Higher One Holdings, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2012 Financial Results

Higher One Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ONE) ("Higher One”) today announced financial results for the first quarter of 2012. The company reported revenue of $57.8 million, up 12% from $51.4 million in the first quarter of 2011. The year-over-year revenue growth was primarily attributable to an increase in the number of OneAccounts and an increase in the number of higher education institutions that have contracted for its services.

"The metrics we track to judge the health of the business are strong, and our backlog of schools yet to launch suggests that we will deliver solid financial results in the latter half of the year,” said Mark Volchek, Chairman and Chief Financial Officer. "There are currently 431,000 SSE in implementation, not including the SSE anticipated to sign in the second quarter, most of which will go through their first financial aid disbursement cycle in the upcoming fall semester. Once this occurs, we expect to see a significant increase in the number of OneAccounts generated from schools launched over the past year.”

Higher One also reported GAAP net income of $13.4 million, and non-GAAP adjusted net income, which excludes certain non-recurring or non-cash items, of $14.9 million. GAAP diluted EPS was $0.23 in the quarter, up from $0.19 in the first quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP adjusted diluted EPS was $0.25, up from $0.24 for the same period a year ago. In the first quarter of 2012, non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA was $25.2 million.

The number of OneAccounts at the end of the first quarter of 2012 totaled 2.1 million, up 20% from 1.8 million at the end of the first quarter of 2011. Total enrollment at higher education clients that have purchased the OneDisburse service increased to 4.3 million, an increase of approximately 917,000 from 3.4 million at the end of the first quarter of 2011. Total enrollment at higher education clients that have purchased the CASHNet suite of payment products increased to 2.8 million.

Operating cash flow in the quarter was $32.2 million. Cash, cash equivalents, and liquid investments totaled $55.6 million as of March 31, 2012. Higher One continued to repurchase shares during the quarter, utilizing $16.9 million to repurchase approximately 1.1 million shares at an average price of $15.21 per share in the quarter.

Higher One updated its full-year 2012 revenue and GAAP diluted EPS guidance to $200.0 – $215.0 million and $0.70 – $0.80, respectively. The company updated full-year 2012 non-GAAP adjusted diluted EPS guidance to $0.80 – $0.90.

Quarterly Conference Call Information

Higher One will host a conference call at 5 p.m. ET today to discuss first quarter results. A live webcast of the conference call, together with a slide presentation that includes supplemental financial information and reconciliations of certain non-GAAP measures to its nearest comparable GAAP measures can be accessed through Higher One’s investor relations website at http://www.ir.higherone.com/. In addition, an archive of the webcast will be available for 90 days through the same link.

About Higher One Holdings

Higher One Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ONE) is a leading company focused on helping college business offices manage operations and providing enhanced service to students. Through a full array of services from refunds, payments, electronic billing, payment plans and more, Higher One works closely with colleges and universities to ensure students receive Financial Aid refunds quickly, can pay tuition and bills online, make on-campus and community purchases and learn the basics of financial management.

Higher One provides its services to approximately 6.2 million students at distinguished public and private higher education institutions nationwide. More information about Higher One can be found at www.ir.higherone.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements, as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC”). Management’s projections and expectations are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance to differ materially from that predicted or implied. These statements speak only as of the date they are made, and the company does not intend to update or otherwise revise the forward-looking information to reflect actual results of operations, changes in financial condition, changes in estimates, expectations or assumptions, changes in general economic or industry conditions or other circumstances arising and/or existing since the preparation of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of any unanticipated events. The forward-looking statements in this release do not include the potential impact of any acquisitions or divestitures that may be announced and/or completed after the date hereof. Information about the factors that could affect future performance can be found in our recent SEC filings.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This release includes certain metrics presented on a non-GAAP basis, including non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA, non-GAAP adjusted net income, and non-GAAP adjusted EPS. We believe that these non-GAAP measures, which exclude amortization of intangibles, stock-based compensation, and certain non-recurring or non-cash impacts to our results, all net of taxes, provide useful information regarding normalized trends relating to the company’s financial condition and results of operations. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures to their closest comparable GAAP measure are included in this press release.