Payments by the numbers

Several payments industry companies released earnings reports Jan. 31, 2012 and Feb. 1, 2012. Here are some of the highlights:

First Data

First Data Corp.'s fourth quarter revenue was $2.69 billion, down $43 million or 2 percent, compared to the same period a year ago. The company said it lost $115 million in debit network fees compared with the fourth quarter 2010. Excluding debit network fees and some other items the company is allowed to discount in its adjusted revenue calculations, First Data's adjusted revenue increased $47 million or 3 percent year over year to $1.73 billion.

Cost reductions and revenue growth in retail and alliance services accounted for adjusted earning of $655 million in that segment, up 16 percent or $91 million compared to $564 million in adjusted earnings in the same period 2010. Growth in merchant acquiring and higher pass-through debit network fees resulted in $10.71 billion in revenue for the full year 2011 in retail and alliance services, an increase of 3 percent.

First Data's fourth quarter retail and alliance services business was up $53 million to $926 million (a 6 percent increase) compared to the same period 2010 revenues of $873 million. The full-year retail and alliance services division was up $67 million to $3.4 billion (a 2 percent increase) compared to $3.3 billion in revenue in this segment in 2010. These increases were driven by increases in transaction growth and merchant revenue and by lower debit interchange rates. First Data also prospered from new revenue received from the Bank of America Merchant Services alliance.

A replay of the company's investor conference call talking about fourth quarter and full year results is available through Feb. 15, 2012, at investor.firstdata.com.

Jack Henry

Jack Henry & Associates Inc. reported a 5 percent revenue increase for fiscal quarter 2010, a 4 percent increase in gross profit and a 7 percent increase in net income over its second quarter 2011. During the first six months of its 2012 fiscal year, revenue increased 6 percent, with an increase of 6 percent in gross profit and 11 percent in net income compared with 2011, the company reported.

For the quarter that ended Dec. 31, 2011, Jack Henry reported total revenue of $255.9 million compared with $242.6 million in the same quarter 2010. The total revenue for the first half of fiscal year 2012 was $504.2 million compared with the first half 2011 revenue of $477.5 million.

Pivotal Payments

Following are highlights Canada-based Pivotal Payments reported for fiscal year 2011:

• A volume increase of 20.3 percent
• A revenue increase of 15 percent
• A transaction increase of 18 percent
• A merchant acquiring increase of 14 percent

Pivotal also said a notable event was its acquisition of the ISO American National Payments. The company said it now processes more than $10 billion in annual transactions.

Global Payments

Global Payments Inc. stated Feb. 1, 2012, that its board of directors approved a second quarter 2012 dividend of $0.02 per common share.

Whether you want to upgrade your POS offerings, find a payment gateway partner, bone up on fintech regs or PCI requirements, find an upcoming trade show, read about faster payments, or discover the latest innovations in merchant acquiring, The Green Sheet is the resource for you. Since 1983, we've helped empower and connect payments professionals, starting with the merchant level salespeople who bring tailored payment acceptance and digital commerce tools, along with a host of other business services to merchants across the globe. The Green Sheet Inc. is also a proud affiliate of Bankcard Life, a premier community that provides industry-leading training and resources for payment professionals.

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