Florham Park-based business services company Conduent highlighted several new business signings as part of its quarterly earnings report this week.
The company said in its report for the second quarter of 2020 that it registered $623 million in new business signings, up 90% from the year-ago period and 92% from the first quarter of the year. The company said it was the strongest quarter for signings since its spinoff from Xerox in 2017.
Signings came in categories including the commercial, government and transportation segments, it added.
“New business signings showed significant growth on top of last quarter’s strong results, and our pipeline is now stronger than it has been in a long time,” CEO Cliff Skelton said in a prepared statement. “The business, excluding the headwinds and tailwinds of COVID-19, also performed well, and operations improved compared to the prior-year period. This progress is the result of deliberate actions to drive improved quality, efficiency and growth, even in light of COVID-19.”
Conduent said it is on target to exceed its fiscal 2020 cost reduction goal, which includes both temporary actions such as furloughs and reduced spending, and more permanent ones such as reducing real estate expenses and leveraging shared services capabilities.
Overall, revenue for the quarter exceeded expectations, but was down 8.6% from the prior year due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Conduent said. The company’s Government business had a noteworthy quarter, due in part to increased volume in prepaid card offerings for programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Unemployment Insurance — tied at least in part to the pandemic.
“Our focus on delivering for clients while managing our costs is clearly showing in our results,” Chief Financial Officer Brian Webb-Walsh said in a statement. “We performed well in the second quarter, and our business showed resiliency in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
