SunGard is reporting a nine per cent rise in quarterly earnings for Q1 2003 compared to a year ago, but overall internal revenue, which excludes acquired businesses, remained flat in the quarter and decreased four per cent at its Investment Support Systems (ISS) division.
SunGard says revenue for the first quarter of 2003 was $675 million, an increase of 11 per cent over $608 million reported in the year-ago quarter, but revenue from businesses owned for at least a year (internal revenue) was unchanged from the same period in 2002. The company says quartlery profits rose nine per cent to $76 million, or 26 cents per share, compared with $70 million, or 24 cents per share, reported in 2002.
SunGard's Investment Support Systems (ISS) division continued to drag down internal revenues, due primarily to the economic slowdown in the financial services industry, says the vendor, although the division's overall revenue grew three per cent to $343 million for the quarter.
Revenues from the vendor's other businesses increased 10 per cent to $26 million, but internal revenue for these divisions increased just one per cent for Q1. SunGard's Availability Services (AS) revenue increased 21 per cent to $287 million for the quarter and AS internal revenue grew five per cent for Q1 2003.
Cristóbal Conde, president and chief executive officer, SunGard, says: "Our first quarter results are consistent with both our outlook for the year and the normal quarterly pattern of our business."
Conde says the firm reiterates its outlook for 2003 diluted net income per share in the range of $1.24 to $1.29. He says the outlook assumes neither a rebound nor a further deterioration in demand and that SunGard will have no merger-related items in 2003.