Jack Henry profit boost pushes 52-week stock high

Jack Henry & Associates (Nasdaq: JKHY) started its fiscal year with first-quarter earnings of $49.8 million, a 17.2 percent boost compared to $42.3 million in the same quarter a year ago.

On announcement of its quarterly financials yesterday, JKHY shares reached a 52-week high of $56.95. The company's shares were trading at $55 as of 8:30 a.m. this morning. The stock's 52-week low is $37.12.

Jack Henry reported earnings per diluted share of 58 cents for the quarter ended Sept. 30, a 9-cent increase from the same quarter of 2012, according to a news release.

The Monett technology company's revenue increased 9 percent to $295.7 million from $271 million a year ago.

"Our support and services line of revenue, which currently represents 91 percent of our total revenue, continues to drive our overall revenue growth," Jack Henry President Tony Wormington said in the release. "Electronic payments continue to lead the way within this line of revenue, with 15 percent growth in the quarter, followed closely by the growth in our OutLink - data and item processing - offering, with 14 percent growth."

Jack Henry's first-quarter financial notes:

• Cost of sales increased 8 percent to $166.9 million from $155 million in the same quarter a year ago.
• Company backlog rose 19 percent to $503.1 million from $423.4 million.
• Cash provided by operations totaled $97.7 million at the end of the first quarter, down from $101.8 million last year.

According to the release, Jack Henry claims more than 11,300 customers nationwide, including three new multimillion-dollar clients and two multibillion-dollar clients announced in the past two weeks. The company's assets were $1.6 billion as of Sept. 30.