Cendant Corporation yesterday reported third quarter 2002 Adjusted EPS of $0.28. This result includes a previously announced $0.17 per share non-cash charge related to the revaluation of the Company’s mortgage servicing rights asset (MSR). The Company also affirmed that it continues to expect fourth quarter 2002 Adjusted EPS from continuing operations of $0.29, an increase of 38% over fourth quarter 2001, and full year 2002 Adjusted EPS from continuing operations of $1.26, an increase of 31% over 2001.
Cendant’s Chairman, President and CEO, Henry R. Silverman, stated: “On a cash
basis, our business segments performed at or ahead of expectations this quarter,
despite a challenging environment for commercial travel and corporate spending.
Upside was driven primarily by our residential real estate brokerage and Avis car
rental businesses. Although our reported mortgage servicing earnings were negatively
impacted by unprecedented levels of refinancing activity, our servicing portfolio grew
and recurring cash flow increased.
During the third quarter we continued to deploy our free cash flow to create
shareholder value. We retired over $300 million in debt and invested over $375
million in acquisitions expected to be immediately accretive. However, going
forward, we plan to change that mix and substantially curtail acquisition activity in
order to deploy our free cash flow primarily to reduce debt and repurchase stock. To
that end, our Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program of $200
million.â€
For more information please visit www.cendant. com.
(source: Cendant)
