ADA, Okla., Oct. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pre-Paid Legal
Services, Inc. (NYSE: PPD) reported new memberships produced and
new sales associates enrolled for the 2010 third quarter. During
the 3rd quarter of 2010, new memberships produced decreased 28.1%
to 125,912 during the 2010 quarter compared to 175,022 for the 2009
quarter and new sales associates enrolled decreased 51.8% to 36,329
from the 75,398 enrolled in the 3rd quarter of 2009.
On a sequential quarterly basis, new memberships produced and
new associates enrolled remained virtually unchanged while new
membership fees written decreased 1.1% and our active membership
base decreased by 16,602 memberships.
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Three Months
Ended:
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New Memberships:
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9/30/2010
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9/30/2009
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6/30/2010
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New legal service membership
sales
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121,277
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166,377
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120,443
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New "stand-alone" IDT membership
sales
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4,635
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8,645
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4,974
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Total new membership
sales
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125,912
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175,022
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125,417
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New "add-on" IDT membership
sales
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75,027
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112,653
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75,593
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Average Annual Membership
fee
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$328.17
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$325.60
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$333.29
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Active
Memberships:
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Active legal service memberships
at end of period
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1,403,848
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1,455,492
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1,419,673
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Active "stand-alone" IDT
memberships at end of period (see note below)
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89,285
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90,063
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90,062
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Total active memberships at end
of period
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1,493,133
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1,545,555
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1,509,735
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Active "add-on" IDT memberships
at end of period (see note below)
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689,409
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710,795
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697,468
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New Sales
Associates:
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New sales associates
recruited
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36,329
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75,398
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36,313
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Average enrollment fee paid by
new sales associates
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$65.34
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$79.31
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$70.58
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Average Membership fee in
force:
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Average Annual Membership
fee
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$303.70
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$302.86
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$303.74
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Note – reflects
3,924 net transfers from "add-on" status to "stand-alone" status
during the quarter.
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Our total active membership fees in force decreased 3.1% 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
71.8% for the 12 month period ended September 30, 2010, a decrease from the 72.6% for
the 12 month period ended September 30,
2009.
During the 2010 3rd quarter, we returned $8.5 million to shareholders through the
repurchase of 162,648 shares of common stock, at an average per
share price of $52.49. Since
April 1999, we have returned
$471.8 million to shareholders
through the purchase of 15.4 million shares, at an average price of
$30.66 per share, and $17.1 million in dividends for a combined total
of $488.9 million representing more
than 100% of our net earnings during the same timeframe.
We anticipate announcing our 2010 third quarter financial
results on Monday, October 25, 2010 after the market closes.
The Company will conduct a conference call to present the third
quarter results on Wednesday, October 27,
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 (720) 545-0046. Audio replay will be available beginning at
10:30 a.m. Eastern Time on
October 27, 2010 and will run through
midnight Wednesday, November 3, 2010
by dialing (706) 645-9291; conference ID for the replay is
15768290. 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 June 30, 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.
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