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Non-Tech : Wescorp and WFSI -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Keith J who wrote (28)	3/20/1998 2:22:00 PM
From: Mark Oliver	Respond to of 56

I saw the earnings cuts listed on the Analyst Center offered by Schwab. I spoke to Lee Wattcot, CFO of WFSI. He's told me a few things. Some are of concern and some are good. In general, WES has added shares since the IPO and now holds about 84% and WES CEO Rady owns about 3% of WFSI and 60% WES, leaving a float of 13% or perhaps 3.5 million shares. Lee said there was one other large shareholder, but it wasn't in reporting range so he couldn't give details. He said the short interest has been there for some time and they haven't been able to figure out who owns it. Problem loans continue. They have announced 3% range of bad loans which will continue and may rise. They are slowing growth to 10 to 15% range to improve loan quality. Interesting note about computer systems. In many recent mergers of banks, they cite the cost of converting systems to handle the Year 2000 problem. Wescorp has designed many internal systems to handle the approval of loans and managing accounting. This was an area which intrigued my father, an exprogrammer years ago. So, I asked Lee what was the risk of conversion WES faced? He said they had fortunately used a 5 digit format for dates which negates the Y2K issue. So, on the upside they have saved a lot of expense on an issue that has worried many companies. So, I believe WFSI is still in trouble with the risk of bad loans rising. Maybe their program to improve loan quality and reduce operating expense by closing offices will lead to a better picture. Should the share price continue to fall, I'll by my shares back. As far as the short interest goes, I wonder what it will take for them to cover? If they didn't cover at $9, I wonder what their goal is? I would seem nearly impossible to cover without a huge block trade. Who would supply these shares? Regards, Mark

To: Keith J who wrote (28)	3/30/1998 12:37:00 PM
From: Mark Oliver	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 56

Keith, I guess you've seen the big drop in price on both Wescorp and WFSI. They've got some anouncements. Apparantly, the bad loans are for real and the President of Wescorp's "Bank" is leaving. WFS Financial Expects First Quarter Operating Loss IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 27, 1998--WFS Financial Inc (Nasdaq: WFSI - news) today announced that it will report a first quarter operating loss in addition to the restructuring charge announced earlier this quarter. The first quarter operating loss is primarily the result of continuing deterioration in delinquency and loss trends in the Company's automobile loan portfolio. These asset quality trends are the result of various factors including continuing negative credit trends on contracts originated during the Company's expansion, declining resale values on repossessions, lower than expected collections of deficiency balances, the restructuring of the western region and higher than expected turnover of collections personnel. The Company's servicing income, gain on sale and provision for loan losses will be adversely impacted by these trends. However, the retained interest in securitized assets on the Company's balance sheet relating to existing securitizations has not become impaired as a result of these higher loss levels. As previously announced, the restructuring of the western region of the Company included consolidating 15 prime-lending dealer centers and 44 non-prime lending branch offices into 12 regional business centers and 15 satellite offices. The Company will report an after-tax restructuring charge of approximately $5.8 million or $.22 per share in the first quarter related to this restructuring. Once completed, the restructuring is designed to save up to $12 million annually in expenses. WFS is an indirect automobile finance Company specializing in the purchase, securitization and servicing of prime and non-prime credit quality contracts. WFS currently purchases contracts in 40 states nationwide. This news release contains forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, estimates of the impact of restructuring as well as future loan volumes, credit quality, losses and operating costs in future periods that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including that the systems changes and initiatives that the Company is undertaking do not achieve their intended results. Additional risks that may affect the Company's future performance are detailed under the caption ''Forward-looking Statements'' in the Business section of the Company's annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. WFS Financial Expects First Quarter Operating Loss IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 27, 1998--WFS Financial Inc (Nasdaq: WFSI - news) today announced that it will report a first quarter operating loss in addition to the restructuring charge announced earlier this quarter. The first quarter operating loss is primarily the result of continuing deterioration in delinquency and loss trends in the Company's automobile loan portfolio. These asset quality trends are the result of various factors including continuing negative credit trends on contracts originated during the Company's expansion, declining resale values on repossessions, lower than expected collections of deficiency balances, the restructuring of the western region and higher than expected turnover of collections personnel. The Company's servicing income, gain on sale and provision for loan losses will be adversely impacted by these trends. However, the retained interest in securitized assets on the Company's balance sheet relating to existing securitizations has not become impaired as a result of these higher loss levels. As previously announced, the restructuring of the western region of the Company included consolidating 15 prime-lending dealer centers and 44 non-prime lending branch offices into 12 regional business centers and 15 satellite offices. The Company will report an after-tax restructuring charge of approximately $5.8 million or $.22 per share in the first quarter related to this restructuring. Once completed, the restructuring is designed to save up to $12 million annually in expenses. WFS is an indirect automobile finance Company specializing in the purchase, securitization and servicing of prime and non-prime credit quality contracts. WFS currently purchases contracts in 40 states nationwide. This news release contains forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, estimates of the impact of restructuring as well as future loan volumes, credit quality, losses and operating costs in future periods that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including that the systems changes and initiatives that the Company is undertaking do not achieve their intended results. Additional risks that may affect the Company's future performance are detailed under the caption ''Forward-looking Statements'' in the Business section of the Company's annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.