Willis group has reported results for the quarter ended 31 March 2007.
Joe Plumeri, chairman and chief executive officer, commented: "Our results by every measure show we are off to a solid start in 2007, and we once again delivered good organic revenue growth despite a softening market. Our confidence in the company is clearly demonstrated by the $457m buyback of stock in the first quarter.”
Net income for the quarter ended 31 March 2007 was $169m compared with $140m a year ago, an increase of 21 %.
Total reported revenues for the quarter ended 31 March 2007 were $739m compared with $671m for the same period last year, an increase of 10 %.
The board declared a regular quarterly cash dividend on the company's common stock of $0.25 per share, an annual rate of $1.00 per share. The dividend is payable on 16 July 2007 to shareholders of record on 30 June 2007.
In the first quarter 2007, the company issued $600m of 10-year senior notes at 6.20 percent. The cash proceeds of the issue were used to fund share buy backs and to repay outstanding borrowings of $200m under the revolving credit facility.
The company repurchased 11.5m shares for $457m under accelerated share repurchase programs.
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