ADA, Okla., July 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pre-Paid Legal
Services, Inc. (NYSE: PPD) reported new sales associates enrolled
and new memberships produced for the 2010 second quarter. During
the 2nd quarter of 2010, new sales associates enrolled increased
44.3% to 36,313 from the 25,172 enrolled in the 2nd quarter of 2009
and new memberships produced increased 2.6% to 125,417 during the
2010 quarter compared to 122,230 for the 2009 quarter.
On a sequential quarterly basis, new associates enrolled
decreased 3.5%, new memberships produced decreased 6.5%, new
membership fees written decreased 4.2% and our active membership
base decreased by 15,184 memberships.
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Three Months
Ended:
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New Memberships:
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6/30/2010
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3/31/2010
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6/30/2009
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New legal service membership sales
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120,443
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128,989
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118,050
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New "stand-alone" IDT membership sales
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4,974
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5,192
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4,180
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Total new membership
sales
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125,417
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134,181
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122,230
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New "add-on" IDT membership sales
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75,593
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76,309
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78,009
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Average Annual Membership fee
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$333.29
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$325.17
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$328.79
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Active Memberships:
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Active legal service memberships at end of
period
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1,419,673
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1,433,872
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1,419,092
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Active "stand-alone" IDT memberships at end of
period (see note below)
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90,062
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91,047
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86,779
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Total active memberships at
end of period
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1,509,735
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1,524,919
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1,505,871
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Active "add-on" IDT memberships at end of period
(see note below)
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697,468
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702,266
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670,769
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New Sales Associates:
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New sales associates recruited
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36,313
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37,640
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25,172
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Average enrollment fee paid by new sales
associates
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$70.58
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$70.30
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$120.98
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Average Membership fee in force:
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Average Annual Membership fee
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$303.74
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$302.13
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$301.37
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Note – reflects 3,958 net transfers from "add-on"
status to "stand-alone" status during the quarter.
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Our total active membership fees in force increased 1% during
the last twelve months. Membership persistency rate (defined as the
number of memberships in force at the end of a 12 month period as a
percentage of the total of memberships in force at the beginning of
such period, plus new memberships sold during such period) was
72.3% for the 12 month period ended June 30,
2010, an increase from the 72.1% for the 12 month period
ended June 30, 2009.
During the 2010 2nd quarter, we returned $3.8 million to shareholders through the
repurchase of 84,297 shares of common stock, at an average per
share price of $45.15. Since
April 1999, we have returned
$463.2 million to shareholders
through the purchase of 15.2 million shares, at an average price of
$30.43 per share, and $17.1 million in dividends for a combined total
of $480.3 million representing more
than 100% of our net earnings during the same timeframe.
We anticipate announcing our 2010 second quarter financial
results on Wednesday, July 21, 2010
after the market closes. The Company will conduct a conference call
to present the second quarter results on Friday, July 23, 2010, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The conference call will
be webcast on the investor relations' page of www.prepaidlegal.com
or may be accessed by dialing (970) 315-0440. Audio replay will be
available beginning at 11:30 a.m. Eastern
Time on July 23, 2010 and will
run through midnight Friday, July 30,
2010 by dialing (706) 645-9291; conference ID for the replay
is 79886196. The presentation will be available on the web site
indefinitely by selecting "Earnings Calls" under the "Investor
Relations" section. Questions may be submitted prior to the call
via email to investor@pplsi.com.
About Us
We believe our products are one of a kind, life events legal
service plans. Our plans provide for legal service benefits
provided through a network of independent law firms across the U.S.
and Canada, and include unlimited
attorney consultation, will preparation, traffic violation defense,
automobile-related criminal charges defense, letter writing,
document preparation and review and a general trial defense
benefit. We have an identity theft restoration product we think is
also one of a kind due to the combination of our identity theft
restoration partner and our provider law firms. More information
about us and our products can be found at our homepage at
http://www.prepaidlegal.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release, other than purely
historical information, regarding our future plans and objectives
and expected operating results, dividends and share repurchases and
statements of the assumptions underlying such statements,
constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The forward-looking
statements contained herein are based on certain assumptions that
may not be correct. They are subject to risks and uncertainties
incident to our business that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.
These risks and uncertainties are described in the reports and
statements filed by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including (among others) those listed in our Form 10-K, Form 10-Q
and Form 8-K, and include the risks that our membership persistency
or renewal rates may decline, that we may not be able to continue
to grow our memberships and earnings, that we are dependent on the
continued active participation of our principal executive officer,
that pending or future litigation may have a material adverse
effect on us if resolved unfavorably to us, that we may have
compromises of our information security, that consumer purchases of
discretionary items may be impacted by a downturn in the economy,
that we could be adversely affected by regulatory developments,
that competition could adversely affect us, that we are
substantially dependent on our marketing force, that our stock
price may be affected by short sellers, that we have been unable to
increase our employee group membership sales, that our active
premium in force is not indicative of future revenue as a result of
changes in active memberships from cancellations and additional
membership sales and that we have repurchased more than half of our
outstanding shares. Please refer to pages 16 through 19 of our 2009
Form 10-K and pages 7 and 8 of our March 31,
2010 Form 10-Q for a more complete description of these
risks. We undertake no duty to update any of the forward-looking
statements in this release.
SOURCE Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.