Acxiom Corp. of Little Rock said late Thursday that it had completed the sale of its background screening company, Acxiom Information Security Services, to Sterling Infosystems Inc. of New York.
Acxiom announced the $74 million sale in December.
Sterling, which bills itself as one of the largest background screening companies in the world, called the deal "pivotal" for his company. Acxiom CEO Scott Howe said selling the firm will allow it to better focus on its core services.
Acxiom purchased what would become AISS in 2002 from TransUnion, a business intelligence services provider, for $34.6 million.
"This move is in alignment with our strategy of tightening our focus and investment in our core Data and Marketing Services business," Acxiom CEO and President Scott Howe said in a news release.
"Sterling is one of the largest background screening companies in the world, and we are confident that our former clients will benefit from their commitment and complete focus on this type of service," he said.
Share Buy Back
Also Friday, Acxiom said it had completed about 48 percent of its amended share repurchase program.
Acxiom said that to date it has repurchased about 4 million shares for $43 million. The company (Nasdaq: %%ACXM%%) also said that during the fiscal year it prepaid $125 million of its term loan, due March 15, 2015.
On Tuesday, Acxiom released third-quarter earnings.
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