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The McGraw-Hill Companies (MHP) Q3 2008 Earnings Call October 28, 2008 8:30 PM ET
Donald Rubin – Sr. VP IR
Harold McGraw – President & CEO
Robert Bahash – EVP & CFO
Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
Catriona Fallon – Citigroup
Edward Atorino - The Benchmark Co.
Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
Welcome to McGraw-Hill Companies third quarter 2008 earnings call. (Operator Instructions) I will now turn the call over to Donald Rubin, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations for the McGraw-Hill Companies.
Donald Rubin
Good morning and thank everyone for joining us for the McGraw-Hill Companies third quarter earnings call. I'm Donald Rubin, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations for the McGraw-Hill Companies. With me today are Harold McGraw III, Chairman, President and CEO, and Robert Bahash, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the corporation.
This morning we issued a news release with our third quarter 2008 results. We trust you have all had a chance to review the release. If you need a copy of the release and financial schedules, they can be downloaded at www.mcgraw-hill.com. Before we begin this morning I need to provide certain cautionary remarks about forward-looking statements.
Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this teleconference may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including projections, estimates, and descriptions of future events. Any such statements are based on current expectations and current economic conditions and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from results anticipated in these forward-looking statements.
In this regard we direct listeners to the cautionary statements contained in our Form 10-Ks, 10-Qs, and other periodic reports filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. We are aware that we do have some media representatives with us today on the call, however this call is for investors, and we would ask that questions from the media be directed to Mr. Steve Weiss in our New York office subsequent to this call.
Today's update will last approximately an hour. After the presentations we will open the meeting to questions and answers. It's now my pleasure to introduce the Chairman, President, and CEO of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Harold McGraw.
Harold McGraw
Thank you very much Donald, good morning everyone and welcome to our review of the McGraw-Hill Companies third quarter results and the outlook for the remainder of 2008 and as Donald mentioned joining me today on this call is Robert Bahash, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
On today's call we will be reviewing the third quarter earnings and our guidance for 2008 and then Robert will provide an in depth look at our financial condition which is strong, and we aim to keep it that way. At the conclusion of Robert's presentation as always we will be pleased to take any comments or questions that you may have about the companies.
Earlier this morning we announced third quarter results; let's get started with a quick recap on that. We took a pre-tax restructuring charge of $23.4 million for a workforce reduction of approximately 270 positions. That's a $14.6 million after-tax or $0.05 per share.
Including the restructuring charge then, earnings per share was $1.23 and revenue declined 6.4% to $2 billion. Restructuring charges in the second and third quarter represent pre-tax charges of $47.1 million or $29.4 million after-tax and a workforce reduction of approximately 670 positions this year.
We have been taking action since late last year, including the staff reductions announced in the fourth quarter of 2007 we have eliminated approximately 1,275 positions. In this environment we will continue to monitor our situation very carefully and I can assure you that we will take more steps if warranted.
In the face of continued economic weakness we have seen more efforts by the US government to support the financial sector and restore confidence in credit markets. US Treasury Secretary Hank Poulson recently provided more details on the bank recapitalization measures and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanki, is supporting another stimulus package.
Additional rate cuts with the Fed Funds going down to 1% later this year now seem very likely and that's according to our economists. The rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and other major central banks have already set the stage for further stimulus. Another Fed rate cut could come this week.
Housing has been in recession for three years now. David Weiss our chief economist doesn't expect housing prices to hit bottom until late in 2009 so we have a little bit more to go there. The housing recession and the credit crunch in the financial markets continue to have an impact on our results.
In the face of challenging conditions we are now forecasting earnings per share of $2.63 to $2.65 for this year. The projection for 2008 excludes the restructuring charges but includes the associated benefits. The forecast assumes earnings per share of $0.40 to $0.42 in the fourth quarter.
Alright, with this as background let's examine in more detail the performance and the outlook for our three operating segments and let's begin because of the third quarter and the education quarter, let's begin with McGraw-Hill education which in the third quarter produced some expected successes and also experienced some unexpected softness.
In the third quarter revenue declined by 3.8% as an increase of 3.7% for higher education, professional and international group partially offset a decrease of 9.1% at the school education group.
Including a pre-tax restructuring charge of $5.4 million operating profit was off 14.5% and the operating margin was 31.1%. After nine months this year revenue is off 1% including restructuring, operating profit is 17.5% and the operating margin is 15.5%.
To contain costs we took pre-tax restructuring charges in the second and third quarters. For McGraw-Hill education that totaled $13.9 million and represented the reduction of approximately 240 positions.
The most important 60 days of the sales year in the education market normally occur in July and August. Through July the industry was off to a pretty good start. According to reports from the Association of American Publishers industry sales in July were up 5% but as we cautioned investors at a conference in September, the situation suddenly began to change in early August.
Our concern was validated when the Association of American Publishers, AAP, subsequently released sales figures for August and September. Industry sales in August dropped by 16.6%, results that turned the markets 3.9% gain after seven months into a 1.7% decline after eight months.
In September industry sales fell by 17.6% and the market is down 3.3% after nine months. The reversal of the positive trend that we saw earlier in the year has led us to conclude that sales for the elementary/high school market will now decline about 3% to 4% in 2008 however we expect to gain share in this very difficult market.
Historically residual sales are heaviest in the third quarter, but in August we witnessed and unprecedented slow down in residual sales and as many of you know residual sales are sales of previously adopted materials. These include hardbound text that are needed by the schools for new enrollments, or to replace lost of damaged books.
More importantly residuals include workbooks, lab manuals and other consumable softbound materials that support texts. These are designed for students to write in so they are normally replaced every year. Residual sales represent a significant percentage of all publishers' revenues in any given year.
Along with the decline in residual sales, we also a decrease in the volume of new textbook business. The decrease was most pronounced in the open territory states which are mainly in the northern and central regions. Open territory school districts are more dependent on local property tax revenues and more likely to face higher fuel costs for bus transportation, heating in the new school year and so forth.
When it comes to purchasing new textbook programs, open territory districts are also more independent then adoption state districts where there are directives on how budget allocations must be spent but all school districts face increased costs for personnel including salaries, health care and pensions which are frequently indexed to the rate of inflation.
On average the state education budgets that went into the effect for the fiscal year starting on July 1 were not sufficient to cover these inflationary increases. As a result all expenses that might be considered discretionary became low priority items.
Unfortunately in many districts the purchase of instructional materials fell into this category. For many large urban districts this situation was aggravated by the cutback in this year's Federal Reading First bonds which dropped from more then $1 billion last year to only $383 million this year.
The supplemental market has always been very sensitive to discretionary funding constraints because most purchases are made at the school building or classroom level. It is disappointing but not surprising that this market has been slow all year.
To reduce costs some districts are buying newly adopted programs for only a few grades intending to add more grades in the future. We have also seen more buying of classroom sets that are used by successive classes throughout the day as opposed to purchases that would provide one book per student.
As schools have reduced their orders for consumable materials we have also seen more copying of workbooks particularly in grades K through two. These short-term measures are not sustainable. Enrollments in many places are growing and schools will face shortages as standards align materials which are so important in preparing students to meet the accountability requirements of No Child Left Behind which remain in force and which have actually become more stringent in the current academic year.
Photocopying workbooks which many financially strapped districts are doing, is an illusionary savings. It happens because the expense of photocopying is spread over several months and is charged to a different cost center. In reality it is more cost effective to order new workbooks then to copy old ones but for the time being the cost of copying shows up in somebody else's budget and so therefore there is an appearance of savings.
In the state new adoption market we have delivered on our forecast. As we had expected the school education group captured approximately 31% of the total available dollars in the state new adoption market and it was propelled by strong performances in K-5 reading and mathematics.
These programs also produced sales gains in the open territory. In the Florida K-5 reading adoption we expect to capture more than 70% of the market; an outstanding achievement. We also expect to take about 40% of the K-12 reading literature state new adoption market. In mathematics we project that 31% capture rate in the Texas K-market, a state specific version of Math Connects has also done very well in the first year of the California math adoption and Everyday Mathematics has also won some good adoptions in California.
We led the first year science adoption in California in 2007 and a second year sales are following that positive trend and our music, fine arts, health, business and vocational lines have also performed very well in all states adopting in these categories.
In assessment and reporting the third quarter is typically a seasonally slow period. Revenue for custom tests declined due to reductions in the volume of work performed for Indiana and Missouri and the expiration of contracts in Mississippi and Tennessee.
But we continue to make progress with acuity which is our new formative testing program Lost Links, our assessment for English language learners and TABE which is our suite of assessments and structural resources for adult students.
In the higher education, professional, and international group we also saw a shift this year in historical ordering patterns. In the US college and university market the peak ordering period normally occurs in July and August. This year we experienced a surge in September as college and retail stores waited to gauge student demand. We still expect the total market to grow 4% to 6% this year but our own higher education group will underperform the industry in 2008.
All our main academic higher education imprints achieved good growth in the third quarter, that's in business and economics, science, engineering and mathematics, and humanities, social sciences, and languages.
But 2008 is also a low point or an off cycle year for revisions of our traditional best sellers in these disciplines and that will dampen our performance a little bit in 2008.
Our career education product line produced a very strong gain. We have strengthened our position in the allied health market and the computer information technology markets with products like Computers in the Medical Office.
This innovative program combines software and print to give medical assistance students practical, hands-on experience as well as permanent on the job reference materials.
Digital products grew rapidly in the third quarter with study guide products like homework manager leading the way. Students are embracing this generation of digital products because they provide course critical content that helps them study and prepare for exams more efficiently.
We continued to make headway, good headway with ebooks. Currently our higher education group has 618 titles on Course Smart and that's the industry's ebook website. New functionality permits sales representatives to provide samples to instructors directly from Course Smart. Sampling instructors electronically not only offers some cost savings but it also represents a cost effective strategy for increasing awareness of ebook availability among student customers.
To facilitate the sale of ebooks to students, Course Smart now has partnerships with about 50 campuses in conjunction with a Nebraska book company, a textbook retailer and wholesaler, and a significant new agreement the university system of Ohio will link to Course Smart through its own textbook site which is available to all students enrolled in the state's private as well as public colleges.
Digital subscriptions and licensing also had a favorable impact in our professional market but could not offset softness at retail as bookstores cut back on orders and reduced inventory in face of economic conditions.
In international markets Harrison's Principals of Internal Medicine continued to perform well in both the English and Spanish editions released in recent months. Higher education products sold well in Europe, The Middle East, and India. In the third quarter we also benefited from back to school sales in Spain, and in Mexico.
So let's sum up for the McGraw-Hill education, growth in higher education markets here and abroad here in the third quarter, digital revenue that continued to grow rapidly in higher education and professional markets, a strong performance in the state new adoption market with a 31% capture rate, a slowdown in the elementary/high school market in August and September that signals a 3% to 4% decline in industry sales for the full year.
Growth in the college market of 4% to 6% and an expectation to increase share in the elementary/high school market and to underperform slightly in the US college and university market.
As we enter a seasonally slow fourth quarter for education we are adjusting the 2008 outlook for this segment. We now expect revenue in 2008 to decrease 1% to 2% with an operating margin decline of 300 to 350 basis points.
Okay let's turn now to financial services, in a challenging period for credit markets the diversity of our portfolio helped cushion the downturn at Standard & Poor's Credit Market Services, that's the rating portion of Standard & Poor's.
For the financial services segment in the third quarter revenue declined by 14.2% as an increase of 13.5% for Standard & Poor's investment services, helped offset a fall off of 24.2% for the S&P credit market services including a pre-tax restructuring charge of $4.1 million operating profit decreased by 18.8% and the operating margin was 43.2%.
After nine months this year revenue is off 12% including restructuring charges, operating profit is down 23.3% and the operating margin is 41.4%. We continue to watch costs closely and we took restructuring charges in the second and the third quarters to contain costs and to mitigate the impact of economic conditions.
For financial services that totaled $19.3 million and represented the reduction of approximately 290 positions. The reduction climbs to 460 positions when you include the cutbacks announced for the fourth quarter of 2007.
The restructuring charges taken this year reduced the operating margin by 64 basis points and that's in the third quarter and by 95 basis points for the nine months.
As we all know turbulence in the credit markets continued into the third quarter. The charts illustrate quarterly new issuance dollar volume this year for residential mortgage-backed securities, commercial mortgage-backed securities, and collateralized debt obligations and asset-backed securities in the US market.
In looking at these bar charts its readily apparent that the third quarter is the weakest of the year for new issuance. You can also see that in most cases the structured finance market volume continued to decline in the fourth quarter of 2007.
Structured finance dollar volume issuance in the United States was off 78.3% in the third quarter. In this environment a 2.6% decline for asset backed securities issuance is as good as it gets. US public finance dollar volume issuance was off 1.8% and corporate declined by 65.8%.
But new issue volume is not the whole story in financial services, as this next chart shows global new issuance dollar volume declined 44.2% in the third quarter but revenue was off 14.2% for financial services and 24.2% at credit market services.
International revenue for S&P credit market services declined 11.6% in the third quarter while non-US issuance fell 21.0%. Domestic revenue for S&P credit market services was off 33% but total US new issuance fell 61.6%.
Clearly steps we have taken to diversify our portfolio in both S&P credit market services and in S&P's investment services is providing some shelter in this storm. Reducing S&P credit market services dependence on the new issue market and expanding internationally were important initiative that continue to benefit us in turbulent times and those will continue.
International ratings accounted for 47.9% of S&P's credit market services revenue in the third quarter, up from 41% of the comparable quarter last year. In Europe we saw a substantial drop in structured finance issuance resulting from widening spreads and a decline in fundamentals. There was also some issuance softness in the Asia Pacific region, [Cresol] our ratings operation in India continues to post solid gains.
We are actively exploring more opportunities to expand our international footprint and we'll be back to you with more on that. The continued growth of non-transaction revenue is another measure of our diversification strategy. Non-transaction revenue grew by 2.3% in the third quarter and up 8.9% after nine months.
Non-transaction revenue includes surveillance fees, annual contracts, subscriptions, all three categories grew in the third quarter. Deferred revenue for this segment also increased in the third quarter. It grew by 7.2% to just over $8.5 million at the end of the third quarter. Sequentially that represents a decline from the second quarter. The slower growth reflects the seasonality of our revenue as well as a decline in ratings activity.
We are pleased with another quarter of double-digit growth from S&P's investment services. Our non-ratings businesses, Capital IQ, and Index services were key contributors to this performance. Capital IQ has added new customers all year, now with more than 2,500 customers. Capital IQ's base has grown by 22.2% in the past 12 months. Capital IQ also continues to expand its product offering and improve the functionality.
To accelerate Capital IQ's own estimates database project, and launch into an alternative research marketplace we recently acquired a copy of Reuter's estimates and the Reuter's research on demand databases. The acquisition adds another piece to the comprehensive global analytical solutions offered by Capital IQ.
In index services we benefited from higher volume for exchange-traded derivatives, an increase in assets under management and exchange traded funds based on S&P indices and growth in our data and custom indices. Assets under management and exchanged traded funds grew to $223.5 billion and that was by the end of the third quarter.
That's a gain of 6.7%. We believe the increase is in part due to the use of exchange-traded funds for hedging as well as the asset class mix acting as a natural hedge. Daily volume for major exchange traded derivatives based on S&P indices averaged 3.7 million contracts, a year-over-year increase of 27%.
We also continue to expand in index services, in the past nine months of this year S&P has launched 45 new exchange traded funds based on its indices compared to 46 for all of 2007. There are now 189 new exchange traded funds based on S&P indices around the world.
Building on its family of fixed income indices, S&P in October launched the S&P LSTA US levered loan 100 index. It is a market value weighted index designed to measure the performance of the US levered loan market.
LSTA is short for Loan Syndications and Trading Association. Earlier this month S&P introduced the S&P US commercial paper index. It consists of commercial paper with one to three month maturities issued by financial and non-financial corporate issuers.
In September S&P signed an agreement with a Korean exchange to develop a new set of indices to meet the needs of Asian investors. S&P already signed its first exchange partnership in the year 2000 with the Australian stock exchange. Today we have partnerships with primary exchanges in Tokyo, Milan, Toronto, Moscow, Hong Kong, India, and so forth and there is more in the pipeline this year from index services.
Earlier in this presentation we showed charts indicating that new issue market for most asset classes continued to soften in 2007. That means that S&P faces the easiest comparisons of the year in the fourth quarter of 2008. But some improvement obviously hinges on the start of a market recovery in the fourth quarter.
At this point visibility on the extent and speed of the recovery remains low. There is growing concern about the economy and the markets are assessing the new rescue program from the Federal government and how to respond to various fiscal stimulus packages.
The infusion of capital into the banks should help return confidence and credit to the market. Recently we've seen a decline in the key London inter bank offer rate or LIBOR, a sign that credit markets may be on the mend. There are indications that investors now are on the sidelines and they are ready to move once markets begin to stabilize.
When investors do return it will be back to basics, less leverage, less risk, and more plain vanilla securities. Our assessment of the outlook for financial services this year assumed that the level of activity in the structured finance market would remain at low levels.
For 2008 we now anticipate revenue for the financial services segment will decrease by approximately 11% to 12%. We have also changed our forecast on the operating margin, originally we expected a decline of 500 to 600 basis points, now we anticipate only a 425 to 475 basis point decline in the operating margin for this year.
Now obviously no discussion of financial services would be complete these days without a review of the regulatory and legal situations. We've now embarked on another round of new congressional hearings on the rating agencies.
Last week as many of you know Deven Sharma our President of Standard & Poor's, testified before the US House of Representatives Committee on over side and government reform, these are Congressman [Waxman's] committee.
It was a long day but there seemed to be three basic charges against the rating agencies that came out of that. One was structured finance ratings were not objective, another one was that S&P's only concern was for profit, the business model, the third one, is prone to conflict.
Those seemed to be the three pieces that came out of that. In a rush to judgment it can be difficult to be heard. But Deven refuted these charges and we don't have time this morning to go through all of it but I do urge you to read his complete testimony and that you can get at www.standardandpoors.com. I think you'll get a good sense of how he positioned it and how we feel about it.
He pointed out in his remarks that S&P's ratings business has strong policies against analysts structuring transaction that S&P rates and that it does not provide consulting services to issuers, that it does not give higher ratings based on how its paid but it does make its ratings criteria and methodologies available and open to market comment.
But let's be clear, no business model is without potential for conflict but a reasonable organization like S&P has policies and procedures in place to manage them. Our professionals have never been compensated upon the amount of revenue they generate. Credit analysts do not negotiate fees. Rating decisions are always made by a committee and not by individuals. And we have a team of quality officers to promote analytical rigor and the safeguard of the ratings process. The compliance process is very strong and very clear.
A thorough examination by the SEC recently found "there is no evidence that decisions about rating methodology or models we attracting or losing market share." Under the issuer pays model S&P makes all its ratings public, free of charge in real time, higher transparency which is the order of the day.
Credit ratings are not investment advice or recommendations to buy, sell, or hold a security. Credit ratings primarily address the likelihood that an obligation will be repaid on time with interest. Ratings are also not static. S&P recognizes the seriousness of the current dislocation in the capital markets and that not all of the forecasts used in its ratings analysis have been borne out, even though historical events going back 75 years to the Great Depression were included in our stress tests.
S&P is committed to constant improvement, greater transparency, and independence. That's why earlier this year after consulting with policy makers and regulators both here and abroad, around the world, S&P announced 27 actions on its own to enhance the ratings process and promote confidence.
And you can get an update on the S&P's 27 leadership actions in four categories by visiting S&P's website. And you can get some additional perspective by looking at S&P's record in rating AAA US structured finance securities. The default rate on US structured finance securities rated AAA by S&P between January of 1978 and October 13, 2008 is only one-quarter of 1%; 0.28%.
We expect to learn more about regulatory initiatives next month, sometime in November the SEC could issue new rules for rating agencies. As we now know on November 12 the European commission is expected to issue its proposals on rating agencies and those will be out for public comment and we will work through that process.
There is a little doubt that more regulation is coming but we will continue to work with policy makers, regulators and others to assure some global consistency. We believe global consistency should be based on IOSCOs, those are the security commissioners out of Madrid recently revised Code of Conduct for rating agencies.
Basically not a lot has changed on the legal front since we reviewed the situation at an Investor Conference on September 18. A new lawsuit was filed at the end of September against the Federal National Mortgage Association and a number of defendants, class action suit, and included in that was the McGraw-Hill Companies. The central allegation is that the company issued inappropriate credit ratings on certain securities issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association.
We believe strongly that the litigation is without bearing. We continue to believe that any pending legal, governmental, or self-regulatory proceedings or investigation, will not result in a material adverse effect on the financial condition or results of our operations.
Let's sum up for financial services, revenue will decline 11% to 12% in 2008, the operating margin will decline 425 t0 475 basis points this year, better then we thought, low visibility in credit markets and double-digit growth for S&P investment services in 2008.
Now let's review our third segment, information, and media, where business-to-business products and services again drove the results. In the third quarter revenue increased 5.3% as the business-to-business group grew by 5.4% and broadcasting was up 4.4% including a pre-tax restructuring charge of $13.9 million, operating profit increased 22.6%.
The operating margin was 8.6% and the restructuring charge for the workforce cutback reduced the operating margin by 523 basis points in the third quarter. After nine months revenue is up 5.1% including the restructuring charge, operating profit is up 37.3% and the operating margin is 7.7%.
The key revenue driver this year continues to be Platts. It was true again in the third quarter. Platts is a leading provider of global energy information as well as on other commodities to customers in more then 160 countries. With continued volatility in crude oil and other commodity prices these customers increasingly depend on our news and pricing information to help with decision making in uncertain times.
That's what happens when your information becomes imbedded in customers' workflow. This is a global phenomenon, growth at Platts is coming both in North America as well as overseas and as you know we headquarter it in three locations; Singapore, New York, and London.
Aviation Week benefited from the timing of a major international air show in the UK. That's the [Farmboro] air show which is held every other year in the third quarter. Advertising pages for Business Week's global edition was down 13.9% in the third quarter and even in this environment Business Week continues to attract new subscribers and improve its renewal rate.
Business Week also took an important step in September by launching the Business Exchange. This enables users to create topics around business issues that matter to them and connect with Business Week's community. In a short period of time more then 500 topics have been created on the Business Exchange, which is a very nice start.
The introduction of social media in the business spaces will create an opportunity to leverage context and content for users and advertisers. We are enhancing the Business Exchange with two important partnerships, Linked In and Federation Media, which taps the blogs sphere.
The partnership with Linked In helps Business Week readers network with others that provides Linked In users with broader access to content; over 30 million professionals use Linked In. For the broadcasting group a solid increase in political advertising offset softness in local and national advertising in the third quarter.
In the Denver market we benefited from Colorado's status as the swing state in the Presidential election. Advertising by candidate for the US Senate and House and significant spending on issues and propositions.
Spending has also been strong in Indiana because of the Governor's race and the Presidential contest as well. So summing up for information and media, more progress this year with our business-to-business group, solid growth in political advertising for broadcasting and revenue growth of 4% of 6%, an improvement in the operating margin for this segment.
So therefore for the corporation overall, summing for the McGraw-Hill Companies, we now are forecasting earnings per share of $2.63 to $2.65 for 2008 and the projection excludes the restructuring charge but includes the associated benefits.
The forecast assumes earnings per share of $0.40 to $0.42 for the fourth quarter. We have started work on our budgets for 2009 but until that process is completed we're not in a position to make a forecast for next year.
We already know the state new adoption market will not match this year's total. Texas is not scheduled for a new adoption in 2009 and that always makes a difference in the market. The good news is that the state adoption market calendar improves sharply in 2010. We also know the college and university market is counter cyclical in times of economic difficulty in enrollment increase. In financial markets visibility is low and it will be important to see when various stimulus packages and other government led programs begin to have an impact.
In this environment we are very focused on managing costs and maintaining liquidity. So this would be the best time to turn it over to Robert and to hear about that part of it.
Robert Bahash
Thank you Harold, as we began to feel the full force of the decline of the credit markets last year, revenue for S&P credit market services dropped in the fourth quarter of 2007 by 14.1%, and the financial services segment was off by 7.2%.
But while we were looking at easier comparisons for financial services during the fourth quarter of this year the rate of decline has been steeper and that's reflected in our guidance for this segment. We don't expect a pick up in credit market services and we have seen a sequential decline in the revenue growth at Standard & Poor's investment services.
Growth will probably slow again in the fourth quarter for S&P investment services although it will still grow by double-digits this year. For McGraw-Hill education the fourth quarter is seasonally slow. In the elementary/high school market we may realize some sales from postponements earlier this year but that is hard to call in this environment.
In the US college and university market we will be introducing some new titles in the fourth quarter but the timing of any pick up is difficult to gauge. Sometimes [inaudible] materialize in December and in other years they don't show up fully until January.
Under these circumstances we continue to take a very hard look at our costs and expenses. As Harold discussed we recorded a restructuring charge of $23.4 million in the third quarter primarily for severance costs related to a workforce reduction of approximately 270 positions to contain costs and mitigate the impact of current and future economic conditions.
Additionally we took a significant reduction in both long-term and short-term incentive compensation at all segments as well as at corporate. The year-over-year decline of $117 million was comprised of $71 million decline in stock-based compensation, the remainder being short-term incentive compensation. We lowered accruals for long-term awards due to reduced operating results.
This resulted in a negative $39 million for stock-based compensation in the third quarter. As mentioned previously the cash savings from reducing our short-term incentives in 2008 will not be realized until the awards are paid out in March of 2009.
The impact of reduced incentive compensation as noted in the earnings release is as follows. McGraw-Hill education $15.9 million; financial services $60 million; information and media $12.4 million; and corporate $29.1 million.
I'd like to take a few moments to discuss expenses at financial services, McGraw-Hill education and corporate. At financial services expenses decreased $43 million or 10.4%. Excluding the $4 million pre-tax restructuring charge in the third quarter expenses decreased $47 million or 11.5%.
This year-over-year expense comparison benefits from a $60 million reduction in incentive compensation. This is up from a $30 million year-over-year reduction in incentive compensation in the second quarter primarily due to the negative stock-based compensation I previously mentioned.
Expenses also benefit from savings from restructuring actions taken in the fourth quarter of 2007 and the second quarter of 2008 as mentioned earlier. These expense savings were partially offset by the impact of acquisitions and investments in our fast growing areas such as [Cresol], Capital IQ and index services.
Financial services sequential third quarter expenses decreased $66 million or 15.2% versus the second quarter as reported. The primary contributors to this expense decrease are a $46 million decrease in incentive compensation, a reduction in third quarter versus second quarter restructuring charges of $11 million, and savings from restructuring actions.
McGraw-Hill education reported expense growth of 2% or $15 million. Excluding the restructuring charge of $5.4 million expense growth was 1.3% or $9.6 million. The minimal expense growth at education is driven by a $14 million increase in pre-publication amortization, increased costs related to strong state new adoption opportunities, and investments in technology including $4 million in data center migration costs.
This is offset by a $15.9 million decline in incentive compensation as well as lower cost of goods sold due to the reduction in revenue. The migration to our new data center is nearly complete. In the third quarter the migration cost was $8 million. For the nine-month period it was $21 million.
Now that we're nearing the end of the project we expect the overall cost will be around $30 million to $35 million for 2008 which is $5 million to $10 million lower then our original forecast.
We expect McGraw-Hill education to represent about half of the total cost as the segment continues to deliver more digital content and services. Corporate expenses were $9.7 million in the third quarter, a $28 million or 74% decrease versus the same period last year.
This overall decrease is driven by a $29 million reduction in incentive compensation accruals for the quarter and of course excluding the incentive comp accruals, expenses were about flat with last year.
We had previously forecasted a mid single-digit decrease in corporate expenses for 2008. Due to the reduction in incentive compensation we now expect corporate expenses to be down about $50 million and this would imply an approximate $10 million decline in corporate expenses in the fourth quarter.
Now let me recap the corporation's strong financial position, net debt as of September 30 was $1 billion, this is down approximately $349 million from the end of the second quarter as a result of free cash flow generated in the third quarter.
The second half is when we generally generate the majority of our free cash flow primarily due to the seasonality of our education business. As of September 30 on a gross basis, total debt was $1.5 billion and is comprised of $1.2 billion of unsecured senior notes that we issued in 2007 and $307 million in commercial paper outstanding.
This is offset by $485 million in cash primarily in foreign holdings. The outstanding commercial paper is supported by a $1.15 billion credit facility which was renewed in the third quarter. Our commercial paper rating F1/P1 from the key credit rating agencies of Moody's and Fitch.
Given the current liquidity issues in the CP market, being a Tier 1 issuer is very important not only for pricing but also for availability. We plan to reduce commercial paper outstanding through the balance of the year with our seasonal cash inflows.
As discussed previously our objective is to maintain a net debt level comparable to year-end 2007. As we typically do at this time of year we're evaluating repatriating cash from overseas which is primarily invested in money market instruments.
Obviously repatriation does not impact net debt but causes swings between where cash is held and the level of commercial paper outstanding. Regarding net interest expense in the third quarter we had $22 million compared to $15 million in the same period last year.
We expect interest expense in the fourth quarter to be roughly comparable with the third quarter resulting in a full year interest expense of approximately $80 million.
Let's now review free cash flow, as a reminder of our free cash flow calculation, we start with after-tax cash from operations which is after working capital and deduct pre-publication investments, CapEx and dividends. What's left is free cash flow, funds that we can use to repurchase stock, make acquisitions, or pay down debt.
Despite a challenging 2008 we continued to generate free cash flow. Third quarter free cash flow was approximately $500 million which is roughly flat with last year. As we indicated on the second quarter earnings call free cash flow as of June 30 was approximately $300 million lower then the year before while third quarter free cash flow performance was comparable to the prior year given the reduction in third quarter revenue and its impact on cash collections in the fourth quarter, we now project free cash flow to be approximately $500 million for 2008 versus the $600 million forecast we provided during our second quarter earnings call in July.
To help offset the lower operating cash flow we're carefully managing costs and capital investments while continuing to invest in fast growing areas such as [Cresol], Capital IQ and index services. Given the uncertain economic environment we will continue to monitor our investment priorities this year.
I'll discuss capital expenditures in greater detail shortly, but will now recap our acquisition and share repurchase activities. For the first nine months we spent approximately $40 million on acquisitions. On October 7 of this quarter we announced that we had acquired a copy of the Reuter's estimates and Reuter's research on demand databases to enhance Capital IQ's data offering.
In the third quarter we repurchased 3.5 million shares for a total cost of $142.4 million at an average price of $40.70 per share. That brings the year-to-date repurchases to 10.9 million shares for a cost of $447.2 million at an average price of $41.03 per share.
A total of 17.1 million shares remain in the 2007 program authorized by the Board of Directors. Given our new forecast for reduced free cash flow and our desire to maintain debt levels comparable to year-end 2007 we're currently evaluating the extent of our share repurchases for the fourth quarter.
We remain committed to returning cash to shareholders through dividend payments and share repurchases but it is important to balance this while maintaining appropriate liquidity during this difficult credit environment.
Our diluted weighted average shares outstanding declined in the third quarter to 317.2 million shares. This reflects a 20.5 million share decrease compared to the third quarter of 2007 and a 3.9 million share decrease compared to the second quarter of 2008.
Our fully diluted shares at the end of the third quarter were approximately 315 million shares. I'll now review unearned revenue which ended the quarter at approximately $1.1 billion, a 6.4% year-over-year increase.
Financial services unearned revenue grew 7.2% versus the prior year. The year-over-year revenue declined for credit market services primarily structured finance accounts for the slower growth in unearned revenue.
Financial services represents three-quarters of our unearned revenue balance and with the reduced revenue guidance for financial services we now expect minimal growth in the corporation's unearned revenue for 2008.
Our effective tax rate was 37.5% in the third quarter and we expect it to be approximately at the same level for the full year. Let's now look at capital expenditures, which include pre-publication investments and purchases of property and equipment.
In the third quarter our pre-publication investments were $65 million compared to $77 million in the same period last year. We continue to expect $270 million for 2008. Purchases of property and equipment were $18 million in the third quarter compared to $63 million in the same period last year and this was of course higher last year because of the building of our new data center.
In light of slower operating free cash flow as well as the uncertain economic environment, we're delaying a number of capital projects. We now project CapEx will be $115 million for 2008 versus our previous forecast of $160 million.
I'd like to wrap up with a quick review of non-cash items, amortization of pre-publication costs was $125 million compared to $110 million last year. For 2008 we continue to expect it to be about $275 million. Depreciation was $30 million compared to $26 million in the same period last year. We still expect it to be approximately $125 million in 2008 primarily due to the completion of the data center as well as the purchase of new technology equipment.
Amortization of intangibles was $14 million compared to $12 million in the same period last year and for 2008 we expect it to be approximately $52 million. So let's sum up, we're taking a hard line on company expenses while prudently managing investments to support areas of high growth potential.
In short, we're making every effort to protect the company's strong financial position in a very difficult environment. Our priorities are clear, reduce expenses, ensure we have the resources to fund our growth and maintain liquidity.
We are now ready for your questions.
Question-and-Answer Session
(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
Could you just talk a bit about your non-transaction line with an S&P ratings, about 2.5% almost, that line I understand includes syndicated bank loans? The transaction piece of that?
Robert Bahash
Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
So does that account for why that line was down sequentially, about $341 million in the second quarter versus $319 here in the third quarter?
Robert Bahash
That certainly was a factor but again I think that coupled in all of that is the obviously continued weakness in this current environment, just the last four or five weeks alone.
Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
As you think out to next year about that line would you expect that line to be up, putting aside the syndicated bank loan transactions in there?
Harold McGraw
Well it really depends on your expectations for revival of the credit market. We certainly would expect that at this point but we're going to have to see some signals, some evidence of that.
Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
But I assume here in the third quarter your surveillance fee part of it which is a large portion of that line is up year-over-year right?
Harold McGraw
Robert Bahash
The structured finance side saw sequentially a decline on a quarter-to-quarter basis and that's in part due to, and we saw that really coming from the first quarter and second quarter. Last year toward the end of the year there were a number of transactions that we had done our work on that had not been completed and they carried themselves over into the first and second quarters of this year. And as a result the issuers did not go forward and there were certain breakage fees that we recorded relating to those transactions. It was a non-transaction event because no transaction happened. We don't see that same continuation. It clearly did not occur in the third quarter so that also contributes to the slower performance on a quarter-to-quarter basis.
Craig Huber – Barclay's Capital
On the index business, just given what's happened in the marketplace this year, are you actually seeing negative growth there right now or forecasting for the fourth quarter?
Harold McGraw
No, in fact we're still seeing very good growth that way and this year the launch of the new ETFs in particular compared to last year has been at a stronger rate so there has been more interest in ETFs and involvement with various exchanges then last year. It's a very encouraging development.
Your next question comes from the line of Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
Can you give us a bit more of an update as to what you're seeing at S&P right now. I did the math quickly but if I back into your guidance for the quarter for the full year it would imply you're saying revenues for all of financial services will be flat to up in Q4 versus Q3 by, and at the higher end by almost $30 million and I would think it's a tougher issuance environment today then it was say when you gave your call in July and I'm just wondering why wouldn't you see more of a fall off at S&P overall in Q4?
Harold McGraw
First of all, investment services which has been strong all year, both in terms of indexes, dated information and in particular Capital IQ those continue. Now the question is given the guidance of $0.40 to $0.42 for the fourth quarter, are there implications on the top line growth of investment services from S&P and we're taking a very conservative posture here because again there's a lot just in the last four or five weeks, there's just been so much uncertainty that you could see a single-digit but we don't think so.
We still think and we see a fair bit of demand on that side and we think that will continue in the fourth quarter, but again we're taking a very conservative posture in terms of guidance.
Robert Bahash
We're also, we're down in revenues through nine months, roughly 12%, and our guidance is to be up for the full year 11% to 12% which would imply the fourth quarter being very similar to what we experienced in the first three quarters. So we're looking at revenue to be down in the fourth quarter.
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
Right but you're looking to be down 8% to 12% which would put it flat on an absolute basis, flat with Q3 versus up with Q3—
Robert Bahash
No, 11% to 12%, it was the guidance.
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
But I think you can back into Q4 being...I guess related to that if you did I think you said, transaction revenues of a certain, $105 million in the third quarter, I'm confused that your revenue guidance would imply better, more revenue out of all of S&P in the fourth quarter but I would think that transaction number would be lower in the fourth quarter then it was in the third quarter, am I looking at this wrong?
Robert Bahash
What we're forecasting and we're projecting is a steeper decline in the fourth quarter then we had thought. We had originally thought that our comparisons would be a little bit better in the fourth quarter because last year was weaker, however we continue to look at a decline in credit market services revenue in the fourth quarter that's clearly driven by the transaction side. We are looking for an increase at revenue from S&P investment services. For the full year we expect to be double-digit but it would be in the single-digit growth range in the fourth quarter.
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
On corporate expense I understand what you're saying on the accruals, you're saying down $50 million year-over-year, so you're saying $110 million or so of corporate expense for the full year, is that the run rate we should be thinking about now that you've reset the bar or will that step up next year as things smooth out?
Harold McGraw
First of all let me just say we have to have a very clear assessment of the environment that we're going to be in. Your assumption is correct in the current environment. If we start to see signs of recovery and an easing of the credit crunch then obviously we're going to be investing more heavily for that. But at this point, the cost controls and easing of investments, you're looking more at that level.
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
So I should start with $110 and then keep in mind you're going to be tight on costs or is there an adjustment to the $110?
Robert Bahash
I think in order to look at this fairly, we'll be in that budget stage, but the adjustments that we made in the third quarter, the $117 million is a combination of two elements. One is the short-term incentive compensation primarily in corporate and then financial services. These are payouts based on the current year's performance. In addition to that there were adjustments to the long-term incentive stock-based compensation accruals that effect three years. It effects the 2006 grant, the 2007 grant and the 2008 grant. So there is a catch-up adjustment that goes back against 2006 accruals that occurred in 2006, 2007 earlier part of 2008.
Same with 2007 so there's a negative stock-based compensation adjustment that's effecting corporate expense. Obviously you have to discount that when you look at the normal activity expense growth. But clearly we're looking hard at our expenses, we're looking hard at the things that we do in order to make certain that we're spending monies that are going to contribute to the overall success, the immediate top line growth of the company, and things that can be delayed and deferred are being delayed and deferred.
Michael Meltz – JP Morgan
The free cash flow guidance reduction, the $100 million, what portion of that is related the lag in the cash catch-up of the incentive comp?
Robert Bahash
There's no impact on the incentive compensation because those are non-cash accruals. The change is driven by the softer performance then we had anticipated through nine months and the softer performance that we're forecasting in the fourth quarter. Offsetting that is the cutbacks that we're trying to do with regard to our capital expenditures.
Your next question comes from the line of Catriona Fallon – Citigroup
Catriona Fallon – Citigroup
One of the things we're talking to a lot of our companies about is what they might do with their dividend. Is there any thought that you might actually cut the dividend in order to pay down debt?
Harold McGraw
We've got a very strong dividend record here. We've had increases in the dividend for the last 35 years and as you know when we calculate free cash flow that is after all expenditures including the payment of the dividend so I think you can take from that that we think the dividend is very, very important to us and we plan to continue to have a very strong policy there.
Catriona Fallon – Citigroup
It looks like the information and media business actually had a decent quarter and you're able to improve the margin there, going forward in order to maybe streamline the business or improve the overall operating margins of the company, would you explore divesting portions of the information and media business or are there other acquisitions or divestitures that you would explore?
Harold McGraw
As I've said all along that every aspect in these kind of environments, every aspect of the portfolio is under scrutiny and we will continue that. You also have to consider the environment that we're in but everything is being scrutinized.
Catriona Fallon – Citigroup
Just regarding the [read] business that had healthcare and aviation magazines and others, what's your thought for that type of a transaction, was that just to advertising based, or is there another reason why that might be less attractive to you?
Harold McGraw
No, again we look at everything. We're not interested in anything at this point that is advertising related. We were looking primarily at the construction and the energy assets but again in this environment everything has to be very scrutinized.
Your next question comes from the line of Edward Atorino - The Benchmark Co.
Edward Atorino - The Benchmark Co.
To what extent have you factored into your, you didn't talk about 2009 education, but with the financial crisis and other issues the states are scrambling for money, to what extent would textbooks hold their own in 2009 or do you think they could be vulnerable as they were this year to spending pressures?
Harold McGraw
For sure the states have come under a lot more pressure. As I was saying through July we were seeing that clearly states were cutting back on their budgets but the education portion was not. Early August we saw a material change to that and states started postponing, they weren't cutting material requests, they were postponing or they were chopping them up, we'll take half this year and half next year.
So we're sorting that out now, clearly on the education side from a state budget standpoint is weaker then we anticipated. As we get into 2009 the state adoption market now is going to be a little bit less then what we anticipated and less then 2008 and its being deferred into 2010 and 2011. So we'll have to see what that situation is.
Its not going to be, there's still going to be a strong need here that has to be met and there's a lot of change in terms of the adoptions for digital products and so forth so its going to be a little bit weaker then 2008 as an environment but we'll just have to see how that plays out.
Your final question comes from the line of Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
In the context of what it seems like I see a protracted downturn in the credit markets, I'm wondering if you're rethinking your expectations in terms of sustainable margins for the S&P business, what you think an appropriate level of margin in that business might be.
Robert Bahash
I am very pleased with the margin level that we've been able to maintain so far in 2008. With the fall off of revenues in the structured finance area and still good growth in corporate and governments and some public finance and international operations, we've been able to hold to a pretty good margin and I was pleased that we were able to change our guidance to improve the margin level for the year.
So we'll see as we get into next year but I don't see at this point any material erosion in that margin and we'll see as we get through the budgeting process here but dependent upon where we are comparisons get a little bit easier and we might be able to even improve upon that.
Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
Do you have the actual total dollar amount of what incentive compensation for the corporation in total will look like in 2008 versus 2007 and then likewise the stock-based comp?
Robert Bahash
Its $117 million adjustment on a year-to-year basis, the nine-month figure was $207 million was the adjustment. That's a combination of adjustments for the long-term incentive awards, the three I mentioned earlier, as well as the short-term incentive primarily corporate and financial services where the bigger areas are that we've captured.
Harold McGraw
And that's the adjustment at this point in time through the first nine months. We'll see how the fourth quarter goes and whether there will be any further adjustments.
Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
You're down $207 year-to-year.
Harold McGraw
Through nine months, correct.
Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
That would include the impact of the stock-based comp then.
Harold McGraw
Yes, that's the stock-based comp as well as short-term for corporate and financial services, the two larger areas.
Peter Appert – Goldman Sachs
I think the guidance implies a fourth quarter loss for the education business which would be something you haven't experienced for quite a number of years, what should we read into that in terms of further deterioration in business or perhaps need for further adjusting of the structure?
Robert Bahash
What we're highlighting here and pointing to is one, a little bit softer revenue coming our way, clearly not the replacement type of revenue that we had experienced in the past albeit smaller because K-12 is obviously lighter in the fourth quarter but we're expecting even a lighter replacement revenue stream. Higher education is up but not performing at the levels that we had thought. We're seeing pressure on the custom testing side and the supplemental revenue is off just based on AAP statistics more dramatically then the [basel[ products.
Coupled with that we do have the higher pre-pub amortization that I talked about as well as higher costs with regard to data center migration so there are a number of factors and you're right, our guidance at this point in time points to a little bit down in revenue and an operating loss for the fourth quarter which we have not experienced for several years.
Harold McGraw
And I think that's a very conservative approach and the right approach to take in this kind of environment. Some of the softness that we're seeing on the education side, especially at the higher education level is on the softer disciplines in some of the humanities, social sciences area in particular but we're still seeing very good strength in the business economics, the science, engineering and mathematics and we could see a pick up before year end on that side of it but at this point, we're just saying that to be very conservative, $0.40 to $0.42 for the fourth quarter and we're still going to be able to come in with $263 to $265 which we're pleased that in this environment we're going to be able to do.
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Tales of Xillia 2, Ridge Racer: Driftopia One Piece and more in Namco Bandai TGS 2013 screen dump
Namco Bandai has sent over a huge pile of screenshots and artworks fresh from Tokyo Game Show 2013. Feast your eyes on Ace Combat: Infinity, One Piece: Romance Dawn, Pac-man and the Ghostly Adventures, Pac-man Museum, Ridge Racer Driftopia, Tales of Symphonia Chronicles, Tales of Xillia 2 and Tekken Revolution. Plus: trailers for Tales of Xillia 2 and Pac-man CEDX+. It's all go.
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. For more information, go here.

subset: commoncrawl


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We sent boys on a man's mission
- From: The Daily Telegraph
- February 23, 2013
THE Olympic Games turned professional many years ago. Some of our swimming competitors clearly haven't. It now emerges that prior to last year's London Games, several members of our elite swimming team behaved in ways so childish and disruptive that they even distressed their fellow Australian competitors.
Fans who were upset at the inadequate performances of our swim team in London now have some explanations for our dismal medal haul. It turns out that we sent boys on a man's mission.
In isolation, the antics of swimmers Tommaso D'Orsogna, Cameron McEvoy, James Magnussen, James Roberts, Matt Targett and Eamon Sullivan seem infantile.
But in the context of these antics occurring immediately prior to the Olympic Games, there is a serious edge.
Taxpayers contribute millions of dollars every year to ensure that our Olympic-level athletes enjoy the very best in tactical methods and training. This enormous outlay plainly made little impression on several of our male swimmers, who yesterday admitted to foolish behaviour, including the use of prescription drug Stilnox as an aid to bonding.
"In hindsight," Magnussen said yesterday, "it was a ridiculous choice and ridiculous method." You can say that again. Even more ridiculous was the harassment of female swimmers, whose pre-Games preparations were disturbed by the goonish pranks of their male counterparts.
A certain level of high-spiritedness is to be expected from young Australians.
But there are limits, which thankfully our swimmers now recognise.
"As proud members of the Australian Swim Team, we acknowledge that by our actions in continuing a recent tradition on the men's team we have let ourselves down and the people who have supported us," the men confessed. It's a start.
Teenage girls face troubles
ALL generations face different challenges. The teenagers of today, for example, are the first to grow up entirely in an era of sophisticated multi-function mobile phones and the temptations of the internet and social media.
According to parenting expert Steve Biddulph, girls are finding these challenges difficult to cope with. As he points out, anxiety and depression levels among Australian teenage girls have doubled in the past decade alone.
At the same time, boys seem to be coping rather better with the ever-changing challenges society throws at them. A picture is emerging of a generation of teenage girls which requires particular care and attention.
Teenagers tend to be uncommunicative, and troubled teens can be especially hard to reach. But parents must learn how to deal with their own challenges during these crucial developmental years.
Keep the lines of communication open and even the surliest teen will find greater support from her own family than she will find online.


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You are here:
Sales Tax
Sales Tax
Service Tax
Kingfisher Airlines
Civil Aviation
Corporate Tax
Essar Oil
Sales tax a hurdle for airport privatisation
October 26, 2003
Gaurav Malani , TNN
NEW DELHI: State governments' refusal to exempt privately owned duty-free shops from sales tax has raised a major hurdle in the government's plan to privatise airports. Income from such shops is a major source of auxiliary income envisaged for the privatised airports. While the global concept of duty-free shops is to exempt goods sold in these outlets from all taxes to make them attractive, state governments in India do not seem to think so. If you have been able to buy goods at the existing duty-free outlets without paying sales tax, it is because these outlets are owned by India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC)
Delhi mulls reduction in ATF sales tax
January 17, 2009
ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Delhi government will consider reducing sales tax on jet fuel to help the cash-strapped airlines industry, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit has said. Refusing to commit herself, the CM said her government would try to bring down taxes on the lines of the Maharashtra, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh governments. "I am not promising you anything. But let me see how we can help you. I have been informed that the tax has been reduced in some other places. I will try to do that but let me see how we can do it," Ms Dikshit said at a seminar on aviation in Delhi on Friday.
No rise in sales tax on diesel
July 20, 2005
NEW DELHI: Sales tax on diesel is not likely to be increased to 20 per cent in Delhi as VAT panel may exempt the fuel from the common minimum tax rate, which it plans to implement on items across all states by September. All states were supposed to impose at least 20 per cent sales tax on diesel, but after resistance from Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to raise the tax to that level, Empowered Committee had in April allowed Delhi also to lower the levy to 12.5 per cent from 20 per cent.
Cellular operators face sales tax sword
July 26, 2002
Neeraj Saxena , TNN
NEW DELHI: As if the battle with the local civic authorities to save their cell towers in residential areas was not enough, Delhi's cellular service providers are fighting another battle. This time, with the sales tax department. But they are not alone in this battle. In recent months, many operators across India have been slapped with notices by the sales tax departments in the respective states. Tax authorities claim that since the cellular operators sell the SIM card and airtime, they ought to pay sales tax, an assertion which is being bitterly fought by these companies in various courts across the country.
Maha CM wants sales tax scrapped
December 13, 2006
MUMBAI: The Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh wants the Centre to scrap the sales tax and instead introduce an integrated national tax on goods and services. "After replacing the states' sales tax by VAT, it is time that we move towards goods and service tax,", Mr Deshmukh said at the recently held National Development Council meet chaired by Prime minister Manmohan Singh. Mr Deshmukh suggested that the Centre and the state government should tax all services and inter-state services in the same manner as inter-state sales, that is, taxation on destination principle.
Assam reduces sales tax on petrol, diesel
July 11, 2006
NEW DELHI: Assam on Tuesday joined the list of states that reduced sales tax on petrol and diesel after the central government hiked prices of these fuels last month. The state has reduced its sales tax on petrol and diesel by 69 paise and 29 paise respectively. Petrol will now be sold at Rs 49.70 per litre and diesel at Rs 33.44 a litre in Assam. The Centre had on June 6 raised the prices of petrol by Rs 4 a litre and diesel by Rs 2 a litre.
TN scraps dual sales tax on cement
January 5, 2006
CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government today issued orders scrapping the dual sales tax system on cement and levying a uniform tax of 14% on all grades of cement at the first point of sale. This is against the earlier rate of 16-24% depending on the selling price. In yet another boost to the industry the government has waived the additional sales tax payable by any dealer and also exempted completely the surcharge payable by any dealer. The notification has taken effect from January 2. Industry sources hailed the decision taken at the most opportune time when the cement consumption is at its peak in the state buoyed by the heavy flow of investment into housing, industrial projects and infrastructure.
Sikkim government reduces sales tax on fuel
June 7, 2008
GANGTOK: Taking a cue from assembly polls-bound states across the country, the Sikkim government has reduced sales tax on petrol and diesel. According to a notification issued by the Food and Civil Supplies and Consumers department here today, the prices of petrol and diesel have been reduced by Rs 2 and Rs 1.40 with immediate effect after slashing of the sales tax on these two fuel products. The price of petrol now stands at Rs 50.65/litre as against Rs 52.55, while the cost of diesel stands at Rs 35.80, it said.
Non-VAT states to pay sales tax
March 15, 2005
NEW DELHI: Most states will implement VAT from April 1, even if some like UP, Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand play spoilsport. Finance minister P Chidambaram made it clear on Tuesday that the existing sales tax regime will continue in states that do not implement VAT from April 1, '05. "No state has communicated its unwillingness to pass the VAT legislation," the FM told Parliament. "However, in case any state is not able to implement it, the existing system of sales tax shall continue in that state," he said.
SC okays sales tax on telecom
February 8, 2003
Neeraj Saxena , TNN
NEW DELHI: Don't be surprised if in the coming months your telecom service provider includes a sales tax over and above the 5 per cent service charge that subscribers in India have been paying since 1994-95. And if you thought telecom regulator's recent recommendations on revision of basic services tariffs were harsh, wait before you exhale: In a significant judgement this week, the Supreme Court has ruled that telecom is a sale of good as well as services, and hence, the telecom companies should also pay a sales tax in addition to the service tax. The judgement, over-ruling some earlier High Court judgements, was passed by a double bench of the apex court headed by Justice Syed Shah Mohammad Quadri on Tuesday.
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Doctor of Professional Studies
The Doctor of Professional Studies (or sometimes awarded as Doctorate in Professional Practice) (most commonly DProf, but also available as ProfD and DPS) is a doctoral degree for working professionals. The Doctor of Professional Studies is less common than other terminal degrees, such as the PhD. The DProf has been available to graduate students in the United Kingdom since the 1980s. The first Doctor of Professional Studies program was started in 1972 at Pace University.
The D.Prof is the same level of qualification as a PhD, but it has a different focus. While PhDs are largely based on in-depth study in a single discipline, the D.Prof is by its very nature interdisciplinary, and recognizes that real world problems are dynamic, multi-faceted and complex.
The first professional doctoral program was established in 1972 by Pace University in the State of New York in the United States. Other universities (see #List of Schools Offering Doctor of Professional Studies Degrees) around the world now offer the professional doctoral degree. Doctoral studies researchers, Gill and Hoppe, have reported rapid growth in professional doctoral degree programs outside of the United States.[1]
In the United Kingdom, professional doctoral degrees became established in the 1980s, when it was recognized that high-level programs were needed that were designed for experienced professional practitioners rather than for academic researchers. Many professional doctoral degrees in the United Kingdom are profession-specific and contain a mix of taught modules, research and a dissertation. Several universities that offer professional doctoral degree programs in the United Kingdom allow students to study part-time. In 2005, Powell and Long found that most professional doctoral degrees awarded in the UK were in the fields of engineering, educational and clinical psychology.[2] They found that professional doctoral degrees in business and nursing were also emerging at that time. In 2010, Brown and Cooke reported an "explosion" of professional doctorate programs in fields such as the arts, architecture and computer science.[3]
In the United States, the DPS was once considered by the United States Department of Education and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to be a research doctorate equivalent to the Ph.D. Along with the Doctor of Education, the Doctor of Social Science, the Doctor of Applied Science, and the Doctor of Library Science, the NSF no longer includes the DPS in its periodic Survey of Earned Doctorates (SEP) report, a statistical report on the number and range of research doctorates awarded in the United States. [See: http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvydoctorates/ and http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/sed/2012/start.cfm, Appendix Table a1]. The DPS was dropped from the report in 2005. In New York State, the Doctor of Professional Studies is an official degree title applicable to doctoral programs with a professional focus in a variety of disciplines.
In a 2002 report, the Australian Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST), states "Doctoral education in Australia is currently under pressure to become more industry focused."[4] Citing this report, Fink suggests "professional doctorates may be able to fulfill [the need to make doctoral education more industry focused] by developing and sustaining close collaboration between universities and industry. The Professional Doctorate (ProfDoc) can be seen as an alternative to the PhD because it can provide an opportunity for the business professional to gain a doctoral qualification, albeit in a different mode."[5]
In some respects the DProf is closer to the PhD than the longer-established modular doctorates, although it has important differences. While PhD theses typically make an original contribution to knowledge, the DProf is more concerned with making a significant contribution to practice: it requires high-level practical action, resulting for instance in significant change or development in an organization or community of practice. At some institutions, the DProf project is not a purely academic study and may not have to be a research project in the conventional sense. But, the dissertation must make a substantial contribution to the field and be reflective of advanced thinking. In this regard, the effort require to complete a Doctor of Professional Studies degree is at least equivalent to that required for a PhD.
Specific degree characteristics vary by country and institution. In 2011, the UK's Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education published an overview of degree characteristics for all doctoral level degrees.[6]
List of Schools Offering Doctor of Professional Studies Degrees[edit]
- In the United Kingdom
- Anglia Ruskin University (DProf) - In Laws [1]
- Bournemouth University (DProf) - In digital media [2] and creative industries [3]
- London Metropolitan University (ProfDoc) - In health psychology [4] and Policing, Security and Community Safety [5]
- Middlesex University (DProf) - Interdisciplinary.[6]
- Swansea University (DProf) - Health, Social Work and Higher Education [7]
- University of Central Lancashire (DProf) - In health. [8]
- University of Chester (DProf) - A terminal degree program for working professionals offered through the Centre for Work Related Studies. The Chester Centre for Work Related Studies
- University of East London (ProfDoc) - In counseling psychology [9]
- University of Derby (DProf) - In business. [10]
- University of Middlesex (DProf) - A work-based, professional doctorate for working professionals [11]
- University of Salford (ProfDoc) - In the built environment [12]
- University of Sunderland (DProf) - Interdisciplinary [13]
- University of Westminster (DProf) - In Health Sciences [14]
- In the United States
- Albany Medical College (DPS) - In bioethics, with concentrations in health ethics and policy. [15]
- Carnegie Mellon University (DPP) - In Architecture. [16]
- New York University (DPS) - In occupational therapy with specializations offered in pediatrics and upper quadrant care.[17]
- Pace University (DPS) - The first executive doctoral program in the world.[18]
- Syracuse University (DPS) - In Information Management.[19]
- Shenandoah University (DProf) - In Organizational Leadership.[20]
- In other countries
See also[edit]
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Doctor of Business Administration
- Doctor of Education
- Doctor of Music
- Doctor of Psychology
- Doctor Liberalium Artium
- ^ Gill, Grandon; Hoppe, Uwe (2009). "The Business Professional Doctorate as an Informing Channel: A Survey and Analysis" (PDF). International Journal of Doctoral Studies 4: 27–57. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
- ^ Powell, Stuart. "Professional Doctorate Awards in the UK, 2005" (PDF). https://www2.le.ac.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2015. External link in
- ^ Brown, Kathryn. "Professional Doctorate Awards in the UK, 2010" (PDF). http://www2.le.ac.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2015. External link in
- ^ McWilliam, E (2002). "What can be learned from professional doctorates".
- ^ Fink, Dieter (2006). "The Professional Doctorate: Its Relativity to the PhD and Relevance for the Knowledge Economy" (PDF). International Journal of Doctoral Studies 1 (1).
- ^ QAA. "Doctoral degree characteristics" (PDF). http://www.qaa.ac.uk. he Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education. Retrieved 31 January 2015. External link in


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The RMPP is a red-meat sector and government collaboration
designed to boost sheep and beef farmer productivity and
It is being funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries
through its Primary Growth Partnership, as well as by
industry partners Alliance Group, ANZCO Foods, ANZ Bank, Beef
and Lamb New Zealand, Blue Sky Meats, Greenlea Premier Meats,
Progressive Meats, Rabobank and Silver Fern Farms.
Mrs Smith (35) and her husband Blair - winners of the 2012
national Ballance Farm Environment Awards - run Newhaven
Farms Ltd, a sheep, beef, forestry and dairy support
operation in North Otago.
When contacted, Mrs Smith said the RMPP was a ''wonderful
opportunity'' for the industry. However, it also presented a
significant challenge and was quite a responsibility.
''We need to make sure we get these returns from these
projects,'' she said.
Making it work and delivering on those things was not just
for the board to do, but also all farmers, she said.
It was the first time in the history of the industry the
various players had worked together on such an initiative,
along with the Crown.
The RMPP's newly appointed board includes chairman Malcolm
Bailey, Beef and Lamb NZ chief executive Scott Champion, Blue
Sky Meats chairman Graham Cooney, Brown Glassford director
Graham Brown and two independent directors - Lone Star Farms
owner Tom Sturgess and Mrs Smith.
Mr Bailey said the programme was about taking on board the
output of the red meat sector strategy - which was launched
in 2011 with the aim of almost doubling the value of the
sector's earnings - and setting up projects to deliver on
various recommendations.
'' It's not about structural change in the industry, it's
about focusing on what is within farmer control - and there
is significant financial upside from these projects,'' he
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text:
The full text of President Abraham Lincoln's letter to Civil War mother Lydia Bixby, who was thought to have lost five sons in battle:
Executive Mansion, Washington, Nov 21, 1864.
To Mrs. Bixby, Boston, Mass.
Dear Madam,
I have been shown in the files of the War Department a statement of the Adjutant General of Massachusetts that you are the mother of five (5) sons who have died gloriously on the field of battle.
I feel how weak and fruitless must be any word of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from tendering you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the republic they died to save. I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.
Yours, very sincerely and respectfully,
A Lincoln.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)


text:
The Senate has passed anti-wage discrimination
legislation reversing a Supreme Court decision that made it more
difficult for workers who find out they get paid less than their
colleagues to file claims.
The House is expected to move quickly to approve the bill and
send it to the White House, where is could be one of the first
major bills signed by President Barack Obama.
Lilly Ledbetter who was in the Capitol to watch the debate, said
it was only at the end of her 19-year career at a Goodyear Tire &
Rubber Co. plant in Gadsden - when someone left an anonymous note
in her mailbox - that she became aware that she was getting paid
less than her male counterparts.


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The Central Kentucky News-Journal would like to inform readers and classified advertisers about an attempted scam.
Several customers of newspapers across the state have reported being contacted by telephone by individuals falsely identifying themselves as an employee of the classified advertising department.
On Tuesday, Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway issued a warning to customers who have purchased classified ads in newspapers that they could be targeted by scam artists and should not give out personal information over the phone.
Note: School bus routes are published in their entirety in Thursday's print edition. Watch Monday's issue for information on school dress codes.
Local students will soon have to set their alarms again to make sure they're on time for the start of the school day.
Campbellsville, Taylor County and Kentucky Christian School students begin classes Wednesday, Aug. 5.
Starting times might not be changing much this year, but a change at Taylor County Schools will see its students leaving school early each Friday.
Taylor County Schools may have ended the fiscal year in better shape than most, but that's no reason to relax, Superintendent Roger Cook told Board members at last Monday's regular meeting.
The District ended the 2008-2009 fiscal year with $750,000 - a 4 percent carryover. And while that is double what the state requires, Cook said the District still needs to be frugal.
A 78,000-pound truck nearly fell in an old septic tank just off Main Street on Monday.
Mel Robey, a driver for T&C Stone Slinging of Bardstown, got out of his truck after arriving with his fourth load of stone at the Artesania's Angel Handcrafted Pottery building at 126 E. Main St.
The incident occurred behind Artesania's and between the buildings housing Sapp Antiques and Café Bonin.
An old private septic tank beneath the truck gave way and the truck wheels fell in, causing the truck to lean nearly against the Sapp Antique building.
The totals are in. This year's Click It or Ticket enforcement effort, coordinated by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's Office of Highway Safety, cited 23,253 motorists for not buckling up.
The annual campaign, supported by more than 250 local law enforcement agencies and Kentucky State Police, took place May 18-31.
A Campbellsville University student athlete died Monday night after a single vehicle wreck on the Martha Layne Collins Bluegrass Parkway about six miles east of the I-65 junction.
According to Kentucky State Police, Ben G. Napier, 19, of Elizabethtown was traveling west on the parkway when he lost control of the 1991 Buick Park Avenue he was driving.
A KSP report states that the Buick's left-side tires entered the median, prompting Napier to overcorrect, causing the car to spin across the westbound lanes of the parkway.
A Campbellsville man was treated for injuries after he struck an SUV while driving his motor scooter along U.S. 68 on Friday afternoon.
According to a Campbellsville Police report, at about 5:20 p.m., William Potts, 75, was attempting to make a left turn from U.S. 68 onto KY 210 on his motor scooter when he lost control and struck a 2006 Land Rover driven by Dong Han, 27, of Campbellsville.
Potts was transported to Taylor Regional Hospital by Campbellsville/Taylor Rescue. He was admitted and released the next day.
From the proper way to inject cattle to the outlook from the Kentucky Legislature, beef producers got a wide range of information from the first-ever Tri-County Beef Day on Saturday.
A joint project of the Cattlemen's Associations in Adair, Green and Taylor counties and the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, the event attracted about 225 people.
Taking place at the Green County Cattlemen's Marketing Center, the event featured four presentations followed by a ribeye steak lunch.
He huffed, and he puffed, and he blew the ship down. Down the rain gutter anyway.
The annual Cub Scout rain gutter regatta was Tuesday night in Miller Park.
According to Pack 777 Cub Master Daniel Leathers, the event is one of several Cub Scout activities planned during the summer months.
Leathers said the regatta, which is a boat race using rain gutters, is similar to the pinewood derby, which the group hosts every January.
A Campbellsville teenager will travel to the Bahamas next week to represent Kentucky in the Miss Teen USA competition.
Jefra Bland, 19, competed last December against 36 other teens from around the state to win the Miss Kentucky Teen USA crown at Murray State University.
Bland, the daughter of Jeff and Vicki Bland of Campbellsville, attends the University of Kentucky in Lexington.
For more on this story and others, see Monday's print edition.
Copyright © 2016
The Central Kentucky News-Journal is your source for local news, sports, events, and information in Campbellsville, KY and the surrounding area.


text:
on December 26, 2013 - 12:01 AM
Sara M. Zak is a quintessentially Buffalonian painter.
Her oil paintings, which mix abstract imagery with depictions of the city's post-industrial landscape, are about slow but inexorable progress toward an imagined goal. She might spend hours painting a particular part of the scene, only to erase the entire thing with turpentine, leaving the faint impression of a line or brushstroke. Then she starts again, gradually adding layers and figures, until she achieves a final product that serves as a record of progress as much as a static image. The parallels to Buffalo's ongoing recovery are tough to ignore.
A new body of work by Zak, "A Crowd of Small Metamorphoses," opens Friday in 464 Gallery (464 Amherst St.) and remains on view through Jan. 8. The show is titled after a quote from Jean-Paul Sartre's book "Nausea," which has a particular resonance in Zak's work and in the city's current revivalist mind-set: "A crowd of small metamorphoses accumulate in me without my noticing it, and then, one fine day, a veritable revolution takes place."
The opening reception runs from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday. Call 983-2112 or visit www.464gallery.com.
– Colin Dabkowski


text:
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Clarion Hotel Stockholm is located on Sodermalm – a district famous for its large selection of restaurants, bars, shopping and galleries. The hotel has a spa, inspired by Ayurveda – Elements Spa, bars and a restaurant.
Clarion Hotel Stockholm isn't just a meeting point for locals, it's also an international event, conference and business hotel, ideally located on Södermalm in Stockholm.
With our proximity to Stockholm's attractions, walking distance to tourist areas in the Old Town and the event area at the Globe and Tele2 Arena next door, our guests can choose from virtually anything, just around the corner. Skanstull metro station is just 50 metres from the hotel, only four stops from Stockholm's central station and Stockholm city. Find out more about Stockholm here.
The hotel is located on Södermalm in Stockholm, a vibrant district known for its effervescent atmosphere and range of shops, trendy restaurants, charming cafés and art galleries. Drawing inspiration from the local area, we offer an exciting hotel environment for both business travellers and weekend guests.
Our lively bar, relaxed restaurant and attentive staff mean our guests are able to experience the life and soul of the city within the walls of our hotel. Get a true taste of South and Central America in the hotel restaurant Eatery Social – we're just as happy to see you for a quick drink as for a three course meal with family and friends. During the warmer months, what could be better than a refreshing aperitif out on the terrace?
A period of relaxation and a moment's peace is invaluable for anyone wanting to escape the stress of work or the fast pace of the city. Whether it's exercise or relaxation you're after, you'll leave Elements Spa with a feeling of warmth and comfort.
We have a number of specially configured rooms for disabled guests, designed to facilitate your stay if you have a certain disability or are in a wheelchair. Please don't hesitate to contact us for more information about our specially configured rooms and facilities for disabled guests.
We wish you a warm welcome to Clarion Hotel Stockholm - the vibrant meeting point on Södermalm.
Green line south to Skanstull.
Bus 3, 4, 55 or 74 to Skanstull.
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We recommend TAXI STOCKHOLM, Taxi 020 or Taxi Kurir.
532 rooms – 1064 beds
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Arlanda Airport: 42 km, approx. 45–60 minutesBromma Airport: 14 km, approx. 20–30 minutes
Skanstull bus stop: 50 metresSkanstull metro station: 50 metresStockholm Central Station: 2 km, approx. 10 minutesSJ train departs from here, Arlanda Express and Shuttles.
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Hi there,
I have installed this theme on my site and it's really cool - thanks!!
The only problem I have come accross is the display of the front page banner image on an iphone.
It appears perfectly on every other browser that I have tried (even safari on windows) but on the iphone (safari of course) the image is only about a third of its normal width...
Any ideas how I can correct this in the code? This is important to me as I will be offering mp3 downloads to mobile phones so I really need the iphone display to work correctly.
My site is liamgall.com.
Here's a link to how the front page looks on my iphone: http://www.liamgall.com/images/banner_issue.png
Thanks in advance!


text:
Who will I be working with in the Natural Resouces Law Program?
Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan serves as Academic Chair and ASL's first Street Memorial Distinguished Visitor in Real Estate Law. She was the 1994 El Paso Fellow at the University of Colorado Natural Resources Law Center. She has served as Virginia's chief deputy attorney general, as a judge on the Virginia Court of Appeals for eight years, and was elevated in 2011 to the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Professor Patrick R. Baker, Director, Natural Resources Law Center. Professor Baker teaches Oil & Gas Law, Water Law, and Coal and Hard Mineral Law. In addition to serving as Director of the Natural Resources Law Center, he is currently leading efforts to enhance and expand the natural resources law program and establish a legal clinic. Before joining ASL, Professor Baker practiced at one of Virginia's leading mineral and energy firms, PennStuart & Eskridge. His scholarship focuses on natural resources and energy law issues.
Professor Priscilla Harris teaches Environmental Law and Torts. Before joining the faculty, she practiced in the areas of environmental law and land use. She chairs the faculty recruitment committee and her scholarship focuses on environmental issues, women's rights and public health law.
Assistant Professor Mason Heidt teaches Coal Law and Appellate Advocacy Natural Resources. Professor Heidt received his B.S. from Emory and Henry College in Emory, VA and his J.D. from the George Washington University School of Law. Professor Heidt has also received a Master of Science degree in Environmental Science from the University of Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia.
Associate Professor Hillary Burgess Leary teaches Agricultural Law and Property. Professor Burgess Leary received her A.B from University of Chicago, The College, in Chicago, IL and her J.D. from North Carolina School of Law at Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Professor Burgess Leary also participated in the Penn State Dickinson School of Law Study Abroad in Europe.
Distinguished Visitors In Natural Resources Law
Judge Judith Williams Jagdmann. Born November 3, 1958, in Norton, Virginia, Judge Jagdmann was educated at the University of Virginia where she graduated with distinction. She received her law degree from the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond. Prior to being elected to the Commission, she was the 43rd Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Virginia, serving from 2005-2006. From 1998-2005, Jagdmann served as the Deputy Attorney General for the Civil Litigation Division. Before her work in the Office of Attorney General, she served for 13 years as counsel to the SCC and its staff on securities and utility matters. Her service as an SCC Commissioner began in 2006. She and her husband (Joe) are the parents of two children.
Will Reisinger serves as an Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the Attorney General of Virginia. Mr. Reisinger represents the citizens of the Commonwealth in energy and utility matters before the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Supreme Court of Virginia. Prior to joining the Attorney General's Office, he served as a staff attorney for a non-profit environmental organization, where he worked to enforce state and federal environmental laws and renewable energy standards. Mr. Reisinger has published articles about various energy and utility matters, including federal climate legislation, state renewable energy portfolio standards, and the impact of Clean Air Act regulations on coal-fired power plants. He serves on the governing board of the Virginia State Bar's Administrative Law Section.


text:
Workers noticed suspicious powder on the mail bag shortly after 8 a.m. Wednesday. State Public Safety Director Christopher Murphy said the mail bag may have accidentally touched some type of white powder rather than it being intentional.
Murphy says the mail bag appears unrelated to a white powder
letter sent to Gov. Bob Riley and the governors in several other
states on Monday from Dallas. That powder also turned out to be
Both incidents caused disruptions in the Capitol complex because fire trucks, emergency crews and hazardous materials teams were called out. Murphy said the response Wednesday was appropriate because no one wants to take a report lightly and then have someone injured.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)