Jack Henry profit drops, per-share earnings rise

Monett-based Jack Henry & Associates Inc. announced Tuesday that it posted a $103.1 million profit for fiscal 2009, compared to $104.2 million the year before.

Earnings per share, however, increased for the year to $1.22, compared to $1.16 per diluted share in fiscal 2008.

Total revenue for the year was $745.6 million, up 0.4 percent from the previous year, while gross profit dropped 2.5 percent to $299.4 million.

"In a year of unprecedented challenges, we maintained a long-term focus on the operation of our business and delivered increased earnings per share to our stockholders," Jack Henry CEO Jack Prim said in the Aug. 18 earnings release. "We enter fiscal 2010 with a strong balance sheet, a focused strategy and a cautiously optimistic outlook for the new year."

The company was able to maintain earnings despite a drop in gross profit because of company controls on operating expenses. Expenses dropped 1 percent for fiscal 2009, to $141.5 million, due largely to containment in contract labor costs and product promotion expenses.

"Despite the recession's impact on our ability to earn new customers and expand existing customer relationships at historic levels, our solid balance sheet, conservative business principles, recurring revenue, long-term contracts, large and loyal customer base, and diversified product offering enabled us to continue to generate solid financial results during fiscal year 2009," President Tony Wormington said in the release.

For the company's fourth quarter, which ended June 30, total revenue was $191.9 million, up 1.8 percent from the same period in 2008, while gross profit increased 4.8 percent to $79.3 million.

Shares of Jack Henry stock (Nasdaq: JKHY) closed Tuesday at $22.09 and were trading up 5.6 percent to $23.33 as of 10 a.m.