Fiserv reports first quarter 2023 results
Brookfield, wis.--(business wire)--fiserv, inc. (nasdaq: fisv), a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology solutions, today reported financial results for the first quarter of 2023. first quarter 2023 gaap results gaap revenue for the company increased 10% to $4.55 billion in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the prior year period, with 12% growth in the acceptance segment, 2% growth in the fintech segment and 11% growth in the payments segment. gaap earnings per share was $0.89 in the first quarter of 2023, a decrease of 13% compared to the prior year period. the first quarter of 2022 included a $91 million pre-tax net gain related to certain equity investment transactions. gaap operating margin was 20.5% in both the first quarter of 2023 and 2022. net cash provided by operating activities was $1.13 billion in the first quarter of 2023 compared to $815 million in the prior year period. “our strong first quarter results reflect our leadership position and focused execution in an uncertain economic environment,” said frank bisignano, chairman, president and chief executive officer of fiserv. “our merchant business continued to outperform, while our payments and fintech segments demonstrated the depth of our financial institution client partnerships, as we provided support and innovation through a volatile period.” first quarter 2023 non-gaap results and additional information adjusted revenue increased 10% to $4.28 billion in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the prior year period. organic revenue growth was 13% in the first quarter of 2023, led by 18% growth in the acceptance segment, 3% growth in the fintech segment and 13% growth in the payments segment. adjusted earnings per share increased 13% to $1.58 in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the prior year period. adjusted operating margin increased 160 basis points to 33.6% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the prior year period. free cash flow was $861 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared to $603 million in the prior year period. the company repurchased 13.3 million shares of common stock for $1.5 billion in the first quarter of 2023. the company completed a public offering of $1.8 billion of 5-year and 10-year senior notes with a weighted average coupon rate of 5.525%. fiserv was named to fortune® america’s most innovative companies and forbes list of america’s best large employers. outlook for 2023 fiserv raises full year 2023 outlook and now expects organic revenue growth of 8% to 9% and adjusted earnings per share of $7.30 to $7.40, representing growth of 12% to 14%. “we raised our 2023 organic revenue and adjusted eps guidance based on our strong first quarter results. our guidance for the year is tempered only by the potential for a weaker, second-half economy,” said bisignano. “we are proud of the recognition we received as a leading innovator and employer in the first quarter, and remain focused on our clients, pursuing operational excellence, and continuing to innovate.” earnings conference call the company will discuss its first quarter 2023 results in a live webcast at 7 a.m. ct on tuesday, april 25, 2023. the webcast, along with supplemental financial information, can be accessed on the investor relations section of the fiserv website at investors.fiserv.com. a replay will be available approximately one hour after the conclusion of the live webcast. about fiserv fiserv, inc. (nasdaq: fisv) aspires to move money and information in a way that moves the world. as a global leader in payments and financial technology, the company helps clients achieve best-in-class results through a commitment to innovation and excellence in areas including account processing and digital banking solutions; card issuer processing and network services; payments; e-commerce; merchant acquiring and processing; and the clover® cloud-based point-of-sale and business management platform. fiserv is a member of the s&p 500® index and one of fortune® world’s most admired companies™. visit fiserv.com and follow on social media for more information and the latest company news. use of non-gaap financial measures in this news release, the company supplements its reporting of information determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“gaap”), such as revenue, operating income, operating margin, net income attributable to fiserv, diluted earnings per share and net cash provided by operating activities, with “adjusted revenue,” “adjusted revenue growth,” “organic revenue,” “organic revenue growth,” “adjusted operating income,” “adjusted operating margin,” “adjusted net income,” “adjusted earnings per share,” “adjusted earnings per share growth,” and “free cash flow.” management believes that adjustments for certain non-cash or other items and the exclusion of certain pass-through revenue and expenses should enhance shareholders' ability to evaluate the company’s performance, as such measures provide additional insights into the factors and trends affecting its business. therefore, the company excludes these items from its gaap financial measures to calculate these unaudited non-gaap measures. the corresponding reconciliations of these unaudited non-gaap financial measures to the most comparable gaap measures are included in this news release, except for forward-looking measures where a reconciliation to the corresponding gaap measures is not available due to the variability, complexity and limited visibility of the non-cash and other items described below that are excluded from the non-gaap outlook measures. see page 14 for additional information regarding the company’s forward-looking non-gaap financial measures. examples of non-cash or other items may include, but are not limited to, non-cash intangible asset amortization expense associated with acquisitions; non-cash impairment charges; severance costs; net charges associated with debt financing activities; merger and integration costs; gains or losses from the sale of businesses, certain assets or investments; certain discrete tax benefits and expenses; and non-cash deferred revenue adjustments relating to the 2019 acquisition of first data corporation. the company excludes these items to more clearly focus on the factors management believes are pertinent to the company’s operations, and management uses this information to make operating decisions, including the allocation of resources to the company’s various businesses. the company adjusts its non-gaap results to exclude amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets as such amounts are inconsistent in amount and frequency and are significantly impacted by the timing and/or size of acquisitions. management believes that the adjustment of acquisition-related intangible asset amortization supplements gaap information with a measure that can be used to assess the comparability of operating performance. although the company excludes amortization from acquisition-related intangible assets from its non-gaap expenses, management believes that it is important for investors to understand that such intangible assets were recorded as part of purchase accounting and contribute to revenue generation. management believes organic revenue growth is useful because it presents adjusted revenue growth excluding the impact of foreign currency fluctuations, acquisitions, dispositions and the company’s output solutions postage reimbursements and including deferred revenue purchase accounting adjustments. management believes free cash flow is useful to measure the funds generated in a given period that are available for debt service requirements and strategic capital decisions. management believes this supplemental information enhances shareholders’ ability to evaluate and understand the company’s core business performance. these unaudited non-gaap measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies and should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, revenue, operating income, operating margin, net income attributable to fiserv, diluted earnings per share and net cash provided by operating activities or any other amount determined in accordance with gaap. forward-looking statements this news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the private securities litigation reform act of 1995, including statements regarding anticipated organic revenue growth, adjusted earnings per share, adjusted earnings per share growth and other statements regarding our future financial performance. statements can generally be identified as forward-looking because they include words such as “believes,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “could,” “should,” or words of similar meaning. statements that describe the company’s future plans, objectives or goals are also forward-looking statements. forward-looking statements are subject to assumptions, risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. the factors that could cause the company’s actual results to differ materially include, among others, the following: the company’s ability to compete effectively against new and existing competitors and to continue to introduce competitive new products and services on a timely, cost-effective basis; changes in customer demand for the company’s products and services; the ability of the company’s technology to keep pace with a rapidly evolving marketplace; the success of the company’s merchant alliances, some of which are not controlled by the company; the continuing impact of the covid-19 pandemic on the company’s employees, clients, vendors, supply chain, operations and sales; the impact of a security breach or operational failure on the company’s business, including disruptions caused by other participants in the global financial system; losses due to chargebacks, refunds or returns as a result of fraud or the failure of the company’s vendors and merchants to satisfy their obligations; changes in local, regional, national and international economic or political conditions, including those resulting from heightened inflation, rising interest rates, a recession, or intensified international hostilities, and the impact they may have on the company and its customers; the effect of proposed and enacted legislative and regulatory actions affecting the company or the financial services industry as a whole; the company’s ability to comply with government regulations and applicable card association and network rules; the protection and validity of intellectual property rights; the outcome of pending and future litigation and governmental proceedings; the company’s ability to successfully identify, complete and integrate acquisitions, and to realize the anticipated benefits associated with the same; the impact of the company’s strategic initiatives; the company’s ability to attract and retain key personnel; volatility and disruptions in financial markets that may impact the company’s ability to access preferred sources of financing and the terms on which the company is able to obtain financing or increase its costs of borrowing; adverse impacts from currency exchange rates or currency controls; changes in corporate tax and interest rates; and other factors included in “risk factors” in the company’s annual report on form 10-k for the year ended december 31, 2022, and in other documents that the company files with the securities and exchange commission, which are available at http://www.sec.gov. you should consider these factors carefully in evaluating forward-looking statements and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements. the company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release. fiserv, inc. condensed consolidated statements of income (in millions, except per share amounts, unaudited) three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 revenue processing and services $ 3,673 $ 3,364 product 874 774 total revenue 4,547 4,138 expenses cost of processing and services 1,405 1,436 cost of product 600 536 selling, general and administrative 1,604 1,467 net loss (gain) on sale of businesses and other assets 4 (147 ) total expenses 3,613 3,292 operating income 934 846 interest expense, net (202 ) (168 ) other expense (20 ) (4 ) income before income taxes and (loss) income from investments in unconsolidated affiliates 712 674 income tax provision (124 ) (98 ) (loss) income from investments in unconsolidated affiliates (12 ) 106 net income 576 682 less: net income attributable to noncontrolling interests 13 13 net income attributable to fiserv $ 563 $ 669 gaap earnings per share attributable to fiserv — diluted $ 0.89 $ 1.02 diluted shares used in computing earnings per share attributable to fiserv 631.3 657.2 earnings per share is calculated using actual, unrounded amounts. fiserv, inc. reconciliation of gaap to adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share (in millions, except per share amounts, unaudited) three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 gaap net income attributable to fiserv $ 563 $ 669 adjustments: merger and integration costs 1 48 22 severance costs 24 52 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 2 427 475 non wholly-owned entity activities 3 38 (56 ) net loss (gain) on sale of businesses and other assets 4 4 (147 ) tax impact of adjustments 5 (108 ) (94 ) adjusted net income $ 996 $ 921 gaap earnings per share attributable to fiserv - diluted $ 0.89 $ 1.02 adjustments - net of income taxes: merger and integration costs 1 0.06 0.03 severance costs 0.03 0.06 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 2 0.54 0.57 non wholly-owned entity activities 3 0.05 (0.07 ) net loss (gain) on sale of businesses and other assets 4 — (0.21 ) adjusted earnings per share $ 1.58 $ 1.40 gaap earnings per share attributable to fiserv decrease (13 ) % adjusted earnings per share growth 13 % earnings per share is calculated using actual, unrounded amounts. 1 represents acquisition and related integration costs incurred in connection with various acquisitions. merger and integration costs in the first quarter of 2023 include $20 million of share-based compensation and $14 million of third-party professional service fees associated with integration activities. merger and integration costs in the first quarter of 2022 include $10 million of share-based compensation attributable to various acquisitions. 2 represents amortization of intangible assets acquired through various acquisitions, including customer relationships, software/technology and trade names. this adjustment does not exclude the amortization of other intangible assets such as contract costs (sales commissions and deferred conversion costs), capitalized and purchased software, financing costs and debt discounts. see additional information on page 13 for an analysis of the company's amortization expense. 3 represents the company’s share of amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets at its unconsolidated affiliates, as well as the minority interest share of amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets at its subsidiaries in which the company holds a controlling financial interest. this adjustment for the first quarter of 2022 also includes a net gain totaling $91 million related to certain equity investment transactions. 4 represents a net loss in the first quarter of 2023 primarily associated with final working capital adjustments related to the sale of fiserv costa rica, s.a. during the fourth quarter of 2022 and a gain on the sale of certain merchant contracts during the first quarter of 2022 in conjunction with the mutual termination of one of the company's merchant alliance joint ventures. 5 the tax impact of adjustments is calculated using a tax rate of 20% and 21% in the first quarters of 2023 and 2022, respectively, which approximates the company's anticipated annual effective tax rates, exclusive of the $9 million actual tax impact on the sale of certain merchant contracts during the first quarter of 2022. fiserv, inc. financial results by segment (in millions, unaudited) three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 total company revenue $ 4,547 $ 4,138 adjustments: output solutions postage reimbursements (273 ) (239 ) deferred revenue purchase accounting adjustments 6 7 adjusted revenue $ 4,280 $ 3,906 operating income $ 934 $ 846 adjustments: merger and integration costs 1 48 22 severance costs 24 52 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 427 475 net loss (gain) on sale of businesses and other assets 4 (147 ) adjusted operating income $ 1,437 $ 1,248 operating margin 20.5 % 20.5 % adjusted operating margin 33.6 % 32.0 % merchant acceptance (“acceptance”) 2 revenue $ 1,847 $ 1,653 operating income $ 562 $ 470 operating margin 30.5 % 28.4 % financial technology (“fintech”) 2 revenue $ 792 $ 778 operating income $ 280 $ 275 operating margin 35.4 % 35.4 % payments and network (“payments”) revenue $ 1,629 $ 1,462 adjustments: deferred revenue purchase accounting adjustments 6 7 adjusted revenue $ 1,635 $ 1,469 operating income $ 711 $ 618 adjustments: deferred revenue purchase accounting adjustments 6 7 adjusted operating income $ 717 $ 625 operating margin 43.6 % 42.3 % adjusted operating margin 43.8 % 42.5 % fiserv, inc. financial results by segment (cont.) (in millions, unaudited) three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 corporate and other revenue $ 279 $ 245 adjustments: output solutions postage reimbursements (273 ) (239 ) adjusted revenue $ 6 $ 6 operating loss $ (619 ) $ (517 ) adjustments: merger and integration costs 42 15 severance costs 24 52 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 427 475 net loss (gain) on sale of businesses and other assets 4 (147 ) adjusted operating loss $ (122 ) $ (122 ) see pages 3-4 for disclosures related to the use of non-gaap financial measures. operating margin percentages are calculated using actual, unrounded amounts. 1 includes the deferred revenue purchase accounting adjustments in the payments segment related to the 2019 acquisition of first data corporation. adjustments for this residual activity will conclude by december 31, 2023. 2 for all periods presented in the acceptance and fintech segments, there were no adjustments to gaap measures presented and thus the adjusted measures are equal to the gaap measures presented. fiserv, inc. condensed consolidated statements of cash flows (in millions, unaudited) three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 cash flows from operating activities net income $ 576 $ 682 adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: depreciation and other amortization 352 313 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 433 486 amortization of financing costs and debt discounts 10 11 share-based compensation 93 61 deferred income taxes (87 ) (183 ) net loss (gain) on sale of businesses and other assets 4 (147 ) loss (income) from investments in unconsolidated affiliates 12 (106 ) distributions from unconsolidated affiliates 11 19 other operating activities (1 ) 3 changes in assets and liabilities, net of effects from acquisitions and dispositions: trade accounts receivable 255 (60 ) prepaid expenses and other assets (224 ) (130 ) contract costs (66 ) (88 ) accounts payable and other liabilities (336 ) (78 ) contract liabilities 98 32 net cash provided by operating activities 1,130 815 cash flows from investing activities capital expenditures, including capitalized software and other intangibles (339 ) (331 ) net proceeds from sale of businesses and other assets — 175 distributions from unconsolidated affiliates 34 61 purchases of investments (5 ) (8 ) proceeds from sale of investments — 3 other investing activities (4 ) — net cash used in investing activities (314 ) (100 ) cash flows from financing activities debt proceeds 2,071 705 debt repayments (424 ) (1,086 ) net (repayments of) proceeds from commercial paper and short-term borrowings (781 ) 218 payments of debt financing costs (15 ) — proceeds from issuance of treasury stock 29 43 purchases of treasury stock, including employee shares withheld for tax obligations (1,530 ) (544 ) settlement activity, net (460 ) (400 ) distributions paid to noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests (8 ) (13 ) other financing activities (31 ) — net cash used in financing activities (1,149 ) (1,077 ) effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents 17 (10 ) net change in cash and cash equivalents (316 ) (372 ) cash and cash equivalents, beginning balance 3,192 3,205 cash and cash equivalents, ending balance $ 2,876 $ 2,833 fiserv, inc. condensed consolidated balance sheets (in millions, unaudited) march 31, december 31, 2023 2022 assets cash and cash equivalents $ 1,046 $ 902 trade accounts receivable – net 3,340 3,585 prepaid expenses and other current assets 1,762 1,575 settlement assets 14,141 21,482 total current assets 20,289 27,544 property and equipment – net 2,002 1,958 customer relationships – net 7,973 8,424 other intangible assets – net 4,021 3,991 goodwill 37,017 36,811 contract costs – net 912 905 investments in unconsolidated affiliates 2,362 2,403 other long-term assets 1,972 1,833 total assets $ 76,548 $ 83,869 liabilities and equity accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 3,569 $ 3,883 short-term and current maturities of long-term debt 461 468 contract liabilities 692 625 settlement obligations 14,141 21,482 total current liabilities 18,863 26,458 long-term debt 21,943 20,950 deferred income taxes 3,520 3,602 long-term contract liabilities 273 235 other long-term liabilities 995 936 total liabilities 45,594 52,181 redeemable noncontrolling interests 160 161 fiserv shareholders' equity 30,077 30,828 noncontrolling interests 717 699 total equity 30,794 31,527 total liabilities and equity $ 76,548 $ 83,869 fiserv, inc. selected non-gaap financial measures and additional information (in millions, unaudited) organic revenue growth 1 three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 growth total company adjusted revenue $ 4,280 $ 3,906 currency impact 2 109 — acquisition adjustments (17 ) — divestiture adjustments (6 ) (39 ) organic revenue $ 4,366 $ 3,867 13 % acceptance adjusted revenue $ 1,847 $ 1,653 currency impact 2 86 — acquisition adjustments (14 ) — divestiture adjustments — (23 ) organic revenue $ 1,919 $ 1,630 18 % fintech adjusted revenue $ 792 $ 778 currency impact 2 2 — acquisition adjustments (3 ) — divestiture adjustments — (10 ) organic revenue $ 791 $ 768 3 % payments adjusted revenue $ 1,635 $ 1,469 currency impact 2 21 — organic revenue $ 1,656 $ 1,469 13 % corporate and other adjusted revenue $ 6 $ 6 divestiture adjustments (6 ) (6 ) organic revenue $ — $ — see pages 3-4 for disclosures related to the use of non-gaap financial measures. organic revenue growth is calculated using actual, unrounded amounts. 1 organic revenue growth is measured as the change in adjusted revenue (see pages 8-9) for the current period excluding the impact of foreign currency fluctuations and revenue attributable to acquisitions and dispositions, divided by adjusted revenue from the prior period excluding revenue attributable to dispositions. 2 currency impact is measured as the increase or decrease in adjusted revenue for the current period by applying prior period foreign currency exchange rates to present a constant currency comparison to prior periods. fiserv, inc. selected non-gaap financial measures and additional information (cont.) (in millions, unaudited) free cash flow three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 net cash provided by operating activities $ 1,130 $ 815 capital expenditures (339 ) (331 ) adjustments: distributions paid to noncontrolling interests and redeemable noncontrolling interests (8 ) (13 ) distributions from unconsolidated affiliates included in cash flows from investing activities 34 61 severance, merger and integration payments 55 102 tax payments on adjustments (11 ) (21 ) other — (10 ) free cash flow $ 861 $ 603 total amortization 1 three months ended march 31, 2023 2022 acquisition-related intangible assets $ 433 $ 486 capitalized software and other intangibles 108 80 purchased software 54 58 financing costs and debt discounts 10 11 sales commissions 28 25 deferred conversion costs 20 16 total amortization $ 653 $ 676 see pages 3-4 for disclosures related to the use of non-gaap financial measures. 1 the company adjusts its non-gaap results to exclude amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets as such amounts are inconsistent in amount and frequency and are significantly impacted by the timing and/or size of acquisitions. management believes that the adjustment of acquisition-related intangible asset amortization supplements the gaap information with a measure that can be used to assess the comparability of operating performance. although the company excludes amortization from acquisition-related intangible assets from its non-gaap expenses, management believes that it is important for investors to understand that such intangible assets were recorded as part of purchase accounting and contribute to revenue generation. amortization of intangible assets that relate to past acquisitions will recur in future periods until such intangible assets have been fully amortized. any future acquisitions may result in the amortization of additional intangible assets. fiserv, inc. full year forward-looking non-gaap financial measures reconciliations of unaudited non-gaap financial measures to the most comparable gaap measures are included in this news release, except for forward-looking measures where a reconciliation to the corresponding gaap measures is not available due to the variability, complexity and limited visibility of these items that are excluded from the non-gaap outlook measures. the company’s forward-looking non-gaap financial measures for 2023, including organic revenue growth, adjusted earnings per share and adjusted earnings per share growth, are designed to enhance shareholders’ ability to evaluate the company’s performance by excluding certain items to focus on factors and trends affecting its business. organic revenue growth - the company's organic revenue growth outlook for 2023 excludes the impact of foreign currency fluctuations, acquisitions, dispositions and the impact of the company's output solutions postage reimbursements. the currency impact is measured as the increase or decrease in the expected adjusted revenue for the period by applying prior period foreign currency exchange rates to present a constant currency comparison to prior periods. growth 2023 revenue 6% - 7% output solutions postage reimbursements (1.0)% 2023 adjusted revenue 5% - 6% currency impact 2.5% acquisition adjustments (0.5)% divestiture adjustments 1.0% 2023 organic revenue 8% - 9% adjusted earnings per share - the company's adjusted earnings per share outlook for 2023 excludes certain non-cash or other items such as non-cash intangible asset amortization expense associated with acquisitions; non-cash impairment charges; merger and integration costs; severance costs; gains or losses from the sale of businesses, certain assets and investments; and certain discrete tax benefits and expenses. the company estimates that amortization expense in 2023 with respect to acquired intangible assets will decrease approximately 10% compared to the amount incurred in 2022. other adjustments to the company’s financial measures that were incurred in 2022 and for the three months ended march 31, 2023 are presented in this news release; however, they are not necessarily indicative of adjustments that may be incurred in the remainder of 2023 or beyond. estimates of these impacts and adjustments on a forward-looking basis are not available due to the variability, complexity and limited visibility of these items. fiserv, inc. full year forward-looking non-gaap financial measures (cont.) the company's adjusted earnings per share growth outlook for 2023 is based on 2022 adjusted earnings per share performance. 2022 gaap net income attributable to fiserv $ 2,530 adjustments: merger and integration costs 1 173 severance costs 209 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 2 1,814 non wholly-owned entity activities 3 9 net gain on sale of businesses and other assets 4 (54 ) tax impact of adjustments 5 (476 ) 2022 adjusted net income $ 4,205 weighted average common shares outstanding - diluted 647.9 2022 gaap earnings per share attributable to fiserv - diluted $ 3.91 adjustments - net of income taxes: merger and integration costs 1 0.21 severance costs 0.25 amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets 2 2.21 non wholly-owned entity activities 3 (0.02 ) net gain on sale of businesses and other assets 4 (0.06 ) 2022 adjusted earnings per share $ 6.49 2023 adjusted earnings per share outlook $7.30 - $7.40 2023 adjusted earnings per share growth outlook 12% - 14% in millions, except per share amounts, unaudited. earnings per share is calculated using actual, unrounded amounts. fiserv, inc. full year forward-looking non-gaap financial measures (cont.) 1 represents acquisition and related integration costs incurred in connection with various acquisitions. merger and integration costs primarily includes share-based compensation and third-party professional service fees attributable to various acquisitions. 2 represents amortization of intangible assets acquired through various acquisitions, including customer relationships, software/technology and trade names. this adjustment does not exclude the amortization of other intangible assets such as contract costs (sales commissions and deferred conversion costs), capitalized and purchased software, financing costs and debt discounts. 3 represents the company’s share of amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets and expenses associated with debt refinancing activities at its unconsolidated affiliates, as well as the minority interest share of amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets at its subsidiaries in which the company holds a controlling financial interest. this adjustment also includes gains totaling $201 million related to certain equity investment transactions and other net expense of $43 million associated with joint venture debt guarantees. 4 represents an aggregate net gain on the sale of fiserv costa rica, s.a., the company’s systems integration services operations, the company’s korea operations and certain merchant contracts in conjunction with the mutual termination of one of the company’s merchant alliance joint ventures. 5 the tax impact of adjustments is calculated using a tax rate of 21%, which approximates the company's annual effective tax rate, exclusive of the $16 million actual tax impacts associated with the net gain on sale of businesses, other assets and certain equity investment transactions. fisv-e