Just as your pulse is checked during a routine physical, free cash flow is used as an indicator of a company's health. It equals the cash brought in from operations minus the money needed to pay the bills. Think about leftover money in your checking account after you pay this month's bills.

Investors and analysts see this leftover money as a gauge of a company's ability to perform. It is available for transactions such as handing out dividends and working on new products.

Some argue free cash flow is wrongly overshadowed by the emphasis often placed on earnings. Earnings numbers can be manipulated and don't always tell the whole story -- and earnings don't mean much if there's nothing left over after a company pays its expenses. Even if you bring in a six-figure salary, but no money left after paying the bills, are you in great financial shape?

You don't have to be Einstein to figure out free cash flow. To calculate the number, subtract the company's expenditures and dividends from its operating cash flow.

If the free cash flow is written in red ink, it doesn't necessarily signal curtains. This is common for young companies looking to grow. It also could be a result of heavy investments, which in the long run could be worth a standing ovation.

Home / Markets / Industries / Technology

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Autobytel to Report 2008 Second Quarter Financial Results and Host Conference Call on Wednesday, August 6, 2008

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Comtex

IRVINE, Calif., Jul 24, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Autobytel Inc. (Nasdaq: ABTL), a leading Internet automotive marketing services company, today announced that the company expects to release its 2008 second quarter financial results before the market opens on Wednesday, August 6, 2008. Autobytel management will also host a conference call later that morning at 9:00 a.m. ET (6:00 a.m. PT) to discuss its financial results and answer questions.

The conference call will be broadcast live at www.autobytel.com (click on "Investor Relations" and then click on "Conference Calls"). Please visit the Web site at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the call to register and download any necessary software. For those unable to listen to the live broadcast, the call will be archived in the investor relations section of Autobytel's Web site for one year.

About Autobytel Inc.

Since launching the first car-buying website in 1995, Autobytel Inc.'s mission has been to empower automotive consumers with the tools and information they need to make smart, well-informed vehicle purchasing and ownership decisions. The company has helped millions of car shoppers and generated billions of dollars in car sales for dealers. Today, the company's innovative, consumer-driven flagship site, MyRide.com, expands the company's mission across the automotive purchase and ownership life cycle. As the first vertical search experience for the automotive marketplace, MyRide.com is designed to help Internet-savvy consumers FIND, SEE, BUY and LEARN anything automotive and BELONG to a diverse community of people who have similar automotive interests.

By providing a convenient and comprehensive automotive consumer experience across the purchase and ownership lifecycle, Autobytel provides new value and touch-points for automotive marketers. Through MyRide.com and Autobytel's marketing network, the company connects dealerships with a steady, diverse stream of motivated, serious shoppers, while providing both dealers and manufacturers with precision-targeted brand and product marketing opportunities. The company's advanced web-based advertising and marketing programs also help dealers and manufacturers build relationships with customers, as well as help them to efficiently manage and convert online business.

SOURCE: Autobytel Inc.

Autobytel Inc. Investor Relations Crystal Hartwell, 949-437-4755 crystalh@autobytel.com
   or PondelWilkinson Inc. Roger Pondel/Laurie Berman, 310-279-5980 investor@pondel.com

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