EXHIBIT 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Investors: Media:
Risa Fisher Jennifer Meyer
rfisher@webmd.net jmeyer@webmd.net
201-414-2002 212-624-3912
WEBMD ANNOUNCES PRELIMINARY THIRD QUARTER RESULTS
WEBMD ANNOUNCES PLAN TO EXPAND MANAGEMENT TEAM
ELMWOOD PARK, NJ (OCTOBER 24, 2002) -- WebMD Corporation (NASDAQ: HLTH) today
announced that it expects financial results for the quarter ended September 30,
2002 to be as follows:
- - Revenue will be approximately $200 million in the quarter ended
September 30, 2002, an 8% increase from a year ago and an increase of
2% from the June 2002 quarter. Analyst estimates of revenues currently
range from $200 to $204 million. Revenues from WebMD Envoy, WebMD
Medical Manager and WebMD Health are expected to be $115 million, $70
million and $20 million, respectively, offset by approximately $5
million in intercompany eliminations.
- - Net Income per share of $0.01 is anticipated for the quarter ended
September 30, 2002 compared to a Net Loss per share of $(12.86) per
share a year ago and $(0.07) per share in the June 2002 quarter. The
Net Income per share for the quarter ended September 30, 2002 includes
one-time items totaling approximately $18 million or $0.06 per share.
These one time items include a Federal Income Tax benefit of
approximately $13 million resulting from the Job Creation and Worker
Assistance Act of 2002.
- - Income from continuing operations before non-cash, restructuring and
other non-recurring items is expected to be $0.08 per share for the
quarter ended September 30, 2002 compared to $0.04 in the June 2002
quarter and a loss of $(0.05) per share a year ago. Analyst earnings
per share consensus is $0.05. The improvement compared to the June 2002
quarter was primarily a result of lower operating costs at WebMD Health
and WebMD Envoy.
The Company remains comfortable with analyst estimates of revenues for the
December 2002 quarter of $210 to $215 million. The Company is increasing its
guidance for income from continuing operations before non-cash, restructuring
and other items to $0.09 to $0.10 per share. The majority of the improvement in
revenues and income from continuing operations before non-cash, restructuring
and other items over the September 30, 2002 quarter is expected to come from
WebMD Health. The Company remains comfortable with analyst estimates for 2003
revenue growth rates of 10% to 15% and analysts' consensus for income before
non-cash, restructuring and other items of $0.33, although the latter may be
conservative.
Martin J. Wygod, Chairman and CEO of WebMD said, "We are in the process of
completing our normal closing process but preliminary results indicate that we
are within our previous revenue guidance and we continue to realize better than
expected cost savings and operational efficiencies and will be approximately
$0.03 ahead of analysts' earnings per share consensus for the third quarter. I
am pleased that we continue to demonstrate that there is significant leverage in
our infrastructure and I remain confident that we will begin to see meaningful
results from our revenue growth initiatives in 2003."
EXPANSION OF MANAGEMENT TEAM
WebMD also announced today that it has promoted Roger Holstein, CEO of WebMD
Health and a member of the Office of the President, to President of WebMD
Corporation and will expand the executive management team by dividing the role
of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of WebMD Corporation. With the
geographically diverse operations and significant day-to-day demands of managing
WebMD, Mr. Wygod has requested that the Board of Directors commence a search for
a CEO, including internal and external candidates. Mr. Wygod will remain
Chairman and will continue to focus on the overall strategy, strategic
relationships and transactions that will create long-term value for
stockholders. The Board of Directors also believes that separating the positions
of Chairman and CEO is a good corporate governance practice.
Mr. Holstein, in assuming the role of President of the Company, will provide the
strategic guidance and daily leadership necessary to identify and capitalize on
the synergies among the company's three business segments. Wayne Gattinella, who
has been working closely with Mr. Holstein, will lead the Portals division as
President of WebMD Health. Tom Apker and Michael Singer, who were the other
members of the Office of the President will continue as CEOs of WebMD Envoy and
WebMD Medical Manager, respectively.
Mr. Wygod said, "I am pleased to announce these management changes and believe
that the challenges and opportunities that WebMD faces can best be met with this
improved management structure. Roger has the broad strategic knowledge of the
healthcare market and proven operating skills, as demonstrated most recently by
his success at WebMD Health, to best drive growth across WebMD's businesses.
Roger's appointment will enable me to focus on those areas which leverage my
strengths and allow me to continue to create long-term strategic value. In
addition, in the interest of keeping stockholders informed, I expect to begin a
short term medical leave sometime in November. I intend to remain CEO until the
Board has selected a new CEO."
The management team will be present at the Company's Annual Meeting of
Stockholders which is being held today, October 24, 2002, at 9:30 a.m. EDT. The
meeting will be broadcast live over the Internet. To listen to the audio
webcast, go to http://www.webmd.com (in the About WebMD section) at that time. A
replay of the meeting will be available at the same web address.
WebMD intends to release its third quarter results on November 6, 2002 and hold
a conference call and audio webcast to discuss those results on that day at 4:45
pm EST. To listen to the webcast, go to http://www.webmd.com (in the About WebMD
section) at that time. A replay of the conference call will be available at the
same web address.
ABOUT WEBMD
WebMD Corporation provides services that help physicians, consumers, providers
and health plans navigate the complexity of the healthcare system. Our products
and services streamline administrative and clinical processes, promote
efficiency and reduce costs by facilitating information exchange, communication
and electronic transactions between healthcare participants.
WebMD Medical Manager is the leading provider of physician practice management
software and related services. WebMD Envoy is the leading provider of electronic
data interchange services for healthcare providers and commercial health plans.
WebMD Health is the leading provider of online information, educational services
and communities for physicians and consumers.
All statements contained in this press release, other than statements of
historical fact, are forward-looking statements, including those regarding:
future financial results and other projections or measures of future financial
or operational performance of WebMD; the amount and timing of the benefits
expected from WebMD's strategic initiatives, acquisitions, expense reduction
efforts and possible synergies between WebMD's business segments; potential
changes in WebMD's business relationships; and future deployment of products and
services. These statements are based on WebMD's current plans and expectations
and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or
results to be different from those described in or implied by such
forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include those relating
to: market acceptance of WebMD's products and services; operational difficulties
relating to combining acquired companies and businesses; WebMD's ability to form
and maintain mutually beneficial relationships with customers and strategic
partners; economic conditions and regulatory matters affecting the healthcare,
Internet and information technology industries; and the ability of WebMD to
attract and retain qualified personnel. Further information about these matters
can be found in WebMD's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. WebMD
expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking
statements.