Life Time Fitness Announces Date for Release of Fourth Quarter 2012 Financial Results

Life Time Fitness, Inc. (LTM), The Healthy Way of Life Company, today announced that the Company is scheduled to release its fourth quarter and full-year 2012 financial results on Thursday, February 21, 2013. A conference call to discuss the results will be held at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Bahram Akradi, chairman, president and chief executive officer, Michael Robinson, executive vice president and chief financial officer, and John Heller, senior director, investor relations and treasurer, will host the call.

The conference call will be webcast live and may be accessed via the Company's Investor Relations section of its website at lifetimefitness.com. A replay of the call will be available beginning at approximately 2:00 p.m. ET on February 21, 2013.

Life Technologies Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2012 Results

Life Technologies Corporation (LIFE) today announced results for its fourth quarter for the year ended Dec. 31, 2012. Non-GAAP revenue for the fourth quarter was $999 million, an increase of 3 percent over the $970 million reported for the fourth quarter of 2011. Excluding the impact of currency, revenue growth for the quarter was 4.5 percent compared to the same period of the prior year. Full year 2012 revenue was $3.8 billion, an increase of 2 percent over 2011. Excluding currency, revenue growth was also about 2.2 percent over the prior year.

"We started the year with a promise to our shareholders to grow our underlying business, invest in growth markets and regions, deliver on a balanced capital deployment strategy and introduce innovative new products to serve our customers even better. I am extremely pleased that our team remained focused and delivered against this promise, growing revenue and earnings for the thirteenth year in a row," said Gregory T. Lucier, chairman and chief executive officer of Life Technologies.

"We finished the year strong with fourth quarter revenue growth ahead of our expectations at 4.5 percent driven by strength in our Ion Torrent business, which recorded its highest revenue quarter ever. We also achieved a solid return to growth in our Research Consumables business and continued strong performance in our Bioproduction business. We expect the strength we saw across all regions and end markets as we exited 2012, including continued double digit growth in emerging markets, to provide momentum in 2013."
"With $662 million in free cash flow, we were able to return a significant amount of capital to shareholders. We ended the year having repurchased $635 million, or 13.8 million shares in total, well above our 50 percent target.  Additionally, we have already repurchased $105 million, or 2 million shares, year-to-date in 2013."

"Looking ahead to 2013, we expect another significant increase in our Ion Torrent business sales for the third consecutive year and expansion in our applied and emerging markets to drive revenue growth of 3 to 5 percent over 2012 results of $3.8 billion.  If sequestration is implemented, we estimate it would reduce our revenue by approximately 1 percent and we would expect to be at the low end of our guidance range, at 3 percent growth for 2013. We are guiding to non-GAAP EPS in a range of $4.30 to $4.45, which would result in 8 to 12 percent growth over 2012 results."

Life Technologies reported results compared to the quarter and fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2011. Results are non-GAAP unless indicated otherwise. A full reconciliation of the non-GAAP measures to GAAP can be found in the tables of today's press release.

Analysis of Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2012 Results
Fourth quarter revenue increased 3 percent over the prior year, or 4.5 percent excluding the impact of currency. Full year 2012 revenue increased 2 percent to $3.8 billion. Revenue growth for the quarter and the full year were driven by strong sales from the Ion Torrent business and growth in the company's Research Consumables and Bioproduction businesses, partially offset by expected declines in SOLiD® sales and qPCR royalty revenue.

Gross margin in the fourth quarter was 64.6 percent, a 20 basis point increase compared to the same period of the prior year primarily driven by manufacturing productivity, partially offset by a higher mix of instrument sales and unfavorable currency rates. Full year gross margin was 65.6 percent, an increase of 40 basis points, primarily due to improved product mix and higher realized price, offset by the decrease in qPCR royalties and unfavorable currency rates.

Operating margin was 29.9 percent in the fourth quarter, approximately 70 basis points lower than the same period of the prior year. Operating margin was primarily impacted by unfavorable currency rates and expenses related to our acquisitions in molecular diagnostics. Full year operating margin increased 20 basis points to 29.2 percent. The increase was driven primarily by an increase in gross margins and improvement in currency, partially offset by higher expenses related to our acquisitions in molecular diagnostics.

The tax rate was 27.2 percent for the fourth quarter and 27.6 percent for the full year.
Fourth quarter EPS increased 6 percent to $1.11. Full year EPS increased 7 percent to $3.98.  Fourth quarter and the full year were negatively impacted by $(0.03) due to the timing of the 2012 federal R&D tax credit benefit being moved from the fourth quarter of 2012 to 2013. The company's fourth quarter and full year 2012 guidance had assumed the reinstatement and benefit of the federal R&D tax credit by the end of 2012.

Diluted weighted shares outstanding were 175.8 million in the fourth quarter, a decrease of 8.8 million shares over the prior year. The decrease was a result of the continuation of the company's share repurchase program, partially offset by shares issued for employee stock plans. The company repurchased $100 million or 2.0 million shares in the fourth quarter.

Cash flow from operating activities for the fourth quarter was $221 million. Fourth quarter capital expenditures were $48 million, resulting in free cash flow of $173 million. The company ended the quarter with $276 million in cash and short-term investments.

Business Group Highlights
Research Consumables revenue was $409 million in the fourth quarter, an increase of 2 percent compared to the prior year. Excluding the impact from currency, revenue for the business group grew 4 percent. Full year revenue increased 1 percent to $1.6 billion, or 2 percent excluding the impact from currency. Growth for the quarter and full year was mainly driven by strong performance in our cell culture, sample prep and benchtop products.

Genetic Analysis revenue was $401 million in the fourth quarter, an increase of 2 percent over the same period last year. Excluding the impact from currency, revenue increased 4 percent. Full year revenue was flat at approximately $1.5 billion, or up 1 percent excluding the impact from currency. Growth for the quarter and the full year was primarily driven by a substantial increase in our Ion Torrent business, including sales of the Ion PGM™ instruments and Ion Proton™ System, partially offset by an expected decline in SOLiD instrument sales and in qPCR royalty revenue.

Applied Sciences revenue was $190 million in the fourth quarter, an increase of 8 percent over the same period last year. Excluding the impact from currency, revenue increased 10 percent. Full year revenue increased 7 percent to $719 million, or 8 percent excluding the impact from currency. Growth for the quarter was primarily driven by increased sales in Bioproduction and Forensics products. Growth for the full year was primarily driven by increased sales in Bioproduction.

Regional revenue growth rates excluding currency for the fourth quarter compared to the same quarter of the prior year were as follows: the Americas were flat, Europe grew 5 percent, Asia Pacific grew 18 percent and Japan grew 6 percent. Full year growth rates excluding currency were as follows: the Americas declined 1 percent, Europe grew 2 percent, Asia Pacific grew 13 percent and Japan grew 3 percent.

Fiscal Year 2013 Outlook
Subject to the risk factors detailed in the Safe Harbor Statement section of this release, the company provided its expectations for fiscal year 2013 financial performance. The company expects revenue growth, excluding currency, of 3 to 5 percent over 2012 revenues of $3.8 billion. If sequestration is implemented, it would reduce revenue by approximately 1 percent and the company would expect be at the low end of the guidance range, at 3 percent growth for 2013. The company expects non-GAAP EPS to be in a range of $4.30 to $4.45.  At December month end rates, currency negatively impacts revenue by $(2) million and non-GAAP EPS by about $(0.01). The company will provide further detail on its business outlook during the webcast today.
Webcast Details

The company will discuss its financial and business results as well as its business outlook on a webcast at 4:30 p.m. ET today. This webcast will contain forward-looking information that includes a discussion of "non-GAAP financial measures" as that term is defined in Regulation G. For actual results, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures and information reconciling these non-GAAP financial measures to the company's financial results determined in accordance with GAAP, as well as other material financial and statistical information to be discussed on the webcast will be posted on the company's investor relations website at https://ir.lifetechnologies.com.

Irish Life offers free €500m of life cover

Irish Life plans to give up to €500m of life assurance for free for up to 20,000 adults to highlight the importance of having cover.

The company will give cover of €25,000 for a year to 20,000 adults.

Irish Life has also published its findings from a study on customer attitudes to life assurance. Key findings from the survey of 1,000 people include:

* 60% of adults in Ireland do not have life insurance which often means that dependants could face significant financial problems in the event of their death;

* 56% of people say they could struggle financially in the event that something would happen to them. This is an increase of 10% (from 46% to 56%) from March 2011.

* 34% of adults assume the cost of cover is significantly more expensive than it typically is — they assume that €100,000 of cover will cost more than €50 a month.

Gerry Hassett, chief executive, Irish Life Retail, said: "In fact, for €100,000 cover with our Term Life Insurance plan, the price could be less than a third of that amount — just €15 per month for an adult aged 40 or younger, over a 10-year term who is a non-smoker and is in good health.

"Life insurance should be at the core of every family’s financial planning. Last year, Irish Life paid out €83m in death claims to 1,168 families. However, what may surprise people is that over half of this amount, €45m, was paid in respect of people younger than 55 years old, which is the upper age limit on our Free Parent Insurance promotion."

Now Browsing | The L.A. Art Book Fair

New Yorkers who love books and art look forward each year to Printed Matter’s N.Y. Art Book Fair. Now the event has a West Coast companion: Printed Matter’s first L.A. Art Book Fair opens today, at the Museum of Contemporary Art’s Geffen Contemporary space in downtown Los Angeles. The fair’s director, AA Bronson, is an artist who is the former president of Printed Matter, a nonprofit organization devoted to publications by artists, and who conceived the original fair in 2005.

Bronson has long wanted to bring the art book fair to L.A., because it is where so many of his New York exhibitors are based. “Los Angeles is a hotbed of alternative publishing,” he says, “even though many people in the art world might not think of L.A. as a serious place for publishing.” Putting to rest once and for all the notion that Angelenos don’t read and that they all spend their time surfing or perfecting their tans, Bronson has assembled an impressive roster of exhibitors (220 from over 21 countries), events and special installations for the fair’s L.A. debut.

The online bookshop Book Stand’s display focuses on books about plants, including “the southwest,” a new booklet featuring the artist Ye Rin Mok’s photographs of unusual vegetation that she encountered on an impromptu drive through Utah and Arizona. Marc Jacobs’s Bookmarc, one of L.A.’s few independent bookstores, will host a book signing with the illustrator Jean-Philippe Delhomme for “The Unknown Hipster Diaries,” and small Los Angeles publishers like Iko Iko, other wild, and the L.A. Forum for Architecture and Urbanism will display their wares alongside those of many of the city’s museums. Because L.A. is considered “the center of the zine universe,” says Bronson, he invited the curator Darin Klein to organize “Zine World,” a series of exhibitions and events focusing on cult classics like “Skate Fate” and “Bedwetter,” while Printed Matter added an exhibition of pioneering zine makers like Raymond Pettibon, Dash Snow, Mark Gonzalez and Ari Marcopoulos.

The L.A. Art Book Fair is a “smorgasbord for sure,” says Bronson, who hopes it will become an annual event. “It’s become its own thing. We knew it would be very different from the N.Y. fair and we didn’t try to shape it, but allowed it to take its own shape. There are lots of layers to the city’s art book world that are waiting to be discovered.”

The fair is free and open to the public from Feb. 1 through Feb. 3 at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, 152 North Central Avenue, Los Angeles. See the book fair’s Web site for detailed event schedules as well as a list of neighborhood restaurants.

Joint Life Insurance: Policies Built for 2

Married couples looking for a way to lower the cost of life insurance or to make sure their estate is protected from taxes when they die may want to consider joint life insurance.

Not as common as individual life insurance, joint policies are designed to enable two people, typically spouses, to share in one life insurance plan. Joint life insurance comes in two flavors: first-to-die, which pays out to the surviving spouse after the first dies; and second-to-die, or survivorship, which pays a death benefit to the heirs after both spouses are gone.

"First-to-die and second-to-die generally have different purposes," says Steven Brostoff, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based trade association the American Council of Life Insurers. "Second-to-die can be used to help pay estate taxes and/or to provide a financial legacy to children, while first-to-die is more suited for young couples with children -- to replace lost income or services provided by the deceased parent."

Consumers may purchase a joint policy either as term life insurance, covering only a set number of years; or permanent life insurance, protecting one or both spouses for an entire lifetime. The most common way joint life insurance is sold is as permanent universal life, with a "cash value" savings component that grows, say insurance experts. "About 80% is in a version of universal life," says Kevin Finneran, a vice president with New York-based insurer MetLife.

Second-to-Die Protects Your Heirs
Second-to-die, or survivorship, life insurance is offered by a handful of insurers and is typically geared toward affluent people concerned about the potential for hefty estate taxes on what they leave behind. For 2013, the estate-tax exemption will be $5.25 million for individuals and $10.5 million for married couples, which means an estate has to be worth more than the threshold for the tax to kick in.

"Because estate taxes are only applicable to a small percentage of (very wealthy) people that die each year, those policies are very large," says Elaine Tumicki, corporate vice president of product research for LIMRA, an insurance and financial services trade group based in Windsor, Conn. The policies make up "a relatively small piece of the insurance market," she adds.

It's not unreasonable to estimate that a $1 million joint survivorship policy would be 20% cheaper than two $500,000 individual life policies, Finneran notes. Premiums and savings will vary based on the insurer and the age and health of the persons being insured.

Besides being economical, another benefit of a second-to-die policy is that it provides a level of protection to those whose health might bar them from getting their own individual life insurance policy. "It can be a way for a person who would not qualify for a single life policy to get some coverage, assuming the other spouse is insurable," Finneran says.

First-to-Die Helps Maintain a Lifestyle
First-to-die joint life insurance is less common than second-to-die, but it is sold by some better-known insurers. For example, State Farm offers a joint universal life policy in which the death benefit is paid when the first spouse dies. Coverage starts at $100,000 and is available for people ranging in age from 20 to 85.

A first-to-die policy may be the right product for married people who want a surviving spouse to be able to maintain a certain lifestyle but wants to pay less than the cost of two individual polices.
"It's only paying out once, so naturally it will be less than two payouts" and that makes the cost lower, says Brostoff, of the American Council of Life Insurers.

But don't expect a first-to-die policy to be substantially cheaper than two individual policies. There isn't enough of a market yet for this particular type of joint life insurance to drive premiums drastically lower, says Finneran. Plus, since there is only one payout, there may be a need for the surviving spouse to spend money on new coverage after the other dies.

Divorce Can Break Up the Joint
Whenever anyone considers a first-to-die or survivorship policy, one of those "let's not go there" but must-be-addressed questions is: What happens if there's a divorce?

In the event that the two members of a covered couple decide to go their separate ways, these insurance plans can come with optional riders or clauses that provide for the right to split the policy into two individual ones. Keep in mind that there can be restrictions on when the policy may be split, says Finneran, of MetLife. In some cases, a couple must be divorced for a certain length of time before the right to split the policy can be exercised.

Experts advise couples shopping for joint life insurance not to sign up for any policy before making sure a divorce clause is included. If it's not, find a different policy. You want a joint life policy that will allow you to disengage, says Tumicki, of LIMRA.

"Getting divorced is a very difficult question the couple needs to resolve before they purchase the (joint life insurance) policy," Brostoff adds. "Even though you don't want to think about it, it does happen."

Oceanside Selected as the 2013 Life Time Tri Championship Event

Life Time (NYSE: LTM), the Healthy Way of Life Company, today unveiled that the 2013 Life Time Tri championship event will be held on Sunday, October 20, 2013 in Oceanside, Calif. In its inaugural year, Life Time Tri Oceanside is expected to host more than 1,500 of triathletes as the final of 12 Life Time Tri events across the country.

“Oceanside is recognized worldwide as a sought-after triathlon destination,” said Kimo Seymour, vice president, Life Time Athletic Events. “Nestled between San Diego and Los Angeles, Oceanside is a challenging, scenic course—a truly unique experience for triathletes of all abilities—and the perfect conclusion to our 2013 Life Time Tri schedule.”

Life Time Tri Oceanside will start with a 1.5-kilometer swim in the waters of Oceanside Harbor, which has an average water temperature of 63-65 degrees in late October. Athletes will enjoy an ocean front transition before starting a 40-kilometer bike course along the San Luis Rey Mission Expressway. The 10-kilometer run course follows white, sandy beaches allowing for a spectator-fueled finish adjacent at the historic Oceanside Pier. To keep Life Time Tri Oceanside accessible to athletes with a concentration on short course format, as well as beginner athletes, the event also will feature a shorter sprint distance race.

“We are honored that Oceanside has been chosen from among some of the country’s most spectacular destinations to host Life Time Tri’s championship event,” said Leslee Gaul, chief executive officer and president, Visit Oceanside. “With its accessibility to major west coast markets, stunning beauty and tourism infrastructure, Oceanside will resonate with both athletes and spectators alike.”

Along with professional athletes from around the world, Life Time Tri events attract more than 25,000 elite and age group athletes each season. Professional and elite triathletes will compete in international-distance and relay team competitions on courses. To keep Life Time Tri races accessible to athletes of all ages, kids events are available in select markets.

To register for any of the Life Time Tri events, visit lifetimetri.com, the official website of Life Time Tri. You also can stay updated with the latest information from Life Time Tri on Twitter by following @LifeTimeTri and by liking the Life Time Tri Facebook page.

Life insurers eye Asia deals to boost profit - Moody's

European and U.S. life insurers will seek takeovers in booming Asia and put more money into riskier assets this year to bolster flagging profits, Moody's said on Monday.

The outlook for developed world life insurers is negative, Moody's said in its annual overview of the sector, with investment income under pressure from rock-bottom rates, and sales wilting as stagnant economies force consumers to retrench.

Life insurers will likely respond by buying up rivals in faster-growing emerging markets, and by increasing their investment in riskier assets that yield higher returns, Moody's said.

Recent emerging market acquisitions by European insurers include Prudential (LSE: PRU.L - news) 's takeover of Thailand's Thanachart Life in November (Xetra: A0Z24E - news) last year, and Zurich Insurance Group's purchase of Santander (Madrid: SAN.MC - news) 's Latin American insurance unit in 2011.
Insurers seeking to boost their investment returns could put more money into equities, infrastructure or direct commercial loans.

Sovereign and corporate bonds, traditionally seen as low risk, accounted for 62 percent of European life insurers' investment portfolios at the end of 2011, according to Moody's.

Central banks in the United States and Europe slashed interest rates close to zero to prop up the economy in the wake of the 2008 banking crisis, dragging down bond yields, and eating into insurers' investment income.

Life insurers in Germany and France, whose best-selling products are savings policies that offer customers guaranteed minimum returns, have been hardest hit. Many are cutting their guarantees and trying to sell more alternative products where investment risk is borne by the customer.

U.S. and European life insurers face a further threat this year from potential sovereign debt crises, amid lingering worries over the creditworthiness of peripheral euro zone countries, Moody's said.

Last year, Moody's downgraded the credit rating of Spanish and Italian insurers, and also changed the outlook for pan-European players Allianz, Axa (Paris: FR0000120628 - news) and Aviva (LSE: AV.L - news) to negative, reflecting their heavy exposure to bonds issued by critically-indebted euro zone nations.