HR Block 2014 Annual Report Download - page 4

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On the Financial Services side, I’m very pleased that a greater overall proportion of clients are
seeing the value of financial services products. We enhanced our positioning on the Peace of
Mind warranty-like product, were successful in increasing the take rate on our refund transfer
product, and effectively managed the Emerald Advance program to drive increased profits.
We also continued to see improved usage metrics in our award winning Emerald Prepaid
MasterCard®, with reloader rates and average deposits higher. The Emerald Card delivers
tremendous value for our clients and was recently named by PayBefore, the leading information
provider for the prepaid industry, as winner of their “Top of Wallet” and “Best-in-Category”
awards as the best everyday use card with the most features and lowest cost structure.
And finally, we made progress this year in our Health Care initiatives, demonstrating our
expertise by providing a tax and health care review for our clients on the upcoming changes
resulting from the Affordable Care Act. We also launched a partnership with GoHealth to
provide health insurance enrollment services through online and assisted platforms. These efforts
have positioned us well as the opportunity associated with the Affordable Care Act unfolds and
becomes clearer.
Overall, I’m excited about our progress toward our long-term objectives in 2014, and believe we
are very well positioned for 2015 and beyond as we remain committed to our Tax Plus strategy.
We achieved exactly what we set out to do, and it shows in our financial results.
THIS YEAR ALONE:
■ We served more than 24 million clients worldwide and significantly increased satisfaction;
■ Total revenues increased $118 million, or 4%, to $3.024 billion;
■ Tax Plus financial services products revenue increased 11%;
■ EBITDA grew 8% to $940 million, or 31% of revenues; and
■ We increased earnings per share from continuing operations by 7% to $1.81.
LOOKING AHEAD
While we had significant accomplishments this year, there is much more to achieve, and we
are focused on continuing to execute on our long-term Tax Plus strategy. We have an exciting
few years ahead of us with the substantial challenges our clients will face in dealing with an
increasingly complex tax code. We’re confident in our ability to help them navigate these
changes, and will continue to make the appropriate investments to continue executing on our
Tax Plus strategy.
Our number one priority is to serve our clients better, and by continuing to invest back into our
business, we are able to fulfill our purpose. Ultimately, we do this by living out the values that
have carried through this business for nearly 60 years… We believe in our people. We take
care of our clients. We deliver for our shareholders. We Do the Right Thing.
Thank you for your investment in H&R Block. I look forward to sharing our success with you.
Sincerely yours,
WILLIAM C. COBB
President & CEO, H&R Block, Inc.