Announces Appointment of New Chairman of the Board of Directors
Company to Report Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2015 Financial
Results on February 18, 2016
SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 1, 2016--
Financial Engines (NASDAQ:FNGN), America’s largest independent
investment advisor1, today announced that it has completed
the previously announced acquisition of The Mutual Fund Store for
approximately 9.9 million shares of newly-issued Financial Engines
common stock and approximately $250 million in cash, subject to certain
closing and post-closing adjustments. Following closing, Warburg Pincus
is expected to become Financial Engines’ largest stockholder with a
beneficial ownership of approximately 13%. Michael Martin, managing
director of Warburg Pincus LLC, has also been appointed to the Financial
Engines board of directors, effective February 1, 2016.
“We are thrilled to welcome The Mutual Fund Store to the Financial
Engines family and believe this combination will expand our independent
advisory services for 401(k) participants by providing more
comprehensive financial planning services and access to in-person
advisors,” said Larry Raffone, president and chief executive officer of
Financial Engines. “The acquisition, which closed earlier than expected,
will also provide significant revenue and adjusted earnings-per-share
accretion and has the potential to deliver strong synergies and higher
future growth.”
"We're excited by the capabilities of the combined companies to serve
the needs of many more people, which we believe will accelerate growth,"
said Michael Martin, managing director of Warburg Pincus. "I'm pleased
to be joining the Financial Engines board of directors and working with
the management team to realize this long-term potential."
The acquisition will enable Financial Engines to expand its independent
advisory services to 401(k) participants through comprehensive financial
planning and the option to meet face-to-face with a dedicated financial
advisor at one of more than 125 national locations. The Mutual Fund
Store is a fast-growing registered investment adviser providing
personalized financial planning and objective, fiduciary advice through
advisors in locations across the United States. As of December 31, 2015,
The Mutual Fund Store had approximately 352 employees, 84,000 accounts
at 39,000 households, and over $9.7 billion in assets under management.
Additional Changes on the Board of Directors
Financial Engines also announces today that Paul Koontz, Chairman of the
Board, has informed the Company of his decision to not stand for
re-election at the annual meeting of the Company’s stockholders in May
2016. He will step down as Chairman, effective immediately, but continue
to serve as a member of the board of directors until his term expires.
Mr. Koontz has served as Chairman since February 2003 and
has been a director since March 1997.
“Paul has been a key factor in our success over the last 20 years and I
have always valued his counsel,” said Larry Raffone, president and chief
executive officer. “On behalf of myself and the entire company, I want
to extend our sincere thanks and appreciation to Paul for his important
contributions to the company’s success.”
In addition, Financial Engines is pleased to announce the appointment of
Blake R. Grossman as the Chairman of the Board, effective immediately. Mr.
Grossman has served as a director since May 2011 and has served
as the managing partner of the private investing firms ThirdStream
Partners LLC since October 2014 and of CHJ Capital Management LLC since
May 2011, both based in San Francisco. Previously, Mr. Grossman held
executive positions with BlackRock, Inc., an investment management, risk
management and advisory services provider, through 2010, including Vice
Chairman and Head of Scientific Investments. Mr. Grossman served as the
Global Chief Executive Officer of Barclays Global Investors (BGI) from
2002 until December 2009, when BGI was acquired by BlackRock. From 1985
to 2002, Mr. Grossman held various executive and board positions with
BGI and its predecessor organizations, including Chief Investment
Officer from 1992 to 2002.
“I am very honored to take on this important responsibility and
appreciate the confidence the board has expressed in me,” said Mr.
Grossman. “I’m looking forward to working even more closely with the
board and management team to build on the great success Financial
Engines has achieved and carrying on Bill Sharpe’s original vision to
help even more people of modest means achieve greater financial
security.”
“We are fortunate to have someone with Blake’s experience and passion
assuming the role of Chairman,” said Larry Raffone, president and chief
executive officer of Financial Engines. “I’m confident that Blake will
help us continue to deliver great results for our customers, employees,
and stockholders.”
Conference Call
Financial Engines will host a conference call to discuss its fourth
quarter and full year 2015 financial results as well as its 2016 outlook
on Thursday, February 18, 2016 at 5:00pm ET. The live webcast and
presentation can be accessed from the Company's investor relations
website at www.financialengines.com.
The conference call can also be accessed live over the phone by dialing
(888) 348-6435, or (412) 902-4238 for international callers. A replay
will be available beginning one hour after the call and can be accessed
from the Company’s investor relations website, or by dialing (877)
870-5176, or (858) 384-5517 for international callers; the conference ID
is 10079395. The conference call replay will be available until February
25, 2016.
About Financial Engines
Financial Engines is America’s largest independent investment advisor1.
We help people make the most of their money by providing full-service
financial planning, including professional investment management and
advice. Headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA, Financial Engines was co-founded
in 1996 by Nobel Prize-winning economist William F. Sharpe. We serve as
a comprehensive financial advisor for our workplace customers, and offer
help to more than nine million people across over 650 companies
(including 142 of the Fortune 500). Our unique approach, combined with
powerful online services, dedicated advisors and personal attention,
promotes greater financial wellness and helps more Americans to meet
their financial goals.
For more information, please visit www.financialengines.com.
All advisory services provided by our investment advisory subsidiaries,
including Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. and a nationwide system of
registered investment advisors known as The Mutual Fund Store. Financial
Engines does not guarantee future results.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release and its attachments contain forward-looking
statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking
statements may be identified by terms such as “plan to,” “designed to,”
“will,” “can,” “expect,” “estimates,” “believes,” “intends,” “may,”
“continues,” “to be” or the negative of these terms, and similar
expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. These
forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements
regarding the acquisition of The Mutual Fund Store, including the costs,
impact and benefits thereof, the expectation that the acquisition of The
Mutual Fund Store will expand the Company’s independent advisory
services for 401(k) participants by providing more comprehensive
financial planning services and access to in-person advisors, the
expectation that the acquisition will provide significant revenue and
adjusted earnings per share accretion and the potential to deliver
strong synergies and higher future growth, Warburg Pincus and its
expected ownership interest in Financial Engines post-closing, and the
expectation that the acquisition will benefit customers served by, and
accelerate growth opportunities for, the combined entity. These
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to
differ materially from those expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements, and reported results should not be
considered as an indication of future performance. These risks and
uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks related to the
acquisition of The Mutual Fund Store, including our ability to realize
the anticipated benefits of the transaction in a timely manner or at
all, and to successfully integrate The Mutual Fund Store’s business with
Financial Engines, costs associated with the transaction, and the
potential impact of the transaction, and reaction thereto, on our
business, operating results and financial condition, our reliance on
fees earned on the value of assets we manage for a substantial portion
of our revenue, the impact of the financial markets on our revenue and
earnings, unanticipated delays in rollouts of our services, our ability
to increase enrollment, our ability to correctly identify and invest
appropriately in growth opportunities, our ability to introduce new
services and accurately estimate the impact of any future services on
our business, the risk that the anticipated benefits of our investments
in these services or in growth opportunities may not outweigh the
resources and costs associated with these investments or the liabilities
associated with the operation of these services, our relationships with
plan providers and plan sponsors, the fees we can charge for our
Professional Management service, our reliance on accurate and timely
data from plan providers and plan sponsors, system failures, errors or
unsatisfactory performance of our services, our reputation, our ability
to protect the confidentiality of plan provider, plan sponsor and plan
participant data and other privacy concerns, acquisition activity
involving plan providers or plan sponsors, our ability to compete, our
regulatory environment, and risks associated with our fiduciary
obligations. More information regarding these and other risks,
uncertainties and factors is contained in the Company’s Form 10-K for
the year ended December 31, 2014 as filed with the SEC, and in other
reports filed by the Company with the SEC from time to time. You are
cautioned not to unduly rely on these forward-looking statements, which
speak only as of the date of this press release. All information in this
press release and its attachments is as of the date stated or February
1, 2016 and unless required by law, Financial Engines undertakes no
obligation to publicly revise any forward-looking statement to reflect
circumstances or events after the date of this press release or to
report the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Our investment advisory and management services are provided through our
subsidiary, Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C., a federally registered
investment advisor. References in this press release to “Financial
Engines,” “our company,” “the Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to
Financial Engines, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries during the
periods presented unless the context requires otherwise.
1 For independence methodology and ranking, see
InvestmentNews RIA Data Center. (http://data.investmentnews.com/ria/).

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Source: Financial Engines
Press:
Financial Engines
David Weiskopf, 408-498-6555
dweiskopf@financialengines.com
or
Investor
Relations:
Financial Engines
Amy Conley, 617-556-2305
aconley@financialengines.com