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   Technology StocksAscential Software (ASCL)


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To: SemiBull who wrote (155)10/23/2003 7:49:47 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Ascential Software Reports Third Quarter Revenue of $45.9 Million with License Revenue of $22.4 Million

Thursday October 23, 4:50 pm ET

Marks Sixth Consecutive Quarter of Sequential Revenue Growth
Completes Acquisition and Integration of Mercator into Company Operations

Initiates 2004 Guidance

WESTBORO, Mass., Oct. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News), the enterprise data integration leader, today announced results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2003.

On a GAAP basis, third quarter 2003 revenue was $45.9 million, up 52 percent from $30.2 million in the third quarter of last year, and up 15 percent from $39.9 million in this year's second quarter. License revenue was $22.4 million in the third quarter of 2003, up 50 percent from $14.9 million in license revenue reported in the third quarter of 2002, and up 7 percent from $21.0 million in the second quarter. Net loss was $1.7 million, or ($0.03) per share, for the third quarter, compared to a net loss of $16.3 million, or ($0.27) per share, in the third quarter of 2002, and net income of $0.7 million, or $0.01 per share in the second quarter. All share and per share amounts have been retroactively adjusted for the 1-for-4 reverse stock split effected June 17, 2003.

GAAP and pro forma results for the third quarter of 2003 include eighteen days of Mercator Software results since the September 12, 2003 completion of Ascential's acquisition of that company, as well as related charges and transition expenses.

On a pro forma basis, as described below, the company realized pro forma net income of $3.7 million, or $0.06 per share, in the third quarter of 2003, compared with a pro forma net loss of $5.7 million, or ($0.09) per share, in the third quarter of 2002, and pro forma net income of $3.0 million, or $0.05 per share in the second quarter this year.

"We are extremely pleased to again report record quarterly revenue since becoming Ascential Software in July 2001, marking our sixth consecutive quarter of sequential revenue growth - even before the contribution of the Mercator acquisition to our business this quarter," said Peter Gyenes, chairman and chief executive officer. "These results reflect the superior customer value and strong differentiation of our unique and integrated, end- to-end solution for enterprise data integration. The addition of Mercator creates the largest independent enterprise data integration software company, and is yet another "first" in our market as we uniquely provide customers end- to-end data integration solutions for the full spectrum of transactional, operational, and analytical application environments regardless of data source, volume or latency. Activity levels and sales pipeline remain robust, as our expanded customer base and the market in general respond to our increased market presence."

At September 30, 2003, the company had $524.7 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. The major items affecting cash in the quarter were the payment of $98.0 million for 32.7 million of Mercator shares, and a tax payment of $8.1 million. Excluding these items, the company was cash flow positive. During the fourth quarter the company plans to pay the remaining balance of $11.3 million for the remaining Mercator shares not submitted in the original tender.

Highlights
During the third quarter of 2003, Ascential Software:

-- Announced and completed the acquisition of Mercator Software.
Mercator's products provide enhanced transactional data transformation
and routing capabilities and leading vertical industry solutions. The
combined technologies uniquely allow customers to apply Ascential's
comprehensive data integration platform pervasively, throughout their
enterprise, to support transactional, operational and analytical
application environments, regardless of data sources, targets, volumes
or latency. Ascential Software is now the largest independent software
vendor focused exclusively on enterprise data integration with more
than 3,000 customers and 900 employees worldwide.

-- Signed 44 new customers including: China Unicom, Cooper Industries,
Gibralter Insurance, Kellwood Company, Microstrategy, National Life
Finance Corporation, Office Depot, Perot Systems, Polk Australia Pty
Ltd., Saint-Gobain, Toshiba Industrial Products, the University of
Missouri, The University of Texas and Yokohama Bank.

-- Expanded business with 189 existing customers including: Acxiom, AIG,
Airbus, AT&T, Bank of America, Beckman Coulter, Boeing, Blockbuster,
Ingenix, International Paper, J.P. Morgan Chase, Kinkos, McKesson,
Munich Reinsurance, Novartis, Pfizer, Rockwell Automation, Safeway,
Inc., Sandia National Labs and Towers Perrin.

-- Won the Best Enterprise Integration award from Software Business
magazine. Ascential was honored at a ceremony in Boston on October 22,
2003 during the Software Business 2003 Conference. The publication
wrote that "The Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite is unique in the
integration landscape because it provides the only complete,
comprehensive data integration solution. Competing solutions overlook
data profiling and quality, focusing primarily on transformation ...
and no company moves data faster."

-- Was recognized by IDC, one of the industry's most respected IT analyst
firms, in their September 2003 report, "Ascential Introduces
QualityStage", for delivering a unique data matching capability that
allows companies to execute successful strategic initiatives in the
areas of ERP, CRM, direct marketing campaigns and mergers with superior
results. In a special report, IDC commends Ascential Software's
commitment to a class of technology that they believe will
revolutionize the way complex IT problems are approached.

-- Engaged in a number of activities with strategic partner IBM,
including:

- Building on Ascential's already strong relationship through support
for WebSphere Application Server 5.0. The deployment of Ascential(TM)
Enterprise Integration Suite and Real-Time Integration (RTI) Services
with WebSphere delivers advanced technology solutions to power the
real-time enterprise. IBM and Ascential together make the real-time
enterprise a reality, enabling users to take advantage of reliable,
accurate and current information available from anywhere across the
enterprise, at any time, further driving their strategic business
initiatives.

- In September, the IBM Software Group distributed a major announcement
introducing the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite 7.0 to their
global base of over 150,000 customers through its iSource Newsletter,
the vehicle for introducing new IBM products and services.

- Delivered an international training program to the IBM sales
organizations for Data Management, Websphere, and Business Consulting
Services.

- Joined with the IBM Data Management Group and Meta for a customer
event in France to promote the IBM DB2 Information Integrator and the
Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to IBM customers and partners.

- Established a multi-national procurement agreement enabling IBM's
operations worldwide to purchase Ascential products and services for
internal use.

-- Teamed with Hewlett Packard to deliver programs for "Driving Business
Value with 'Right-Time' Integration". Ascential Software and HP experts
explored strategies for leveraging real-time technologies through a
pragmatic, cost-effective approach that puts business information where
it needs to be exactly when customers need it. Ascential Software calls
this "right-time" integration because the delivery of each piece of
information is determined by the specific needs of a particular
industry, business and process at hand.

-- Hosted a special event in conjunction with The Data Warehousing
Institute (TDWI) World Conference in August to lead a best practices
discussion of one of the greatest challenges and opportunities facing
IT organizations today - delivering valuable business information from
strategic enterprise applications in "real time." The Experts Forum
featured four customers and was moderated by Maryfran Johnson, editor-
in-chief of Computerworld.

-- Appointed Mark Register as vice president and chief marketing officer.
Mr. Register is responsible for directing and leading the company's
activities in Corporate and Product Marketing, Global Strategic
Alliances, and Industry Solutions. Mr. Register joins Ascential from
Mercator Software, where he was executive vice president and president,
worldwide field operations.

-- Was named a ZapThought Leader by industry analyst firm ZapThink for
guiding Ascential Software customers in using XML, Web Services, and
Service Oriented Architectures (SOA's) to meet business needs.

-- Gained increased visibility by being recognized for enterprise data
integration leadership in research reports and notes by several
industry analyst firms, including AMR Research, Current Analysis,
Gartner, Giga Information Group, IDC, Meta Group, and Ventana Research.

Outlook and Guidance

"Our continuing financial and market share gain is increasing the visibility of our company at a time when CIOs are reassessing their internal integration infrastructures," said Pete Fiore, president of Ascential Software. "As IT organizations strain under the weight of the one-piece-at-a- time approaches to integration, a significant market opportunity has been created which we uniquely address with the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite. The expanded talents, products and resources of Ascential Software provide us with an increased size, scale and market reach from which to serve our expanded customer base and growing market demand.

"During the third quarter, we shipped the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite 7.0, along with Ascential's Real-Time Integration (RTI) Services. This offering provides customers with the latest enhancements and expansions to our product suite. With this release, Ascential Software is changing the enterprise data integration landscape and making data integration pervasive by harnessing the benefits of a Services-Oriented Architecture and eliminating concerns about data sources, quality, volumes, and latency. Our customers can now integrate and leverage data across all strategic analytic and enterprise applications - including CRM, ERP, and supply chain management, as well as business-to-business transactional processes - with complete confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of their critical information."

The company is currently anticipating fourth quarter revenue in the range of $61 million to $64 million, with GAAP profitability in the quarter on a net income basis toward the higher end of that revenue range. Pro forma profitability is calculated as described in the following paragraph, with the predominant factors detailed as follows: Mercator related transition expenses were approximately $1.2 million in the third quarter, and are anticipated to be approximately $3.5 million in the fourth quarter. Amortization of purchased intangibles and stock-based compensation was approximately $1.6 million in the third quarter, and is anticipated to be approximately $3.0 million in the fourth quarter, reflecting the full quarter effect of the Mercator acquisition. Legacy expenses related to previously divested business operations were approximately $0.3 million in the third quarter, and are anticipated to be approximately $0.3 million to $0.5 million in the fourth quarter. Merger, realignment and other charges were approximately $1.7 million and write-off of in-process research and development was $2.0 million in the third quarter. These charges are related to the Mercator acquisition and are not anticipated to recur in the fourth quarter. For 2004 the company anticipates revenue in the range of $265 million to $275 million, and anticipates GAAP profitability in each quarter of 2004, barring unforeseen circumstances. Total costs and expenses for 2004 are anticipated to be between $61 million and $64 million per quarter. Included in those costs and expenses are amortization of purchased intangibles and stock-based compensation, estimated at $3.0 million per quarter and legacy expenses related to divested business operations estimated as less than $0.5 million per quarter. Interest income, based on recent interest rates and expected cash balances, is expected to be approximately $2.3 million per quarter. The tax rate planned for 2004 is 33%.

The company believes that the pro forma results described in this release are useful for an understanding of its ongoing operations because GAAP results include expenses unrelated to the company's ongoing data integration business, as well as the non-cash charges associated with the amortization of purchased intangibles and stock-based compensation. Management of the company uses these pro forma results to compare the company's performance to that of prior periods for analysis of trends, and to evaluate the company's financial strength, develop budgets, manage expenditures, and develop a financial outlook. Pro forma results are supplemental and are not intended as a substitute for GAAP results. Relative to GAAP, pro forma results described in this release exclude the following items, net of associated taxes: amortization of purchased intangibles, such as developed technology and customer lists; amortization of stock-based compensation; a litigation settlement; merger, realignment and other costs primarily related to employee severance and the closure of idle facilities; in-process research and development charges; non-recurring acquisition-related transition expenses; and revenue, expenses and other items related to divested business operations.

Conference Call

Management will host a conference call at 5:00 PM (EST) today to discuss the company's operating performance and results. The conference call will be broadcast live through a link on the Investor Relations page on the Ascential web site at www.ascential.com/investors. Please go to the web site at least fifteen minutes prior to the call to register, download and install any necessary audio software.

For those who cannot attend the live broadcast, a replay will be available on the web site at www.ascential.com/investors or by calling (888) 562-6892 beginning about two hours after the call ends.

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the web at www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This public announcement contains forward-looking statements that are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements address a variety of subjects including, for example, revenue growth; customer value; technology differentiation; activity levels and sales pipeline; market validation; increased market presence and visibility; payment of the remaining balance for the remaining Mercator shares; market opportunity of integration infrastructure; expanded customer base and growing market demand; changes to the enterprise data integration landscape; increased presence of data integration through the harnessing of the benefits of a Service Oriented Architecture and elimination of concerns about data sources, quality, volumes and latency; ability of customers to integrate and leverage data; growth of the enterprise data integration market and the company's unique position therein; seasonality; the functionality, characteristics, quality and performance capabilities of Ascential Software's products and technology; results achievable and benefits attainable through deployment of Ascential Software's products; anticipated innovation and product development; reduction in total cost of ownership for customers and return on IT investment; profitability; costs and expenses; interest income; 2004 tax rates; and the usefulness of pro forma results. Any statements contained in this public announcement, including without limitation statements to the effect that the company or its management "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "may," "will," "projects," "continues," "intends" or "estimates," or statements concerning "potential" or "opportunity" or other variations thereof or comparable terminology or the negative thereof that are not statements of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results and events materially to differ for historical or anticipated results and events. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: the closing of the company's books and customary quarter-end accounting procedures; the ability of Ascential Software to expand its market share; growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market; general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies; rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential Software; dependence on international operations; global and geopolitical instability; and difficulties that Ascential Software may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions, including the recent acquisition of Mercator Software, Inc. The financial measures discussed in this press release also involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to final audited results for the period or periods covered. Investors and potential investors should review carefully the description of risks and uncertainties that, together with other detailed information about the company, is contained in the periodic reports that the company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the company's most recent Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements and financial measures contained herein represent the judgment of Ascential Software, as of the date of this release, and Ascential Software disclaims any intent or obligation to update such forward-looking statements to reflect any change in Ascential's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, and circumstances on which such statements are based.

Ascential is a trademark of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks.

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To: SemiBull who wrote (156)10/23/2003 7:50:26 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
ASCENTIAL SOFTWARE CORPORATION
PRO FORMA UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS (1)
(In thousands, except per share data)

Three Months Ended September 30, 2003

Total Transaction Other Pro
Consolidated & Transition Forma Pro Forma
GAAP Expense (2) Adjustments Adjusted (4)
(3)
NET REVENUES
Licenses $22,353 $-- $-- $22,353
Services 23,536 -- -- 23,536
45,889 -- -- 45,889

COSTS AND EXPENSES
Cost of licenses 3,874 -- (1,210) 2,664
Cost of services 10,331 (53) (160) 10,118
Sales and marketing 19,531 (732) (97) 18,702
Research and development 6,834 (349) -- 6,485
General and
administrative 6,472 (451) (88) 5,933
Merger, realignment and
other charges 1,654 (1,654) -- --
In-process research and
development 2,000 -- (2,000) --
50,696 (3,239) (3,555) 43,902

Operating income (loss) (4,807) 3,239 3,555 1,987

OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)
Interest income 2,719 -- -- 2,719
Interest expense (58) -- -- (58)
Other, net 576 -- -- 576

INCOME (LOSS) BEFORE
INCOME TAXES (1,570) 3,239 3,555 5,224
Income tax expense
(benefit) 129 972 467 1,568

NET INCOME (LOSS) $(1,699) $2,267 $3,088 $3,656

NET INCOME (LOSS) PER
COMMON SHARE
Basic $(0.03) $0.06
Diluted $(0.03) $0.06

SHARES USED IN PER
SHARE CALCULATIONS
Basic 58,195 58,195
Diluted 58,195 59,946

(1) See Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Operations on a following
page of this release. Pro forma presentation is not intended to
replace GAAP presentation. Pro forma measures are calculated in the
manner described in this release.

(2) Pro forma adjustments in this column include a) $1.7 million of
merger, realignment and other charges consisting of severance and
adjustments to reserves for vacated real estate for the consolidation
of Ascential offices associated with the Mercator Acquisition, b)
$1.2 million of transition expenses related to the Mercator
Acquisition, and c) legacy expenses associated with divested business
operations. The adjustments in this column also include the effect of
an estimated associated tax benefit based on the effective tax rate.

(3) Other pro forma adjustments consist of a) the write off of in process
research and development costs related to the Mercator Acquisition,
and b) $1.2 million, $0.2 million, $0.1 million, and $0.1 million of
purchased intangible amortization recorded to cost of licenses, cost
of services, selling and marketing, and general and administrative
costs, respectively, and the estimated associated tax benefit of these
adjustments based on the effective tax rate.

(4) On September 12, 2003, we acquired Mercator Software. During the
third quarter, subsequent to the acquisition date, Mercator
contributed $2.2 million of license revenue, $2.7 million of services
revenue, $4.1 million of costs and expenses, resulting in $0.8 million
of operating income, $0.4 million of net income, and $0.01 of net
income per common share, diluted. These results are included in this
column.

ASCENTIAL SOFTWARE CORPORATION
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (GAAP)(1)
(In thousands, except per share data)

Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
2003 2002 2003 2002
NET REVENUES
Licenses $22,353 $14,897 $62,539 $40,764
Services 23,536 15,315 58,575 38,203
45,889 30,212 121,114 78,967

COSTS AND EXPENSES
Cost of licenses 3,874 3,675 10,828 14,745
Cost of services 10,331 9,064 26,406 25,641
Sales and marketing 19,531 18,298 53,075 57,229
Research and development 6,834 6,170 17,714 19,277
General and
administrative 6,472 8,773 19,843 31,307
Merger, realignment and
other charges (2) 1,654 7,704 2,086 19,370
Write-off of acquired
in-process research
and development 2,000 -- 2,000 1,170
50,696 53,684 131,952 168,739

Operating loss (4,807) (23,472) (10,838) (89,772)

OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)
Interest income 2,719 4,100 8,934 15,561
Interest expense (58) (39) (88) (78)
Adjustment to gain on
sale of database
business -- (1,394) -- 6,240
Litigation settlement
income -- -- -- 3,127
Other, net 576 (872) 652 (3,070)

INCOME (LOSS) BEFORE
INCOME TAXES (1,570) (21,677) (1,340) (67,992)
Income tax expense
(benefit) 129 (5,420) 198 (14,587)

NET INCOME (LOSS) $(1,699) $(16,257) $(1,538) $(53,405)

NET INCOME (LOSS) PER
COMMON SHARE (3)
Basic $(0.03) $(0.27) $(0.03) $(0.85)
Diluted $(0.03) $(0.27) $(0.03) $(0.85)

SHARES USED IN PER SHARE
CALCULATIONS (3)
Basic 58,195 61,330 58,028 62,842
Diluted 58,195 61,330 58,028 62,842

(1) See pro forma results of operations and related reconciliations to
GAAP results for the three months ended September 30, 2003 on a prior
page of this release and reconciliation between GAAP and pro forma
results for the three months ended September 30, 2002 on a subsequent
page of this release

(2) Merger, realignment and other charges principally include severance
and real estate costs related to the consolidation or elimination of
offices. These costs are the result of a realignment of the business
due to business combinations, a sale of a business or the termination
of a product line.

(3) On June 17, 2003 the Company effected a 1-for-4 reverse stock split.
Accordingly, all share and earnings per share figures have been
restated as though the reverse split was in effect for all periods
presented.

ASCENTIAL SOFTWARE CORPORATION
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands)

September 30, December 31,
2003 2002
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents $303,344 $216,551
Short-term investments 221,383 288,199
Accounts receivable, net 38,767 27,112
Receivable on sale of database business -- 109,200
Other current assets 13,596 31,136

Total current assets 577,090 672,198

Property and equipment net 11,358 5,427
Software costs, net 14,502 14,124
Long-term investments 2,031 966
Goodwill and intangible assets, net 350,853 173,740
Deferred income taxes 29,789 28,515
Other assets 10,527 11,280

Total Assets $996,150 $906,250

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY

CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable $12,930 $8,136
Accrued expenses 69,379 23,137
Accrued employee compensation 19,904 14,861
Income taxes payable 79,313 98,916
Accrued merger, realignment and other charges 10,023 15,698
Deferred income taxes 32,235 33,171
Deferred revenue 43,021 17,666
Other current liabilities 14,483 479

Total current liabilities 281,288 212,064

Lease Obligations 665 --

Total Liabilities 281,953 212,064

Total Stockholders' Equity 714,197 694,186

Total Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity $996,150 $906,250

ASCENTIAL SOFTWARE CORPORATION
SELECTED UNAUDITED REVENUE HISTORY
(In millions)

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total Q1 Q2 (1)Q3
2002 2002 2002 2002 2002 2003 2003 2003
LICENSE
REVENUE:
Data
Integration $10.7 $15.1 $14.9 $18.8 $59.5 $19.2 $21.0 $22.3
Content
Management 0.1 -- -- 0.1 0.1 -- -- --
Total 10.8 15.1 14.9 18.9 59.6 19.2 21.0 22.3

SERVICES REVENUE:
Data
Integration 9.3 12.5 15.1 15.1 52.0 16.0 18.8 23.6
Content
Management 0.7 0.4 0.2 0.1 1.4 0.1 0.1 --
Total 10.0 12.9 15.3 15.2 53.4 16.1 18.9 23.6

TOTAL:
Data
Integration 20.0 27.6 30.0 33.9 111.5 35.2 39.8 45.9
Content
Management 0.8 0.4 0.2 0.2 1.5 0.1 0.1 --
Total $20.8 $28.0 $30.2 $34.1 $113.0 $35.3 $39.9 $45.9

% of revenue
from 10%
customers in
the period 11% -- 11% 16% 11% -- 13% --

(1) Includes Mercator license revenue of $2.2 million, and services
revenue of $2.7 million for the period from the date of acquisition,
September 12, 2003, through September 30, 2003.

ASCENTIAL SOFTWARE CORPORATION PRO FORMA UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF
OPERATIONS (1) (In thousands, except per share data)

Three months ended June 30, 2003

Total Pro Forma Pro Forma
GAAP Consolidated Adjusted
Adjustments (2)
NET REVENUES
Licenses $21,016 $ -- $21,016
Services 18,913 (81) 18,832
39,929 (81) 39,848
COSTS AND EXPENSES
Cost of licenses 3,353 (1,113) 2,240
Cost of services 8,828 (243) 8,585
Sales and marketing 16,849 -- 16,849
Research and development 5,510 -- 5,510
General and administrative 6,962 (1,583) 5,379
Merger, realignment and
other costs 432 (432) --
41,934 (3,371) 38,563
Operating income (loss) (2,005) 3,290 1,285
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)
Interest income 2,903 -- 2,903
Interest expense (7) -- (7)
Other, net 102 -- 102
INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES 993 3,290 4,283
Income tax expense 298 987 1,285
NET INCOME $695 $2,303 $2,998
NET INCOME PER COMMON
SHARE (3)
Basic $0.01 $0.05
Diluted $0.01 $0.05

SHARES USED IN PER SHARE
CALCULATIONS (3)
Basic 58,009 58,009
Diluted 59,059 59,059

(1) Pro forma presentation is not intended to replace GAAP presentation.
Pro forma measures are calculated in the manner described in this
release.

(2) Pro forma adjustments represent:
- revenue and expenses associated with the remaining service
obligations under content management customer contracts including
$81 in services revenue, $83 in cost of services and $24 of general
and administrative costs. The content management product line was
terminated during the second quarter of 2002.
- amortization of purchased intangibles including technology and
customer lists consisting of $1,113 in cost of software and $160 in
cost of services.
- general and administrative costs totaling $434 associated with the
Informix database business sold to IBM in the third quarter of 2001;
comprised primarily of dispute resolution costs and administrative
costs associated with the closure of idle database operations.
- general and administrative costs totaling $1,125 related to the
settlement of litigation during the quarter.
- merger, realignment and other costs totaling $432 for adjustments to
reserves for vacated real estate.
- the estimated tax benefit of $987 associated with the above
adjustments based upon the effective tax rate.

(3) On June 17, 2003 the Company effected a 1-for-4 reverse stock split.
Accordingly, all share and earnings per share figures have been
restated as though the reverse split was in effect for all periods
presented.

ASCENTIAL SOFTWARE CORPORATION
PRO FORMA UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS (1)
(In thousands, except per share data)

Three Months Ended September 30, 2002
Results of
Content Database Adjustments
Total Management Transaction for GAAP Pro Forma
Consolidated Product Line & Transition Reporting Continuing
GAAP (2) (3) Purposes Operations
(4)
NET REVENUES
Licenses $14,897 $(34) $- $- $14,863
Services 15,315 (175) - - 15,140
30,212 (209) - - 30,003

COSTS AND EXPENSES
Cost of
software 3,675 (7) - (1,113) 2,555
Cost of
services 9,064 (725) - (160) 8,179
Sales and
marketing 18,298 - - - 18,298
Research and
development 6,170 (178) - - 5,992
General and
administrative 8,773 (370) (2,503) (72) 5,828
Merger,
realignment
and other
charges (5) 7,704 - - (7,704) -
53,684 (1,280) (2,503) (9,049) 40,852

Operating loss (23,472) 1,071 2,503 9,049 (10,849)

OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)
Interest income 4,100 - - - 4,100
Interest expense (39) - - - (39)
Adjustment to gain on
sale of
database
business (1,394) - 1,394 - -
Other, net (872) - - - (872)

INCOME (LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS BEFORE INCOME TAXES,
excluding charges, related
tax benefit and
amortization of
purchased
intangibles (21,677) 1,071 3,897 9,049 (7,660)
Income tax
expense
(benefit) (5,420) 268 974 2,263 (1,915)

INCOME (LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS,
excluding charges and related tax benefit
and amortization of
purchased
intangibles $(16,257) $803 $2,923 $6,786 $(5,745)

LOSS PER COMMON SHARE: (6)
Excluding charges and
related tax benefit and
amortization of purchased
intangibles $(0.27) $(0.09)

NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE (6)
Basic and Diluted
$(0.27) $(0.17)

SHARES USED IN
PER SHARE CALCULATIONS
Excluding
charges 61,330 61,330
Basic and
diluted 61,330 61,330


* (1) Pro forma presentation is not intended to replace GAAP presentation. Pro forma measures are calculated in the manner described in this release.
* (2) Operating results in this column include revenue and expenses associated with the content management product line which was discontinued during the second quarter of 2002.
* (3) Operating results in this column include expenses associated with the database business sold to IBM during the third quarter of 2001, and is comprised primarily of litigation settlements, adjustments to real estate reserves and administrative costs associated with the closure of idle database operations.
* (4) In addition to the revenue and expenses associated with the content management and database operations, reconciling items between pro forma presentation and GAAP presentation are comprised of amortization of purchased intangibles and merger, realignment and other costs.
* (5) Merger, realignment and other charges consist of severance and facilities charges associated with the third quarter 2002 realignment, adjustments to real estate reserves and write off of fixed assets associated with the sale of the database business to IBM, and additional severance and legal settlements associated with the content management product line that was discontinued during the second quarter of 2002.
* (6) On June 17, 2003 the Company effected a 1-for-4 reverse stock split. Accordingly, all share and earnings per share figures have been restated as though the reverse split was in effect for all periods presented.

Source: Ascential Software Corporation

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To: SemiBull who wrote (157)10/23/2003 7:56:49 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
5:01PM Ascential beat by $0.03, ex items, guides above consensus (ASCL) 19.54 -1.57: Reports Q3 (Sep) earnings of $0.06 per share, ex items, $0.03 better than the Reuters Research consensus of $0.03; revenues rose 51.9% year/year to $45.9 mln vs the $43.9 mln consensus. Company sees Q4 revs of $61-64 mln, consensus $57.3 mln. For Y04 $265-275 mln, consensus $255.7.
finance.yahoo.com

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To: SemiBull who wrote (158)10/23/2003 9:53:37 PM
From: David Jones
   of 179
 
Hello SimiBull;
I've held Ascl for a couple years now. I was a bit flooded this am as it dropped and closed down buck and a half but after hours showed better sense.
This and Ptek are two longs in tech.
Have a day and think you for your postings.

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To: David Jones who wrote (159)10/26/2003 4:32:01 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Ascential Software Makes DM Review 100 List of Elite Business Intelligence Vendors for Third Straight Year

Friday October 24, 2:45 pm ET

Customers Once Again Place Enterprise Data Integration Leader in Top 25

WESTBORO, Mass., Oct. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News), the enterprise data integration leader, today announced it has been named to the DM Review 100 list of business intelligence vendors for the third consecutive year.

This prestigious award recognizes the top 100 business intelligence vendors as selected by the readers of DM Review magazine. In a product usage and company rating survey conducted via the Web by the Gantry Group, LLC, DM Review readers were asked to rank the vendors providing products used in their organizations. Ascential is number 21 on the list.

"Ascential Software continues to occupy a prominent place on a list of elite companies evaluated by the people whose judgment matters most -- end users," said Julie Langenkamp, managing editor of DM Review. "The company's ranking is a clear reflection of its customers' assessment of the performance and value of Ascential Software products and services. The acquisition of Mercator Software, which extends the company's enterprise data integration capabilities and makes it the largest independent software vendor focused on that market, suggests even bigger success to come."

Each vendor's final score is based on a statistical analysis of market share, product quality and customer satisfaction.

"The recognition of Ascential Software as a pre-eminent enterprise data integration software provider by key market influencers ranks among the highlights of what has been a very positive year for the company," said Mark Register, vice president and chief marketing officer at Ascential Software. "We have posted six consecutive quarters of revenue and market share growth, and a high level of satisfaction among our more than 3,000 customers worldwide. Our placement on the list is a result of our continued commitment to supporting our customers' most strategic business initiatives and illustrates the critical importance of enterprise data integration to an organization's success."

About DM Review and Thomson Media

DM Review (www.dmreview.com) is recognized as the premier business intelligence, business performance management and data warehousing publication. For more than a decade, DM Review has provided thought-provoking and informative editorial covering strategic solutions for business intelligence, analytics, data warehousing and CRM across all major industries. DM Review's authors and columnists are internationally recognized experts in a variety of business intelligence fields. DM Review editorial provides both business and technology perspectives regarding issues, trends and solutions of interest to corporate executives and IT managers. DM Review is published by Thomson Media (www.thomsonmedia.com), a division of The Thomson Corporation and a leading provider of information, data and software tools for professionals in the financial services and related technologies markets.

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential(TM) Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the Web at www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to important factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this release address a variety of subjects including, for example, the functionality, characteristics and performance capabilities of Ascential's products, technology and services, including but not limited to the ability of Ascential to support Ascential's customers' most strategic business initiatives. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: risks relating to the ability of Ascential to expand its market share, growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market, the scope and frequency of data integration projects, the ability of customers to improve performance utilizing Ascential's products, integration/divestiture issues resulting from merger/acquisition activities, general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies, rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential, dependence on international operations, and difficulties that Ascential may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the filings made by Ascential with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Ascential disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in Ascential's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based.

Ascential is a trademark of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks.

Source: Ascential Software Corporation

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To: SemiBull who wrote (160)10/28/2003 7:47:08 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Ascential Software Demonstrates Continuing Commitment to Enterprise Data Integration Excellence at Ascential World 2003

Monday October 27, 9:17 am ET

Global 2000 Customers and Partners Focus on Real Solutions, Real Results, Real Value

MIAMI, ASCENTIAL WORLD 2003, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News), the enterprise data integration leader, today kicked off Ascential World 2003. During welcoming remarks, Pete Fiore, the company's president, underscored the real solutions, real results, and real value Ascential Software delivers to its 3,000 customers and nearly 150 strategic, technology and systems integration partners worldwide. More than four hundred attendees representing fifteen countries and sixteen industries have gathered at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Miami, Fla.

"2003 has been a banner year for Ascential Software on many levels. We now are the largest independent software vendor of enterprise data integration solutions. Our momentum, measured by revenue growth, market share gains, and company visibility is accelerating. We attribute this to the value, ROI and focus we bring to bear," said Fiore. "Ascential Software customers and partners benefit from this leadership because it gives us the resources to deliver the most complete, innovative platform available for integrating transactional, operational, and analytical data, now and in the future."

To maintain technology leadership, Ascential Software has continued to expand research and development investment over the past twelve months and introduced new products with the Ascential(TM) Enterprise Integration Suite 7.0 and Ascential Real-Time Integration (RTI) Services. This groundbreaking platform leverages service-oriented architecture and Web Services for pervasive, on-demand data integration. Customers have embraced this release. More than five hundred have upgraded to the new suite since its general availability in September 2003.

The Business Imperative

Fiore shared Ascential Software's perspective that data integration is not only a technology issue. The growing market demand for enterprise data integration is actually driven by the requirement of organizations to accomplish business objectives - from lowering costs and increasing productivity, to enabling organizational transformation and delivering new products to market.

"Without a strong data integration solution, enterprise integration efforts will be expensive. Worse, they will fail to achieve business goals and objectives," stated Fiore. "Traditional approaches to integration have focused on business process and application connectivity but have failed to address the fundamental issues of ensuring the availability of coherent, consistent, and accurate data, available in the right format at the right time - regardless of data sources, data volumes, or latency. This is exactly the challenge that Ascential Software addresses and why we're the perfect complement to BPI, EAI, and EII technologies."

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the Web at www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to important factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this release address a variety of subjects including, for example, the functionality, characteristics and performance capabilities of Ascential's products and technology, the ability of Ascential to help deliver transparency to all aspects of business performance and Ascential's ability to automate the data transformation and movement from multiple applications into a customer's enterprise data warehouse and the ability to ensure the availability of coherent, consistent, and accurate data, available in the right format at the right time -- regardless of data sources, data volumes, or latency. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: risks relating to the ability of Ascential to expand its market share, growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market, integration/divestiture issues resulting from merger/acquisition activities, our customer's business requirement and ability to update warehouse information on demand, general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies, rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential, dependence on international operations, and difficulties that Ascential may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the filings made by Ascential with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Ascential disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in Ascential's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based.

Ascential is a trademark of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks.

Source: Ascential Software Corporation

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To: SemiBull who wrote (161)10/28/2003 7:47:34 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Sonic Software and Ascential Software Form Partnership to Deliver Advanced, Real-Time Business Integration Solutions

Monday October 27, 10:23 am ET

Sonic and Ascential Demonstrate High-Performance, Integrated Service-Oriented Architecture at Ascential World 2003

ASCENTIAL WORLD 2003, MIAMI, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/-- Sonic Software and Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News) today announced a technology partnership to develop next-generation, real-time business integration solutions. The partnership combines the distributed infrastructure and process management capabilities of Sonic ESB(TM) (enterprise service bus) with the rich data integration of the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to allow organizations to streamline and consolidate their data integration processes, reducing time-to-value, risk, cost and on-going maintenance across all of their strategic IT initiatives-anytime, anywhere.

"Increasingly, enterprise organizations are seeking a way to cost- effectively leverage existing enterprise data assets in real-time, and more pervasively than ever before," said Gordon Van Huizen, Chief Technology Officer for Sonic Software. "The combination enabled by Ascential Real-Time Integration (RTI) Services and Sonic ESB is tremendously powerful because it makes it possible for companies to quickly assemble and enrich data in a manner that creates valuable and reusable information, and then makes that information available across the enterprise using the flexible, service- oriented architectures of ESB and RTI."

"Proprietary approaches to business integration are finished. Ascential's relationship with Sonic Software is highly complementary and offers customers a complete, enterprise-scale business process management, messaging and data integration offering," said Bob Zurek, Vice President, Advanced Technologies and Product Management for Ascential Software. "Here at Ascential World 2003, we are showcasing the interoperability of Sonic ESB and SonicMQ® messaging product with Ascential DataStage®, and Ascential QualityStage(TM) using Ascential RTI, demonstrating the compelling value that our combined products deliver."

The companies will demonstrate interoperability of Sonic ESB and the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite this week during Ascential World 2003 in Miami, FL. Sonic will also be exhibiting and participating in a panel discussion of industry experts entitled, "Discovering the Value of Deploying Service Oriented Architectures for the Enterprise," on Monday, October 27, 3:00-4:00 p.m.

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the Web at www.ascential.com.

About Sonic Software Corporation

Sonic Software provides the first comprehensive business integration suite built on an enterprise service bus (ESB). The Sonic product line delivers a distributed, standards-based, cost-effective, easily managed infrastructure that reliably integrates applications and orchestrates business processes across the extended enterprise.

Sonic is the world's fastest growing integration and middleware company and counts global leaders among over 500 customers in financial services, energy, telecommunications and manufacturing. Sonic is an independent operating company of Progress Software Corporation (Nasdaq: PRGS - News), a $300 million software industry leader. Headquartered in Bedford, Mass., Sonic Software can be reached on the Web at www.sonicsoftware.com, or by phone at +1-781-999-7000 or 1-866-GET-SONIC.

Sonic ESB, SonicMQ and Sonic Software (and design) are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sonic Software Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. Any other trademarks or service marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

Contacts:
Trip Kucera
Sonic Software
781-999-7142
trip.kucera@sonicsoftware.com

John Moran
Schwartz Communications, Inc.
781-684-0770
sonic@schwartz-pr.com

Source: Sonic Software

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To: SemiBull who wrote (162)10/28/2003 7:48:19 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Ascential Software Advances Leadership Position in Gartner ETL Magic Quadrant

Tuesday October 28, 3:50 pm ET

Enterprise Data Integration Leader Surpasses All Competitors in Completeness of Vision

ASCENTIAL WORLD 2003, MIAMI, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News), the enterprise data integration leader, today announced that technology research and advisory firm, Gartner, Inc., has placed the company in the highest position for Completeness of Vision and significantly increased its favorable assessment of Ascential Software's Ability to Execute. Gartner also recognized Ascential Software for increasing its overall market visibility and "mind share." The information is contained in a new report on the extraction, transformation, and loading tool (ETL) market published today.

ADVERTISEMENT
In the influential report, ETL Magic Quadrant Update, 2H03: The Market Broadens, Ted Friedman, principal analyst, Business Intelligence Infrastructure Team, writes that Ascential Software has expanded its data integration vision, pushing its strategy and positioning into new areas beyond its core data warehousing competence. Ascential Software's acquisition of Mercator Software last month supports this vision, according to Gartner.

Gartner also noted a shift in market momentum and further bolstered Ascential Software's market leadership position. Gartner reports that "Ascential has continued to improve its execution in the field, generating several quarters of overall revenue growth and significantly improved sales force productivity (the license revenue generated on the vendor's cost of sales)."

"We are extremely pleased that the value we deliver to customers is reflected in Ascential Software's strong showing in Gartner's latest ETL Magic Quadrant. Ted Friedman is a recognized, respected expert on business intelligence infrastructure and ETL tools," said Mark Register, vice president and chief marketing officer, Ascential Software. "This favorable assessment of the company is an unequivocal proof point of our ability to meet market requirements, and demonstrates that Ascential Software sets the standards for the enterprise data integration by successfully providing the most complete, best performing solutions available."

Among Gartner's Completeness of Vision evaluation criteria are an understanding of evolving market requirements, potential for delivering continuous product innovations, ability to adapt to changing requirements, and partnerships. Ability to Execute evaluation criteria include visibility in competitive situations, breadth of installed base, numerous functionality points, performance, scalability, and strength of sales and marketing capabilities.

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential(TM) Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the Web at www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to important factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this release address a variety of subjects including, for example, the functionality, characteristics and performance capabilities of Ascential's products, technology and services, and the ability of Ascential to set standards for the enterprise data integration market by providing the most complete, best performing integration solutions. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: risks relating to the ability of Ascential to expand its market share, growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market, the scope and frequency of data integration projects, the ability of customers to improve performance utilizing Ascential's products, integration/divestiture issues resulting from merger/acquisition activities, general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies, rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential, dependence on international operations, and difficulties that Ascential may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the filings made by Ascential with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Ascential disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in Ascential's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based.

Ascential is a trademark of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks.

Source: Ascential Software Corporation

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To: SemiBull who wrote (163)10/29/2003 9:29:48 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Ascential Software Outlines Technology Direction for the Future of Pervasive, On Demand Data Integration

Wednesday October 29, 2:42 pm ET

Expands Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite; Customers Validate Technology Direction

MIAMI, ASCENTIAL WORLD 2003, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News) unveiled its strategic product development plans for the next 24 months to capitalize on emerging technologies, meet evolving enterprise data integration requirements and "future-proof" information technology investments. Customers and partners can expect 64-bit computing and expanded grid-enabled capabilities, continued innovations in support for service-oriented architecture, and new functionality for radio frequency identification (RFID), among others. Ascential Software also announced the general availability of Ascential DataStage TX(TM) and its incorporation into the Ascential(TM) Enterprise Integration Suite.

The company confirmed the value of and alignment between Ascential Software's plans and the enterprise integration requirements of customers and partners through a series of planning sessions and surveys. "The product direction that Ascential Software outlined maps directly to what the marketplace is telling us it needs in an enterprise-wide data integration environment," said Sandra Rogers, director, Web Services and Integration Software, IDC. "Ascential's strategy to partner and provide open technology based on industry standards that interface with other essential integration software is critical in today's evolving system and services-based architectural landscape."

Timely access to accurate corporate data is critical in today's business environment. Complete, integrated data gives business the visibility to make strategic decisions today and insight for the future. Bob Zurek, Ascential Software vice president of advanced technologies and product management, underscored the significance of today's announcement by pointing out that integrating applications and business processes requires a data integration platform that functions across the full spectrum of current and future transactional, operational, and analytical application environments.

"Customers want a complete enterprise data integration platform to support strategic business requirements. Ascential Software is the only complete solution that satisfies all enterprise integration requirements, enabling our customers to meet challenges and create business opportunities," said Zurek. "We are committed to delivering exceptional return on investment by focusing exclusively on data integration, taking an active role in standards bodies, investing in research and development, and closely collaborating with our customers and partners."

Product Roadmap

Ascential Software unveiled three strategic product initiatives, code- named Trinity, Hawk, and Rhapsody. The results of these development projects are anticipated to be in the market as soon as the first half of 2004. These product releases will expand Ascential Software's leadership in providing enterprise solutions designed to enable customers to build an integrated view of data for more effective business analytics and decision support, enable the interoperability of multiple applications for a higher level of customer service and operational performance, and reduce the number of data sources that IT personnel need to understand in order to develop new applications. Further, the product releases are designed to improve development efficiencies, dramatically reduce the complexity of integrating new and legacy systems and help manage the exponential growth of data to meet user requirements for immediate access to information.

The product initiatives are:
-- "Trinity" - Anticipated completion mid 2004. Trinity highlights
include:
* Expanded service-oriented architecture capabilities
* 64-bit performance and expanded mainframe support
* Increased functionality for enterprise grid computing initiatives
* "Frictionless connectivity" - eliminating barriers to connectivity
inside and outside the enterprise

-- "Hawk" - Expected delivery late 2004.
Hawk highlights include:
* User interface innovations for enhanced productivity
* RFID infrastructure support
* "Next generation" meta data services infrastructure

-- "Rhapsody" - Next generation platform that will deliver a quantum leap
in productivity, manageability and scalability.

Jeff Turner, engagement director, Pinnacle Technical Resources, Inc., an enterprise systems architecture consulting firm, stated that "Ascential Software's vision and real-time capabilities really resonate with customers because that's where most companies want to go. For example, one of our clients, Verizon Communications, has a large data warehouse and the company wants to introduce real-time capabilities in that environment. We're looking for partners like Ascential Software that can get us there."

Introducing Ascential DataStage TX

Ascential DataStage TX, formerly Mercator Inside Integrator, transforms and routes data in transactional application environments and business processes such as consumer portals, business-to-business exchanges, and trading partner networks. The solution delivers field-proven and time-tested support for industry standards including EDIFACT, HIPAA, and X12. Ascential DataStage TX currently handles $100 billion per day in SWIFT transactions between major international financial institutions.

Ascential DataStage TX is integrated into the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite through Ascential Real-Time Integration Services. "Ascential DataStage TX rounds out and further extends the value, performance, and leadership of the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite," said Zurek. "The incorporation of Datastage TX into our suite to support transactional data integration was resoundingly supported by our customers and partners."

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is a leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the Web at www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to important factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this release address a variety of subjects including, for example, the functionality, characteristics and performance capabilities of Ascential's products, technology and services, the ability of Ascential to expand Ascential's leadership in providing enterprise solutions that enable customers to build an integrated view of data, enable the interoperability of multiple applications, and reduce the number of data sources for new application development, the ability of Ascential's product releases to improve development efficiencies, reduce the complexity of integrating new technology with legacy systems and help manage the growth of data to meet user requirements for immediate access to information and Ascential's ability to meet the anticipated delivery dates for Trinity, Hawk and Rhapsody products. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: risks relating to the ability of Ascential to expand its market share, growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market, the scope and frequency of data integration projects, the ability of customers to improve performance utilizing Ascential's products, the ability of Ascential to meet anticipated product delivery schedules, integration/divestiture issues resulting from merger/acquisition activities, general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies, rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential, dependence on international operations, and difficulties that Ascential may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the filings made by Ascential with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Ascential disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in Ascential's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based.

Ascential is a trademark of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks.

Source: Ascential Software Corporation

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To: SemiBull who wrote (164)11/13/2003 7:32:33 PM
From: SemiBull
   of 179
 
Ascential Software Reconfirms Guidance at Annual Investors' Conference

Thursday November 13, 12:22 pm ET

WESTBORO, Mass., Nov. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (Nasdaq: ASCL - News), the enterprise data integration leader, reconfirmed guidance for its fourth quarter 2003 revenue in the range of $61 million to $64 million and full-year 2004 in the range of $265 million to $275 million. For additional details on the company's guidance, please refer to the October 23, 2003 earnings press release and the related archived conference call available on the investor section of the Ascential Web site.

Ascential Software management provided this financial guidance at the Company's Annual Investors' Conference held yesterday in New York City. An archived webcast of the entire event can be accessed at www.ascential.com until 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on December 12, 2003.

The conference included presentations by Peter Gyenes, Chairman and CEO, Pete Fiore, President, and Bob Zurek, Vice President, Advanced Technologies and Product Management. In addition, the conference featured panel discussions with Ascential customers and partners who provided insight into their business and information technology strategies, current deployment of Ascential solutions, and perspective on Ascential's strategic direction and product roadmap. The Ascential partner panel included BearingPoint Inc., IBM and MicroStrategy. The Ascential customer panel included A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc., CCC Information Services Inc., Household Finance Corporation and Panasonic Management Information Technology Services Company.

About Ascential Software

Ascential Software Corporation is the leading provider of enterprise data integration solutions to organizations worldwide. Customers use the Ascential(TM) Enterprise Integration Suite to integrate and leverage data across all transactional, operational, and analytical applications with confidence in the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of critical information. Ascential Software's powerful data profiling, data quality, data transformation, parallel processing, meta data and connectivity solutions enable customers to reduce total cost of ownership and increase return on IT investment. Headquartered in Westboro, Mass., Ascential Software has offices worldwide and supports more than 3,000 customers in such industries as financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, retail, and government. More information on Ascential Software can be found on the web at www.ascential.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This public announcement contains and references forward-looking statements that are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements address a variety of subjects including, for example, revenue, revenue growth; customer value; technology differentiation; activity levels and sales pipeline; market validation; increased market presence and visibility; payment of the remaining balance for the remaining Mercator shares; market opportunity of integration infrastructure; expanded customer base and growing market demand; changes to the enterprise data integration landscape; increased presence of data integration through the harnessing of the benefits of a Service Oriented Architecture and elimination of concerns about data sources, quality, volumes and latency; ability of customers to integrate and leverage data; growth of the enterprise data integration market and the company's unique position therein; seasonality; the functionality, characteristics, quality and performance capabilities of Ascential Software's products and technology; results achievable and benefits attainable through deployment of Ascential Software's products; anticipated innovation and product development; reduction in total cost of ownership for customers and return on IT investment; profitability; costs and expenses; interest income; 2004 tax rates; and the usefulness of pro forma results. Any statements contained in this public announcement, including without limitation statements to the effect that the company or its management "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "may," "will," "projects," "continues," "intends" or "estimates," or statements concerning "potential" or "opportunity" or other variations thereof or comparable terminology or the negative thereof that are not statements of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results and events materially to differ for historical or anticipated results and events. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: the closing of the company's books and customary quarter-end accounting procedures; the ability of Ascential Software to expand its market share; growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market; general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies; rapid technological change in the markets served by Ascential Software; dependence on international operations; global and geopolitical instability; and difficulties that Ascential Software may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions, including the recent acquisition of Mercator Software, Inc. The financial measures discussed in this press release also involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to final accounting results for the period or periods covered. Investors and potential investors should review carefully the description of risks and uncertainties that, together with other detailed information about the company, is contained in the periodic reports that the company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the company's most recent Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements and financial measures contained herein represent the judgment of Ascential Software, as of the date of this release, and Ascential Software disclaims any intent or obligation to update such forward-looking statements to reflect any change in Ascential's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, and circumstances on which such statements are based.

Ascential is a trademark of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks.

Source: Ascential Software Corporation

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