American Home Shield 2004 Annual Report Download - page 5

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Perform As We Transform
We have been saying that we
will “perform as we trans-
form.” When we first began using that
phrase several years ago, we were talking
about transforming our own company.
Today we are talking about transforming
our industry.
We are dramatically re-setting the customer’s expectations of our service. We are delivering
on those new expectations. We are proving ourselves to be predictable and reliable and
backing it up with a guarantee. Those are transformational acts. They open doors that open
more doors that open still more doors. They extend our business model, expand the universe
of potential customers and tilt the competitive playing field in our direction.
Looking at our performance, you will see that our total shareholder return for the last four
year period has significantly outperformed the major stock indexes, showing that we are living
up to our commitment to reward our investors. Total cash returned to shareholders over the
last four years — including dividends and share repurchases — amounts to $695 million,
which is about 58 percent of our free cash flow. This is a characteristic that many investors find
especially attractive in today’s environment.
We have expressed disappointment in the financial performance of our ARS/AMS segment
and our TruGreen LandCare business. In 2004, ARS/AMS made progress and TruGreen
LandCare improved its results. Let us assure you that we are not in business to just “make
progress” and “improve.” We are in business to grow at an attractive rate and to generate
desirable returns. We will be patient as long as we see real progress towards a sustainable
return above the cost of capital.
“My customers want us to
take care of their problems
quickly and easily.”