Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AZPN), a leading provider of software and services to the process industries, today announced financial results for its second quarter of fiscal 2011, ended December 31, 2010. 

Mark Fusco, Chief Executive Officer of AspenTech, said, “The company’s solid performance was well-balanced across our key verticals, products and geographies during the second quarter.  The license portion of AspenTech’s total contract value grew by approximately 3.5% sequentially, leading to year-to-date growth of over 5.0% from the end of fiscal 2010.  We are currently ahead of last year’s pace of growth and believe that AspenTech is well positioned to achieve our full year goal of upper single digit to double digit growth for the full year.  We believe the growth of the license portion of our total contract value is the most meaningful metric for analyzing AspenTech’s underlying growth during our multi-year revenue model transition.” 

“The company continues to execute well with respect to expense controls and working capital management, which is contributing to a positive impact on our cash flow.  Another strong performance in the second quarter contributed to the generation of approximately $19 million in free cash flow during the first six months of fiscal 2011, a significant increase from approximately $3 million in the comparable period last fiscal year.  We believe that AspenTech remains well positioned to deliver against our longer-term goal of free cash flow in the mid-$90 million range during fiscal 2013,” Fusco concluded. 

Second Quarter Business Highlights 

• Total contract value, including the value of bundled maintenance, grew approximately 4.5% sequentially during the second quarter, while the license portion of total contract value grew approximately 3.5% sequentially.  
• Bookings were approximately $86 million for the second quarter, leading to bookings of approximately $160 million for the first half of fiscal 2011.  Within bookings, new and expanded adoption drove the above mentioned sequential increase in the license portion of total contract value, and solid renewal activity contributed the remainder of total bookings. 
• The value of future cash collections associated with the company’s subscription and multi-year term contracts was $688 million at the end of the second quarter, an increase from $653 million at the end of last quarter and $511 million at the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2010. 
• The company closed 24 bookings of over $1 million during the second quarter, compared to 18 in the second quarter of fiscal 2010, and 54 bookings between $250,000 and $1 million, compared to 57 in the second quarter of fiscal 2010.   
• Average deal size for bookings over $100,000 was approximately $653,000 in the second quarter, compared to approximately $778,000 in the second quarter of fiscal 2010.  

Summary of Second Quarter Financial Results 

AspenTech’s total revenue of $49.8 million increased 17% from $42.7 million in the second quarter of the prior year.   

• Subscription revenue includes all revenue associated with the company’s aspenONE subscription offering. Subscription revenue was $11.8 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2011, an increase from $1.2 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010.  Subscription revenue is recognized over the course of the multi-year agreement, and recognition begins when the first payment is due, which is typically 30 days after the contract is signed.
• Software revenue includes all non-subscription-based license revenue, including term-based contracts for point products as well as perpetual licenses.  Software revenue was $13.5 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to $9.0 million in the year ago period.  
• Services & other revenue, which includes professional services, maintenance and other revenue, was $24.5 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to $32.5 million in the year ago period.   

For the quarter ended December 31, 2010, AspenTech reported a loss from operations of $9.3 million due primarily to the ratable revenue recognition associated with the company’s aspenONE subscription offering.  For the quarter ended December 31, 2009, the company reported a loss from operations of $29.3 million.   

Net loss was $10.3 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2010, leading to net loss per basic and diluted share of $0.11, compared to net loss per diluted share of $0.34 in the same period last fiscal year.   

Non-GAAP loss from operations, which adds back stock-based compensation expense and restructuring charges, was $6.9 million for the second quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to a non-GAAP loss from operations of $19.7 million in the same period last fiscal year.  Non-GAAP net loss was $8.0 million, or ($0.09) per share, for the second quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to a non-GAAP net loss of $21.4 million, or ($0.24) per share, in the same period last fiscal year.  A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP results is included in the financial tables included in this press release.  

AspenTech had a cash balance of $131.6 million at December 31, 2010, an increase of $8.5 million from the end of the prior quarter.  The company generated $14.8 million in cash flows from operations and invested $1.5 million in capital expenditures, leading to free cash flow of $13.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2010.  The company continued to reduce its secured borrowings balance, which was $66.8 million at the end of the second quarter, down $4.4 million compared to $71.2 million at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2011.   

Conference Call and Webcast                                  

AspenTech will host a conference call and webcast today, February 8, 2011, at 4:30 p.m. (Eastern Time), to discuss the company's financial results for the second quarter fiscal year 2011 as well as the company’s business outlook.  The live dial-in number is (877) 245-0126, conference ID code 37267908. Interested parties may also listen to a live webcast of the call by logging on to the Investor Relations section of AspenTech’s website, http://www.aspentech.com/corporate/investor.cfm, and clicking on the “webcast” link. A replay of the call will be archived on AspenTech’s website and will also be available via telephone at (800) 642-1687 or (706) 645-9291, conference ID code 37267908 through February 15, 2011.

About AspenTech 

AspenTech is a leading global provider of mission-critical process optimization software solutions, which are designed to manage and optimize plant and process design, operational performance, and supply chain planning. Our aspenONE® software and related services have been developed specifically for companies in the process industries, including energy, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and engineering and construction. Customers use our solutions to improve their competitiveness and profitability by increasing throughput and productivity, reducing operating costs, enhancing capital efficiency, and decreasing working capital requirements. To see how the world’s leading process manufacturers rely on AspenTech to achieve their operational excellence goals, visit www.aspentech.com. 

© 2011 Aspen Technology, Inc. AspenTech, aspenONE, the Aspen leaf logo, OPTIMIZE, and the 7 Best Practices of Engineering Excellence are trademarks of Aspen Technology, Inc. All rights reserved.  All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.