InsWeb Reports Fourth Quarter Financial Results

Sacramento-based InsWeb Corp. announced results for the fourth quarter and year ended Dec. 31, 2002. Revenues for the fourth quarter totaled $6.4 million, compared to $6.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2001.

InsWeb took non-cash charges totaling approximately $5.5 million during the fourth quarter. The charges include an additional write-down of $3.7 million to prepaid marketing costs, a long-lived asset that resulted from InsWeb’s acquisition of selected assets of the Quicken-Insurance business unit from Intuit, as well as an additional charge of $1.8 million as a reserve for future lease obligations of previously exited facilities. In addition, relating to the write-down of prepaid marketing costs, the corresponding marketing commitment was reduced by $1.3 million. InsWeb’s fourth quarter net loss was $6.0 million, or $0.86 per share, compared to a net loss of $25.3 million, or $3.60 per share, for the fourth quarter last year.

“Our fourth quarter revenues exceeded our expectations as increased online shopping and consumer demand for auto insurance offset the traditionally slower holiday season,” said Mark Guthrie, president and CEO of InsWeb. “Interest in our core auto offering among both consumers and carriers grew steadily during 2002, as we made progress during the year across key performance metrics in our auto marketplace. Our 2002 results reflect strong growth in this segment, with auto insurance product revenues growing 25 percent year over year, while total operating expenses, excluding restructuring and impairment charges, continued to decrease, posting a 29 percent decline in 2002 compared to the prior year.”

For fiscal year 2002, InsWeb reported total revenues of $25.6 million and a net loss for the year of $4.6 million, or $0.65 per share. This compares to revenues of $24.9 million and a net loss of $44.9 million, or $6.45 per share, for fiscal year 2001.