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.

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Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Datawatch Expands Strategic Partner Program - Welcomes Four New IBM Content Manager OnDemand Partners

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CHELMSFORD, Mass., Jul 23, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Datawatch Corporation (NASDAQ-CM: DWCH), a leader in Enterprise Information Management (EIM), today announced that it has expanded its Strategic Partner Program for Monarch RMS. Joining recently announced Silicon Plains Technologies and Lighthouse Computer Services are four new IBM Content Manager OnDemand Partners which include The Dayhuff Group, enChoice Technologies, Genus Technologies LLC and MSI Systems Integrators.

Datawatch's partner program is comprised of industry leading systems integrators that bring strategic value to IBM Content Manager OnDemand (CMOD) customers in the areas of consulting, vertical expertise, technology integration, and implementation services. In addition to bolstering Datawatch's partner network, these new strategic partnerships will provide the benefits of Monarch RMS to more end user organizations, and will dramatically extend the value of their existing reports to solve real business problems without programming.

Monarch RMS - Web-based Report Mining and BI

Monarch RMS, Datawatch's web-based report mining and Business Intelligence (BI) solution, transforms static reports and other business documents stored in a customer's IBM DB2(R) CMOD system into real, actionable data--such as Excel spreadsheets--with the click of a mouse. Now companies have the power to leverage the value of their business documents as a trusted and low cost source of decision support information and BI, without the need for custom programming or report writing, or the need to build and support a data mart or data warehouse.

"An increasing number of the top IBM Content Manager OnDemand Partners recognize the significant value that report-based BI offers their customers. We're very pleased that these partners turn to Datawatch solutions to help their customers increase the value of their archives by transforming them into valuable sources of BI," said John Kitchen, senior vice president and CMO for Datawatch. "Like Datawatch, these partners understand that a complete EIM solution; one that provides the benefits of both BI and Enterprise Content Management--without the need to change their business processes--can dramatically improve the way IBM CMOD customers solve critical business issues. With these new partnerships we continue to execute strategic initiatives that squarely address these issues," added Kitchen.

About Datawatch Strategic Partners

Datawatch Strategic Partners benefit from top-flight sales and technical training, advanced product and implementation methodology training for both pre-sales and implementation services personnel, and the momentum that drives sales for Monarch RMS from a recognized market leader. For more information about Datawatch's IBM Content Manager OnDemand Partners or to learn more about Datawatch's Strategic Partner program, call Tom Gallagher, partner manager, at 978-275-8216 or visit: www.datawatch.com.

ABOUT DATAWATCH CORPORATION

Datawatch Corporation (NASDAQ-CM: DWCH), a leader in Enterprise Information Management, helps companies make better decisions and solve business problems by simplifying access to information. Unique among EIM vendors, Datawatch transforms the massive amounts of data and documents generated inside or outside a company into actionable insight, without any changes needed to existing systems. Datawatch customers benefit from the right information, in the right context, at the right time. More than 35,000 organizations worldwide rely on Datawatch products including its market-leading Monarch report and data mining solutions. Founded in 1985, Datawatch is based in Chelmsford, Mass., with offices in London, Sydney and Manila. For more information, visit www.datawatch.com.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

SOURCE: Datawatch Corporation

Datawatch Corporation Lisa G. Kilpatrick, 978-441-2200, ext. 8240 Manager, Marketing Communications and
   Public Relations Fax: 978-453-4443 lisa_kilpatrick@datawatch.com or Greenough Communications Susan Willson, 617-275-6529 swillson@greenoughcom.com

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