HRB 9/21/2023 Shareholder/Stockholder Letter Transcript:
2023
Annual
Report
2023 Annual Report
Strong Capital Allocation Practice
Over the last five years:
Robust free cash
flow1 generation
102%
of FCF1 returned
to shareholders
Strong and
reliable dividend
Significant share
repurchase
Currently
Retired
$1.28
>65M
per year
shares
~30%
~1/3
growth2
Meaningful
Adjusted EPS1
growth
Delivered
60%
growth
of shares
outstanding
Block Horizons 2025 Long Term Growth Strategy
Three Strategic Imperatives:
1
Small Business
Build direct, valuable relationships
with small business owners
through Block Advisors and Wave;
as well as by providing services
such as bookkeeping and payroll.
2
Financial Products
New solutions and experiences
to create confidence and help
ease the financial burden, such
as our mobile banking platform,
Spruce3.
3
Block Experience
Blending technology and digtal
tools with human expertise and care
to serve clients however they want
to be served: fully in person to fully
online and everything in between.
1
Free cash flow and adjusted earnings per share (EPS) are non-GAAP financial measures. Free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating
activities less capital expenditures. The Company believes free cash flow is useful as an indication of the strength of the Company and its ability to
generate cash and to evaluate the Company s cash generation ability relative to competitors. It should not be inferred that the entire free cash flow
amount is available for discretionary expenditures. Please see the last 3 pages of this Annual Report for information on non-GAAP financial measures
and reconciliations to the most directly comparable financial measures in accordance with GAAP.
2
Dividend growth is calculated as percentage growth from our March 2019 dividend to our September 2023 dividend.
3
Banking products offered by Pathward , N.A., Member FDIC.
Jeffery J. Jones II
President & CEO
Fellow Shareholders,
In fiscal 2023, we delivered revenue growth, material EBITDA1
growth, and EPS and adjusted EPS1 growth of 9%. As we
discussed at the beginning of the year, we knew we were
facing headwinds due to the rollback of the advanced child
tax credit payments that were loaded onto the Emerald
Card. During the year we also had foreign exchange impacts,
stimulus filers that returned to the sidelines, and California s
deadline extension. Overall, I m pleased with the results we
produced despite these challenges.
Our DIY strategy delivered, resulting in meaningful market
share gains. We demonstrated pricing power in the Assisted
channel and saw positive customer satisfaction metrics, small
business tax continued to be a growth driver, and our mobile
baking platform, Spruce, added ~150K new sign ups and
made an impact to users by helping them to be better with
their money.
In addition, we have partnered with Microsoft to leverage its
Azure OpenAI services and leading genAI technology to fuel
faster and better experiences for taxpayers. While we have
been building in house capabilities for some time, we believe
we can further accelerate our progress by leveraging the
most advanced AI models in the world while continuing to
keep data security a top priority.
We also continued to drive value for shareholders through our
capital allocation program. We repurchased $550 million of
shares outstanding, retiring another 9% of our float, and
announced a 10% increase to the dividend in August of 2023,
reflecting the Board s confidence in our business.
1
Let me share more detail on our progress:
An Update on Our Block Horizons
Strategic Imperatives
This year was the third year of our five-year Block Horizons
journey to drive transformational change. We continued to
make progress across all three of our strategic imperatives:
Small business: Continues to be a Growth Driver
Small Business Assisted tax delivered 6% revenue growth
for the fiscal year, on top of strong growth last year, led by
a 5% net average charge (NAC) increase. We also see a nice
runway of longer-term opportunities in services. While early,
our bookkeeping and payroll services are gaining traction,
and this year we launched a business formation tool to allow
small business customers to take advantage of benefits
that may come from incorporating. Additionally, our new
internal sales team more than doubled appointment to sale
conversion rates, accelerating growth in services. All in all, I
am pleased with the trends in Small Business and continue to
see significant opportunity ahead.
Regarding Wave, in fiscal 2023, revenue increased 12%. Our
top priorities are driving revenue growth and improving
profitability, and we are working on a robust roadmap of other
new features to roll out in the coming months.
Financial Products: Spruce, Our Mobile Banking
Platform, is Making an Impact
Our Financial Products imperative is focused on developing
new solutions and experiences that inspire confidence
and help ease the financial burden of our clients. Spruce,
our mobile banking platform, represents a move in our
Earnings before interest taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and adjusted EPS are non-GAAP financial measures. Please see the last 3 pages of this
Annual Report for information on non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliations to the most directly comparable financial measures in accordance with GAAP.
1
Through April 30:
4%
>10%
2.5%
Assisted NAC
increase
growth in Assisted
clients with >$100K
of income
online client growth, and
meaningful DIY share gains
transformational journey to become a year-round financial
services provider. After initially launching Spruce in the DIY
channel in FY22, we introduced it in the Assisted channel
in FY23. Since launch through June 30, 2023, we have had
300K signups and $334M in customer deposits.
Spruce is committed to helping customers be good with
money, and we are seeing progress toward that impact goal.
A higher percentage of users are now saving money, and
the balances accumulating in savings accounts continues
to grow. These savings accounts allow users to customize
goals in order to save for the things they want, and the
budget watchlist feature utilizes flexible guardrails to help
build healthy spending habits. Feedback from users indicate
that these tools give them the visibility and control that they
have been missing in their financial lives.
Block Experience: Blends Digital Tools with
Human Expertise and Care
At H&R Block, we serve clients however they want to
be served: fully virtual to fully in person, and everything
in between.
In the DIY channel this year, our goal was to return to market
share growth by increasing awareness that we offer a DIY
product, improving the product, and making it easier to
switch from TurboTax . This multifaceted strategy worked:
online clients grew 2.5% through April 30, and we gained
35 basis points of market share. We are looking forward to
continuing this momentum in fiscal 2024.
In the Assisted channel through April 30, we successfully
increased company NAC by 4% while receiving strong
customer satisfaction metrics.
2
Looking back over the last few
years, we ve made significant
strides in our products, services,
and features within our Block
Horizons strategy, and we feel well
positioned for fiscal year 2024.
We also attracted higher income clients and saw more than
10% growth in those with over $100K of income; and, we
continued to see progress in the adoption of virtual tools.
As I mentioned earlier, genAI creates significant opportunity
to serve our clients better and more efficiently, and we are
leaning into the technology. Our initial two focus areas are
1) to reduce expenses and increase productivity, and 2) to
deliver enhanced customer experiences. We have dedicated
teams working on these efforts, and we are excited about
the possibilities ahead.
Looking back over the last few years, we ve made significant
strides in our products, services, and features within our
Block Horizons strategy, and we feel well positioned for
fiscal year 2024.
Our Capital Allocation Story
Remains Strong
As we have consistently shared, we produce significant and
stable cash flow, pay a growing dividend, and buy back a
meaningful amount of shares every year.
This year we generated over $700 million of free cash flow1
and returned a similar amount to shareholders. For fiscal
2023, our free cash flow yield1 (calculated as free cash flow1
divided by market cap) was over 16%, which is more than
three times the S&P 500.
We completed $550 million of share repurchases this year
and retired 9% of shares outstanding. Over the last five
years, we have reduced shares outstanding from 209 million
to 146 million, or 32% of our float.
despite increasing the dividend, the total dollars paid has
been decreasing because we have acquired so many shares,
which has created a nice flywheel.
Dividend
$1.16
$1.00
$205.5
Share Repurchase
$204.9
$195.1
$186.5
$177.9
FY22
FY23
209.3*
146.2
$550.3
$550.2
FY19
FY20
Dividends Paid
FY19
$188.2
FY20
Share Repurchases
FY21
FY22
FY23
Shares Outstanding
Reduced shares outstanding by 32% in five years;
continue to believe this is a great use of capital
Dividends per Share
Announced 10% increase resulting in
annualized dividend of $1.28
$246.8
$184.8
FY21
209.3M shares outstanding as of May 1, 2018.
We were pleased to announce a 10% increase to the
dividend in August of 2023, and over the last five years, we
have increased the dividend by about 30%. What is great
about this aspect of our capital allocation approach is that
We are confident in our ability to drive ongoing value for
shareholders with these practices.
Doing Our Part: At H&R Block, We Care
Our Purpose is to provide help and inspire confidence in
our clients and communities everywhere. As part of this
Purpose, we believe in doing our part to be a responsible
corporate citizen, which has been a part of our culture and
aspirations from the very beginning. As such, we remain
strongly committed to carrying out the legacy of our
co-founders, Henry and Richard Bloch, to be a force for
positive change.
Note: Charts in millions except for per share amounts. FY19, FY20, and FY21 represent the fiscal period ended April 30. FY22 and FY23 represent the fiscal period ended June 30.
1
Free cash flow and free cash flow yield are non-GAAP financial measures. Free cash flow is defined as net cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures.
Free cash flow yield is defined as free cash flow divided by the market value of equity (market capitalization). Please see the last 3 pages of this Annual Report for
information on non-GAAP financial measure and reconciliations to the most directly comparable financial measures in accordance with GAAP.
3
9/21/2023 Letter Continued (Full PDF)