ACI Worldwide, Inc. Reports Financial Results for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2021

Q1 HIGHLIGHTS

• Recurring revenue of $248 million, up 1% from Q1 2020
• Revenue of $285 million, down 2% from Q1 2020
• Adjusted EBITDA of $45 million, up 19% from Q1 2020
• Net adjusted EBITDA margin increased to 23% from 19% in Q1 2020
• Cash flow from operations of $70 million, up 22% from Q1 2020
• Net loss of $2 million compared to a net loss of $24 million in Q1 2020

ACI Worldwide (NASDAQ: ACIW), a leading global provider of real-time digital payment software and solutions, today announced financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2021.

“ACI’s focus on execution continues to pay off, as demonstrated by our first quarter results. Despite significant and expected pandemic-related headwinds, new contract signings, revenue and adjusted EBITDA were above our expectations in the quarter,” said Odilon Almeida, president and CEO of ACI Worldwide. “As we progress on our strategy amid an improving economic outlook, we anticipate strong second half 2021 performance which will enable us to achieve the Rule of 40 for the first year ever. We are pleased by the positive feedback we have received on our strategic initiatives from new and existing customers and are excited about our pipeline of mission-critical real-time payment solutions we are delivering globally. The implementation of our three-pillar strategy is taking hold and we remain committed to maximizing shareholder value.”

Q1 2021 FINANCIAL SUMMARY

Annual recurring revenue “ARR”’ from new sales, defined as the annual revenue expected to be generated from new accounts, new applications, and add-on sales contracts signed in the quarter was $10 million, down from $14 million in Q1 2020 as last year’s bookings had minimal impact from COVID-19 delays.

Recurring revenue was $248 million, up 1% from Q1 2020. Total revenue in the quarter was $285 million, down 2% compared to Q1 2020 primarily due to headwinds from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Adjusted EBITDA in the quarter increased 19% to $45 million compared to $38 million in Q1 2020. Net adjusted EBITDA margin increased to 23% in the quarter, compared to 19% in Q1 2020. Net loss in the quarter of $2 million improved compared to a net loss of $24 million in Q1 2020.

Merchant segment revenue grew 22% to $39 million and Merchant segment EBITDA increased 129% compared to Q1 2020. Biller segment revenue declined 2% to $151 million, while Biller segment EBITDA increased 13%. Bank segment revenue decreased 9% to $96 million primarily due to COVID-19-related delays in purchasing decisions by bank customers, and Bank segment EBITDA decreased 12%.

Cash flows from operating activities in the quarter were $70 million, up 22% from $58 million in Q1 2020. ACI ended the quarter with $185 million in cash on hand and $459 million available on our credit facility. The company paid down $25 million in debt in the quarter.

REAFFIRMING 2021 GUIDANCE

We expect COVID-19-related headwinds to persist through the first half of 2021, and for growth to accelerate to the mid-single digits in the second half of the year. For the full year 2021, we continue to expect adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $375 million to $385 million with net adjusted EBITDA margin expansion. We expect revenue to be between $295 million and $305 million and adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million in Q2 2021.

CONFERENCE CALL TO DISCUSS FINANCIAL RESULTS

Management will host a conference call at 8:30 am ET today to discuss these results. Interested persons may access a real-time audio broadcast of the teleconference at http://investor.aciworldwide.com/ or use the following numbers for dial-in participation: US/Canada: (866) 914-7436, international: +1 (817) 385-9117. Please provide your name, the conference name ACI Worldwide, Inc. and conference code 2224449. There will be a replay of the call available for two weeks at (855) 859-2056 for US/Canada callers and +1 (404) 537-3406 for international participants.

About ACI Worldwide

ACI Worldwide is a global software company that provides mission-critical real-time payment solutions to corporations. Customers use our proven, scalable and secure solutions to process and manage digital payments, enable omni-commerce payments, present and process bill payments, and manage fraud and risk. We combine our global footprint with local presence to drive the real-time digital transformation of payments and commerce.

© Copyright ACI Worldwide, Inc. 2021.

ACI, ACI Worldwide, ACI Payments, Inc., ACI Pay, Speedpay and all ACI product/solution names are trademarks or registered trademarks of ACI Worldwide, Inc., or one of its subsidiaries, in the United States, other countries or both. Other parties’ trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners.

To supplement our financial results presented on a GAAP basis, we use the non-GAAP measures indicated in the tables, which exclude significant transaction-related expenses, as well as other significant non-cash expenses such as depreciation, amortization and stock-based compensation, that we believe are helpful in understanding our past financial performance and our future results. The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to our GAAP results and are not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP. Management generally compensates for limitations in the use of non-GAAP financial measures by relying on comparable GAAP financial measures and providing investors with a reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures only in addition to and in conjunction with results presented in accordance with GAAP.

We believe that these non-GAAP financial measures reflect an additional way to view aspects of our operations that, when viewed with our GAAP results, provide a more complete understanding of factors and trends affecting our business. Certain non-GAAP measures include:

• Adjusted EBITDA: net income (loss) plus income tax expense (benefit), net interest income (expense), net other income (expense), depreciation, amortization and stock-based compensation, as well as significant transaction-related expenses. Adjusted EBITDA should be considered in addition to, rather than as a substitute for, net income (loss).
• Net Adjusted EBITDA Margin: Adjusted EBITDA divided by revenue net of pass through interchange revenue. Net Adjusted EBITDA Margin should be considered in addition to, rather than as a substitute for, net income (loss).
• Diluted EPS adjusted for non-cash and significant transaction related items: diluted EPS plus tax effected significant transaction related items, amortization of acquired intangibles and software, and non-cash stock-based compensation. Diluted EPS adjusted for non-cash and significant transaction related items should be considered in addition to, rather than as a substitute for, diluted EPS.
• Recurring revenue: revenue from software as a service and platform as a service fees and maintenance fees. Recurring revenue should be considered in addition to, rather than as a substitute for, total revenue.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Generally, forward-looking statements do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and may include words or phrases such as “believes,” “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” and words and phrases of similar impact. The forward-looking statements are made pursuant to safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, expectations regarding: (i) our expected strong second half 2021 performance which will enable us to achieve the rule of 40 for the first year ever; (ii) our excitement about our pipeline of mission-critical real-time payment solutions we are delivering globally and our commitment to maximizing shareholder value; (iii) our expectations for COVID-19-related headwinds to persist through the first half of 2021, and for growth to accelerate to the mid-single digits in the second half of the year; (iv) our expectations for full year adjusted EBITDA; and (v) our expectations for Q2 2021 revenue and adjusted EBITDA.

All of the foregoing forward-looking statements are expressly qualified by the risk factors discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such factors include, but are not limited to, increased competition, demand for our products, restrictions and other financial covenants in our debt agreements, consolidations and failures in the financial services industry, customer reluctance to switch to a new vendor, the accuracy of management’s backlog estimates, failure to obtain renewals of customer contracts or to obtain such renewals on favorable terms, delay or cancellation of customer projects or inaccurate project completion estimates, volatility and disruption of the capital and credit markets and adverse changes in the global economy, events outside of our control including natural disasters, wars, and outbreaks of disease, our ability to attract and retain senior management personnel and skilled technical employees, our existing levels of debt, potential adverse effects from the impending replacement of LIBOR, impairment of our goodwill or intangible assets, litigation, future acquisitions, strategic partnerships and investments, integration of and achieving benefits from the Speedpay acquisition, the complexity of our products and services and the risk that they may contain hidden defects or be subjected to security breaches or viruses, compliance of our products with applicable legislation, governmental regulations and industry standards, our ability to protect customer information from security breaches or attacks, our compliance with privacy regulations, our ability to adequately defend our intellectual property, exposure to credit or operating risks arising from certain payment funding methods, the cyclical nature of our revenue and earnings and the accuracy of forecasts due to the concentration of revenue-generating activity during the final weeks of each quarter, business interruptions or failure of our information technology and communication systems, our offshore software development activities, risks from operating internationally, including fluctuations in currency exchange rates, exposure to unknown tax liabilities, and volatility in our stock price. For a detailed discussion of these risk factors, parties that are relying on the forward-looking statements should review our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.

(1) The cost of revenue excludes charges for depreciation but includes amortization of purchased and developed software for resale.

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