Worldpay Paints an Optimistic Post-Acquisition Picture

Since the official birth of the new Worldpay in January — U.S.-based Vantiv bought U.K.-based Worldpay and kept the name — the company has realized at least $10 million in “cost synergies,” the payment processor said on Thursday (May 10).

The payment processor expects those cost synergies to reach $45 million for the whole of 2018, said chief financial officer Stephanie Ferris during the post-earnings conference call Wednesday.

The acquisition contributed to the 81 percent year-over-year revenue jump in the first quarter, to $851 million, which beat analyst forecasts of nearly $839 million. “Had we owned Worldpay in both the current and prior periods, our combined net revenue growth would have been 12 percent, demonstrating the strength of the underlining business momentum,” said Charles Drucker, Worldpay executive chairman and co-CEO, during the call.

Worldpay’s 81 cents earnings per share in the first quarter, a 19 percent year-over-year increase, beat analyst expectations of 77 cents. “Based upon our strong first quarter performance, we are increasing our guidance for the full year, raising our net revenue range by $10 million and our adjusted EPS range by 5 cents,” Drucker said.

The payment processor predicts revenue in the second quarter of $960 million to $980 million, with earnings per share of 93 cents to 96 cents. For the full year, Worldpay says revenue will come in at between $3.8 billion and $3.9 billion, with earnings per share at $3.71 and $3.81.

Beyond the $10 billion acquisition, first quarter results benefited from growth in the company’s Technology Solutions segment, where revenue hit $336 million, up about 29 percent on a pro forma basis, Drucker said. “In addition, we had several exciting new wins this quarter, including restaurants, retailers, airlines and financial institutions,” he said.

Drucker said Merchant Solutions “exceeded our expectations” during the first quarter, with revenue up 5 percent on a pro forma basis, reaching $432 million. That growth reflected “robust consumer spending across the U.S. during the first quarter,” he said.

Meanwhile, revenue for Issuer Solutions declined 4 percent, to about $82 million. That’s “slightly better than our mid-single-digit expectations, as the underlying trends in the business remain healthy, giving us continued confidence that Issuer Solutions will return to growth in the back half of the year,” Drucker said during the call.

Drucker also announced client wins for the first quarter, including IDT Telecom, which sells prepaid telecommunications, along with Paddy Power Betfair, PAY-ASIA.com, and Supernova. “We also won leading airlines, including a multiyear contract for global eCommerce with Qantas,” the Australian airline, he said.