officers, municipal finance directors, CPAs, and programmers. USTI also generates revenues from its software packages installation, training and customer modifications, maintenance agreements, equipment sales and related commissions. The company is also coincidentally poised for an additional influx of Y2k related revenue, which could be expressed as a bonus on top of an already successfully emerging company. The company is a Microsoft Certified Solution Provider and conducts on-going training for all products both on and off-site as well as assistance in Y2k related problems.
USTI's core product line currently consist of 5 available applications. USTI's software applications operate in IBM midrange, network and single user PC platforms and is seamlessly interfaced with the other Microsoft Office products. They are currently responsible for over 1,600 installations. The company currently provides local governments and police Departments with computerized control of the following: Police Records; Fund and encumbrance accounting; Budgeting; Accounts Payable; Purchasing; Cash receipts; Payroll; Utility Billing; Computer-aided Dispatch; E911/911 Interface' Incidents & Arrests; Property Tracking; Federal/State Reporting' Citations; Jail Booking; Building Permits; Business Licensing; Parks & Recreation, and Vehicle Maintenance
USTI's asyst product line alone currently includes a Fund Accounting system, a Utility Billing system and a Public Safety system and has been installed in over 300 locations throughout the United States. (USTI's asyst represents only 1 of 5 of the company's software products. Each with a specific list of multiple applications. ) The Fund Accounting system includes: General Ledger; Budget XLence; Report XLence; Accounts Payable; Accounts Receivable; Purchase Orders; Cash Receipts and Payroll modules. The Utility Billing system includes: Utility Billing, Meter Reader Interface, Bank Drafts and Budget Billing modules. The initial Public Safety system includes: A Master Name Index, Calls for Service, Offense Reports and UCR Reporting modules.
The Company is currently developing its asyst General Government products, which include Business and Animal Licenses, Code Enforcement and Building Permits modules, and anticipates that the initial modules will be released in the 3rd quarter of 1999.
The Market
USTI hasn't even scratched the surface of their full potential and is staged for even more phenomenal growth. Their current clientele of local governments shows a formidable display of expertise in a niche market. They have been experiencing a 25% growth rate, are responsible for over1,600 installations, and recent developments confirm additional licensing of their product to new clientele in over 22 states in the spring of 1999 alone. These are just the beginning stages of acquiring a primary strong hold in massive sector of the general economy's Local governments! CEO, Thomas Gibbs has also noted that they are working diligently toward the new product announcements, which are scheduled for the third quarter of 1999. The new product line will join the existing five available packages responsible for what will be the company's upcoming Th successive profitable quarter and a rather exceptional year. USTI's continued growth and success also represents a potential buyout candidate from some of the industries giants. These have been rumored in the past, along with possibilities of acquisitions where synergistic affects would only compliment the growth and value of all involved. USTI's potential is poised for such possibilities by offering its current and prospective customers an attractive software solution. Both from a financial and functionality standpoint. By following the trend of clients moving to PC networks, we can expect continued growth and profitability into the millennium.
While Y2k compliance issues are not the company's core business, it is implemented as the industry standard. The company offers advice and service as well as a viable contingency plan. Apart from offering comprehensive software systems to clients and potential clients in many areas of local government, they currently offer a series of Dell PC's that when combined with their software, would effectively streamline their administrative duties in an overall cost efficient manner and in effect would eliminate the Y2k compliance issues altogether. All these PC's are 2000 compliant, fully equipped and operational, and come with an extensive three-year, next-business-day, on-site service agreement. They will also pre-load the client's software so it's immediately ready for on site use. This is just another potential explosion in business that exist in addition to their core products and services. This would surely supplement next years bottom line 1st and 2nd quarterly report.
According to ABC news, it has been becoming apparent that most of small local governments (towns and municipalties) and other small entities, such as small business companies, accounting firms, police stations, gas stations, fire stations, hospitals and clinicals, utilities companies, churches and so on, are not protected against the millennium bug. It's estimated that these entities need to spend $200 billion to fix Y2K bugs in the coming year. USTI offers an alternative to the upgrading of soon-to-be obsolete computers and software packages in a system where change is becoming necessary simply to exist as high-tech solutions evolve. The fact that USTI's system is fully able to flawlessly interface with the upcoming generation of Microsoft Office products, would indicate that company's growing clientele have based their decisions on quality, efficiency, and cost effectiveness, as well as the ability to keep up with industry changes and standards. For this reason alone we expect continued growth and profitability throughout the year 2000 and beyond.
There are over 1.2 million small local governments and entities of this kind across the nation. The USTI's product and service costs for each entity range from $1,500 to $5,000. Even if USTI penetrates 1% of this market annually, USTI will have significant revenues and earnings for years to come with a net profit at 22% that USTI has now.
Summary
For the six months ended 6/30/99, total revenues increased 31% to $1 million. Net income applicable to Common and before extraordinary item totalled $165 thousand, up 293% from $42 thousand. Results reflect an increase in licensing of Legacy and Asyst products and decreased S/G/A expenses. USTI, being a fully reporting, profitable, cash rich company has found its market. Currently experiencing 25 percent annual growth rate, the company is well on its way to being a force in the industry to be reckoned with. Serving a very lucrative yet profitable niche market, USTI revenues are ready for tremendous gains. If the past 3 quarters are any indication of future potential, then its stock price are going to reflect the potential.
It's almost here. January 1, 2000 is less than 72 days away. What will all the software companies (not to mention news anchors) talk about when the purported big bang comes and goes? At USTI, their objective is to make sure that the big day (or more precisely the Monday after the big day) is spent recovering from that New Year/Decade/Century/Millennium party to end all parties, or getting on with all those resolutions you're hoping to keep. The last thing they want you to have to worry about is whether the utility bills will print or the payroll will calculate, or the financial statements will balance. For the last two years, USTI has spent a significant amount of resources making sure that all of their customers, both those currently on support and those who are not, are aware of the Year 2000 computer bug and are aware of the options they have to cure it. With Y2k right around the corner, USTI is in a prime position to continually solve and profit off of this upcoming millennium bug. Revenues after the first of the year could literally skyrocket leaving previous price projections in the dust.
Whether most people want to believe it or not, but the turn of the century will have significant implications and a company such as USTI is in prime position to reap the rewards while most others will be losing money. The investment community appears to finally be catching onto the company as this yet to be discovered gem makes its moves. As a last note, the Y2K issue is going to be very hot this year, for example, 20% of airline bookings were canceled for the first of the year, so whether people say they believe in Y2K or not, there will be significant money pouring into Y2K stocks, USTI happens to offer software that deals with the Y2K issue. If there was ever a time to capitalize off of the Year 2000 bug, it is now right before the actual events happen and companies are spending to fix the problem. This is a significant investment in the making, some people watch, some people act, and others wish they acted.
Conclusion
Four key factors mark USTI as an outstanding investment opportunity: (1)huge potential of significant revenue and earnings growth in the coming years, (2) ability to compete, (3) new products on the basis of extensive R&D, and (4) key management.
USTI management effectiveness is very solid in comparison with its peers. USTI's Return On Assets is 37.37%, compared to 14.44% for the industry; USTI's Return On Investment is 286.61, compared to 21.56% for the industry, and USTI's Return On Equity is 2,479.73%, compared to 25.20% for the industry.
Over 3.4 million shares purchased by insiders in the last year with no current 144 filings on record is another good sign indicating that management is confident about the future of the company. The stock is selling at about 13 times the previous year's earnings (about one fifth of industry average PE) and at about one time the projected earnings, this is a compelling investment vehicle in the software field. |