Unisys has reported double-digit earnings per share (EPS) growth for the first quarter of 2003, achieving its targeted earnings range for the quarter.
The company has also reported substantial growth in its first-quarter orders, driven by significant long-term contract signings in business process outsourcing (BPO) and managed infrastructure services.
Unisys reported first-quarter 2003 net income of $38.5 million, or 12c per share, compared to first-quarter 2002 net income of $32.7 million, or 10c per share, an EPS increase of 20%. Revenue for the first quarter of 2003 was $1.40 billion, up from $1.36 billion a year ago. Currency had a 4% positive impact on the company`s revenue in the first quarter, as the dollar weakened against most major currencies worldwide.
"Unisys has continued to execute solidly in the first quarter of 2003," says Unisys Africa MD Barry Holt. "This was despite the uncertainty in the geopolitical environment, and was fuelled in part by double-digit growth in outsourcing: we have continued to expand our strategic BPO offerings."
Unisys saw continued strong demand for its enterprise security services, building on its work with large organisations such as the US Transportation Security Administration and Lloyds TSB in the UK, to create secure networks.
In addition, Unisys`s technology business delivered strong profit performance in the first quarter, driven by sales of new ClearPath server models. Sales of the ES7000 family of high-end Intel-based servers showed strong double-digit growth as it benefited from ongoing efforts to market the significant capabilities of these systems to new and existing clients. Globally, Unisys closed more than $800 million of long-term services business in the first quarter. Among these contracts were:
* A 10-year BPO contract to assume processing and administration of 2.4 million life and pensions policies for Royal & Sun Alliance in the UK;
* A seven-year outsourcing contract with the city of Minneapolis to provide a full range of services to manage the city`s complete IT infrastructure, ranging from the data centre to desktops and mobile devices;
* A three-year contract extension with the city of Chicago under which Unisys will continue providing a full range of outsourcing services to manage the city`s distributed IT infrastructure;
* A three-year contract with HBOS, a leading financial services firm in the UK, to provide infrastructure support services for some 29 000 employees;
* A four-year contract with the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Services to become the new Medicaid fiscal agent for the state;
* A five-year contract with the Board of Airline Representatives in Australia to implement and manage a new baggage reconciliation system at all Australian international airports.
"Locally we are tracking Unisys`s international success," adds Holt. "We have enjoyed a most successful first quarter, and we expect our fast start to the year to continue into the second half of the year."
Globally Unisys has predicted modest revenue growth in the second quarter, with earnings per share in the 14c to 17c range, and double-digit growth for the year as a whole.
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