Lower Revenue, Higher Profits For Acxiom In Q2

Lower revenue, but greater profits — that’s the bottom line for Acxiom’s second quarter.

The Little Rock-based data marketer posted quarterly net income of $16.37 million, up 26% from a year ago, on revenue of $277.47 million, down 3.1%.

Acxiom said its marketing and data services segment revenue was roughly flat, although U.S. revenue in that segment did see a slight increase. IT infrastructure management segment revenue decreased 5 percent during the quarter.

“We are encouraged by several aspects of our first half performance and direction,” said Acxiom CEO Scott Howe. “A leading indicator of our future success is the performance of our customers. We are pleased that two of our clients, United Airlines and Macy’s, were both recently named Marketer of the Year by the Direct Marketing Association. While we have much to do, particularly as it relates to our top-line growth, we are building success stories and are excited about what’s ahead for our company.”

During the quarter, Acxiom expanded its Board of Directors from nine to 10 directors and appointed Richard P. Fox, a business consultant and financial expert, to the board. Fox has a strong background in public company financial and accounting matters complemented by his work with digital marketing companies.

Acxiom also repurchased 800,000 shares for $14 million during the quarter. Since August 2011, the company has repurchased 9 million shares, or approximately 11 percent of the outstanding common stock, for $115 million. The company has remaining capacity of approximately $35 million out of the total stock repurchase authorization of $150 million.

Acxiom (NASDAQ: ACXM) shares closed trading Thursday at $16.35. The company’s stock has traded between a low of $10.95 and a high of $18.99 per share during the past year.