Experian 2007 Annual Report Download - page 25

Continued investment in business
We continue to invest organically in the business to drive
growth. During the year, this included development in
emerging markets, specifically Asia Pacific, and new
product initiatives. Future organic investment will include
further emerging markets development, the establishment
of a near-shore facility in Chile, and investment in the
Canadian bureau. In the year to March 2008, much of
this investment will be weighted towards the first half.
Capital expenditure in the year was $275m (2006
$212m). Of this, $20m relates to an accelerated
technology spend on data centre consolidation in the US,
which will enhance efficiency and productivity. We expect
capital expenditure in the current year to be broadly in
line with last year.
We also take advantage of opportunities to accelerate
growth and improve productivity through selective,
targeted acquisitions. In the year under review, we made
a number of small acquisitions which complement our
existing portfolio. Acquisition spend in the year was
$82m, excluding deferred consideration paid, and
included:
•Two new credit bureaux, in Canada and Estonia,
expanding our geographic footprint.
•An additional US credit bureau affiliate.
•Three new Marketing Solutions businesses.
•A minority stake in Sinotrust, a business information
and market research company in China.
Since the year-end, we have agreed to acquire Hitwise, a
leading online marketing intelligence company, for
$240m. This acquisition, which forms part of our strategy
to reposition Marketing Solutions, will bring a rapidly
growing, successful business to Experian, and new unique
data. Other acquisitions since the year end include
Informarketing, a direct marketing services provider in
Brazil; Emailing Solution, a leading French permission-
based email marketing company; and Tallyman, a
collections management software business. We expect a
low single-digit contribution to sales growth from
acquisitions in the year to March 2008.
Evolution of leadership to drive
future success
Experian has considerable opportunities for
future growth, in particular as demand
increases for our services from multinational
companies and within emerging markets. In order
to give sharper focus to all our regions of operation, we
have created a number of new senior leadership roles. In
addition to our two major regions in the Americas and UK
and Ireland, we now have dedicated senior managers for
EMEA, Asia Pacific and India respectively (although for
reporting purposes these regions will continue to be
combined). Our new leaders in EMEA and Asia Pacific are
tasked with driving our presence in these important areas.
Following 24 years of strong leadership contribution, John
Saunders, Experian’s Chief Executive Officer of Global
Operations, has announced his retirement after a
transitional handover period. John’s achievements within
Experian have been considerable, having created a client-
driven organisation focused on innovation, and we thank
John for his enormous contribution.
Second dividend of 11.5 cents, to give
full-year dividend of 17 cents
The Board of Experian has announced a dividend of 11.5
cents per share to give a full year dividend of 17 cents per
share. Based on continuing pro forma Benchmark EPS this
represents cover of just over three times.
Experian Annual Report 2007 | 23
Experian’s full-year dividend
was 17 cents per share
17 c