SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Amendment No. 1
Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
Delaware
|
8200 | 86-0226984 | ||
(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization) |
(Primary Standard Industrial
Classification Code Number) |
(IRS Employer
Identification Number) |
20410 North 19th Avenue, Suite 200
Robert D. Hartman
Copies to:
Frank M. Placenti, Esq.
Chad A. Freed, Esq. Bryan Cave LLP Two North Central Avenue, Suite 2200 Phoenix, Arizona 85004 Telephone: (602) 364-7000 Facsimile: (602) 364-7070 |
William J. Whelan III, Esq.
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP Worldwide Plaza 825 Eighth Avenue New York, New York 10019 Telephone: (212) 474-1000 Facsimile: (212) 474-3700 |
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale of the securities to the public: As soon as practicable after this Registration Statement becomes effective.
If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box. o
If this form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o
If this form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o
If this form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o
If delivery of the prospectus is expected to be
made pursuant to Rule 434, please check the following
box.
o
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
The registrant hereby amends this Registration
Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its
effective date until the registrant shall file a further
amendment which specifically states that this Registration
Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with
Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or
until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such
date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant
to such Section 8(a), may determine.
Proposed Maximum
Amount of
Title of Each Class of
Aggregate Offering
Registration
Securities to be Registered
Price(1)(2)
Fee(3)
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share
$
189,750,000
$
15,351
(1)
Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating
the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(o).
(2)
Including shares of common stock which may be
purchased by the underwriters to cover over-allotments, if any.
(3)
An initial amount of $10,113 was paid with the
initial filing of the Registration Statement. An additional
amount of $5,239 was paid with this filing.
The information in this
prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell
these securities until the registration statement filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus
is not an offer to sell these securities and we are not
soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where
the offer or sale is not permitted.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED November 12, 2003
Shares
Common Stock
Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for our common stock. The initial public offering price of our common stock is expected to be between $20 per share and $22 per share. We intend to apply to list our common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol UTI.
We are selling 3,250,000 shares of common stock and the selling stockholders are selling 4,250,000 shares of common stock. We will not receive any of the proceeds from the shares of common stock sold by the selling stockholders.
The underwriters have an option to purchase a maximum of 1,125,000 additional shares from the selling stockholders to cover over-allotments of shares.
Investing
in our common stock involves risks. See Risk Factors
beginning on page 9.
Delivery
of the shares of common stock will be made on or
about ,
2003.
Underwriting
Proceeds to
Price to
Discounts and
Proceeds
Selling
Public
Commissions
to UTI
Stockholders
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
Credit Suisse First Boston
Banc of America Securities LLC
Jefferies & Company, Inc. |
Thomas Weisel Partners LLC |
SunTrust Robinson Humphrey |
The date of this prospectus is , 2003.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page | ||||
|
||||
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY
|
1 | |||
RISK FACTORS
|
9 | |||
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
|
20 | |||
USE OF PROCEEDS
|
21 | |||
DIVIDEND POLICY
|
21 | |||
CAPITALIZATION
|
22 | |||
DILUTION
|
24 | |||
SELECTED HISTORICAL FINANCIAL DATA
|
26 | |||
MANAGEMENTS DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF
FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
|
28 | |||
BUSINESS
|
45 | |||
REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT
|
58 | |||
MANAGEMENT
|
67 | |||
CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
|
79 | |||
PRINCIPAL AND SELLING STOCKHOLDERS
|
84 | |||
DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK
|
88 | |||
AMENDED AND RESTATED CREDIT FACILITY
|
92 | |||
SHARES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALE
|
93 | |||
MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL TAX CONSEQUENCES TO
NON-U.S. HOLDERS OF COMMON STOCK
|
95 | |||
UNDERWRITING
|
97 | |||
NOTICE TO CANADIAN RESIDENTS
|
100 | |||
LEGAL MATTERS
|
101 | |||
EXPERTS
|
101 | |||
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
|
101 | |||
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
|
F-1 |
You should rely only on the information contained in this document or to which we have referred you. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information that is different. This document may only be used where it is legal to sell these securities. The information in this document may only be accurate on the date of this document.
Dealer Prospectus Delivery Obligation
Until , 200 (25 days after the commencement of the offering), all dealers that effect transactions in these securities, whether or not participating in the offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to the dealers obligation to deliver a prospectus when acting as an underwriter and with respect to unsold allotments or subscriptions.
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY
This summary highlights information contained
elsewhere in this prospectus. This summary sets forth the
material terms of the offering, but does not contain all of the
information that you should consider before investing in our
common stock. You should read the entire prospectus carefully
before making an investment decision, especially the risks of
investing in our common stock discussed under Risk
Factors. Unless the context otherwise requires, the terms
we, us, and our refer to
Universal Technical Institute, Inc., our predecessor entities
and our subsidiaries. Unless otherwise indicated, industry data
are derived from publicly available sources, which we have not
independently verified.
Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
Overview of Our Business
We are a leading provider of post-secondary
education for students seeking careers as professional
automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine
technicians, measured by total undergraduate enrollment and
number of graduates. We offer undergraduate degree, diploma and
certificate programs at seven campuses across the United States,
and manufacturer-sponsored advanced programs at 22 dedicated
training centers. For the nine months ended June 30, 2003,
our average undergraduate enrollments were 10,228 full-time
students. We have provided technical education for over
35 years.
We work closely with leading original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) in the automotive, diesel, motorcycle and
marine industries to understand their needs for qualified
service professionals. By staying current on the equipment and
technology employed by OEMs, we are able to continuously refine
and expand our programs and curricula. We believe that our
industry-oriented educational philosophy and national presence
have enabled us to develop valuable industry relationships that
provide us with a significant competitive strength and support
our market leadership. We are a primary (and often the sole)
provider of manufacturer-based training programs pursuant to
written agreements with various OEMs whereby we provide
technician training programs using their equipment and vehicles.
These OEMs include Audi of America; American Honda
Motor Co., Inc.; BMW of North America, LLC; Ford
Motor Co.; International Truck and Engine Corp.; Jaguar
Cars, Inc.; Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC; Mercury Marine; Porsche
Cars of North America, Inc.; Volkswagen of America, Inc.;
and Volvo Penta of the Americas, Inc.
Through our campus-based undergraduate programs,
we offer specialized technical education under the banner of
several well-known brands, including Universal Technical
Institute (UTI), Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and Marine
Mechanics Institute (collectively, MMI) and NASCAR Technical
Institute (NTI). Our undergraduate programs are designed to be
completed in 12 to 18 months and culminate in an
associates degree, diploma or certificate, depending on
the program and campus. Tuition ranges from approximately
$17,000 to $31,000 per program, primarily depending on the
nature and length of the program. All of our undergraduate
programs are accredited and eligible for federal Title IV
financial aid. Upon completion of one of our automotive or
diesel undergraduate programs, qualifying students have the
opportunity to enroll in one of the manufacturer-sponsored
advanced training programs that we offer. These training
programs are manufacturer-specific and are offered in a facility
in which the OEM supplies the cars, equipment, specialty tools
and curriculum. Tuition for these advanced training programs is
paid by each participating OEM in return for a commitment by the
student to work for a dealer of that OEM upon graduation. We
also provide continuing education and retraining to experienced
technicians at our customers sites or in our training
facilities.
Market Opportunity
We believe that the market for qualified service
technicians is large and growing. In 2000, the
U.S. Department of Labor estimated that there were
approximately 840,000 working automotive technicians in the
United States, and that this number was expected to increase by
18% from 2000 to 2010. Other 2000 estimates provided by the
U.S. Department of Labor indicate that the other industries
1
Proceeds Paid to Our Affiliates
A portion of the proceeds from this offering will
be used to redeem the outstanding shares of our series A,
series B and series C preferred stock that will not be
exchanged by their holders into common stock, and to pay the
accrued but unpaid dividends on our preferred stock. By virtue
of their holdings of the shares of preferred stock, several of
our executive officers, directors and principal stockholders
will receive a significant amount of this portion of the
proceeds, including $3.6 million to Robert Hartman,
$1.4 million to John White and $31,000 to Kimberly
McWaters. In determining the amount of Series A, B and
C preferred stock to be exchanged, management has made
assumptions based on their best estimate of the amount to be
exchanged to common stock by the executive officers, directors
and other shareholders upon the effective date of this Initial
Public Offering. There is not a contractual obligation for these
holders of series A, B and C Preferred stock to
exchange. Actual results may differ from these estimates under
different assumptions or conditions.
Control by Our Affiliates
Immediately after this offering, our executive
officers, directors and principal stockholders will, in the
aggregate, directly or indirectly hold approximately 72.9% of
our outstanding shares. Accordingly, in the event that all or
some of these stockholders decided to act in concert, they could
control us through their ability to determine the outcome of the
election of our directors, to amend our certificate of
incorporation and bylaws and to take other actions requiring the
vote or consent of stockholders, including mergers, going
private transactions and other extraordinary transactions, and
the terms of any of these transactions.
Regulatory Environment
All of our campuses have been certified by the
U.S. Department of Education, or ED, to participate in the
federal Title IV student financial assistance programs, so
that students enrolled in our undergraduate programs are
eligible to receive federal student loans and grants. Like all
other institutions participating in the Title IV programs,
our campuses are subject to extensive regulation by ED, their
accrediting commission and the states in which they operate,
regarding their educational programs, financial condition and
numerous other operational matters.
Competitive Strengths
We believe that we are well positioned to
capitalize on these market opportunities as a result of the
following competitive strengths:
2
Operating Strategy
Our goal is to maintain and strengthen our role
as a leading provider of technical education services. We intend
to pursue the following strategies to attain this goal:
3
Our principal executive offices are located at
20410 North 19th Avenue, Suite 200, Phoenix,
Arizona 85027 and our telephone number is
(623) 445-9500.
4
Industry-Oriented Business
Model.
We
work extensively with leading automotive, diesel, collision
repair, motorcycle and marine equipment manufacturers, dealers
and suppliers to determine the present and future needs of the
end-markets our graduates enter and to tailor our educational
programs to best serve those constituents. As a result, we
believe that our graduates have the opportunity to work for the
most desirable employers in their chosen fields due to the
quality of their education and their commitment to careers as
professional service technicians. In turn, we
believe that the higher quality employment
opportunities available to our graduates drive increased
enrollments at our campuses and training centers.
Unique Manufacturer-Based Programs.
We work closely with OEMs to
develop brand-specific education programs. Participating
manufacturers typically assist us in developing course content
and curricula, and provide us with equipment, specialty tools
and parts at no charge. In addition, the manufacturer pays the
full tuition of each student enrolled in our advanced training
programs. Our collaboration with OEMs enables us to provide
highly specialized education to our students, resulting in
improved employment opportunities and the potential for higher
wages for graduates. Pursuant to written agreements, we provide
such programs for Audi of America; American Honda Motor Co.,
Inc.; BMW of North America, LLC; Ford Motor Co.;
International Truck and Engine Corp.; Jaguar Cars, Inc.;
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC; Mercury Marine; Porsche Cars of
North America, Inc.; Volkswagen of America, Inc.; and Volvo
Penta of the Americas, Inc.
Industry Relationships.
In addition to our
curriculum-based relationships with OEMs, we develop and
maintain a variety of complementary relationships with parts and
tools suppliers, enthusiast organizations and other participants
in the industries we serve. These relationships provide us with
a variety of strategic and financial benefits, including
equipment sponsorship, new product support, licensing and
branding opportunities, and selected financial sponsorship for
our campuses and students. We believe that these relationships
improve the quality of our educational programs, reduce our
investment cost of equipping classrooms, enable us to expand the
scope of our programs, strengthen our graduate placements and
enhance our overall image within the industry.
National Presence.
Since our founding in 1965, we
have grown our business and expanded our campus platform to
establish a national presence. Through the UTI, MMI and NTI
brands, our undergraduate campuses and advanced training centers
currently provide us with local representation covering several
geographic regions across the United States. Supporting our
campuses, we maintain a national recruiting network of over
190 education representatives who are able to identify,
advise and enroll students from all 50 states.
Consequently, unlike competitors with single- or regional-campus
models, we are able to effectively reach a national pool of
potential students and to provide qualified professionals to our
various end-markets on a broad geographic basis.
Superior Recruiting Strategy.
We employ an integrated marketing
and recruitment strategy that we believe enables us to
effectively target and recruit both traditional post-secondary
students and working adults. Our field-based education
representatives provide a local presence to prospective students
at high schools across the country. Additionally, our
campus-based education representatives respond to media-driven
inquiries from adults across the United States who are
interested in returning to school. We support our education
representatives recruiting efforts with a national
multimedia marketing strategy that includes television,
enthusiast magazines, direct mail and the Internet.
Open New
Campuses.
We
continue to identify new markets that we believe will complement
our established campus network and support further growth. We
believe that there are a number of local markets, in regions
where we do not currently have a campus, with both pools of
interested prospective students and career opportunities for
graduates. By establishing campuses in these locations, we
believe that we will be able to supply skilled technicians to
local employers, as well as provide educational opportunities
for students otherwise unwilling to relocate to acquire a
post-secondary education. Additional locations will also provide
us with an opportunity to expand our relationships with OEMs by
providing a graduate population with greater geographic reach.
Increase Recruitment and Marketing.
We plan to hire additional
education representatives to enhance our recruitment coverage in
territories where we are currently active in recruiting students
and to expand into new regions and cities. We estimate that in
our 2003 fiscal year, our field-based education representatives
made approximately 9,000 high school visits and
approximately 360,000 student contacts. In addition, during
the same period, we estimate that our campus-based education
representatives addressed approximately 150,000 inquiries from
prospective students. We believe that additional education
representatives, combined with increased marketing spending,
will increase our national presence and enable us to better
target the prospective student pool from which we recruit.
Expand Program
Offerings.
As the industries we serve become more
technologically advanced, the requisite training for qualified
technicians continues to increase. We continually work with our
industry customers to expand and adapt our course offerings to
meet their needs for skilled technicians. We also intend to
increase the number of specialized or manufacturer-specific
electives we offer in our undergraduate programs, such as our
Hot Rod U
high performance series and our
Ford-certified elective.
Seek Additional Industry
Relationships.
We actively seek to develop new
relationships with leading OEMs, dealership networks and other
industry participants. Securing such relationships will enable
us to further drive undergraduate enrollment growth, diversify
funding sources and expand the scope and increase the number of
the programs we offer. We believe that these relationships are
also valuable to our industry partners since our programs
provide them with a steady supply of highly trained service
technicians and are a cost-effective alternative to in-house
training. Therefore, we believe that these relationships will
also provide us additional incremental revenue opportunities
from retraining OEMs existing employees.
Consider Strategic Acquisitions.
We may selectively consider
acquisition opportunities that, among other factors, would
complement our program offerings, benefit from our expertise and
scale in marketing and administration and could be integrated
into our existing operations.
The Offering
Unless specifically indicated otherwise or unless
the context otherwise requires, the information in this
prospectus (i) gives effect to a 4,350-for-one stock split
of our common stock which will occur immediately prior to the
closing of the offering; (ii) assumes the exchange, at the
initial public offering price set forth on the cover of the
prospectus, of 3,673 shares of our series A preferred
stock, 1,230 shares of our series B preferred stock
and 1,151 shares of our series C preferred stock into
an aggregate of 288,269 shares of our common stock, which
exchange is expected to occur immediately prior to the
consummation of the offering; (iii) assumes the redemption
of all remaining 13,391 outstanding shares of our series A
preferred stock, series B preferred stock and series C
preferred stock, which redemption will occur concurrently with
the consummation of the offering; (iv) gives effect to the
automatic conversion of all outstanding shares of our
series D preferred stock into 10,253,797 shares of
common stock, which conversion will occur concurrently with the
consummation of the offering in accordance with the provisions
of our certificate of incorporation; and (v) assumes no
exercise of the underwriters over-allotment option.
5
The number of shares of common stock that will be
outstanding after the offering is based on the number of shares
of common stock outstanding as of September 30, 2003. This
number does not include:
6
759,327 shares of common stock issuable upon
the exercise of stock options outstanding as of
September 30, 2003 pursuant to the management 2002 stock
option plan;
an aggregate of 4,426,374 shares of common
stock reserved for future issuance under our 2003 stock
incentive plan; and
an aggregate
of shares
of common stock reserved for future issuance under our 2003
employee stock purchase plan.
Summary Financial and Other Data
The following table sets forth our summary
historical consolidated financial and operating data as of the
dates and for the periods indicated. The summary historical
consolidated statement of operations data for each of the years
in the three-year period ended September 30, 2002 have been
derived from our audited consolidated financial statements,
which are included elsewhere in this prospectus. The interim
summary historical consolidated statement of operations data for
the nine months ended June 30, 2002 and 2003 and the
summary interim historical consolidated balance sheet data as of
June 30, 2003 have been derived from our unaudited interim
consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this
prospectus. In our opinion, the unaudited interim consolidated
financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as our
audited consolidated financial statements and include all
adjustments, consisting of only normal recurring adjustments,
necessary for a fair statement of the results for the unaudited
interim periods. The results for any interim period are not
necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for a
full fiscal year.
The following table also sets forth summary
unaudited pro forma consolidated balance sheet data, which
give effect to the transactions described in footnotes 1 and 2
of the following table. The unaudited pro forma consolidated
balance sheet data are presented for information purposes only
and do not purport to represent what our financial position
actually would have been had the transactions so described
occurred on the dates indicated or to project our financial
position as of any future date.
You should read the following summary financial
and other data in conjunction with Selected Historical
Financial Data and Managements Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
and our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in
this prospectus.
7
8
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)
$
92,079
$
109,493
$
144,372
$
105,428
$
141,642
48,523
59,554
70,813
51,710
66,551
33,893
38,332
51,541
36,607
48,198
82,416
97,886
122,354
88,317
114,749
9,663
11,607
22,018
17,111
26,893
11,877
10,674
6,254
5,349
2,809
847
970
(2,214
)
933
14,917
10,792
24,084
(431
)
820
5,228
3,777
8,944
(1,783
)
113
9,689
7,015
15,140
(34,437
)
(8,536
)
(1,316
)
(36,220
)
(9,739
)
9,689
7,015
15,140
(1,166
)
(1,166
)
(2,872
)
(1,729
)
(3,434
)
$
(37,386
)
$
(10,905
)
$
6,817
$
5,286
$
11,706
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.51
$
0.39
$
0.87
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.44
$
0.34
$
0.58
13,432
13,402
13,402
13,402
13,433
13,432
13,402
20,244
18,642
24,956
$
3,887
$
4,533
$
4,951
$
3,167
$
4,476
6
6
7
6
7
5,866
6,710
8,277
8,163
10,228
As of June 30, 2003
Pro Forma as
Actual
Pro Forma
(1)
Adjusted
(2)
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands)
$
31,215
$
4,086
$
9,197
48,286
21,157
26,268
(1,412
)
(28,140
)
(19,529
)
95,281
68,152
84,483
58,765
32,004
504
67,813
71,486
(83,137
)
(87,390
)
20,259
(1)
The pro forma data give effect to (i) the
repayment in July and August 2003 of $15.8 million of our
term loans under our senior credit facilities, (ii) the
retirement in August 2003, at a 10% discount, of a subordinated
convertible promissory note having a principal amount of
approximately $7.0 million, (iii) the repayment in
August 2003 of a promissory note having a principal amount of
approximately $4.0 million that was issued to a related
party and the subsequent remittance to us by that party of
approximately $4.0 million in satisfaction of the principal
amount of, and accrued interest on, a subscription note
receivable and (iv) the payment in September 2003 of a
$5.0 million dividend to our common stockholders and
holders of our series D preferred stock. These payments
were made using available cash on hand.
(2)
The pro forma as adjusted data adjust the pro
forma data to reflect (i) our sale of 3,250,000 shares
of our common stock in this offering (at the initial public
offering price of $21.00 per share, net of offering costs of
approximately $7.7 million), (ii) the application of
the net proceeds of this offering to redeem 13,391 shares
of preferred stock and accrued and unpaid dividends as of
June 30, 2003 of approximately $10.4 million,
(iii) the exchange at the initial public offering price set
forth on the cover of this prospectus of 3,673 shares of
our series A preferred stock, 1,230 shares of our series B
preferred stock and 1,151 shares of our series C preferred
stock, which is expected to occur prior to the consummation of
the offering, and (iv) the automatic conversion of all
outstanding shares of our series D preferred stock into shares
of common stock, which will occur concurrently with the
consummation of the offering in accordance with the provisions
of our certificate of incorporation. See Description of
Capital Stock. In determining the amount of Series A,
B & C preferred stock to be exchanged, management has made
assumptions based on their best estimate of the amount to be
exchanged to common stock by the executive officers, directors
and other shareholders upon the effective date of this Initial
Public Offering. There is not a contractual obligation for these
holders of series A, B & C Preferred stock to exchange.
Actual results may differ from these estimates under different
assumptions or conditions.
(3)
Working capital is defined as current assets less
current liabilities.
RISK FACTORS
Investing in our common stock involves risks.
Before making an investment in our common stock, you should
carefully consider the following risks, as well as the other
information contained in this prospectus, including our
consolidated financial statements and the related notes and
Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations. The risks described
below are those which we believe are the most significant risks
we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known
to us, or risks that we currently deem immaterial, may impair
our business operations. Any of the risk factors described below
could significantly and adversely affect our business,
prospects, financial condition and results of operations. As a
result, the trading price of our common stock could decline and
you may lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Related to Our Industry
Failure of our schools to comply with the
extensive regulatory requirements for school operations could
result in financial penalties, restrictions on our operations
and loss of external financial aid funding.
In our 2002 fiscal year, we derived approximately
65% of our net revenues from federal student financial aid
programs, referred to in this prospectus as Title IV Programs,
administered by the U.S. Department of Education, or ED. To
participate in Title IV Programs, a school must receive and
maintain authorization by the appropriate state education
agencies, be accredited by an accrediting commission recognized
by ED and be certified as an eligible institution by ED. As a
result, our schools are subject to extensive regulation by the
state education agencies, our accrediting commission and ED.
These regulatory requirements cover the vast majority of our
operations, including our educational programs, facilities,
instructional and administrative staff, administrative
procedures, marketing, recruiting, financial operations and
financial condition. These regulatory requirements also affect
our ability to acquire or open additional schools, add new, or
expand our existing, educational programs and change our
corporate structure and ownership. The state education agencies,
our accrediting commission and ED periodically revise their
requirements and modify their interpretations of existing
requirements.
If our schools failed to comply with any of these
regulatory requirements, our regulatory agencies could impose
monetary penalties, place limitations on our schools
operations, terminate our schools ability to grant
degrees, diplomas and certificates, revoke our schools
accreditation or terminate their eligibility to receive Title IV
Program funds, each of which could adversely affect our
financial condition and results of operations and impose
significant operating restrictions upon us. In addition, the
loss by any of our institutions of its accreditation necessary
for Title IV Program eligibility, or the cancellation of
any such institutions ability to participate in
Title IV Programs, in each case that is not cured within a
specified period, constitutes an event of default under our
senior credit facility agreement. We cannot predict with
certainty how all of these regulatory requirements will be
applied or whether each of our schools will be able to comply
with all of the requirements in the future. We have described
some of the most significant regulatory risks that apply to our
schools in the following paragraphs.
Congress may change the law or reduce
funding for Title IV Programs, which could reduce our student
population, net revenues or profit margin.
Congress periodically revises the Higher
Education Act of 1965, as amended, and other laws governing
Title IV Programs and annually determines the funding level for
each Title IV Program. During 2003-2004, Congress is expected to
devote significant attention to reauthorizing the Higher
Education Act, which will likely result in numerous changes to
the law. Any action by Congress that significantly reduces
funding for Title IV Programs or the ability of our schools or
students to receive funding through these programs could reduce
our student population and net revenues. Congressional action
may also require us to modify our practices in ways that could
result in increased administrative costs and decreased profit
margin.
9
If our schools do not maintain their state
authorizations, they may not operate or participate in
Title IV Programs.
A school that grants degrees, diplomas or
certificates must be authorized by the relevant education agency
of the state in which it is located. Requirements for
authorization vary substantially among states. State
authorization is also required for students to be eligible for
funding under Title IV Programs. Loss of state authorization by
any of our schools from the education agency of the state in
which the school is located would end that schools
eligibility to participate in Title IV Programs and could cause
us to close the school.
If our schools do not maintain their
accreditation, they may not participate in Title IV
Programs.
A school must be accredited by an accrediting
commission recognized by ED in order to participate in
Title IV Programs. Loss of accreditation by any of our
schools would end that schools participation in
Title IV Programs and could cause us to close the school.
We are subject to sanctions if we fail to
correctly calculate and timely return Title IV Program funds for
students who withdraw before completing their educational
program.
A school participating in Title IV Programs
must correctly calculate the amount of unearned Title IV
Program funds that has been disbursed to students who withdraw
from their educational programs before completing them and must
return those unearned funds in a timely manner, generally within
30 days of the date the school determines that the student
has withdrawn. If the unearned funds are not properly calculated
and timely returned, we may have to post a letter of credit in
favor of ED or be otherwise sanctioned by ED, which could
increase our cost of regulatory compliance and adversely affect
our results of operations. With respect to our 2002 fiscal year,
two of our institutions made late returns of Title IV Program
funds in excess of EDs prescribed threshold but were not
required to post letters of credit because we had already posted
a letter of credit for a greater amount as a result of our
failure to satisfy EDs financial responsibility formula.
Our schools may lose eligibility to
participate in Title IV Programs if the percentage of their
revenue derived from those programs is too high, which could
reduce our student population.
A for-profit institution loses its eligibility to
participate in Title IV Programs if, on a cash accounting
basis, it derives more than 90% of its revenue from those
programs in any fiscal year. In our 2002 fiscal year, under the
regulatory formula prescribed by ED, none of our institutions
derived more than approximately 81% of its revenues from
Title IV Programs. If any of our institutions loses
eligibility to participate in Title IV Programs, that loss
would adversely affect our students access to various
government-sponsored student financial aid programs, which could
reduce our student population.
Our schools may lose eligibility to
participate in Title IV Programs if their student loan default
rates are too high, which could reduce our student
population.
An institution may lose its eligibility to
participate in some or all Title IV Programs if its former
students default on the repayment of their federal student loans
in excess of specified levels. Based upon the most recent
official student loan default rates published by ED, none of our
institutions has student loan default rates that exceed the
specified levels. If any of our institutions loses eligibility
to participate in Title IV Programs because of high student
loan default rates, that loss would adversely affect our
students access to various government-sponsored student
financial aid programs, which could reduce our student
population.
10
If we or our schools do not meet the
financial responsibility standards prescribed by ED, we may be
required to post letters of credit or our eligibility to
participate in Title IV Programs could be terminated or limited,
which could reduce our student population.
To participate in Title IV Programs, an
institution must satisfy specific measures of financial
responsibility prescribed by ED or post a letter of credit in
favor of ED and possibly accept other conditions on its
participation in Title IV Programs. Currently, due to our
failure as a parent company to satisfy EDs financial
responsibility formula, we have posted a letter of credit in the
amount of $9.9 million for all of our schools, representing
10% of Title IV Program funds received by our institutions
in our 2002 fiscal year. We may be required to increase the
amount of the existing letter of credit or post additional
letters of credit in the future. Our obligation to post one or
more letters of credit could increase our costs of regulatory
compliance. Our inability to obtain a required letter of credit
or other limitations on our participation in Title IV
Programs could limit our students access to various
government-sponsored student financial aid programs, which could
reduce our student population.
We are subject to sanctions if we pay
impermissible commissions, bonuses or other incentive payments
to individuals involved in certain recruiting, admissions or
financial aid activities.
A school participating in Title IV Programs may
not provide any commission, bonus or other incentive payment
based on success in enrolling students or securing financial aid
to any person involved in any student recruiting or admission
activities or in making decisions regarding the awarding of
Title IV Program funds. The law and regulations governing
this requirement do not establish clear criteria for compliance
in all circumstances. If we violate this law, we could be fined
or otherwise sanctioned by ED.
If regulators do not approve a school
acquisition, the acquired school would not be permitted to
participate in Title IV Programs, which could impair our ability
to operate the acquired school as planned or to realize the
anticipated benefits from the acquisition of that
school.
If we acquire a school, we must obtain approval
from ED and applicable state education agencies and accrediting
commissions in order for the school to be able to continue
operating and participating in Title IV Programs. An
acquisition can result in the temporary suspension of the
acquired schools participation in Title IV Programs
unless we submit a timely and materially complete application
for recertification to ED and ED issues a temporary
certification document. If we were unable to timely re-establish
the state authorization, accreditation or ED certification of
the acquired school, our ability to operate the acquired school
as planned or to realize the anticipated benefits from the
acquisition of that school could be impaired.
If regulators do not approve or delay their
approval of transactions involving a change of control of our
company or any of our schools, our ability to participate in
Title IV Programs may be impaired.
If we or any of our schools experience a change
of control under the standards of applicable state education
agencies, our accrediting commission or ED, we or the affected
schools must seek the approval of the relevant regulatory
agencies. Transactions or events that constitute a change of
control include significant acquisitions or dispositions of our
common stock or significant changes in the composition of our
board of directors. Some of these transactions or events may be
beyond our control. Our failure to obtain, or a delay in
receiving, approval of any change of control from ED, our
accrediting commission or any state in which our schools are
located could impair our ability to participate in Title IV
Programs. Our failure to obtain, or a delay in obtaining,
approval of any change of control from any state in which we do
not have a school but in which we recruit students could require
us to suspend our recruitment of students in that state until we
receive the required approval. The potential adverse effects of
a change of control with respect to participation in
Title IV Programs could influence future decisions by us
and our stockholders regarding the sale, purchase, transfer,
issuance or redemption of our stock. In addition, the adverse
regulatory effect of a change of control also could discourage
bids for your shares of our common stock and could have an
adverse effect on the market price of your shares.
11
We have received confirmation from ED that this
offering will not be a change of control under its regulations
so long as no person gains or loses control of a 25% ownership
interest in Universal Technical Institute, Inc., in connection
with the offering. We have also received confirmation from our
accrediting commission that this offering will not be a change
of control under its standards. For some of the states in which
our schools operate (including Illinois and Texas), the offering
will be considered a change of control. In each of those states,
the affected school is required to obtain the reaffirmation of
the schools state authorization by the relevant state
education agencies. If any of our schools fails to obtain such
reaffirmation, our results of operations could be adversely
affected.
Budget constraints in states that provide
state financial aid to our students could reduce the amount of
such financial aid that is available to our students, which
could reduce our student population.
A significant number of states are facing budget
constraints that are causing them to reduce state appropriations
in a number of areas. Those states include California, which is
one of the states that provide financial aid to our students. We
expect that California and other states may decide to reduce the
amount of state financial aid that they provide to students, but
we cannot predict how significant any of these reductions will
be or how long they will last. If the level of state funding for
our students decreases and our students are not able to secure
alternative sources of funding, our student population could be
reduced.
Regulatory agencies or third parties may
conduct compliance reviews, bring claims or initiate litigation
against us.
Because we operate in a highly regulated
industry, we are subject to compliance reviews and claims of
non-compliance and lawsuits by government agencies and third
parties. If the results of these reviews or proceedings are
unfavorable to us, or if we are unable to defend successfully
against third-party lawsuits or claims, we may be required to
pay money damages or be subject to fines, limitations, loss of
federal funding, injunctions or other penalties. Even if we
adequately address issues raised by an agency review or
successfully defend a third-party lawsuit or claim, we may have
to divert significant financial and management resources from
our ongoing business operations to address issues raised by
those reviews or defend those lawsuits or claims.
A high percentage of the Title IV
student loans our students receive are made by one lender and
guaranteed by one guaranty agency.
In our 2002 fiscal year, one lender, Sallie Mae,
provided more than 95% of all the federally guaranteed
Title IV student loans that our students received, and one
student loan guaranty agency, EdFund, guaranteed more
than 95% of those loans made to our students. Sallie Mae is
one of the largest lenders of federally guaranteed Title IV
student loans in the United States in terms of dollar
volume, and EdFund is one of the largest guaranty agencies in
the United States. If loans by Sallie Mae or guarantees by
EdFund were significantly reduced or no longer available and we
were not able to timely identify other lenders and guarantors to
make or guarantee Title IV Program loans for our students,
there could be a delay in our students receipt of their
loan funds or in our tuition collection, which would reduce our
student population.
Budget constraints in Illinois or other
states may affect our ability to obtain necessary authorizations
or approvals from those states to conduct or change our
operations.
In August 2003, due to state budget constraints,
the State of Illinois eliminated the positions of all employees
in the office of the Illinois state education agency that
authorizes and oversees private business and technical schools,
including our school in Illinois, and that office has ceased to
function. Our school in Illinois is currently authorized by the
State of Illinois to operate through June 2004. It is not clear
how the elimination of the state employee positions in Illinois
will affect the ongoing operations of our school in Illinois,
including the implementation of any changes in operations for
which the school is required to obtain approval of the Illinois
state education agency, such as the change of control resulting
from this offering, the opening of a new campus, the
introduction of new programs or the hiring or placement of new
12
Risks Related to Our Business
If we fail to effectively manage our
growth, we may incur higher costs and expenses than we
anticipate in connection with our growth.
We have experienced a period of significant
growth since 1998. Our continued growth may strain our
management, operations, employees or other resources. We may not
be able to maintain or accelerate our current growth rate,
effectively manage our expanding operations or achieve planned
growth on a timely or profitable basis. If we are unable to
manage our growth effectively while maintaining appropriate
internal controls, we may experience operating inefficiencies
that likely will increase our costs more than we had planned.
Failure on our part to maintain and expand
existing industry relationships and develop new industry
relationships with our industry customers could impair our
ability to attract and retain students.
We have an extensive set of industry
relationships that we believe affords us a significant
competitive strength and supports our market leadership. These
types of relationships enable us to further drive undergraduate
enrollment by attracting students through brand name recognition
and the associated prospect of high-quality employment
opportunities. Additionally, these relationships allow us to
diversify funding sources, expand the scope and increase the
number of programs we offer and reduce our costs and capital
expenditures due to the fact that, pursuant to the terms of the
underlying contracts, we provide a variety of specialized
training programs and typically do so using tools, equipment and
vehicles provided by the OEMs. These relationships also provide
additional incremental revenue opportunities from retraining the
employees of our industry customers. Our success, therefore,
depends in part on our ability to maintain and expand our
existing industry relationships and to enter into new industry
relationships. Certain of our existing industry relationships,
including those with American Suzuki Motor Corp.,
Harley-Davidson Motor Co., Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A.
and Yamaha Motor Corp., USA, are not memorialized in writing and
are based on oral understandings. As a result, the rights of the
parties under these arrangements are less clearly defined than
they would be were they in writing. Additionally, certain of our
existing industry relationship agreements expire within the next
six months. Written agreements with Audi of America, BMW of
North America, LLC and Volkswagen of America, Inc. expire on
December 31, 2003; our written agreement with Jaguar Cars,
Inc. expires on February 29, 2004 and our written marine
training agreement with American Honda Motor Co., Inc. expires
in March 2004. We are currently negotiating to renew these
agreements and intend to renew them to the extent we can do so
on satisfactory terms. The reduction or elimination of, or
failure to renew any of our existing industry relationships, or
our failure to enter into new industry relationships, could
impair our ability to attract and retain students. As a result,
our market share and net revenues could decrease.
Failure on our part to effectively
identify, establish and operate additional schools or campuses
could reduce our ability to implement our growth
strategy.
As part of our business strategy, we anticipate
opening and operating new schools or campuses. Establishing new
schools or campuses poses unique challenges and requires us to
make investments in management and capital expenditures, incur
marketing expenses and devote other resources that are
different, and in some cases greater, than those required with
respect to the operation of acquired schools. To open a new
school or campus, we would be required to obtain appropriate
state and accrediting commission approvals, which may be
conditioned or delayed in a manner that could significantly
affect our growth plans. In addition, to be eligible for federal
Title IV student financial aid programs, a new school or campus
would have to be certified by ED. We cannot be sure that we will
be able to identify suitable
13
Our success depends in part on our ability
to update and expand the content of existing programs and
develop new programs in a cost-effective manner and on a timely
basis.
Increasingly, prospective employers of our
graduates demand that their entry-level employees possess
appropriate technological skills. These skills are becoming more
sophisticated in line with technological advancements in the
automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine
industries. Accordingly, educational programs at our schools
should keep pace with those technological advancements. The
expansion of our existing programs and the development of new
programs may not be accepted by our students, prospective
employers or the technical education market. Even if we are able
to develop acceptable new programs, we may not be able to
introduce these new programs as quickly as the industries we
serve require or as quickly as our competitors do. If we are
unable to adequately respond to changes in market requirements
due to financial constraints, unusually rapid technological
changes or other factors, our ability to attract and retain
students could be impaired and our placement rates could suffer.
We may not be able to retain our key
personnel or hire and retain the personnel we need to sustain
and grow our business.
Our success to date has depended, and will
continue to depend, largely on the skills, efforts and
motivation of our executive officers who generally have
significant experience with our company and within the technical
education industry. Our success also depends in large part upon
our ability to attract and retain highly qualified faculty,
school directors, administrators and corporate management. Due
to the nature of our business, we face significant competition
in the attraction and retention of personnel who possess the
skill sets that we seek. In addition, key personnel may leave us
and subsequently compete against us. Furthermore, we do not
currently carry key man life insurance. The loss of
the services of any of our key personnel, or our failure to
attract and retain other qualified and experienced personnel on
acceptable terms, could impair our ability to successfully
manage our business.
If we are unable to hire, retain and
continue to develop and train our education representatives, the
effectiveness of our student recruiting efforts would be
adversely affected.
In order to support revenue growth, we need to
hire new education representatives, retain and continue to
develop and train our education representatives, who are our
employees dedicated to student recruitment. Our ability to
develop a strong education representative team may be affected
by a number of factors, including our ability to integrate and
motivate our education representatives; our ability to
effectively train our education representatives; the length of
time it takes new education representatives to become
productive; restrictions on the method of compensating education
representatives imposed by regulatory bodies; the competition we
face from other companies in hiring and retaining education
representatives; and our ability to effectively manage a
multi-location educational organization. If we are unable to
hire, develop or retain our education representatives, the
effectiveness of our student recruiting efforts would be
adversely affected.
Competition could decrease our market share
and put downward pressure on our tuition rates.
The post-secondary education market is highly
competitive. Some traditional public and private colleges and
universities, as well as other private career-oriented schools,
offer programs that may be perceived by students to be similar
to ours. Most public institutions are able to charge lower
tuition than our schools are, due in part to government
subsidies and other financial sources not available to
for-profit schools. Some of our competitors in both the public
and private sectors, such as Corinthian Colleges, Inc., also
have substantially greater financial and other resources than we
have which may, among other things, allow them to secure
industry relationships with some or all of our existing
strategic partners or develop
14
We may be required to reduce tuition or increase
spending in response to competition in order to retain or
attract students or pursue new market opportunities. As a
result, our market share, net revenues and operating margin may
be decreased. We cannot be sure that we will be able to compete
successfully against current or future competitors or that
competitive pressures faced by us will not adversely affect our
business, financial condition or results of operations.
Our financial performance depends in part
on our ability to continue to develop awareness and acceptance
of our programs among high school graduates and working adults
looking to return to school.
The awareness of our programs among high school
graduates and working adults looking to return to school is
critical to the continued acceptance and growth of our programs.
Our inability to continue to develop awareness of our programs
could reduce our enrollments and impair our ability to increase
net revenues or maintain profitability. The following are some
of the factors that could prevent us from successfully marketing
our programs:
An increase in interest rates could
adversely affect our ability to attract and retain
students.
Interest rates have reached historical lows in
recent years, creating a favorable borrowing environment for our
students. Much of the financing our students receive is tied to
floating interest rates. Therefore, any future increase in
interest rates will result in a corresponding increase in the
cost to our existing and prospective students of financing their
studies, which could result in a reduction in our student
population and net revenues. Higher interest rates could also
contribute to higher default rates with respect to our
students repayment of their education loans. Higher
default rates may in turn adversely impact our eligibility for
Title IV Program participation, which could result in a
reduction in our student population.
Seasonal and other fluctuations in our
results of operations could adversely affect the trading price
of our common stock.
In reviewing our results of operations, you
should not focus on quarter-to-quarter comparisons. Our results
in any quarter may not indicate the results we may achieve in
any subsequent quarter or for the full year. Our net revenues
normally fluctuate as a result of seasonal variations in our
business, principally due to changes in total student
population. Student population varies as a result of new student
enrollments, graduations and student attrition. Historically,
our schools have had lower student populations in our third
fiscal quarter than in the remainder of our fiscal year because
fewer students are enrolled during the summer months. Our
expenses, however, do not generally vary at the same rate as
changes in our student population and net revenues and, as a
result, such expenses do not fluctuate significantly on a
quarterly basis. We expect quarterly fluctuations in results of
operations to continue as a result of seasonal enrollment
patterns. Such patterns may change, however, as a result of
acquisitions, new school openings, new program introductions and
increased enrollments of adult students. In addition, our net
revenues for our first fiscal quarter are adversely affected by
the fact that we do not recognize revenue during the calendar
year-end holiday break, which falls primarily in that quarter.
These fluctuations may result in volatility or have an adverse
effect on the market price of our common stock.
15
We may be unable to successfully complete
or integrate future acquisitions.
Although we are not presently considering any
significant acquisitions, we may consider selective acquisitions
in the future. We may not be able to complete any acquisitions
on favorable terms or, even if we do, we may not be able to
successfully integrate the acquired businesses into our
business. Integration challenges include, among others,
regulatory approvals, significant capital expenditures,
assumption of known and unknown liabilities and our ability to
control costs. The successful integration of future acquisitions
may also require substantial attention from our senior
management and the senior management of the acquired schools,
which could decrease the time that they devote to the day-to-day
management of our business. If we do not successfully address
risks and challenges associated with acquisitions, including
integration, future acquisitions could harm, rather than
enhance, our operating performance.
In addition, if we consummate an acquisition, our
capitalization and results of operations may change
significantly. A future acquisition could result in the
incurrence of debt and contingent liabilities, an increase in
interest expense, amortization expenses, goodwill and other
intangible assets, charges relating to integration costs or an
increase in the number of shares outstanding. These results
could have a material adverse effect on our results of
operations or financial condition or result in dilution to
current stockholders.
We have recorded a significant amount of
goodwill, which may become impaired and subject to a
write-down.
Our acquisition of the parent company of MMI in
January 1998 resulted in the recording of goodwill. Goodwill,
which relates to the excess of cost over the fair value of the
net assets of the business acquired, was approximately
$20.6 million at June 30, 2003, representing
approximately 21.6% of our total assets.
Goodwill is recorded at fair value on the date of
the acquisition and, under SFAS No. 142, Goodwill and
Other Intangible Assets, is reviewed at least annually for
impairment. Impairment may result from, among other things,
deterioration in the performance of the acquired business,
adverse market conditions, adverse changes in applicable laws or
regulations, including changes that restrict the activities of
the acquired business, and a variety of other circumstances. The
amount of any impairment must be recognized as an expense in the
period in which we determine that such impairment has occurred.
Any future determination requiring the write-off of a
significant portion of goodwill would have an adverse effect on
our results of operations during the financial reporting period
in which the write-off occurs.
We cannot predict our future capital needs,
and we may not be able to secure additional
financing.
We may need to raise additional capital in the
future to fund our operations, expand our markets and program
offerings or respond to competitive pressures or perceived
opportunities. We cannot be sure that additional financing will
be available to us on favorable terms, or at all. If adequate
funds are not available when required or on acceptable terms, we
may be forced to cease our operations and, even if we are able
to continue our operations, our ability to increase student
enrollments will be adversely affected.
Following the consummation of the offering,
we do not anticipate declaring or paying cash dividends on our
common stock in the foreseeable future.
Following the consummation of this offering, we
do not anticipate declaring or paying any dividends on our
common stock in the foreseeable future. We currently anticipate
that we will retain all of our future earnings, if any, to fund
the operation and expansion of our business and to use as
working capital and for other general corporate purposes. Our
board of directors will determine whether to pay dividends in
the future based on conditions then existing, including our
earnings, financial condition and capital requirements, the
availability of third-party financing and the financial
responsibility standards prescribed by ED, as well as any
economic and other conditions that our board of directors may
deem relevant.
16
Terrorist attacks and the possibility of
wider armed conflicts may adversely affect the U.S. economy
and may disrupt our provision of educational
services.
Terrorist attacks and other acts of violence or
war, such as those that took place on September 11, 2001
and the war between the U.S.-led coalition forces and Iraq,
could disrupt our operations. Attacks or armed conflicts that
directly impact our physical facilities or ability to recruit
and retain students could significantly affect our ability to
provide educational services to our students and thereby impair
our ability to achieve our expected results. Furthermore,
violent acts and threats of future attacks could adversely
affect the U.S. and world economies. Finally, future
terrorist acts could cause the United States to enter into a
wider armed conflict that could further impact our operations
and result in prospective students, as well as our current
students and personnel, entering the armed services. These
factors could cause significant declines in our student
population.
Risks Related to the Offering
The price of our common stock may fluctuate
significantly, and you could lose all or part of your
investment.
Volatility in the market price of our common
stock may prevent you from being able to sell your shares at or
above the price you paid for your shares. The market price of
our common stock could fluctuate significantly for various
reasons which include:
In addition, in recent years, the stock market
has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations. This
volatility has had a significant impact on the market price of
securities issued by many companies, including companies in our
industry. The changes frequently appear to occur without regard
to the operating performance of these companies. The price of
our common stock could fluctuate based upon factors that have
little or nothing to do with our company, and these fluctuations
could materially reduce our stock price.
If our share price is volatile, we may be
the target of securities litigation, which is costly and
time-consuming to defend.
In the past, following periods of market
volatility in the price of a companys securities, security
holders have often instituted class action litigation. If the
market value of our common stock experiences adverse
fluctuations and we become involved in this type of litigation,
regardless of the outcome, we could incur substantial legal
costs and our managements attention could be diverted from
the operation of our business, causing our business to suffer.
17
There is no existing market for our common
stock and we do not know if one will develop to provide you with
adequate liquidity.
There has not been a public market for our common
stock. We cannot predict the extent to which investor interest
in our company will lead to the development of an active trading
market on the New York Stock Exchange or otherwise or how liquid
that market might become. If an active trading market does not
develop, you may have difficulty selling any of our common stock
that you buy. The initial public offering price for the shares
will be determined by negotiations between us and the
representative of the underwriters and may not be indicative of
prices that will prevail in the open market following this
offering. Consequently, you may not be able to sell shares of
our common stock at prices equal to or greater than the price
paid by you in this offering.
Future sales of our common stock in the
public market could lower our stock price.
We may sell additional shares of common stock in
subsequent public offerings. We may also issue additional shares
of common stock to finance future acquisitions. After the
completion of this offering, we will have 27,664,840 outstanding
shares of common stock. This number includes
7,500,000 shares that we are selling in this offering,
which may be resold immediately in the public market. The
remaining 20,164,840 shares, or 72.9% of our total
outstanding shares, are restricted from immediate resale under
the federal securities laws and the lock-up agreements between
our current stockholders and the underwriters described in
Underwriting, but may be sold into the market in the
near future. These shares will become available for sale at
various times following the expiration of the lock-up agreements
which, without the prior consent of Credit Suisse First Boston
LLC, is 180 days after the date of this prospectus, subject
to volume limitations and manner-of-sale requirements under
Rule 144 of the Securities Act of 1933.
After this offering, several of our existing
stockholders, owning 18,357,066 shares of our common stock,
are expected to be parties to a registration rights agreement
with us. Under that agreement, certain of those stockholders,
owning 18,357,066 shares of our common stock, will have the
right, after the expiration of the lock-up period, to require us
to effect the registration of their shares. In addition, if we
propose to register, or are required to register following the
exercise of a demand registration right as described
in the previous sentence, any of our shares of common stock
under the Securities Act, all the stockholders who are parties
to the registration rights agreement will be entitled to include
their shares of common stock in that registration. We cannot
predict the size of future issuances of our common stock or the
effect, if any, that future issuances and sales of shares of our
common stock will have on the market price of our common stock.
Sales of substantial amounts of our common stock (including
shares issued in connection with an acquisition), or the
perception that such sales could occur, may adversely affect
prevailing market prices for our common stock.
Anti-takeover provisions in our certificate
of incorporation, our bylaws and Delaware law could discourage a
change of control that our stockholders may favor, which could
negatively affect our stock price.
Provisions in our certificate of incorporation
and our bylaws and applicable provisions of the Delaware General
Corporation Law may make it more difficult and expensive for a
third party to acquire control of us even if a change of control
would be beneficial to the interests of our stockholders. These
provisions could discourage potential takeover attempts and
could adversely affect the market price of our common stock. Our
amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended
and restated bylaws, which will be in effect at the time this
offering is consummated, will:
18
Our executive officers, directors and
principal stockholders will continue to own a large percentage
of our voting stock after this offering, which may allow them to
control substantially all matters requiring stockholder
approval.
Immediately after this offering, our executive
officers, directors and principal stockholders will, in the
aggregate, directly or indirectly hold approximately 72.9% of
our outstanding shares. Accordingly, in the event that all or
some of these stockholders decided to act in concert, they could
control us through their ability to determine the outcome of the
election of our directors, to amend our certificate of
incorporation and bylaws and to take other actions requiring the
vote or consent of stockholders, including mergers, going
private transactions and other extraordinary transactions, and
the terms of any of these transactions. The ownership positions
of these stockholders may have the effect of delaying, deterring
or preventing a change in control or a change in the composition
of our board of directors.
We will have broad discretion in applying a
portion of the net proceeds of the offering and may not use
those proceeds in ways that will enhance our market
value.
We have significant flexibility in applying the
portion of the net proceeds we receive in the offering that will
remain after the repayment of all outstanding indebtedness under
our senior credit facilities, the redemption of all of our
series A preferred stock, series B preferred stock and
series C preferred stock that will not be exchanged for
shares of our common stock and the payment in cash of all
declared but unpaid dividends thereon and on our series D
convertible preferred stock. As part of your investment
decision, you will not be able to assess or direct how we apply
that portion of the net proceeds. If we do not apply these funds
effectively, we may lose significant business opportunities.
Furthermore, our stock price could decline if the market does
not view our use of the proceeds from the offering favorably.
You will suffer immediate and substantial
dilution.
The initial public offering price per share is
substantially higher than the pro forma net tangible book value
per share immediately after the offering. As a result, you will
pay a price per share that substantially exceeds the book value
of our assets after subtracting our liabilities. At the offering
price of $21.00, you will incur immediate and substantial
dilution in the amount of $21.04 per share. We also have
outstanding stock options to purchase shares of our common stock
at a weighted average exercise price of $4.97 per share. To the
extent these options are exercised, there will be further
dilution.
19
student dissatisfaction with our programs and
services;
diminished access to high school student
population;
our failure to maintain or expand our brand or
other factors related to our marketing or advertising practices;
and
our inability to maintain relationships with
automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine
manufacturers and suppliers.
our quarterly or annual earnings or those of
other companies in our industry;
the publics reaction to our press releases,
our other public announcements and our filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission;
changes in earnings estimates or recommendations
by research analysts who track our common stock or the stocks of
other companies in our industry;
new laws or regulations or new interpretations of
laws or regulations applicable to our business;
changes in accounting standards, policies,
guidance, interpretations or principles;
changes in general conditions in the U.S. and
global economies or financial markets, including those resulting
from war, incidents of terrorism or responses to such events; and
sales of common stock by our directors and
executive officers.
authorize the issuance of blank check preferred
stock that could be issued by our board of directors to thwart a
takeover attempt;
classify the board of directors into staggered,
three-year terms, which may lengthen the time required to gain
control of our board of directors;
discourage, delay or prevent a change in control
by prohibiting us from engaging in a business combination with
an interested stockholder for a period of two years after the
person becomes an interested stockholder, unless such a
transaction has met certain fair market value
requirements;
prohibit cumulative voting in the election of
directors, which would otherwise allow holders of less than a
majority of stock to elect some directors;
require super-majority voting to effect
amendments to certain provisions of our certificate of
incorporation or bylaws, including those provisions concerning
the composition of the board of directors and certain business
combinations;
limit who may call special meetings of both the
board of directors and stockholders;
prohibit stockholder action by written consent,
requiring all actions to be taken at a meeting of the
stockholders;
establish advance notice requirements for
nominating candidates for election to the board of directors or
for proposing matters that can be acted upon by stockholders at
stockholders meetings; and
require that vacancies on the board of directors,
including newly-created directorships, be filled only by a
majority vote of directors then in office.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus contains forward-looking
statements, which include information relating to future
events, future financial performance, strategies, expectations,
competitive environment, regulation and availability of
resources. These forward-looking statements include, without
limitation, statements regarding: proposed new programs;
expectations that regulatory developments or other matters will
not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial
position, results of operations or liquidity; statements
concerning projections, predictions, expectations, estimates or
forecasts as to our business, financial and operational results
and future economic performance; and statements of
managements goals and objectives and other similar
expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts.
Words such as may, will,
should, could, would,
predicts, potential,
continue, expects,
anticipates, future,
intends, plans, believes,
estimates, and similar expressions, as well as
statements in future tense, identify forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements should not be read as
a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not
necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by,
which such performance or results will be achieved.
Forward-looking statements are based on information available at
the time those statements are made and/or managements good
faith belief as of that time with respect to future events, and
are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
performance or results to differ materially from those expressed
in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Important
factors that could cause such differences include, but are not
limited to:
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the
date the statements are made. You should not put undue reliance
on any forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to
update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results,
changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting
forward-looking information, except to the extent required by
applicable securities laws. If we do update one or more
forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we
will make additional updates with respect to those or other
forward-looking statements.
20
our failure to comply with the extensive
regulatory framework applicable to our industry;
failure on our part to maintain and expand
existing industry relationships and develop new industry
relationships;
our success in updating and expanding the content
of existing programs and developing new programs in a
cost-effective manner or on a timely basis;
risks associated with the opening of new campuses;
industry competition;
our ability to continue to execute our growth
strategies;
general and economic conditions; and
other factors discussed under the headings
Risk Factors, Managements Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,
Business and Regulatory Environment.
USE OF PROCEEDS
The net proceeds from the sale of the 3,250,000
shares of common stock offered by us will be approximately
$68.3 million, based on an estimated initial public
offering price of $21.00 per share (the mid-point of the range
set forth on the cover page of this prospectus) and after
deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and
estimated offering expenses payable by us. We will not receive
any proceeds from the sale of the shares to be sold by the
selling stockholders.
The primary purposes of the offering are to
create a public market for our common stock, obtain additional
equity capital and facilitate future access to public markets.
We expect to use the net proceeds from the offering:
We plan to use the remainder of the net proceeds
of the offering for working capital and general corporate
purposes, which may include expanding our marketing and
recruiting efforts, opening new campuses, developing new courses
and programs and potential acquisitions. We have no current
plans, agreements or commitments for, and are not currently
engaged in any negotiations with respect to, any such
transaction. Management will have broad discretion in the
allocation of the net proceeds remaining after the allocation of
net proceeds for the uses specified in the prior paragraph.
Our senior credit facilities consist of a
revolving credit facility, a term A loan facility and a
term B loan facility. The term A loan facility and the
revolving loan facility mature on March 31, 2007, and the
term B loan facility matures on March 31, 2009. Each
facility under our senior credit facilities bears interest at a
variable rate based upon LIBOR or prime rate, at our option. At
June 30, 2003, the weighted average interest rate on our
borrowings under the senior credit facilities was 4.4%.
Following the application of the proceeds from this offering, we
expect that our senior credit facilities will consist of only a
revolving credit facility. Because our working capital
fluctuates based on our seasonal needs, the borrowings under our
revolving credit facility may vary.
Depending on future events, we may determine at a
later time to use the net proceeds for different purposes.
Pending their use, the proceeds of the offering will be invested
in short-term, investment grade, interest-bearing securities.
DIVIDEND POLICY
Following consummation of this offering, we do
not anticipate declaring or paying any dividends on our common
stock in the foreseeable future. Instead, we currently
anticipate that we will retain all of our future earnings, if
any, to fund the operation and expansion of our business and to
use as working capital and for other general corporate purposes.
Our board of directors will determine whether to pay dividends
in the future based on conditions then existing, including our
earnings, financial condition and capital requirements, the
availability of third-party financing and the financial
responsibility standards prescribed by ED, as well as any
economic and other conditions that our board of directors may
deem relevant. In addition, our ability to declare and pay any
dividends is currently restricted under the credit agreement for
our senior credit facilities.
21
to repay all outstanding indebtedness under our
term A and term B loan facilities, which was
approximately $31.6 million as of September 30, 2003;
to redeem, for approximately $13.4 million,
the portion of our outstanding series A preferred stock,
series B preferred stock and series C preferred stock
that will not be exchanged by their holders into shares of our
common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this
offering; and
to pay all accrued but unpaid dividends on our
series A preferred stock, series B preferred stock,
series C preferred stock and series D preferred stock,
which were approximately $11.6 million as of
September 30, 2003.
CAPITALIZATION
The following table sets forth our cash and cash
equivalents and our capitalization as of June 30, 2003:
You should read this table together with the
Use of Proceeds, Managements Discussion
and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations, Description of Capital Stock and
our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this
prospectus.
22
For further information regarding our stock and
stock option plans, including the provisions for the automatic
increase in reserved shares, see Management.
23
on an actual basis;
on a pro forma basis, giving effect to
(i) the repayment in July and August 2003, with available
cash on hand, of $15.8 million of our term loans under our
senior credit facilities, (ii) the retirement in August
2003 at a 10% discount of a subordinated convertible promissory
note having a principal amount of approximately
$7.0 million using available cash on hand of
$6.3 million, (iii) the repayment in August 2003 of a
promissory note having a principal amount of approximately
$4.0 million that was issued to a related party and the
subsequent remittance to us by that party of approximately
$4.0 million in satisfaction of the principal amount of,
and accrued interest on, a subscription note receivable and
(iv) the payment in September 2003, with available cash on
hand, of a $5.0 million dividend to our common stockholders
and holders of our series D preferred stock;
on a pro forma as adjusted basis, giving effect
to (i) our sale of 3,250,000 shares of our common
stock in this offering (at the initial public offering price of
$21.00 per share); (ii) the application of the proceeds
from that sale as discussed under Use of Proceeds;
(iii) the exchange of 3,673 shares of our series A
preferred stock, 1,230 shares of our series B preferred
stock and 1,151 shares of our series C preferred stock for
an aggregate of 228,269 shares of our common stock, which
is expected to occur immediately prior to the consummation of
the offering; and (iv) the automatic conversion of all
outstanding shares of our series D preferred stock into
10,253,797 shares of our common stock, which is expected to
occur concurrently with the consummation of the offering in
accordance with the provisions of our certificate of
incorporation. In determining the amount of Series A, B
& C preferred stock to be exchanged, management has made
assumptions based on their best estimate of the amount to be
exchanged to common stock by the executive officers, directors
and other shareholders upon the effective date of this Initial
Public Offering. There is not a contractual obligation for these
holders of series A, B & C Preferred stock to exchange.
Actual results may differ from these estimates under different
assumptions or conditions.
As of June 30, 2003
Pro Forma
Actual
Pro Forma
As Adjusted
(In millions)
$
31.2
$
4.1
$
9.2
47.3
31.6
0.5
0.5
0.5
7.0
4.0
58.8
32.1
0.5
11.4
15.1
3.7
5.5
5.5
1.3
4.6
4.6
0.6
46.3
46.3
108.7
(82.5
)
(87.1
)
(88.1
)
(0.6
)
(0.3
)
(0.3
)
(83.1
)
(87.4
)
20.3
$
43.5
$
16.2
$
26.4
(1)
In July 2003, we amended our senior credit
facilities to increase the availability under the revolving
credit facility from $20 million to $30 million.
Availability of the revolving credit facility is reduced by the
amount of outstanding letters of credit issued under the
facility. As of September 30, 2003, we had letters of
credit in an aggregate amount of $15.6 million outstanding
under our revolving credit facility.
(2)
In connection with the repayment by us in July
2003 of a $4.0 million promissory note held by Whites
Family Company, LLC, an entity controlled by John C. White,
Whites Family Company, LLC remitted to us approximately
$4.0 million in satisfaction of the principal amount of,
and accrued interest on, a subscription note receivable bearing
interest at approximately 6.1%. Approximately $3.7 million
of the subscription note receivable was issued as payment for
series A preferred stock issued to Whites Family
Company, LLC. The remittance with respect to the subscription
note receivable correspondingly reduced an equity account that
was offset against the amount of the outstanding series A
preferred stock.
DILUTION
If you invest in our common stock, your interest
will be diluted to the extent of the difference between the
initial public offering price per share of our common stock and
the pro forma net tangible book value per share of our common
stock after the offering. Dilution results from the fact that
the per share offering price of the common stock is
substantially in excess of the book value per share attributable
to the existing stockholders for the presently outstanding
stock. Our net tangible book value at June 30, 2003 was
$(103.7) million, or $(4.30) per share of common
stock. Our pro forma net tangible book value at June 30,
2003 was $(108.0) million, or $(4.42)per share of common
stock. Pro forma net tangible book value per share represents
the amount of total tangible assets less total liabilities,
divided by the number of shares of common stock outstanding
after giving effect to:
After giving effect to our sale of
7,500,000 shares of common stock in the offering at the
initial public offering price of $21.00 per share (the mid-point
of the range set forth on the cover of this prospectus) and
after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and
estimated offering expenses, our pro forma net tangible book
value as of June 30, 2003 would have been
$(0.3) million, or $(0.01) per share. This represents an
immediate increase in pro forma net tangible book value of
$4.41 per share to existing stockholders and an immediate
dilution of $21.01 per share to investors purchasing common
stock in the offering. The following table illustrates this per
share dilution:
The following table summarizes, on a pro forma
basis as of June 30, 2003, the differences between existing
stockholders and the new investors with respect to the number of
shares of common stock purchased from us, the total
consideration paid and the average price per share paid before
deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and our
estimated offering expenses.
The discussion and tables above assume no
exercise of stock options outstanding as of June 30, 2003.
As of the consummation of this offering, we expect to have
options outstanding to purchase a total of 720,177 shares
of common stock, with a weighted average exercise price of
$4.85 per share. To the extent that any of these options
are exercised, there will be further dilution to new investors.
See Description of
24
If the underwriters over-allotment option
is exercised in full:
25
a 4,350-for-one split of our common stock;
the automatic conversion of all outstanding
shares of our series D convertible preferred stock into shares
of common stock; and
the exchange of 3,673 shares of our series A
preferred stock, 1,230 shares of our series B
preferred stock and 1,151 shares of our series C
preferred stock into shares of common stock, and the redemption
of the remaining 13,391 shares of such preferred stock at
the aggregate redemption price of $13.4 million;
$
21.00
(4.30
)
(4.42
)
4.41
(0.01
)
$
21.01
Shares Purchased
Total Consideration
Average Price
Number
Percent
Amount
Percent
Per Share
(In thousands, except per share)
20,164,862
72.9
%
$
43,113,730
21.5
%
$
2.14
7,500,000
27.1
%
$
157,500,000
78.5
%
$
21.00
27,664,862
100
%
$
200,613,730
100
%
$
7.25
the percentage of our shares of common stock held
by our existing holders of capital stock will decrease to
approximately 70% of the total number of common shares
outstanding after this offering; and
the number of shares of common stock held by
investors purchasing common stock in this offering will increase
to 1,125,000 shares, or approximately 30% of the total number of
shares of common stock outstanding after this offering.
SELECTED HISTORICAL FINANCIAL DATA
The following table sets forth our selected
historical consolidated financial and operating data as of the
dates and for the periods indicated. You should read these data
together with Managements Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations and our
consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this
prospectus. The selected historical consolidated statement of
operations data for each of the years in the three-year period
ended September 30, 2002, and the historical consolidated
balance sheet data as of September 30, 2001 and 2002 have
been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements
which are included elsewhere in this prospectus. The selected
historical consolidated statements of operations data for the
fiscal years ended September 30, 1998 and 1999 and
historical consolidated balance sheet data as of
September 30, 1998, 1999 and 2000 have been derived from
our audited consolidated financial statements not included in
this prospectus. The selected interim historical consolidated
statement of operations data for the nine months ended June 30,
2002 and 2003 and the selected interim historical consolidated
balance sheet data as of June 30, 2003 have been derived from
our unaudited interim consolidated financial statements included
elsewhere in this prospectus. The selected interim historical
consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2002 have
been derived from our unaudited interim consolidated financial
statements not included in this prospectus. In our opinion, the
unaudited interim consolidated financial statements have been
prepared on the same basis as our audited consolidated financial
statements and include all adjustments, consisting of only
normal recurring adjustments, necessary for a fair statement of
the results for the unaudited interim periods. The results for
any interim period are not necessarily indicative of the results
that may be expected for a full fiscal year.
26
27
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)
(unaudited)
$
63,936
$
78,020
$
92,079
$
109,493
$
144,372
$
105,428
$
141,642
27,950
34,560
48,523
59,554
70,813
51,710
66,551
29,968
49,111
33,893
38,332
51,541
36,607
48,198
57,918
83,671
82,416
97,886
122,354
88,317
114,749
6,018
(5,651
)
9,663
11,607
22,018
17,111
26,893
6,760
10,582
11,877
10,674
6,254
5,349
2,809
847
970
(742
)
(16,233
)
(2,214
)
933
14,917
10,792
24,084
(304
)
(5,609
)
(431
)
820
5,228
3,777
8,944
(438
)
(10,624
)
(1,783
)
113
9,689
7,015
15,140
(402
)
1,677
(34,437
)
(8,536
)
(1,316
)
(840
)
(8,947
)
(36,220
)
(9,739
)
9,689
7,015
15,140
(915
)
(914
)
(1,166
)
(1,166
)
(2,872
)
(1,729
)
(3,434
)
$
(1,755
)
$
(9,861
)
$
(37,386
)
$
(10,905
)
$
6,817
$
5,286
$
11,706
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)
(unaudited)
$
(0.15
)
$
(1.21
)
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.51
$
0.39
$
0.87
$
(0.15
)
$
(1.21
)
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.44
$
0.34
$
0.58
9,207
9,527
13,432
13,402
13,402
13,402
13,433
9,207
9,527
13,432
13,402
20,244
18,642
24,956
$
2,358
$
2,917
$
3,887
$
4,533
$
4,951
$
3,167
$
4,476
6
6
6
6
7
6
7
4,906
5,321
5,866
6,710
8,277
8,163
10,228
$
4,144
$
10,316
$
3,326
$
3,353
$
13,554
$
8,420
$
31,215
15,709
26,643
21,110
15,428
29,278
19,463
48,286
(7,919
)
670
(12,987
)
(29,187
)
(14,577
)
(13,770
)
(1,412
)
99,522
112,071
68,845
63,086
76,886
62,550
95,281
106,252
115,885
104,122
97,336
57,886
59,012
55,060
108,691
117,631
109,294
104,578
60,902
61,528
58,765
12,487
17,155
18,296
19,414
64,395
63,238
67,813
(45,719
)
(54,675
)
(92,071
)
(102,976
)
(96,159
)
(97,689
)
(83,137
)
(1)
Working capital is defined as current assets less
current liabilities.
MANAGEMENTS DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
OF
You should read the following discussion
together with the financial statements and the related notes
included elsewhere in this prospectus. This discussion contains
forward-looking statements that are based on managements
current expectations, estimates and projections about our
business and operations. Our actual results may differ
materially from those currently anticipated and expressed in
such forward-looking statements as a result of a number of
factors, including those we discuss under Risk
Factors and elsewhere in this prospectus.
General
We are a leading provider of post-secondary
education for students seeking careers as professional
automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine
technicians. We offer undergraduate degree, diploma or
certificate programs at seven campuses across the United States,
and manufacturer-sponsored advanced programs at 22 dedicated
training centers. We have provided technical education programs
for over 35 years.
Our revenues consist principally of student
tuition and fees derived from the programs we provide and are
presented as net revenues after reductions related to
scholarships we sponsor and refunds for students who withdraw
from our programs prior to specified dates. We recognize tuition
revenue and fees ratably over the terms of the various programs
we offer. We supplement our core revenues with additional
revenues from sales of textbooks and program supplies, student
housing provided by us and other revenues, all of which are
recognized as sales occur or services are performed. In
aggregate, these additional revenues represented less than 10%
of our total net revenues in each fiscal year in the three-year
period ended September 30, 2002 and in the nine months
ended June 30, 2003. Tuition revenue and fees generally
vary based on the average number of students enrolled and
average tuition charge per program.
Average student enrollments vary depending on,
among other factors, the number of (i) continuing students
at the beginning of a fiscal period, (ii) new student
enrollments during the fiscal period, (iii) students who
have previously withdrawn but decide to re-enroll during the
fiscal period, and (iv) graduations and withdrawals during
the fiscal period. We believe that our average student
enrollments are influenced by the number of graduating high
school students, the attractiveness of our program offerings to
high school graduates and potential adult students, the
effectiveness of our marketing efforts, the depth of our
industry relationships, the strength of employment markets and
long term career prospects, the quality of our instructors and
student services professionals, the persistence of our students,
the length of our education programs, the availability of
federal funding for our programs, the number of graduates of our
programs who elect to attend the advanced training programs we
offer and general economic conditions. Our introduction of
additional program offerings at existing schools and
establishment of new schools (either through acquisition or
start-up) are expected to significantly influence our average
student enrollment. Our average undergraduate student
enrollments have grown at a compounded annual growth rate of
18.8% over the past three full fiscal years. This growth can
largely be attributed to the demand for our graduates and the
expansion of our capacity. We currently offer 38 start dates
throughout the year in our various undergraduate programs. The
number of start dates of advanced programs varies by the
duration of those programs and the needs of the manufacturers
who sponsor them.
Our tuition charges vary by type or length of our
programs and the program level, such as undergraduate or
advanced training. Tuition has increased by approximately 3% to
5% per annum in each fiscal year in the three-year period ended
September 30, 2002, as well as in the nine months ended
June 30, 2003. Tuition increases are generally consistent
across our schools and programs, however, changes in operating
costs may impact price increases at individual locations. We
believe that we can continue to increase tuition as the demand
for our graduates remains strong and tuition at other
post-secondary institutions continues to rise, although any of
those increases may be less than historical levels.
Most students at our campuses rely on funds
received under various government-sponsored student financial
aid programs, predominantly Title IV Programs, to pay a
substantial portion of their tuition and
28
We extend credit for tuition and fees to the
majority of our students that are in attendance at our campuses.
Our credit risk is mitigated through the students participation
in federally funded financial aid programs unless students
withdraw prior to the receipt by us of Title IV funds for
those students. Any remaining tuition receivable is comprised of
smaller individual amounts due from students across the United
States.
We categorize our operating expenses as
(i) educational services and facilities and
(ii) selling, general and administrative.
Major components of educational services and
facilities expenses include faculty compensation and benefits,
compensation and benefits of other campus administration
employees, facility rent, maintenance, utilities, depreciation
and amortization of property and equipment used in the provision
of educational services, royalties payable to licensors under
our licensing arrangements and other costs directly associated
with teaching our programs and providing educational services to
our students.
Selling, general and administrative expenses
include compensation and benefits of employees who are not
directly associated with the provision of educational services
(such as executive management, finance and central accounting,
legal, human resources and business development), marketing and
student enrollment expenses (including compensation and benefits
of personnel employed in sales and marketing and student
admissions), costs of professional services, bad debt expense,
costs associated with the implementation and operation of our
student management and reporting system, rent for our corporate
headquarters, depreciation and amortization of property and
equipment that is not used in the provision of educational
services and other costs that are incidental to our operations.
All marketing and student enrollment expenses are recognized in
the period incurred. Costs related to the opening of new
facilities, excluding related capital expenditures, are expensed
in the period incurred.
Costs associated with the implementation of our
student management and reporting system have increased over the
last several years as we installed a new integrated information
network that tracks inquiries from potential students and
supports our student enrollment and processing of data as it
relates to our students activities. We anticipate that we will
need to further upgrade our student management and reporting
system and expect additional costs will be incurred in
connection with such an upgrade. We believe that the investment
in our student management and reporting system has improved
services to students and our ability to track student inquiries
and may facilitate the integration of new schools into our
operations, if and when new schools are opened or acquired.
Acquisitions
In January 1998, we acquired all of the assets of
Clinton Harley Corporation and Clinton Education Group, Inc. for
an aggregate of $26.3 million. Motorcycle Mechanics
Institute and Motorcycle Marine Mechanics Institute (MMI) were
operating divisions of Clinton Harley Corporation. As
consideration for the MMI assets, we issued 3,673 shares of
our series A preferred stock having a liquidation value of
$1,000 per share, 1,422,450 shares of common stock and a
subordinated note bearing interest at 13.5% in the principal
amount of $2.0 million and maturing in January 2008, and
paid $18.7 million in cash.
Recapitalization Transactions
Concurrent with the MMI acquisition, we also
engaged in a recapitalization transaction with a group of
investors assembled by The Jordan Company, LLC and with certain
members of our management. Pursuant to the recapitalization
agreement, we issued to the Jordan investors 7,505 shares
of our series A preferred stock for net proceeds of
$22.5 million, 4,763,250 shares of common stock and a
subordinated note bearing interest at 13.5% in the principal
amount of $15.4 million and maturing in January 2008. In
addition, in exchange for 107,396,803 shares of common
stock, we issued to the management group, 2,318,550 shares of
common stock, 4,067 shares of our series B preferred
stock having a liquidation value
29
In April 2002, we effected another
recapitalization transaction with a number of investors,
including Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC and Worldwide
Training Group, LLC., we issued 2,357 shares of
series D convertible preferred stock (par value $.0001 per
share) for aggregate proceeds of $45.5 million.
Series D preferred stock converts automatically into shares
of our common stock upon the occurrence of certain events,
including the consummation of this offering. See
Liquidity.
Critical Accounting Policies and
Estimates
Our discussion of our financial condition and
results of operations is based upon our financial statements,
which have been prepared in accordance with accounting
principles generally accepted in the United States, or GAAP.
During the preparation of these financial statements, we are
required to make estimates and assumptions that affect the
reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses
and related disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. On
an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates and assumptions,
including those related to revenue recognition, bad debts, fixed
assets, long-lived assets, including goodwill, income taxes and
contingent assets and liabilities. We base our estimates on
historical experience and on various other assumptions that we
believe are reasonable under the circumstances. The results of
our analysis form the basis for making assumptions about the
carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily
apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from
these estimates under different assumptions or conditions, and
the impact of such differences may be material to our
consolidated financial statements.
We believe that the following critical accounting
policies affect our more significant judgments and estimates
used in the preparation of our financial statements:
Revenue recognition.
Net revenues consist primarily of
student tuition and fees derived from the programs we provide
after reductions made for scholarships we sponsor. Tuition and
fee revenue is recognized on a pro-rata (straight-line) basis
over the term of the course or program offered. If a student
withdraws from a program prior to a specified date, any paid but
unearned tuition is refunded. Approximately 96% of our net
revenues for the nine months ended June 30, 2003 consisted
of tuition. Our net revenues vary from period to period in
conjunction with our average student population. Our
undergraduate programs are typically designed to be completed in
12 to 18 months and our advanced training programs range
from eight to 27 weeks in duration. Sales of textbooks and
program supplies, revenue related to student housing and other
revenue are each recognized as sales occur or services are
performed. Deferred tuition represents the excess of tuition
payments received as compared to tuition earned and is reflected
as a current liability in our consolidated financial statements
because it is expected to be earned within the twelve-month
period immediately following the date on which such liability is
reflected in our consolidated financial statements.
Allowance for uncollectible accounts.
We maintain an allowance for
uncollectible accounts for estimated losses resulting from the
inability, failure or refusal of our students to make required
payments. We offer a variety of payment plans to help students
pay that portion of their education expenses not covered by
financial aid programs. That portion is unsecured and not
guaranteed. Management analyzes accounts receivable, historical
percentages of uncollectible accounts, customer credit
worthiness, when applicable, and changes in payment history when
evaluating the adequacy of the allowance for uncollectible
accounts. We use an internal group of collectors, augmented by
third party collectors as deemed appropriate, in our collection
efforts. Although we believe that our reserves are adequate, if
the financial condition of our students deteriorates, resulting
in an impairment of their ability to make payments, or if we
underestimate the allowances required, additional allowances may
be necessary, which
30
Healthcare and workers compensation
costs.
Claims and insurance costs
which primarily relate to health insurance and workers
compensation are accrued using current information and, in the
case of healthcare costs, future estimates provided by
consultants to accurately measure current cost incurred but not
invoiced for services provided.
Long-lived assets.
We record our long-lived assets,
such as property and equipment, at cost. We review the carrying
value of our long-lived assets for possible impairment whenever
events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying
amount of assets may not be recoverable in accordance with the
provisions of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards, or
SFAS, No. 144, Accounting for the Impairment or
Disposal of Long-Lived Assets. We evaluate these assets to
determine if their current recorded value is impaired by
examining estimated future cash flows. These cash flows are
evaluated by using weighted probability techniques as well as
comparisons of past performance against projections. Assets may
also be evaluated by identifying independent market values. If
we determine that an assets carrying value is impaired, we
will record a write-down of the carrying value of the identified
asset and charge the impairment as an operating expense in the
period in which the determination is made. Although we believe
that the carrying value of our long-lived assets are
appropriately stated, changes in strategy or market conditions
or significant technological developments could significantly
impact these judgments and require adjustments to recorded asset
balances.
Goodwill.
We
assess the impairment of goodwill in accordance with SFAS
No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets.
Accordingly, we test our goodwill for impairment annually, or
whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate an
impairment may have occurred, by comparing its fair value to its
carrying value. Impairment may result from, among other things,
deterioration in the performance of the acquired business,
adverse market conditions, adverse changes in applicable laws or
regulations, including changes that restrict the activities of
the acquired business, and a variety of other circumstances. If
we determine that an impairment has occurred, we are required to
record a write-down of the carrying value and charge the
impairment as an operating expense in the period the
determination is made. Goodwill represents a significant portion
of our total assets. At June 30, 2003, goodwill represented
approximately 21.6% of our total assets, or $20.6 million,
and resulted from our acquisition of the parent company of MMI
in January of 1998. Although we believe goodwill is
appropriately stated in our consolidated financial statements,
changes in strategy or market conditions could significantly
impact these judgments and require an adjustment to the recorded
balance.
Stock-based
compensation.
We account for
stock-based employee compensation arrangements in accordance
with the provisions of Accounting Principles Board (APB) Opinion
No. 25, Accounting for Stock Issued to
Employees, and related Interpretations, and comply with
the disclosure provisions of SFAS No. 123, Accounting
for Stock-Based Compensation. Several companies recently
elected to change their accounting policies and record the fair
value of options as an expense. We currently are not required to
record stock-based compensation charges if the employee stock
option exercise price or restricted stock purchase price equals
or exceeds the deemed fair value of our common stock at the
grant date. Because no market for our common stock existed prior
to this offering, our board of directors determines the fair
value of our common stock based upon several factors, including
our operating performance, forecasted future operating results,
the terms of redeemable or convertible preferred stock issued by
us, including the liquidation value and other preferences of our
preferred stockholders and our expected valuation in an initial
public offering.
31
In addition, we understand that discussions of
potential changes to APB 25 and SFAS 123 standards are
ongoing and the parties responsible for authoritative guidance
in this area may require changes to the applicable accounting
standards. If we had estimated the fair value of the options on
the date of grant using a minimum value pricing model and then
amortized this estimated fair value over the vesting period of
the options, our net income (loss) would have been adversely
affected, as shown in the table below.
Accounting for income
taxes.
In preparing our
consolidated financial statements, we assess the likelihood that
our deferred tax assets will be realized from future taxable
income. We establish a valuation allowance if we determine that
it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the net
deferred tax assets will not be realized. Changes in the
valuation allowance are included in our statement of operations
as provision for or benefit from income taxes. We exercise
significant judgment in determining our provisions for income
taxes, our deferred tax assets and liabilities and our future
taxable income for purposes of assessing our ability to utilize
any future tax benefit from our deferred tax assets. Although we
believe that our tax estimates are reasonable, the ultimate tax
determination involves significant judgments that could become
subject to audit by tax authorities in the ordinary course of
business.
As of June 30, 2003, we had a valuation
allowance of $13.9 million to reduce our deferred tax
assets to an amount that management believes is more likely than
not realizable. The valuation allowance primarily relates to a
deferred tax asset arising from a capital loss carryforward from
the sale of a discontinued business. In addition, we had
deferred tax assets comprised primarily of compensation and
related costs and accrued expenses associated with tool
purchases. We use significant judgment in determining the
amounts of those accrued expenses reflected in the underlying
financial statements. Should we incur capital gains in the
future, we would be able to realize all or part of the capital
loss carryforward we have applied the valuation allowance
against. In that event, our current income tax expense would be
reduced or our income tax benefits would be increased, resulting
in an increase in net income or a reduction in net loss.
32
Results of Operations
The following table sets forth selected
statements of operations data as a percentage of net revenues
for each of the periods indicated.
Nine Months Ended June 30, 2003 Compared
to Nine Months Ended June 30, 2002
Net revenues.
Our net revenues for the nine months ended June 30, 2003
were $141.6 million, representing an increase of
$36.2 million, or 34.3%, as compared to net revenues of
$105.4 million for the nine months ended June 30,
2002. This increase was primarily due to a 25.3% increase in the
average undergraduate full-time student enrollment during the
nine months ended June 30, 2003 and an increase in the
average tuition charge per student resulting from tuition
increases of between 3% and 5%, depending on the program, and a
shift in the mix of average student enrollments toward higher
priced programs, particularly following the introduction of our
higher-priced NASCAR programs at our new NTI facility opened in
July 2002. For the nine months ended June 30, 2003, the
average undergraduate full-time student enrollment was 10,228,
compared with 8,163 for the nine months ended June 30,
2002. We have been able to accommodate the increase in student
enrollments by improving the utilization of our existing
facilities, opening our new NTI campus in July 2002 and
expanding many of our existing facilities.
Educational services and facilities
expenses.
Our educational services
and facilities expenses for the nine months ended June 30,
2003 were $66.6 million, representing an increase of
$14.8 million, or 28.7%, as compared to educational
services and facilities expenses of $51.7 million for the
nine months ended June 30, 2002. This increase was
primarily due to incremental education expenses related to
higher average student enrollments, including additional costs
of $5.4 million incurred in connection with the start-up
and operation of our new campus that we opened in July 2002.
Educational services and facilities expenses as a percentage of
net revenues decreased to 47.0% of net revenues for the nine
months ended June 30, 2003 from 49.1% for the nine months
ended June 30, 2002, primarily due to cost and operating
efficiencies resulting from increased enrollments at our
existing facilities, partially offset by the costs attributable
to the opening and operation of our new campus.
Selling, general and administrative
expenses.
Our selling, general and
administrative expenses for the nine months ended June 30,
2003 were $48.2 million, representing an increase of
$11.6 million, or 31.7%, as compared to selling, general
and administrative expenses of $36.6 million for the nine
months ended June 30, 2002. This increase was due in large
measure to the incremental increase in marketing and
33
Interest
expense.
Our interest expense for
the nine months ended June 30, 2003 was $3.2 million,
representing a decrease of $2.5 million, or 44.3%, compared
to interest expense of $5.7 million for the nine months
ended June 30, 2002. This decrease was due primarily to a
reduction in the average debt balance outstanding and a decrease
in the average interest rate paid on our indebtedness to 4.33%
for the nine months ended June 30, 2003 from 4.71% for the
nine months ended June 30, 2002. The reduction in the
average debt balance outstanding was principally due to the
repayment of $23.4 million of 13.5% subordinated notes and
repayment of $17.9 million of long term debt under our
existing senior credit facilities with proceeds received from
the issuance of our series D convertible preferred stock in
April 2002, as well as scheduled repayments under the senior
credit facilities. The decrease in the average rate of interest
we paid on our indebtedness was primarily attributable to the
repayment of the 13.5% subordinated notes that carried a higher
fixed interest rate, decreases in the LIBOR rates and a
reduction in the applicable interest margin under our senior
credit facilities as a result of our improved financial
condition and the amendment of our senior credit facilities.
Other
expenses.
Our other expenses for
the nine months ended June 30, 2002 represent the write-off
of unamortized deferred financing costs of approximately
$1.0 million as a result of the amendment of our senior
credit facilities in April 2002.
Income taxes.
Our provision for income taxes for
the nine months ended June 30, 2003 was $8.9 million,
or 37.1% of pretax income, compared to $3.8 million, or
35.0% of pretax income, for the nine months ended June 30,
2002. The increase in the effective rate is primarily
attributable to higher state taxes for the nine months ended
June 30, 2003 as all state net operating loss carryforwards
were utilized in the nine months ended June 30, 2002. In
addition, a higher federal statutory rate applied to the nine
months ended June 30, 2003.
Income from continuing operations.
As a result of the foregoing, we
reported income from continuing operations for the nine months
ended June 30, 2003 of $15.1 million, as compared to
income from continuing operations of $7.0 million for the
nine months ended June 30, 2002.
Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2002
Compared to Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2001
Net revenues.
Our net revenues for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2002 were $144.4 million, representing an increase of
$34.9 million, or 31.9%, as compared to net revenues of
$109.5 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2001. This increase was primarily due to a 23.4% increase in the
average undergraduate full-time student population and an
increase in the average tuition charge per student resulting
from tuition increases of between 3% and 5%, depending on the
program, and a modest shift in the mix of enrollments toward
higher priced programs. For the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2002, our average undergraduate full-time
student enrollment was 8,277, compared with 6,710 for the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2001. We have been able to
accommodate the increase in student enrollments by improving the
utilization of our existing facilities and opening a new campus
in July 2002, as well as expanding our existing facilities.
Educational services and facilities
expenses.
Our educational services
and facilities expenses for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2002 were $70.8 million, representing an
increase of $11.3 million, or 18.9%, compared to
educational services and facilities expenses of
$59.6 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2001. This increase was primarily due to incremental education
expenses related to higher average student enrollments and
additional costs of $1.8 million incurred in connection
with the start-up and operation of our new campus that was
opened in July 2002. Educational services and facilities
expenses as a percentage of net revenues decreased to 49.0% of
net revenues for the fiscal year ended
34
Selling, general and administrative
expenses.
Our selling, general and
administrative expenses for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2002 were $51.5 million, representing an
increase of $13.2 million, or 34.5%, as compared to
selling, general and administrative expenses of
$38.3 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2001. This increase is primarily attributable to an incremental
increase in marketing and student enrollment expenses related to
higher student enrollments, an increase in administrative
expense resulting from investments to further develop our
corporate infrastructure and an increase in bad debt expense and
professional services costs. In fiscal 2002, we made further
investments in our corporate infrastructure by adding additional
management personnel to accommodate our growth during that
period as well as by increasing the number of our education
representatives to support future growth. Selling, general and
administrative expenses for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2002 also include $0.6 million related
to the write-off of a related party note receivable and
$1.0 million in professional services costs incurred in
connection with our recapitalization completed in April 2002.
Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percentage of
net revenues increased to 35.7% of net revenues for the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2002 from 35.0% in the fiscal year
ended September 30, 2001.
Interest
expense.
Our interest expense for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2002 was
$6.8 million, representing a decrease of $4.4 million,
or 39.2%, as compared to interest expense of $11.1 million
for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001. This decrease
was primarily due to a decrease in the average debt balance
outstanding during the 2002 period and a decrease in the average
rate of interest we paid on our indebtedness to 7.8% for the
fiscal year ended September 30, 2002 from 10.0% for the
fiscal year ended September 30, 2001. The decrease in our
average debt balance outstanding was primarily due to the
repayment of $23.4 million of our 13.5% subordinated notes
and repayment of $17.9 million of long term debt under our
existing senior credit facilities and a portion of the term
loans outstanding under our senior credit facilities
concurrently with our recapitalization completed in April 2002,
as well as scheduled repayments under the senior credit
facilities. The decrease in the average rate of interest we paid
on our indebtedness was primarily attributable to the repayment
of the 13.5% subordinated notes that carried a higher fixed
interest rate and the decrease in the interest rate margins
applicable on borrowings under our senior credit facilities
following their amendment.
Other
expenses.
Our other expenses for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2002 include the
write-off of unamortized deferred financing costs that we were
no longer able to amortize as a result of the amendment of our
senior credit facilities in April 2002 of approximately
$1.0 million which was partially offset by a gain on the
sale of miscellaneous securities.
Income taxes.
Our provision for income taxes for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2002 was
$5.2 million, or 35.0% of pretax income, compared to
$0.8 million, or 87.9% of pre-tax income for the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2001. This decrease is primarily
due to lower state income taxes as a percentage of net income
and non-deductible items representing a lower percentage of
pre-tax income for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2002
as compared to the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001.
Income from continuing
operations.
As a result of the
foregoing, we reported income from continuing operations of
$9.7 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2002, compared to $0.1 million for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2001.
Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2001
Compared to Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2000
Net revenues.
Our net revenues for the fiscal
year ended September 30, 2001 were $109.5 million,
representing an increase of $17.4 million, or 18.9%,
compared to net revenues of $92.1 for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2000. This increase was primarily due to a
14.4% increase in the average undergraduate full-time student
population, an increase of approximately $3.9 million in
net revenues attributable to our advanced training programs and
an increase in the average tuition charge per student resulting
primarily from tuition increases of between 3% and 5%, depending
on the program. For the fiscal
35
Educational services and facilities
expenses.
Our educational services
and facilities expenses for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2001 were $59.6 million, representing an
increase of $11.0 million, or 22.7%, as compared to
educational services and facilities expenses of
$48.5 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2000. This increase was primarily attributable to incremental
education expenses related to higher average student
enrollments. Educational services and facilities expenses as a
percentage of net revenues increased to 54.4% of our net
revenues for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001 from
52.7% for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2000.
Selling, general and administrative
expenses.
Our selling, general and
administrative expenses for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2001 were $38.3 million, representing an
increase of $4.4 million, or 13.1%, as compared to selling,
general and administrative expenses of $33.9 million for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2000. This increase was
primarily due to incremental marketing and student enrollment
expenses in the 2001 period to support future growth in student
enrollments, partially offset by a decrease in our bad debt
expense following a change in the administration of our
non-Title IV student loan program which was previously
guaranteed by us. Selling, general and administrative expenses
as a percentage of net revenues decreased to 35.0% of net
revenues for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001 from
36.8% for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2000.
Interest expense.
Our interest expense for the
fiscal year ended September 30, 2001 was
$11.1 million, representing a decrease of
$1.3 million, or 10.8%, as compared to interest expense of
$12.5 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2000. This decrease was primarily due to a reduction in the
average debt balance outstanding and a decrease in the average
rate of interest we paid on our indebtedness. The reduction in
the average debt balance outstanding during the fiscal year
ended September 30, 2001 was due to a reduction of our
borrowings under our senior credit facilities following regular
amortization payments under that facility, and the decrease in
the average rate of interest we paid on our indebtedness during
the same period was primarily due to decreases in the LIBOR
rates.
Income taxes.
Our provision for income taxes for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001 was
$0.8 million, or 87.9% of pre-tax income, compared to a
benefit of $0.4 million for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2000. This change was primarily due to the
fact that we reported net income from continuing operations for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001 as compared to a
loss from continuing operations for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2000.
Income from continuing
operations.
As a result of the
foregoing, we reported income from continuing operations of
$0.1 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2001, as compared to a loss from continuing operations of
$1.8 million for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2000.
Discontinued Operations
In June 1998, we acquired National Technology
Transfer, Inc., or NTT, and Performance Training Associates, or
PTA, a wholly owned subsidiary of NTT at the date of
acquisition. NTT provides intensive training seminars to
technicians in sectors similar to the sectors that we serve. PTA
organized lecture training seminars in markets similar to those
in which NTT is active. The acquisition of NTT and PTA was
completed for approximately $50.2 million, comprised of
$37.8 million we borrowed under our senior credit
facilities to finance the acquisition, our issuance of a
$5.2 million subordinated convertible promissory note
payable to the former NTT and PTA shareholder, our issuance of a
$5.4 million 60-day note payable to the former NTT and PTA
shareholder and $1.8 million in transaction costs. PTA was
subsequently merged into NTT. In September 2001, we sold our
interest in NTT for a nominal consideration to certain of our
stockholders. The NTT business has been reflected in our
consolidated financial statements included in this prospectus as
a discontinued operation. Losses related to the operations (net
of taxes) of NTT were $34.4 million and $8.5 million
in our fiscal years ended September 30, 2000 and 2001,
respectively.
36
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Liquidity
During the last three fiscal years and the nine
months ended June 30, 2003, we financed our operating
activities and capital expenditures principally from net cash
provided by operating activities.
Net cash from operations is attributable
primarily to net income adjusted for depreciation and changes in
working capital items. Net cash provided by operating activities
was $25.8 million during the nine months ended
June 30, 2003, an increase of $16.0 million, or
163.5%, from $9.8 million during the comparable period in
2002. This increase was primarily due to the increase in net
income in the 2003 period, an increase in accounts payable and
accrued expenses related to the purchase of supplies and
equipment as a result of the increase in average student
enrollments and an additional four days of accrued salaries and
related expenses due to the timing of payroll payments, an
increase related to accrued health care benefits for a self
insured benefit plan and an increase in employees.
Net cash provided by operating activities was
$20.5 million during the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2002, an increase of $9.7 million, or
90.2%, from $10.8 million during the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2001. This increase was primarily due to the
increase in net income in the 2001 period, an increase in
deferred tuition revenue and accrued salaries and related
benefits partially offset by an increase in receivables and
prepaid expenses.
Net cash provided by operating activities was
$10.8 million during the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2001, an increase of $5.0 million, or
87.0%, from $5.8 million during the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2000. This increase was primarily due to the
increase in net income in the 2001 period, as well as an
increase in accrued salaries and benefits, including accrued
bonuses, partially offset by an increase in deferred income
taxes primarily related to our arrangement with Snap-on-Tools.
A majority of our net revenues are derived from
Title IV Programs. Federal regulations dictate the timing
of disbursements of funds under Title IV Programs. Students
must apply for a new loan for each academic year (thirty-week
periods). Loan funds are generally provided by lenders in two
disbursements for each academic year. The first disbursement is
usually received 30 days after the start of a
students academic year and the second disbursement is
typically received at the beginning of the sixteenth week from
the start of the students academic year. Certain types of
grants and other funding are not subject to a 30-day delay. Our
undergraduate programs are typically designed to be completed in
twelve to eighteen months. In certain instances, if a student
withdraws from a program prior to a specified date, any paid but
unearned tuition or prorated Title IV financial aid is
refunded.
Capital
Expenditures
Our cash used in investing activities is
primarily related to the purchase of property and equipment. Our
capital expenditures primarily result from the addition of new
and the expansion of existing facilities, investment in tools,
classroom technology and other equipment that supports our
program offerings and our student management and reporting
system. Net cash used in investing activities was
$3.2 million, $5.5 million, $5.8 million and
$5.7 million for fiscal 2000, 2001, 2002 and the nine
months ended June 30, 2003. We estimate that for fiscal
2003, expenditures for property, plant and equipment and other
investments will approximate $11.6 million in the
aggregate. Capital expenditures are primarily related to ongoing
replacements related to student training as well as costs
associated with expansion of new and existing campuses. In
addition, capital improvements consist of upgrades of various
systems used throughout our company and therefore reflected as
selling, general and administrative expenses. Capital
expenditures are expected to increase as we upgrade and expand
current equipment and facilities or open new facilities to meet
increased student enrollments. We expect to be able to fund
these capital expenditures with cash generated from operations.
At the current time, we have no material commitments for capital
expenditures. Furthermore, our strategy includes considering
strategic acquisitions in the future. To the extent that
potential acquisitions are large enough to require financing
beyond cash from operations
37
We lease all of our facilities. We expect to make
future payments on existing leases from cash provided from
operations.
Our total debt was $60.9 million as of
September 30, 2002 and $58.8 million as of June 30,
2003.
The following schedule sets forth our long-term
debt obligations as of September 30, 2000, 2001 and 2002
and June 30, 2003.
At June 30, 2003, the term A loan
facility, the term B loan facility and the revolving credit
facility bore interest at a rate equal to (a) in the case
of the term A loan facility and the revolving credit
facility, LIBOR plus 2.75% to 3.50% or, at our option, the
alternate base rate (as defined in the senior credit facilities)
plus 1.50% to 2.25% and (b) in the case of the term
B loan facility, LIBOR plus 3.25% to 4.00% or, at our
option, the alternate base rate plus 2.00% to 2.75%, in each
case depending on our leverage ratio during the applicable
interest period. In addition to paying interest on outstanding
principal under the senior credit facilities, we are required to
pay a commitment fee to the lenders under the revolving credit
facility with respect to the unused commitments at a rate equal
to 0.5% per year and a risk participation fee equal to 1.5% per
year to the lenders under the term A loan facility and the
issuers of letters of credit under our senior credit facilities
with respect to the term A loan borrowing and the amount of
such letters of credit, as applicable. The revolving credit
facility and the term A loan facility mature on
March 31, 2007 and the term B loan facility matures on
March 31, 2009. The term A loan and term B loan
facilities provide for quarterly amortization payments that
increase over time. See Contractual
Obligations.
Our revolving credit facility is available for
working capital, capital expenditures, other general corporate
purposes and to support letters of credit issued under the
facility. The amount available under the revolving credit
facility is reduced by the amount of outstanding letters of
credit. As a result of our failure to meet the standards of
financial responsibility prescribed by the U.S. Department
of Education, or ED, primarily due to our level of indebtedness,
we have posted a letter of credit issued under our senior credit
facilities in favor of ED in the amount of $6.4 million as
of September 30, 2002, $7.6 million as of
June 30, 2003 and $9.9 million as of October 2003. We
will use a portion of the net proceeds from this offering to
repay amounts outstanding under our term A loan facility
and term B loan facility. In addition,
38
Our senior credit facilities contain a number of
covenants. The facilities, among other things, restrict our
ability to: incur additional indebtedness, grant liens or other
security interests, make certain investments, become liable for
contingent obligations, make specified restricted payments,
including dividend or other distributions relating to shares of
any class of our stock, dispose of assets or stock of our
subsidiaries, or make capital expenditures above a specified
limit. Our capital expenditure covenant limits our permitted
capital expenditure payments to $30 million per year, as
adjusted by annual carry-forward amounts of unused amounts, up
to $10 million.
Our senior credit facilities also require us to
comply with specified financial ratios and tests, including
minimum EBITDA requirements, fixed charge coverage and interest
coverage ratios and maximum leverage ratios, which become more
stringent over time as follows.
The leverage covenant requires that our ratio of
total indebtedness on a consolidated basis to EBITDA (as defined
under our senior credit facilities) for the previous four
quarters not exceed a specified ratio, which is 3.12-to-1.0
currently and which decreases as follows: 3.06-to-1.0 at
December 31, 2003, 3.0-to-1.0 at March 31, 2004,
2.93-to-1.0 at June 30, 2004, 2.87-to-1.0 at
September 30, 2004, 2.81-to-1.0 at December 31, 2004,
2.75-to-1.0 at March 31, 2005, 2.50-to-1.0 at June 30,
2005 through March 31, 2006, 2.00-to-1.0 at June 30,
2006, and 1.75-to-1.0 after March 31, 2007. Furthermore,
our senior credit facilities contain customary events of default
as well as an event of default in the event that any of our
institutions loses any accreditation necessary for Title IV
Program eligibility, or the ability of any such institution to
participate in Title IV Programs is cancelled, and such
loss or cancellation is not cured within a specified period.
In September 2002, we received a waiver from our
lender related to exceeding an indebtedness threshold contained
in the agreement. In October 2003, we received a waiver from our
lender related to a non-financial restrictive covenant for
financial reporting which we have met subsequently. We are
presently in compliance with those covenants and believe that we
will remain in compliance in the future.
In July 2003, we amended our senior credit
facilities to further increase the availability under the
revolving loan facility from $20.0 million to
$30.0 million. The amendment also decreased the interest
rate for borrowings under our senior credit facilities to, in
the case of the term A loan facility and the revolving loan
facility, LIBOR plus 2.50% to 3.50% or the prime rate plus 1.25%
to 2.25% and, in the case of the term B loan facility,
LIBOR plus 3.00% to 4.00% or the prime rate plus 1.75% to 2.75%,
in each case depending on our leverage ratio during the
applicable interest period, and increased the level of permitted
39
In April 2002, we issued shares of our
series D convertible preferred stock to a number of
investors, including Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC, and
Worldwide Training Group, LLC and, in connection with that
issuance, received net proceeds of approximately
$42.0 million. We used the net proceeds from the issuance
of our series D convertible preferred stock to repay
$23.4 million of our 13.5% subordinated promissory notes
and to prepay approximately $17.9 million of borrowings
under our senior credit facilities. In connection with our April
2002 recapitalization, we amended our senior credit facilities
to increase the availability under the revolving loan facility
and the limit on the letters of credit that may be issued under
that facility.
In August 2003, we retired at a 10% discount a
subordinated convertible promissory note having a principal
amount of approximately $7.0 million using available cash
on hand of $6.3 million.
Also in August 2003, we repaid in full,
including all accrued interest, a promissory note in the
principal sum of $4.0 million that we had issued in
September 1997 in favor of Whites Family Company,
LLC, an entity controlled by John C. White. This note bore
interest at approximately 6.6% and was due on or before
September 2023. Immediately following this repayment,
Whites Family Company, LLC remitted to us approximately
$4.0 million in satisfaction of the principal amount of,
and accrued interest on, a subscription note receivable bearing
interest at approximately 6.1%.
We will use a portion of the net proceeds from
this offering to prepay all amounts outstanding under our term
loan A and term loan B facilities. Future borrowings
and repayments under our revolving loan facility will be based
upon the level of our net cash from operating activities and
payment requirements for capital spending and possible future
acquisitions.
In September 2003, we paid a $5.0 million
dividend to our common stockholders and the holders of the
series D preferred stock. Following consummation of this
offering, we do not expect to pay any dividends on our common
stock for the foreseeable future.
Based on our current level of operations and
anticipated growth, we believe that our cash flow from
operations and other available sources of liquidity, including
borrowings under the revolving credit facility, will provide
adequate funds for ongoing operations, expansion to new
locations, planned capital expenditures and debt service for the
next 12 to 18 months.
40
Contractual Obligations
The following table sets forth, as of
June 30, 2003, the aggregate amounts of our significant
contractual obligations and commitments with definitive payment
terms that will require significant cash outlays in the future.
On September 15, 2003, Universal Technical
Institute of Arizona executed a Construction Agency Agreement
and Lease Agreement with an independent third party lessor in
connection with a build-to-suit lease for the replacement of one
of our existing campuses. The obligations of Universal Technical
Institute of Arizona under these agreements are guaranteed by
Universal Technical Institute, Inc. The lease anticipates an
occupancy date of June 2004 with an initial term of
20 years. Our lease payments are estimated to be
approximately $230,000 per month. Further increases in monthly
rent are based on changes in the consumer price index. It is
currently anticipated that this new facility will replace our
current Phoenix, Arizona facility in the summer of 2004.
Related Party Transactions
We will offer to exchange the outstanding shares
of our series A preferred stock, series B preferred
stock and series C preferred stock for shares of our common
stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering. We
intend to use $25.0 million of the net proceeds from this
offering to redeem all outstanding shares of our series A
preferred stock, series B preferred stock and series C
preferred stock that are not exchanged for shares of our common
stock and to pay all the accrued and unpaid dividends on the
preferred stock (whether or not exchanged). The following table
shows the amounts that our affiliates will receive from the net
proceeds of this offering for the redemption of our
series A preferred stock, series B preferred stock and
series C preferred stock and the payment of accrued and
unpaid dividends on that stock.
We lease some of our properties from entities
controlled by John C. White, our Chief Strategic Planning
Officer and Vice Chairman of our board of directors. A portion
of the property comprising our
41
We believe that the rental rates under these
leases approximate the fair market rental value of the
properties at the time the lease agreements were negotiated.
For a description of additional related party
transactions, see Certain Relationships and Related
Transactions.
Seasonality
Our net revenues and operating results normally
fluctuate as a result of seasonal variations in our business,
principally due to changes in total student population. Student
population varies as a result of new student enrollments,
graduations and student attrition. Historically, our schools
have had lower student populations in our third fiscal quarter
than in the remainder of our fiscal year because fewer students
are enrolled during the summer months. Our expenses, however, do
not vary significantly with changes in student population and
net revenues and, as a result, such expenses do not fluctuate
significantly on a quarterly basis. We expect quarterly
fluctuations in operating results to continue as a result of
seasonal enrollment patterns. Such patterns may change, however,
as a result of acquisitions, new school openings, new program
introductions and increased enrollments of adult students. For
example, in the 2003 fiscal year we recognized higher net
revenues in the third fiscal quarter than in the prior two
fiscal quarters as a result of the gradual increase in student
enrollments at our new NTI campus, which reached their greatest
number in the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2003. In
addition, our net revenues for the first fiscal quarter are
adversely affected by the fact that we do not recognize revenue
during the calendar year-end holiday break, which falls
primarily in that quarter.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about
Market Risk
Our principal exposure to market risk relates to
changes in interest rates. At June 30, 2003, we had
$47.3 million of loans outstanding under our senior credit
facilities, all of which bear interest based on LIBOR or prime
rate. Each 1% increase in these interest rates could add
$473,000 per year to our interest expense.
42
The fair value of our fixed rate long-term debt
is sensitive to interest rate changes. Interest rate changes
would result in increases or decreases in the fair value of our
debt due to differences between market interest rates and rates
in effect at the inception of our debt obligation. Changes in
the fair value of our fixed rate debt have no impact on our cash
flows or consolidated financial statements.
Effect of Inflation
To date, inflation has not had a significant
effect on our operations.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In June 2001, the Financial Accounting Standards
Board (FASB) issued SFAS No. 143, Accounting for
Asset Retirement Obligations. SFAS No. 143 addresses
financial accounting and reporting for obligations associated
with the retirement of tangible long-lived assets and the
associated asset retirement costs. SFAS No. 143 is
effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years
beginning after June 15, 2002, and we expect that the
adoption will not have a material impact on our consolidated
financial condition or results of operations.
In August 2001, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 144, Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of
Long-Lived Assets, which addresses financial accounting
and reporting for the impairment or disposal of long-lived
assets. SFAS No. 144 retains the fundamental provisions of
existing accounting principles generally accepted in the United
States with respect to the recognition and measurement of
long-lived asset impairment contained in SFAS No. 121,
Accounting for the Impairment of Long-Lived Assets and for
Long-Lived Assets to be Disposed of. SFAS No. 144
also provides additional guidance intended to address certain
significant implementation issues associated with SFAS
No. 121, including expanded guidance with respect to
appropriate cash flows to be used in determining whether
recognition of a long-lived asset impairment is required, and if
required, how to measure the amount of the impairment. SFAS
No. 144 also requires that any net assets to be disposed of
by sale be reported at the lower of carrying value or fair value
less cost to sell, and expands the reporting of discontinued
operations to include any component of any entity with
operations and cash flows that can be clearly distinguished from
the rest of the entity. SFAS No. 144 is effective for
financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after
December 15, 2001, and our adoption of it on
October 1, 2002 did not have a material effect on our
consolidated financial condition or results of operations.
In April 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 145,
Rescission of SFAS Nos. 4, 44 and 64, Amendment of
SFAS 13, and Technical Corrections. SFAS No. 145
rescinds SFAS No. 4, Reporting Gains and Losses from
Extinguishment of Debt, and excludes extraordinary item
treatment for gains and losses associated with the
extinguishment of debt that do not meet the criteria for such
treatment, as outlined in APB Opinion No. 30,
Reporting the Results of Operations Reporting
the Effects of Disposal of a Segment of a Business, and
Extraordinary, Unusual and Infrequently Occurring Events and
Transactions. Any gain or loss on extinguishment of debt
that was previously classified as an extraordinary item in the
reported financial results that does not meet the criteria in
APB Opinion No. 30 for classification as an extraordinary
item shall be reclassified. SFAS No. 145 was effective
beginning after May 15, 2002. We elected to early adopt
SFAS No. 145, which resulted in the classification of costs
associated with the early extinguishment of debt of
$0.6 million, net of income tax benefit of
$0.4 million for the year ended September 30, 2002, to
the individual financial statement components of other expense
and income tax expense.
In June 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 146,
Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal
Activities. SFAS No. 146 addresses financial
accounting and reporting for costs associated with exit or
disposal activities and replaces Emerging Issues Task Force
(EITF) Issue No. 94-3, Liability Recognition for
Certain Employee Termination Benefits and Other Costs to Exit an
Activity (including Certain Costs Incurred in a
Restructuring). SFAS No. 146 requires that a
liability for a cost associated with an exit or disposal
activity be recognized when the liability is incurred and should
be initially measured at fair value. Under EITF Issue
No. 94-3, a liability for such costs is recognized as of
the date
43
In November 2002, the FASB issued Interpretation
(FIN) No. 45, Guarantors Accounting and
Disclosure Requirements for Guarantees, Including Indirect
Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others. FIN No. 45
requires certain guarantees to be recorded at fair value and
also requires a guarantor to make certain disclosures regarding
guarantees. FIN No. 45s initial recognition and
initial measurement provisions are applicable on a prospective
basis to guarantees issued or modified after December 31,
2002. Our adoption of this Interpretation did not have a
material impact on our consolidated financial statements or
disclosures.
In December 2002, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 148, Accounting for Stock-Based
Compensation Transition and Disclosure. This
statement amends SFAS No. 123, Accounting for
Stock-Based Compensation An Amendment of
SFAS No. 123. Although SFAS 148 does not
require use of the fair value method of accounting for
stock-based employee compensation, it does provide alternative
methods of transition. It also amends the disclosure provisions
of SFAS 123 and APB Opinion No. 28, Interim
Financial Reporting, to require disclosure in the summary
of significant accounting policies or the effects of an
entitys accounting policy with respect to stock-based
employee compensation on reported net income and earnings per
share in annual and interim financial statements. SFAS
148s amendment of the transition and annual disclosure
requirements is effective for fiscal years ending after
December 15, 2002. The amendment of disclosure requirements
of APB Opinion No. 28 is effective for interim periods
beginning after December 15, 2002. Our adoption of SFAS
No. 148 has resulted in expanded disclosure to include the
effect of stock-based compensation in interim reporting.
In January 2003, the FASB issued FIN No. 46,
Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities, an
Interpretation of ARB 51. FIN No. 46 provides
guidance on the identification of entities of which control is
achieved through means other than voting rights (variable
interest entities or VIEs) and how to
determine when and which business enterprise should consolidate
the VIE (the primary beneficiary). In addition, FIN
No. 46 requires that both the primary beneficiary and all
other enterprises with a significant variable interest in a VIE
make additional disclosures. The transitional disclosure
requirements of FIN No. 46 are required in all financial
statements initially issued after January 31, 2003, if
certain conditions are met. Our adoption of this Interpretation
did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial
statements or disclosures.
In April 2003, the FASB issued SFAS No. 149,
Amendment of Statement 133 on Derivative Instruments
and Hedging Activities. SFAS No. 149 amends and
clarifies the accounting guidance on derivative instruments
(including certain derivative instruments embedded in other
contracts) and hedging activities that fall within the scope of
SFAS No. 133, Accounting for Derivative Instruments
and Hedging Activities. SFAS No. 149 is effective
prospectively for contracts entered into or modified after
June 30, 2003, with certain exceptions, and for hedging
relationships designated after June 30, 2003. Our adoption
of SFAS No. 149 did not have a material impact on our
consolidated financial statements or disclosures.
In May 2003, the FASB issued SFAS No. 150,
Accounting for Certain Financial Instruments with
Characteristics of both Liabilities and Equity. SFAS
No. 150 changes the accounting and disclosure requirements
for certain financial instruments that, under previous guidance,
could be classified as equity. The guidance in SFAS No. 150
is generally effective for all financial instruments entered
into or modified after May 31, 2003 and is otherwise
effective at the beginning of the first interim period beginning
after June 15, 2003. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 150,
effective July 1, 2003, we will classify as a liability the
redeemable convertible preferred stock series D with a
carrying value of approximately $46,310. Additionally, effective
July 1, 2003 the dividends on these securities will be
included as a component of interest expense instead of preferred
stock dividends in the consolidated statement of operations.
SFAS No. 150 prohibits restatements of financial statements
for periods prior to adoption, accordingly these changes will be
made prospectively.
44
Nine Months
Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
$
(37,386
)
$
(10,905
)
$
6,817
$
5,286
$
11,706
21
(6
)
(1
)
(72
)
(40
)
(116
)
$
(37,392
)
$
(10,906
)
$
6,745
$
5,246
$
11,611
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.51
$
0.39
$
0.87
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.44
$
0.34
$
0.58
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.50
$
0.39
$
0.86
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.44
$
0.34
$
0.58
Nine Months
Year Ended September 30,
Ended June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
100.0
%
100.0
%
100.0
%
100.0
%
100.0
%
52.7
%
54.4
%
49.0
%
49.1
%
47.0
%
36.8
%
35.0
%
35.7
%
34.7
%
34.0
%
89.5
%
89.4
%
84.7
%
83.8
%
81.0
%
10.5
%
10.6
%
15.3
%
16.2
%
19.0
%
(0.6)
%
(0.4)
%
(0.3)
%
(0.3)
%
(0.2)
%
13.5
%
10.1
%
4.7
%
5.4
%
2.2
%
0.0
%
0.0
%
0.6
%
0.9
%
0.0
%
12.9
%
9.7
%
5.0
%
6.0
%
2.0
%
(2.4)
%
0.9
%
10.3
%
10.2
%
17.0
%
(0.5)
%
0.8
%
3.6
%
3.6
%
6.3
%
(1.9)
%
0.1
%
6.7
%
6.6
%
10.7
%
Debt Service
Long-Term Debt
September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2003
(in thousands)
$
$
$
$
18,281
14,188
19,150
17,625
55,635
54,966
29,850
29,625
23,400
23,400
4,000
4,000
4,000
4,000
6,126
6,616
7,011
7,011
1,852
1,408
891
504
109,294
104,578
60,902
58,765
5,172
7,242
3,016
3,705
$
104,122
$
97,336
$
57,886
$
55,060
We are required to have EBITDA (as defined under
our senior credit facilities), measured over a trailing twelve
month period, of not less than specified amounts, which amounts
increase from $18.5 million for the period ended
September 30, 2003 to $25 million during the period
ending December 31, 2008 and thereafter;
We are required to maintain a fixed charge
coverage ratio of 1.0-to-1.0, which increases to 1.09-to-1.0 at
June 30, 2005 and to 1.10-to-1.0 thereafter;
Our fixed charge coverage ratio is defined as the
ratio of our cash flow for the trailing twelve month period to
the sum of interest expense for the period; and
We are required to maintain a total interest
coverage ratio, defined as the ratio of interest expense for the
trailing twelve month period divided by EBITDA (as defined under
our senior credit facilities) for the same period of at least
3.0-to-1.0 during the term of the credit facilities.
Dividends
Future Liquidity Sources
Payments Due by Period
(in thousands)
Total
Less than 1 year
1-3 years
4-5 years
After 5 years
$
47,250
$
3,250
$
10,250
$
21,750
$
12,000
504
455
49
107,197
8,885
16,169
15,911
66,232
11,011
4,000
7,011
165,962
12,590
26,468
41,661
85,243
13,600
13,600
$
179,562
$
26,190
$
26,468
$
41,661
$
85,243
(1)
Minimum rental commitments.
(2)
Consists of a letter of credit in the amount of
$7.6 million issued under our senior credit facilities in
favor of ED as a result of our failure to meet the standards of
financial responsibility prescribed by ED and letters of credit
in the amount of $6.0 million issued under our senior
credit facilities to secure surety bonds issued on behalf of our
schools and education representatives with various state
agencies that regulate our activities.
Preferred Stock
Redemption Amount
(in thousands)
$
3,567
$
1,432
$
31
$
4
$
8
John C. and Cynthia L. White
City Park LLC
1989 Family Trust
Delegates LLC
$
381,841
$
293,942
$
321,543
$
447,795
$
299,597
$
404,912
$
462,567
$
364,508
$
644,715
$
370,481
$
298,081
$
592,732
BUSINESS
General
We are a leading provider of post-secondary
education for students seeking careers as professional
automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine
technicians, measured by total undergraduate enrollment and
number of graduates. We offer undergraduate degree, diploma and
certificate programs at seven campuses across the United States,
and manufacturer-sponsored advanced programs at 22 dedicated
training centers. For the nine months ended June 30, 2003,
our average undergraduate enrollments were 10,228. We have
provided technical education for over 35 years. For the
nine months ended June 30, 2003, our average undergraduate
enrollments were 10,228 full time students.
We work closely with leading original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) in the automotive, diesel, motorcycle and
marine industries to understand their needs for qualified
service professionals. By staying current on the equipment and
technology employed by OEMs, we are able to continuously refine
and expand our programs and curricula. We believe that our
industry-oriented educational philosophy and national presence
have enabled us to develop valuable industry relationships that
provide us with a significant competitive strength and support
our market leadership. We are a primary (and often the sole)
provider of manufacturer-based-training programs pursuant to
written agreements with various OEMs whereby we provide
technician training programs using their equipment and vehicles.
These OEMs include Audi of America; American Honda
Motor Co., Inc.; BMW of North America, LLC; Ford
Motor Co.; International Truck and Engine Corp.; Jaguar
Cars, Inc.; Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC; Mercury Marine; Porsche
Cars of North America, Inc.; Volkswagen of America, Inc.;
and Volvo Penta of the Americas, Inc.
Through our campus-based undergraduate programs,
we offer specialized technical education under the banner of
several well-known brands, including Universal Technical
Institute (UTI), Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and Marine
Mechanics Institute (collectively, MMI) and NASCAR Technical
Institute (NTI). Our undergraduate programs are designed to be
completed in 12 to 18 months and culminate in an
associates degree, diploma or certificate, depending on
the program and campus. Tuition ranges from approximately
$17,000 to $31,000 per program, primarily depending on the
nature and length of the program. All of our undergraduate
programs are accredited and eligible for federal Title IV
financial aid. Upon completion of one of our automotive or
diesel undergraduate programs, qualifying students have the
opportunity to enroll in one of the manufacturer-sponsored
advanced training programs that we offer. These training
programs are manufacturer-specific and are offered in a facility
in which the OEM supplies the cars, equipment, specialty tools
and curriculum. Tuition for these advanced training programs is
paid by each participating OEM in return for a commitment by the
student to work for a dealer of that OEM upon graduation. We
also provide continuing education and retraining to experienced
technicians at our customers sites or in our training
facilities.
A portion of the proceeds from this offering will
be used to redeem the outstanding shares of our series A,
series B and series C preferred stock that will not be
exchanged by their holders into common stock, and to pay the
accrued but unpaid dividends on our preferred stock. By virtue
of their holdings of the shares of preferred stock, several of
our executive officers, directors and principal stockholders
will receive a significant amount of this portion of the
proceeds, including $3.6 million to Robert Hartman,
$1.4 million to John White and $31,000 to Kimberly McWaters.
Immediately after this offering, our executive
officers, directors and principal stockholders will, in the
aggregate, directly or indirectly hold approximately 72.9% of
our outstanding shares. Accordingly, in the event that all or
some of these stockholders decided to act in concert, they could
control us through their ability to determine the outcome of the
election of our directors, to amend our certificate of
incorporation and bylaws and to take other actions requiring the
vote or consent of stockholders, including mergers, going
private transactions and other extraordinary transactions, and
the terms of any of these transactions.
45
Our History
We were founded in Phoenix, Arizona in 1965 to
educate students in automotive services. Since our inception, we
have expanded our programs with additional curricula and have
opened new campuses, growing internally and through
acquisitions. To address the needs of corporate clients, we
started providing continuing education and training for
technicians in 1980. In 1983, we opened our Houston, Texas
campus, and in 1988 we opened our Glendale Heights,
Illinois campus outside of Chicago. In 1998, we opened a campus
in Rancho Cucamonga, California.
In January 1998, we acquired all of the assets of
the parent company of MMI, which expanded our program offerings
to include motorcycle and marine technician training. From its
inception in 1973, MMI grew from a small operator of regional
training centers to an educational institution with campus
locations in Phoenix, Arizona and Orlando, Florida and
relationships with leading OEMs in the motorcycle and marine
industries. Concurrent with this acquisition, in order to
provide liquidity for certain stockholders and capital for the
acquisition of MMI, and to fund growth, we recapitalized our
company with the assistance of The Jordan Company, LLC. As
part of the recapitalization, we sold preferred and common
equity to a group of investors assembled by The Jordan Company,
consisting of private equity investors, individual investors
employed by or serving as consultants to The Jordan Company and
certain members of our management team. In April 2002, we
sold convertible preferred equity to a group of investors,
including Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC and Worldwide
Training Group, LLC, to reduce our outstanding debt and
provide capital for growth.
In July 1999, we entered into a licensing
arrangement with the National Association for Stock Car Auto
Racing (NASCAR) to build NTI. NTI is the nations first
NASCAR-licensed technical training school to combine general
automotive and NASCAR technology. The school is an extension of
NASCARs Officially Licensed Automotive Aftermarket
Program. Opened in July 2002, NTI is located in Mooresville,
North Carolina.
Industry
Based on estimates by the U.S. Department of
Education, National Center for Education Statistics,
expenditures for post-secondary education exceeded
$250 billion in the 2002-2003 academic year. While public
and private four-year colleges currently represent a majority of
this spending, a fast-growing segment of the post-secondary
education market is the field of technical, career-oriented
training. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
occupations requiring a post-secondary vocational credential or
an academic degree, which accounted for 29% of all jobs in 2000,
will account for 42% of total job growth from 2000 to 2010. To
address the need for career-focused technical curricula,
post-secondary institutions are increasingly offering programs
in automotive technology, health sciences and information
technology. According to data collected by the
U.S. Department of Labor, there will be approximately
55,000 new job openings each year from 2000 to 2010 in the
fields we serve.
In recent years, there has been an increasing
shortage of qualified service technicians in the automotive,
diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine industries. This
shortage primarily is being driven by the rapid technological
advancement in these industries and an aging workforce. For
example, an automobile can have up to 42 microprocessors to meet
the need for sophisticated engine controls, comply with fuel
emissions standards, perform advanced diagnostic analysis,
enhance safety features (such as anti-lock brakes or automatic
airbags) and provide certain comfort and convenience features
(such as global positioning systems or sophisticated climate
controls). Aspiring technicians must have sophisticated
technical skills and be able to adapt to continually changing
technologies, making it increasingly challenging for them to be
self-trained. Furthermore, technicians working for particular
dealers of such manufacturers need additional training to
familiarize themselves with technologies that are proprietary to
those manufacturers. In addition to creating employment
requirements for new technicians, these technological changes
have increased the need for continuing training for working
technicians.
As a result of these trends, we believe that the
market for qualified service technicians is large and growing.
In 2000, the U.S. Department of Labor estimated that there
were approximately 840,000 working
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The rapidly changing technologies in the fields
that we serve dictate that manufacturers and dealers continually
invest in their training programs. The recurring need and
resultant expense of training technicians has led many
manufacturers to outsource training that was formerly conducted
internally. Traditionally, manufacturers and dealers spend a
significant amount of time recruiting and training entry-level
technicians. Automotive manufacturers typically look to their
dealerships to recruit and screen applicants; however, local
dealerships may lack recruiting resources and expertise, making
it difficult for them to attract qualified candidates. By
outsourcing their recruiting and training, manufacturers and
dealers can better focus on their core activities. In addition,
by hiring technicians directly from our graduating classes,
manufacturers and dealers are able to benefit from our extensive
national recruiting effort and employ a qualified technician at
a lower overall cost than they could through their own
recruitment and training efforts. Given our national presence
and manufacturer support, we believe that we are in a position
to provide these training services on a cost-effective basis.
Competitive Strengths
We believe that we are well positioned to
capitalize on these market opportunities as a result of the
following competitive strengths:
47
Operating Strategy
Our goal is to maintain and strengthen our role
as a leading provider of technical education services. We intend
to pursue the following strategies to attain this goal:
48
Schools and Programs
Through our campus-based school system, we offer
specialized technical education programs under the banner of
several well-known brands, including Universal Technical
Institute (UTI), Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and Marine
Mechanics Institute (collectively, MMI) and NASCAR Technical
Institute (NTI). Our undergraduate programs are designed to be
completed in 12 to 18 months and culminate in an
associates degree, diploma or certificate, depending on
the program and campus. Tuition ranges from approximately
$17,000 to $31,000 per program, primarily depending on the
nature and length of the program. All of our undergraduate
programs are accredited and eligible for federal Title IV
financial aid. Upon completion of one of our automotive or
diesel undergraduate programs, qualifying students have the
opportunity to enroll in one of our advanced,
manufacturer-specific training programs. These programs are
offered in facilities in which OEMs supply the vehicles,
equipment, specialty tools and curricula. Tuition for the
advanced training programs is paid by each participating OEM in
return for a commitment by the student to work for a dealer of
that OEM upon graduation. We also provide continuing education
and retraining to experienced technicians.
Our undergraduate schools and programs are
summarized in the following table:
Universal
Technical Institute (UTI)
UTI is one of the few private, post-secondary
schools in the United States to offer automotive,
diesel & industrial, and collision repair and
refinishing programs that are master certified by the National
Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF), a division
of the Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE). All
UTI programs are accredited and culminate in an associates
degree or diploma, depending on the program and campus. Students
also have the option to enhance their core program through the
Ford Accelerated Credential Training (FACT) Elective, a
Ford-specific program that allows them to become Ford-certified
technicians.
49
50
Established in 2002, NTI offers the same type of
automotive training as UTI does, but with additional
NASCAR-specific courses. In addition to the training received in
our Automotive Technology program, students are able to learn
first-hand on NASCAR engines and equipment and to learn specific
skills required for entry-level positions in NASCAR-related
career opportunities. The program ranges from 57 to
73 weeks in duration and tuition ranges from $25,100 to
$31,200. Similar to graduates of the Automotive Technology
program, NTI graduates are qualified to work as entry-level
service technicians in automotive repair facilities or
automotive dealer service departments. A small percentage of
these graduates may have the opportunity to work on NASCAR
technician teams.
Manufacturer-Sponsored
Programs
These programs are intended to offer in-depth
instruction on specific manufacturers products, qualifying
a graduate for employment with a dealer seeking highly
specialized, entry-level technicians with
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Industry Relationships
We have an extensive network of industry
relationships that provide a wide range of strategic and
financial benefits, including product/ financial support,
licensing and manufacturer training.
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Student Recruitment Model
We strive to increase our school enrollment and
profitability through a dedicated marketing program designed to
maximize market penetration. Our strategy is to recruit a
geographically dispersed and demographically diverse student
body, including both recent high school graduates and adults.
Due to the
53
Student Admissions and Retention
We currently employ 194 field- and campus-based
education representatives who work directly with prospective
students to facilitate the enrollment process. At each campus,
student admissions are overseen by an admissions department that
reviews each application. We screen prospective student
applications to increase the likelihood that all admitted
students are capable of completing the requisite coursework and
ready to obtain employment following graduation. Different
programs have varying admissions standards. For example,
applicants for the diploma and associate of occupational studies
programs must be at least 16 years of age and have a high
school diploma or certification of high school equivalency
(G.E.D.). Applicants for the certificate programs must have a
high school diploma or G.E.D. or be beyond the age of compulsory
school attendance and have the ability to benefit from the
training offered, as determined by personal interviews and
performance on the Wonderlic Scholastic Level Exam.
54
To maximize student persistence, we have staff
and other resources to assist and advise students regarding
academic, financial, personal and employment matters. Currently,
our student completion rate is typically above 70%, which we
believe compares favorably with other providers of comparable
educational/ training programs.
Enrollment
We enroll students continuously throughout the
year. For the nine months ended June 30, 2003, we had an
average enrollment of 10,228 full-time undergraduate students,
representing an increase of approximately 25.3% as compared to
the nine months ended June 30, 2002 and making us the
largest provider of post-secondary education in our fields of
study. Currently, our student body is geographically diverse,
with approximately 80% of our students at most campuses having
relocated to attend our programs. For the twelve months ended
September 30, 2001 and 2002, we had average enrollments of
6,710 and 8,277 full-time students, respectively.
Graduate Placement
We believe that securing employment for our
graduates is critical to our ability to attract high quality
prospective students. In addition, high placement rates are
directly correlated to low student loan default rates, an
important requirement for continuing participation in
Title IV federal funding programs. Accordingly, we dedicate
significant resources to maintaining an efficient graduate
placement program. Our consolidated graduate placement rates
were 90%, 89% and 90% for our fiscal years 2000, 2001 and 2002,
respectively.
Our schools utilize their externship programs to
develop job opportunities and referrals. During the course of
each program, students receive instruction on job search and
interviewing skills and have available reference materials and
assistance with the composition of resumes.
Currently, over 3,200 employers participate
in the Tuition Reimbursement Incentive Program (TRIP), whereby
employers of our graduates make some or all of the
graduates monthly student loan payments for as long as
they employ the graduate or until the loan is paid in full,
whichever is earlier. We believe that TRIP provides us with a
more compelling value proposition to prospective students and
further enhances our relationship with our OEM partners.
Faculty and Employees
Faculty members are hired nationally in
accordance with established criteria, applicable accreditation
standards and applicable state regulations. Members of our
faculty are primarily industry professionals and are hired based
on their prior work and educational experience. We require a
specific level of industry experience in order to enhance the
quality of the programs that we offer and to address current and
industry-specific issues in the course content. We provide
intensive instructional training and continuing education to our
faculty members to maintain the quality of instruction in all
fields of study. Generally, our existing instructors have
between four and seven years teaching experience and our average
undergraduate student-to-teacher ratio is approximately 24-to-1.
The staff of each school includes a school
director, a director of graduate placement, an education
director, a director of student services, a financial-aid
director, an accounting manager or division controller and a
director of admissions. The staff is composed of industry
professionals with experience in the fields that we serve. As of
September 30, 2003, we had approximately
1,400 full-time employees, including approximately
600 student support employees and approximately
600 full-time faculty members.
None of our employees is represented by labor
unions or is subject to collective bargaining agreements.
Accordingly, we have never experienced a work stoppage, and we
believe that we have a good relationship with our employees.
However, as we open or acquire campuses in new geographic areas,
we may encounter employees who desire or maintain union
representation.
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Seasonality
Our business is subject to seasonal variations,
principally due to changes in total student population. Student
population varies as a result of new student enrollments,
graduation and student attrition. Historically, our campuses
have had lower student populations in the third fiscal quarter
than in the remainder of the year because fewer students are
enrolled during the summer months. Our expenses, however, do not
significantly vary with changes in student population and net
revenues and, as a result, such expenses do not fluctuate
significantly on a quarterly basis. We expect quarterly
fluctuations in operating results to continue as a result of
seasonal enrollment patterns. Such patterns may change, however,
as a result of acquisitions, new school openings, new program
introductions and increased enrollments of adult students.
Competition
The career-oriented school industry is highly
fragmented, with no one provider or public institution
controlling a significant market share. Generally, there is
limited direct competition between career-oriented schools and
traditional four-year colleges or universities. Our main
competitors are traditional public and private two-year junior
and community colleges, other proprietary career-oriented
schools and technical schools, including Lincoln Technical
Institute and Wyoming Technical Institute, which is owned by
Corinthian Colleges, Inc. We compete at a local and regional
level based primarily on the content, visibility and
accessibility of academic programs, the quality of instruction
and the time necessary to enter the workforce. We believe that
we are superior to our competitors in size, industry
relationships, brand, reputation and recruiting capability.
Campuses and Other Properties
The following chart provides information relating
to our seven leased campuses and other leased properties:
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Environmental Matters
We use hazardous materials at our training
facilities and campuses, and generate small quantities of waste
such as used oil, antifreeze, paint and car batteries. As a
result, our facilities and operations are subject to a variety
of environmental laws and regulations governing, among other
things, the use, storage and disposal of solid and hazardous
substances and waste, and the clean-up of contamination at our
facilities or off-site locations to which we send or have sent
waste for disposal. We are also required to obtain permits for
our air emissions, and to meet operational and maintenance
requirements, including periodic testing, for an underground
storage tank located at one of our properties. In the event we
do not maintain compliance with any of these laws and
regulations, or are responsible for a spill or release of
hazardous materials, we could incur significant costs for
clean-up, damages, and fines or penalties.
Legal Proceedings
In the ordinary conduct of our business, we are
subject to periodic lawsuits, investigations and claims,
including, but not limited to, claims involving students or
graduates and routine employment matters. Although we cannot
predict with certainty the ultimate resolution of lawsuits,
investigations and claims asserted against us, we do not believe
that any currently pending legal proceeding to which we are a
party will have a material adverse effect on our business,
results of operations, cash flows or financial condition.
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REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT
Our schools and students participate in a variety
of government-sponsored financial aid programs to assist
students in paying the cost of their education. The largest
source of such support is the federal programs of student
financial assistance under Title IV of the Higher Education
Act of 1965, as amended, commonly referred to as Title IV
Programs, which are administered by the U.S. Department of
Education or ED. In our 2002 fiscal year, we derived
approximately 65% of our net revenues from Title IV
Programs.
To participate in Title IV Programs, a
school must be authorized to offer its programs of instruction
by relevant state education agencies, be accredited by an
accrediting commission recognized by ED, and be certified as an
eligible institution by ED. For this reason, our schools are
subject to extensive regulatory requirements imposed by all of
these entities.
State Authorization
Each of our schools must be authorized by the
applicable state education agency of the state in which the
school is located in order to operate and to grant degrees,
diplomas or certificates to its students. Our schools are
subject to extensive, ongoing regulation by each of these
states. State authorization is also required for an institution
to become and remain eligible to participate in Title IV
Programs. In addition, our schools are required to be authorized
by the applicable state education agencies of certain other
states in which our schools recruit students. Currently, each of
our schools is authorized by the applicable state education
agency or agencies.
The level of regulatory oversight varies
substantially from state to state, and is very extensive in some
states. State laws typically establish standards for
instruction, qualifications of faculty, location and nature of
facilities and equipment, administrative procedures, marketing,
recruiting, financial operations and other operational matters.
State laws and regulations may limit our ability to offer
educational programs and to award degrees, diplomas or
certificates. Some states prescribe standards of financial
responsibility that are different from, and in certain cases
more stringent than, those prescribed by ED, and some states
require schools to post a surety bond. Currently, we have posted
surety bonds on behalf of our schools and education
representatives with multiple states in a total amount of
approximately $8.0 million. These bonds are backed by
letters of credit. We believe that each of our schools is in
substantial compliance with state education agency requirements.
If any one of our schools lost its authorization from the
education agency of the state in which the school is located,
that school would be unable to offer its programs and we could
be forced to close that school. If one of our schools lost its
state authorization from a state other than the state in which
the school is located, the school would not be able to recruit
students in that state.
In August 2003, due to reduced state
appropriations, the State of Illinois eliminated the positions
of all employees in the office of the Illinois State Board of
Education, or ISBE, that authorizes and oversees private
business and technical schools, and that office has ceased to
function. That office oversees over 200 schools, including our
UTI school in Glendale Heights, Illinois. ISBE recently
reauthorized UTI/ Illinois to operate through June 2004. Despite
the elimination of the employee positions in ISBE, the State of
Illinois did not repeal or suspend the requirements imposed by
the Illinois Private Business and Vocational Schools Act. It is
not clear how the elimination of the employee positions in ISBE
will affect the ongoing operations of UTI/ Illinois, including
the implementation of any changes in operations for which the
school is required to obtain the approval of ISBE, such as the
change of control resulting from this offering, the opening of a
new campus, the introduction of new programs or the hiring or
placement of new education representatives. Due to state budget
constraints in other states in which we operate, such as Texas
and California, it is possible that those states may reduce the
number of employees in, or curtail the operations of, the state
education agencies that authorize our schools. A delay or
refusal by any state education agency in approving any changes
in our operations that require state approval could prevent us
from making such changes or could delay our ability to make such
changes.
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Accreditation
Accreditation is a non-governmental process
through which a school submits to ongoing qualitative review by
an organization of peer institutions. Accrediting commissions
primarily examine the academic quality of the schools
instructional programs, and a grant of accreditation is
generally viewed as confirmation that the schools programs
meet generally accepted academic standards. Accrediting
commissions also review the administrative and financial
operations of the schools they accredit to ensure that each
school has the resources necessary to perform its educational
mission.
Accreditation by an accrediting commission
recognized by ED is required for an institution to be certified
to participate in Title IV Programs. In order to be
recognized by ED, accrediting commissions must adopt specific
standards for their review of educational institutions. All of
our schools are accredited by the Accrediting Commission of
Career Schools and Colleges of Technology, or ACCSCT, an
accrediting commission recognized by ED. We believe that each of
our schools is in substantial compliance with ACCSCT
accreditation standards. If any one of our schools lost its
accreditation, students attending that school would no longer be
eligible to receive Title IV Program funding, and we could
be forced to close that school.
Nature of Federal and State Support for
Post-Secondary Education
The federal government provides a substantial
part of its support for post-secondary education through
Title IV Programs, in the form of grants and loans to
students who can use those funds at any institution that has
been certified as eligible by ED. Most aid under Title IV
Programs is awarded on the basis of financial need, generally
defined as the difference between the cost of attending the
institution and the amount a student can reasonably contribute
to that cost. All recipients of Title IV Program funds must
maintain a satisfactory grade point average and progress in a
timely manner toward completion of their program of study. In
addition, each school must ensure that Title IV Program funds
are properly accounted for and disbursed in the correct amounts
to eligible students.
Students at our schools receive grants and loans
to fund their education under the following Title IV
Programs: (1) the Federal Family Education Loan, or FFEL,
program, (2) the Federal Pell Grant, or Pell, program,
(3) the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant,
or FSEOG, program, and (4) the Federal Perkins Loan, or
Perkins, program.
FFEL.
Under the FFEL program, banks and
other lending institutions make loans to students or their
parents. If a student or parent defaults on a loan, payment is
guaranteed by a federally recognized guaranty agency, which is
then reimbursed by ED. Students with financial need qualify for
interest subsidies while in school and during grace periods. In
our 2002 fiscal year, we derived more than 50% of our net
revenues from the FFEL program.
Pell.
Under the Pell program, ED makes
grants to students who demonstrate financial need. In our 2002
fiscal year, we derived less than 10% of our net revenues from
the Pell program.
FSEOG.
FSEOG grants are designed to
supplement Pell grants for students with the greatest financial
needs. An institution is required to make a 25% matching
contribution for all funds received from ED under this program.
In our 2002 fiscal year, we derived less than 1% of our net
revenues from the FSEOG program.
Perkins.
Perkins loans are made from a
revolving institutional account, 75% of which is capitalized by
ED and the remainder by the institution. Each institution is
responsible for collecting payments on Perkins loans from its
former students and lending those funds to currently enrolled
students. Defaults by students on their Perkins loans reduce the
amount of funds available in the applicable schools
revolving account to make loans to additional students, but the
school does not have any obligation to guarantee the loans or
repay the defaulted amounts. In our 2002 fiscal year, we derived
less than 1% of our net revenues from the Perkins program.
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Some of our students receive financial aid from
federal sources other than Title IV Programs, such as the
programs administered by the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs and under the Workforce Investment Act. In addition,
many states also provide financial aid to our students in the
form of grants, loans or scholarships. The eligibility
requirements for state financial aid and these other federal aid
programs vary among the funding agencies and by program. Several
states that provide financial aid to our students, including
California, are facing significant budgetary constraints. We
believe that the overall level of state financial aid for our
students is likely to decrease in the near term, but we cannot
predict how significant any such reductions will be or how long
they will last.
Regulation of Federal Student Financial Aid
Programs
To participate in Title IV Programs, an
institution must be authorized to offer its programs by the
relevant state education agencies, be accredited by an
accrediting commission recognized by ED and be certified as
eligible by ED. ED will certify an institution to participate in
Title IV Programs only after the institution has
demonstrated compliance with the Higher Education Act and
EDs extensive regulations regarding institutional
eligibility. An institution must also demonstrate its compliance
to ED on an ongoing basis. These standards are applied primarily
on an institutional basis, with an institution defined by ED as
a main campus and its additional locations, if any. Under this
definition, for ED purposes, we have the following three
institutions:
Main campus: Universal Technical Institute,
Phoenix, Arizona
Universal Technical Institute, Rancho Cucamonga,
California
Main campus: Motorcycle Mechanics Institute,
Phoenix, Arizona
Additional location: Motorcycle and Marine
Mechanics Institute, Orlando, Florida
Main campus: Universal Technical Institute,
Houston, Texas
Additional locations: None
All of our schools are currently certified by ED
to participate in Title IV Programs.
The substantial amount of federal funds disbursed
through Title IV Programs, the large numbers of students
and institutions participating in those programs and instances
of fraud and abuse by some schools and students in the past have
caused Congress to require ED to increase its level of
regulatory oversight. Accrediting commissions and state
education agencies also have responsibilities for overseeing
compliance of institutions with Title IV Program
requirements. As a result, each of our institutions is subject
to detailed oversight and review, and must comply with a complex
framework of laws and regulations. Because ED periodically
revises its regulations and changes its interpretation of
existing laws and regulations, we cannot predict with certainty
how the Title IV Program requirements will be applied in
all circumstances.
Significant factors relating to Title IV
Programs that could adversely affect us include the following:
Congressional Action.
Political and budgetary concerns
significantly affect Title IV Programs. Congress must
reauthorize the Higher Education Act approximately every six
years. The last reauthorization took place in 1998.
Consequently, Congress recently began the process of reviewing
and reauthorizing the Higher Education Act again, a process that
is expected to be concluded in late 2004. We
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In addition, Congress reviews and determines
federal appropriations for Title IV Programs on an annual
basis. Congress can also make changes in the laws affecting
Title IV Programs in the annual appropriations bills and in
other laws it enacts between the Higher Education Act
reauthorizations. Since a significant percentage of our net
revenues is derived from Title IV Programs, any action by
Congress that significantly reduces Title IV Program
funding or the ability of our schools or students to participate
in Title IV Programs could reduce our student enrollment
and net revenues. Congressional action may also increase our
administrative costs and require us to modify our practices in
order for our schools to comply fully with Title IV Program
requirements.
The 90/10
Rule.
A proprietary
institution, such as each of our institutions, loses its
eligibility to participate in Title IV Programs if, on a
cash accounting basis, it derives more than 90% of its revenue
for any fiscal year from Title IV Programs. Any institution
that violates this rule becomes ineligible to participate in
Title IV Programs as of the first day of the fiscal year
following the fiscal year in which it exceeds 90%, and is unable
to apply to regain its eligibility until the next fiscal year.
If one of our institutions violated the 90/10 Rule and became
ineligible to participate in Title IV Programs but
continued to disburse Title IV Program funds, ED would
require the institution to repay all Title IV Program funds
received by the institution after the effective date of the loss
of eligibility.
We have calculated that, for each of our 2000,
2001 and 2002 fiscal years, none of our institutions derived
more than 81.9% of its revenue from Title IV Programs for
any fiscal year. For our 2002 fiscal year, our
institutions 90/10 Rule percentages ranged from 74.0% to
80.5%. We regularly monitor compliance with this requirement to
minimize the risk that any of our institutions would derive more
than the maximum percentage of its revenue from Title IV
Programs for any fiscal year. If an institution appeared likely
to approach the maximum percentage threshold, we would consider
making changes in student financing to comply with the 90/10
Rule.
Student Loan Defaults.
An institution may lose its
eligibility to participate in some or all Title IV Programs
if the rates at which the institutions current and former
students default on their federal student loans exceed specified
percentages. ED calculates these rates based on the number of
students who have defaulted, not the dollar amount of such
defaults. ED calculates an institutions cohort default
rate on an annual basis as the rate at which borrowers scheduled
to begin repayment on their loans in one year default on those
loans by the end of the next year. An institution whose FFEL
cohort default rate is 25% or greater for three consecutive
federal fiscal years (which correspond to our fiscal years)
loses eligibility to participate in the FFEL and Pell programs
for the remainder of the federal fiscal year in which ED
determines that such institution has lost its eligibility and
for the two subsequent federal fiscal years. An institution
whose FFEL cohort default rate for any single federal fiscal
year exceeds 40% may have its eligibility to participate in all
Title IV Programs limited, suspended or terminated by ED.
None of our institutions has had an FFEL cohort
default rate of 25% or greater for any of the federal fiscal
years 1999, 2000 and 2001, the three most recent years for which
ED has published such rates. The following table sets forth the
FFEL cohort default rates for our institutions for those years.
An institution whose cohort default rate under
the FFEL program is 25% or greater for any one of the three most
recent federal fiscal years, or whose cohort default rate under
the Perkins program exceeds 15% for any federal award year (the
twelve-month period from July 1 through June 30), may
be placed on provisional certification status by ED for up to
four years. All of our institutions have Perkins cohort
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An institution whose Perkins cohort default rate
is 50% or greater for three consecutive federal award years
loses eligibility to participate in the Perkins program for the
remainder of the federal award year in which ED determines that
the institution has lost its eligibility and for the two
subsequent federal award years. None of our institutions has had
a Perkins cohort default rate of 50% or greater for any of the
last three federal award years. ED also will not provide any
additional federal funds to an institution for Perkins loans in
any federal award year in which the institutions Perkins
cohort default rate is 25% or greater. None of our institutions
has had its federal Perkins funding eliminated for the last two
federal award years for this reason.
Financial Responsibility Standards.
All institutions participating in
Title IV Programs must satisfy specific standards of
financial responsibility. ED evaluates institutions for
compliance with these standards each year, based on the
institutions annual audited financial statements, as well
as following a change of control of the institution.
The most significant financial responsibility
measurement is the institutions composite score, which is
calculated by ED based on three ratios:
ED assigns a strength factor to the results of
each of these ratios on a scale from negative 1.0 to
positive 3.0, with negative 1.0 reflecting financial
weakness and positive 3.0 reflecting financial strength. ED
then assigns a weighting percentage to each ratio and adds the
weighted scores for the three ratios together to produce a
composite score for the institution. The composite score must be
at least 1.5 for the institution to be deemed financially
responsible without the need for further oversight. If ED
determines that an institution does not satisfy EDs
financial responsibility standards, depending on its composite
score and other factors, that institution may establish its
financial responsibility on an alternative basis by, among other
things:
Beginning with our 1999 fiscal year, ED has
evaluated the financial condition of our institutions on a
consolidated basis based on the financial statements of
Universal Technical Institute, Inc., as the parent company.
EDs regulations permit ED to examine the financial
statements of Universal Technical Institute, Inc., as the parent
company, the financial statements of each institution and the
financial statements of any related party.
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Based on its review of the financial statements
of Universal Technical Institute, Inc., as the parent company,
for our fiscal years 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002, ED found that we
did not have a composite score of 1.5 or higher. Consequently,
since November 2000, we have been required to post a letter of
credit on behalf of our institutions in favor of ED and to
accept provisional certification and additional ED reporting and
monitoring procedures. We currently have posted a letter of
credit in the amount of $9.9 million, representing approximately
10% of the total Title IV Program funds received by our
institutions in our 2002 fiscal year, as calculated by ED. In
addition, all of our institutions are provisionally certified
and are required to credit their students accounts before
requesting and receiving Title IV Program funds on behalf of
their students, and two of our institutions are required to file
additional reports with ED regarding their receipt of Title IV
Program funds.
Return of Title IV Funds.
A school participating in
Title IV Programs must calculate the amount of unearned
Title IV Program funds that have been disbursed to students who
withdraw from their educational programs before completing them,
and must return those unearned funds to ED or the applicable
lending institution in a timely manner, which is generally
within 30 days from the date the institution determines
that the student has withdrawn.
If an institution is cited in an audit or program
review for returning Title IV Program funds late for 5% or
more of the students in the audit or program review sample, the
institution must post a letter of credit in favor of ED in an
amount equal to 25% of the total amount of Title IV Program
funds that should have been returned for students who withdrew
in the institutions previous fiscal year. Our 2002 fiscal
year Title IV compliance audits cited UTI/Texas and MMI for
exceeding the 5% late payment threshold. While ordinarily we
would be required to post letters of credit for this reason, ED
informed us that we were not required to post these additional
letters of credit because we had already posted a larger letter
of credit as a result of our financial responsibility composite
score being less than 1.5.
School Acquisitions.
When a company acquires a school
that is eligible to participate in Title IV Programs, that
school undergoes a change of ownership resulting in a change of
control as defined by ED. Upon such a change of control, a
schools eligibility to participate in Title IV
Programs is generally suspended until it has applied for
recertification by ED as an eligible school under its new
ownership, which requires that the school also re-establish its
state authorization and accreditation. ED may temporarily and
provisionally certify an institution seeking approval of a
change of control under certain circumstances while ED reviews
the institutions application. The time required for ED to
act on such an application may vary substantially. EDs
recertification of an institution following a change of control
will be on a provisional basis. Our expansion plans are based,
in part, on our ability to acquire additional schools and have
them certified by ED to participate in Title IV Programs.
Our expansion plans take into account the approval requirements
of ED and the relevant state education agencies and accrediting
commissions.
Change of Control.
In addition to school
acquisitions, other types of transactions can also cause a
change of control. ED, most state education agencies and our
accrediting commission all have standards pertaining to the
change of control of schools, but these standards are not
uniform. EDs regulations describe some transactions that
constitute a change of control, including the transfer of a
controlling interest in the voting stock of an institution or
the institutions parent corporation. For a company that is
privately held, but not closely held, which is the status of our
company prior to the offering, EDs regulations provide
that a change of ownership resulting in a change of control
occurs if any person either acquires or ceases to hold at least
25% of the companys total outstanding voting stock and
that person gains or loses actual control of the corporation.
With respect to a publicly-traded corporation, which will be the
status of our company after the offering, ED regulations provide
that a change of control occurs in one of two ways: (a) if
there is an event that would obligate the corporation to file a
Current Report on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange
Commission disclosing a change of control or (b) if the
corporation has a stockholder that owns at least 25% of the
total outstanding voting stock of the corporation and is the
largest stockholder of the corporation, and that stockholder
ceases to own at least 25% of such stock or ceases to be the
largest stockholder. These standards are subject to
interpretation by ED. A significant purchase or disposition of
our common stock could be determined by ED to be a change
63
We have received confirmation from ED that this
offering will not be a change of control under its regulations
so long as no person gains or loses control of a 25% ownership
interest in Universal Technical Institute, Inc., in connection
with the offering. We have also received confirmation from our
accrediting commission that this offering will not be a change
of control under its standards. We believe that the offering
will be a change of control under the standards of the state
education agencies in Texas and Illinois, but will not be a
change of control under the standards of any other education
agencies of states in which our schools are located. As a
result, our schools in Texas and Illinois will be required to be
reauthorized by their respective state education agencies. We
believe that the offering will not affect the ability of those
schools to participate in Title IV Programs unless any of
those state education agencies fail to reauthorize any of those
schools in a timely manner. The failure of any of those schools
to re-obtain state authorization would cause that school to lose
its eligibility to participate in Title IV Programs. In
August 2003, due to reduced state appropriations, the State of
Illinois eliminated the positions of all employees in the office
of the Illinois state education agency that oversees private
business and technical schools, and that office has ceased to
function. It is not clear how this action will affect the change
of control approval process in Illinois. Due to state budget
problems in other states, such as Texas, it is possible that
such other states may reduce the number of employees in the
state education agencies that authorize our schools or curtail
those agencies operations, which could affect the change
of control approval process in those states. We believe the
offering will not affect the ability of our schools in Arizona,
California, Florida and North Carolina to continue their
participation in Title IV Programs.
A change of control could occur as a result of
future transactions in which our company or schools are
involved. Some corporate reorganizations and some changes in the
board of directors are examples of such transactions. Moreover,
once we become a publicly-traded company, the potential adverse
effects of a change of control could influence future decisions
by us and our stockholders regarding the sale, purchase,
transfer, issuance or redemption of our stock. In addition, the
adverse regulatory effect of a change of control also could
discourage bids for your shares of common stock and could have
an adverse effect on the market price of your shares. If a
future transaction results in a change of control of our company
or our schools, we believe that we will be able to obtain all
necessary approvals from ED, our accrediting commission and the
applicable state education agencies. However, we cannot assure
you that all such approvals can be obtained at all or in a
timely manner that will not delay or reduce the availability of
Title IV Program funds for our students and schools.
Opening Additional Schools and Adding
Educational Programs.
For-profit
educational institutions must be authorized by their state
education agencies and fully operational for two years before
applying to ED to participate in Title IV Programs.
However, an institution that is certified to participate in
Title IV Programs may establish an additional location and
apply to participate in Title IV Programs at that location
without reference to the two-year requirement, if such
additional location satisfies all other applicable ED
eligibility requirements. Our expansion plans are based, in
part, on our ability to open new schools as additional locations
of our existing institutions and take into account EDs
approval requirements.
A student may use Title IV Program funds
only to pay the costs associated with enrollment in an eligible
educational program offered by an institution participating in
Title IV Programs. Generally, an institution that is
eligible to participate in Title IV Programs may add a new
educational program without ED approval if that new program
leads to an associate level or higher degree and the institution
already offers programs at that level, or if that program
prepares students for gainful employment in the same or a
related occupation as an educational program that has previously
been designated as an eligible program at that institution and
meets minimum length requirements. If an institution erroneously
determines that an educational program is eligible for purposes
of Title IV Programs, the institution would likely be
liable for
64
Some of the state education agencies and our
accrediting commission also have requirements that may affect
our schools ability to open a new campus, establish an
additional location of an existing institution or begin offering
a new educational program. We do not believe that these
standards will create significant obstacles to our expansion
plans.
Administrative Capability.
ED assesses the administrative
capability of each institution that participates in
Title IV Programs under a series of separate standards.
Failure to satisfy any of the standards may lead ED to find the
institution ineligible to participate in Title IV Programs
or to place the institution on provisional certification as a
condition of its participation. One standard that applies to
programs with the stated objective of preparing students for
employment requires the institution to show a reasonable
relationship between the length of the program and the
entry-level job requirements of the relevant field of
employment. We believe we have made the required showing for
each of our applicable programs.
Other standards provide that an institution may
be found to lack administrative capability and be placed on
provisional certification if its student loan default rate under
the FFEL program is 25% or greater for any of the three most
recent federal fiscal years, or if its Perkins cohort default
rate exceeds 15% for any federal award year. In recertifying all
of our institutions for continued participation in Title IV
Programs in July 2003, ED did not find that any of our
institutions lacked administrative capability and did not place
any of our institutions on provisional certification for their
student loan default rates.
Restrictions on Payment of Commissions,
Bonuses and Other Incentive Payments.
An institution participating in
Title IV Programs may not provide any commission, bonus or other
incentive payment based directly or indirectly on success in
securing enrollments or financial aid to any person or entity
engaged in any student recruiting or admission activities or in
making decisions regarding the awarding of Title IV Program
funds. In November 2002, ED published new regulations, which
took effect July 2003, to attempt to clarify this so-called
incentive compensation law. The new regulations
identify twelve compensation arrangements that ED has determined
are not in violation of the incentive compensation law,
including the payment and adjustment of salaries, bonuses and
commissions in certain circumstances. EDs new regulations
do not establish clear criteria for compliance in all
circumstances, and ED has announced that it will no longer
review and approve individual schools compensation plans.
Nonetheless, we believe that our current compensation plans are
in compliance with the Higher Education Act and EDs new
regulations, although we cannot assure you that ED will not find
deficiencies in our compensation plans.
Eligibility and Certification Procedures.
Each institution must apply to ED
for continued certification to participate in Title IV Programs
at least every six years, or when it undergoes a change of
control, and an institution may come under ED review when it
expands its activities in certain ways, such as opening an
additional location or raising the highest academic credential
it offers. ED may place an institution on provisional
certification status if it finds that the institution does not
fully satisfy all of the eligibility and certification
standards. ED may withdraw an institutions provisional
certification without advance notice if ED determines that the
institution is not fulfilling all material requirements. In
addition, ED may more closely review an institution that is
provisionally certified if it applies for approval to open a new
location, add an educational program, acquire another school or
make any other significant change. Provisional certification
does not otherwise limit an institutions access to Title
IV Program funds.
All of our institutions were recertified by ED in
July 2003 for continued participation in Title IV Programs
through June 2006. All of the recertifications were on a
provisional basis, based on our composite score at the parent
company level under EDs financial responsibility formula.
In addition, in October 2003, ED informed us that it intends to
issue revised certification documents to each of our
institutions to clarify that Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
is the parent company of all of our institutions and campuses
participating in the Title IV Programs.
65
Compliance with Regulatory Standards and
Effect of Regulatory Violations.
Our schools are subject to audits and program compliance reviews
by various external agencies, including ED, EDs Office of
Inspector General, state education agencies, student loan
guaranty agencies, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and
our accrediting commission. Each of our institutions
administration of Title IV Program funds must also be audited
annually by an independent accounting firm, and the resulting
audit report submitted to ED for review. If ED or another
regulatory agency determined that one of our institutions
improperly disbursed Title IV Program funds or violated a
provision of the Higher Education Act or EDs regulations,
that institution could be required to repay such funds and could
be assessed an administrative fine. ED could also transfer the
institution to the reimbursement system of receiving Title IV
Program funds, under which an institution must disburse its own
funds to students and document the students eligibility
for Title IV Program funds before receiving such funds from ED.
Violations of Title IV Program requirements could also subject
us or our schools to other civil and criminal penalties.
Significant violations of Title IV Program
requirements by us or any of our institutions could be the basis
for a proceeding by ED to limit, suspend or terminate the
participation of the affected institution in Title IV Programs.
Generally, such a termination extends for 18 months before
the institution may apply for reinstatement of its
participation. There is no ED proceeding pending to fine any of
our institutions or to limit, suspend or terminate any of our
institutions participation in Title IV Programs, and we
have no reason to believe that any such proceeding is
contemplated.
We and our schools are also subject to complaints
and lawsuits relating to regulatory compliance brought not only
by our regulatory agencies, but also by third parties, such as
present or former students or employees and other members of the
public. If we are unable to successfully resolve or defend
against any such complaint or lawsuit, we may be required to pay
money damages or be subject to fines, limitations, loss of
federal funding, injunctions or other penalties. Moreover, even
if we successfully resolve or defend against any such complaint
or lawsuit, we may have to devote significant financial and
management resources in order to reach such a result.
Predominant Use of One Lender and One
Guaranty Agency.
Our students have
traditionally received their FFEL student loans from a limited
number of lending institutions. For example, in our 2002 fiscal
year, one lending institution, Sallie Mae, provided more than
95% of the FFEL loans that our students received. In addition,
in our 2002 fiscal year, one student loan guaranty agency,
EdFund, guaranteed more than 95% of the FFEL loans made to our
students. Sallie Mae and EdFund are among the largest student
loan lending institutions and guaranty agencies, respectively,
in the United States in terms of loan volume. We do not believe
that either one intends to withdraw from the student loan field
or reduce the volume of loans it makes or guarantees in the near
future. If loans by our primary lender or guarantees by our
primary guaranty agency were significantly reduced or no longer
available, we believe that we would be able to identify other
lenders and guarantors to make and guarantee those loans for our
students because the student loan industry is highly competitive
and we are frequently approached by other lenders and guarantors
seeking our business. If we were not able to timely identify
other lenders and guarantors to make and guarantee those loans
for our students, that could delay our students receipt of
their loans, extend our tuition collection cycle and reduce our
student population and net revenues.
66
Industry-Oriented Business
Model.
We
work extensively with leading automotive, diesel, collision
repair, motorcycle and marine equipment manufacturers, dealers
and suppliers to determine the present and future needs of the
end-markets our graduates enter and to tailor our educational
programs to best serve those constituents. As a result, we
believe that our graduates have the opportunity to work for the
most desirable employers in their chosen fields due to the
quality of their education and their commitment to careers as
professional service technicians. In turn, we believe that the
higher quality employment opportunities available to our
graduates drive increased enrollments at our campuses and
training centers.
Unique Manufacturer-Based Programs.
We work closely with OEMs to
develop brand-specific education programs. Participating
manufacturers typically assist us in developing course content
and curricula, and provide us with equipment, specialty tools
and parts at no charge. In addition, the manufacturer pays the
full tuition of each student enrolled in our advanced training
programs. Our collaboration with OEMs enables us to provide
highly specialized education to our students, resulting in
improved employment opportunities and the potential for higher
wages for graduates. Pursuant to written agreements, we provide
such programs for Audi of America; American Honda Motor Co.,
Inc.; BMW of North America, LLC; Ford Motor Co.;
International Truck and Engine Corp.; Jaguar Cars, Inc.;
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC; Mercury Marine; Porsche Cars of
North America, Inc.; Volkswagen of America, Inc.; and Volvo
Penta of the Americas, Inc.
Industry Relationships.
In addition to our
curriculum-based relationships with OEMs, we develop and
maintain a variety of complementary relationships with parts and
tools suppliers, enthusiast organizations and other participants
in the industries we serve. Currently, these relationships
include, among others, an agreement with Snap-on Tools pursuant
to which we have agreed to use Snap-on Tools in the training of
our students and have granted Snap-on Tools exclusive access to
our campuses for display advertising, and a licensing agreement
with the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR)
to use its name for our school in Mooresville, North Carolina
and to become its exclusive education provider for automotive
technicians. These relationships provide us with a variety of
strategic and financial benefits, including equipment
sponsorship, new product support, licensing and branding
opportunities, and selected financial sponsorship for our
campuses and students. We believe that these relationships
improve the quality of our educational
programs, reduce our investment cost of equipping
classrooms, enable us to expand the scope of our programs,
strengthen our graduate placements and enhance our overall image
within the industry.
National Presence.
Since our founding in 1965, we
have grown our business and expanded our campus platform to
establish a national presence. Through the UTI, MMI and NTI
brands, our undergraduate campuses and advanced training centers
currently provide us with local representation covering several
geographic regions across the United States. Supporting our
campuses, we maintain a national recruiting network of over
190 education representatives who are able to identify,
advise and enroll students from all 50 states.
Consequently, unlike competitors with single- or regional-campus
models, we are able to effectively reach a national pool of
potential students and to provide qualified professionals to our
various end-markets on a broad geographic basis.
Superior Recruiting Strategy.
We employ an integrated marketing
and recruitment strategy that we believe enables us to
effectively target and recruit both traditional post-secondary
students and working adults. Our field-based education
representatives provide a local presence to prospective students
at high schools across the country. Additionally, our
campus-based education representatives respond to media-driven
inquiries from adults across the United States who are
interested in returning to school. We support our education
representatives recruiting efforts with a national
multimedia marketing strategy that includes television,
enthusiast magazines, direct mail and the Internet.
Open New
Campuses.
We
continue to identify new markets that we believe will complement
our established campus network and support further growth. We
believe that there are a number of local markets, in regions
where we do not currently have a campus, with both pools of
interested prospective students and career opportunities for
graduates. By establishing campuses in these locations, we
believe that we will be able to supply skilled technicians to
local employers, as well as provide educational opportunities
for students otherwise unwilling to relocate to acquire a
post-secondary education. Additional locations will also provide
us with an opportunity to expand our relationships with OEMs by
providing a graduate population with greater geographic reach.
Increase Recruitment and Marketing.
We plan to hire additional
education representatives to enhance our recruitment coverage in
territories where we are currently active in recruiting students
and to expand into new regions and cities. We estimate that in
our 2003 fiscal year, our field-based education representatives
made approximately 9,000 high school visits and
approximately 360,000 student contacts. In addition, during
the same period, we estimate that our campus-based education
representatives addressed approximately 150,000 inquiries from
prospective students. We believe that additional education
representatives, combined with increased marketing spending,
will increase our national presence and enable us to better
target the prospective student pool from which we recruit.
Expand Program
Offerings.
As the industries we serve become more
technologically advanced, the requisite training for qualified
technicians continues to increase. We continually work with our
industry customers to expand and adapt our course offerings to
meet their needs for skilled technicians. We also intend to
increase the number of specialized or manufacturer-specific
electives we offer in our undergraduate programs, such as our
Hot Rod U
high performance series and our
Ford-certified elective.
Seek Additional Industry
Relationships.
We actively seek to develop new
relationships with leading OEMs, dealership networks and other
industry participants. Securing such relationships will enable
us to further drive undergraduate enrollment growth, diversify
funding sources and expand the scope and increase the number of
the programs we offer. We believe that these relationships are
also valuable to our industry partners since our
programs provide them with a steady supply of highly trained
service technicians and are a cost-effective alternative to
in-house training. Therefore, we believe that these
relationships will also provide us additional incremental
revenue opportunities from retraining OEMs existing
employees.
Consider Strategic Acquisitions.
We may selectively consider
acquisition opportunities that, among other factors, would
complement our program offerings, benefit from our expertise and
scale in marketing and administration and could be integrated
into our existing operations.
Date
School
Location
Opened
Principal Programs
UTI
Phoenix, Arizona
1965
Automotive; Diesel & Industrial;
Automotive/ Diesel; Automotive/ Diesel & Industrial
UTI
Houston, Texas
1983
Automotive; Diesel & Industrial;
Automotive/ Diesel; Automotive/ Diesel & Industrial;
Collision Repair and Refinishing
UTI
Glendale Heights, Illinois
1988
Automotive; Diesel & Industrial;
Automotive/ Diesel; Automotive/ Diesel & Industrial
UTI
Rancho Cucamonga, California
1998
Automotive
MMI
Phoenix, Arizona
1973
Motorcycle
MMI
Orlando, Florida
1986
Motorcycle, Marine
NTI
Mooresville, North Carolina
2002
Automotive with NASCAR
Automotive Technology.
Established in 1965, the
Automotive Technology program is designed to teach students how
to diagnose, service and repair automobiles. The program ranges
from 48 to
76 weeks in duration, and tuition ranges
from $19,200 to $27,900. Graduates of this program are qualified
to work as entry-level service technicians in automotive repair
facilities or automotive dealer service departments.
Diesel & Industrial Technology.
Established in 1968, the
Diesel & Industrial Technology program is designed to
teach students how to diagnose, service and repair diesel
systems and industrial equipment. The program is 45 weeks
in duration and tuition ranges from $18,200 to $18,800.
Graduates of this program are qualified to work as entry-level
service technicians in medium and heavy truck facilities, truck
dealerships, or in service and repair facilities for marine
diesel engines and equipment utilized in various industrial
applications, including materials handling, construction,
transport refrigeration or farming.
Automotive/Diesel Technology.
Established in 1970, the
Automotive/ Diesel Technology program is designed to teach
students how to diagnose, service and repair automobiles and
diesel systems. The program ranges from 66 to 81 weeks in
duration and tuition ranges from approximately $23,500 to
$29,800. Graduates of this program typically can work as
entry-level service technicians in automotive repair facilities,
automotive dealer service departments, diesel engine repair
facilities, medium and heavy truck facilities or truck
dealerships.
Automotive/ Diesel & Industrial
Technology.
Established in 1970,
the Automotive/ Diesel & Industrial Technology program is
designed to teach students how to diagnose, service and repair
automobiles, diesel systems and industrial equipment. The
program ranges from 72 to 84 weeks in duration and tuition
ranges from $24,400 to $31,000. Graduates of this program are
qualified to work as entry-level service technicians in
automotive repair facilities, automotive dealer service
departments, diesel engine repair facilities, medium and heavy
truck facilities, truck dealerships, or in service and repair
facilities for marine diesel engines and equipment utilized in
various industrial applications, including material handling,
construction, transport refrigeration or farming.
Collision Repair and Refinishing Technology
(CRRT).
Established in 1999, the
CRRT program teaches students how to repair non-structural and
structural automobile damage as well as how to prepare cost
estimates on all phases of repair and refinishing. The program
ranges from 51 to 57 weeks in duration and tuition ranges
from $20,400 to $21,900. Graduates of this program are qualified
to work as entry-level service technicians at OEM dealerships
and independent repair facilities.
Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and Marine
Mechanics Institute (collectively, MMI)
Motorcycle.
Established in 1973, this MMI
program is designed to teach students how to diagnose, service
and repair motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles. The program
ranges from 57 to 81 weeks in duration and tuition ranges
from $17,000 to $23,100. Graduates of this program are qualified
to work as entry-level service technicians in motorcycle
dealerships and independent repair facilities. MMI is supported
by all five major motorcycle manufacturers. We have a written
agreement with American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and oral
understandings with American Suzuki Motor Corp., Harley-Davidson
Motor Co., Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. and Yamaha Motor Corp.,
USA. These motorcycle manufacturers support us through their
endorsement of our curriculum content, assisting our course
development, equipment and product donation, and instructor
training. Our oral understandings with these manufacturers may
be terminated without cause by either party at any time. We
estimate that MMI commands over 80% market share in the
entry-level motorcycle technician training industry.
Marine.
Established in 1986, this MMI
program is designed to teach students how to diagnose, service
and repair boats and personal watercraft. The program is
60 weeks in duration and tuition is approximately $19,900.
Graduates of this program are qualified to work as entry-level
service technicians for marine dealerships and independent
repair shops, as well as for marinas, boat yards and yacht clubs.
NASCAR Technical Institute
(NTI)
Advanced Training Programs.
Pursuant to written agreements, we
offer manufacturer-specific advanced training programs for the
following companies: Audi of America; BMW of North America, LLC;
International Truck and Engine Corp.; Jaguar Cars, Inc.; Porsche
Cars of North America, Inc.; Volkswagen of America, Inc.; and
Volvo Penta of the Americas, Inc.
Audi and Volkswagen.
We have a written agreement with Audi
of America and Volkswagen of America, Inc. whereby we provide
training programs using tools, equipment and vehicles provided
by Audi and Volkswagen. This agreement expires on
December 31, 2003, is not exclusive and may be terminated
for cause by either party. We are currently in discussions with
respect to the renewal of this agreement.
BMW.
We have a
written agreement with BMW of North America, LLC whereby we
provide training programs, using tools, equipment and vehicles
provided by BMW. This agreement expires on December 31,
2003, and may be terminated for cause by either party. This
agreement is not exclusive, though, for the duration of its
term, BMW may not enter into a similar agreement with any other
institution that would conduct such program within
100 miles of an existing UTI program; and we may not
provide manufacturer-specific training for any other automotive
manufacturer at our BMW training facilities. We are currently in
discussions with respect to the renewal of this agreement.
International Truck.
We have a written agreement with
International Truck and Engine Corp. whereby we provide training
programs using tools, equipment and vehicles provided by
International Truck. This agreement expires on December 31,
2005 and may be terminated without cause by either party upon
180 days written notice.
Jaguar.
We have a
written agreement with Jaguar Cars, Inc. whereby we provide
training programs using tools, equipment and vehicles provided
by Jaguar. This agreement expires on February 29, 2004 and
may be terminated for cause by either party. This agreement is
not exclusive, though Jaguar may not enter into a similar
agreement with any other institution that would conduct a
program within 100 miles of an existing UTI program. We are
currently in discussions with respect to the renewal of this
agreement.
Porsche.
We have a
written agreement with Porsche Cars of North America, Inc.
whereby we provide training programs at a Porsche training
center in Atlanta, Georgia, using tools, equipment and vehicles
provided by Porsche. This agreement expires on August 31,
2005, is exclusive of all other institutions and may be
terminated without cause by Porsche upon 30 days written
notice.
Volvo.
We have a
written agreement with Volvo Penta of the Americas, Inc.,
whereby we provide training programs using tools, equipment and
marine engines provided by Volvo Penta. This agreement expires
on October 31, 2004 and may be terminated without cause by
either party upon 90 days written notice.
Retraining.
Technicians in all of the industries we serve are in regular
need of retraining or certification on new technologies.
Increasingly, manufacturers such as American Honda Motor Co.,
Inc.; BMW of North America, LLC; and Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC are
outsourcing a portion of this training to education providers
such as our company.
Product/ Financial
Support.
Product/financial support is an
integral component of our business strategy and is employed
across our schools. In these relationships, sponsors provide
their products, including equipment and supplies, at little or
no cost to us in return for our use of those products in the
classroom, or provide financial sponsorship to either us or our
students. Product/financial support is an attractive marketing
channel for sponsors because our classrooms provide them with
early access to the future end-users of their products. As
students become familiar with a manufacturers products
during training, they may be more likely to continue to use the
same products upon graduation. Our extensive use of product
support relationships allows us to minimize the equipment and
supply costs in each of our classrooms and significantly reduces
the capital outlay necessary for operating and equipping our
campuses.
An example of a product/financial support
relationship is:
Snap-on Tools.
At
various stages in our undergraduate programs, students receive a
Snap-on Tools entry- level tool set having an approximate retail
value of $1,000. We purchase these tool sets from Snap-on Tools
at a discount from their list price pursuant to a written
agreement that has an indefinite term and may be terminated for
cause by Snap-on Tools at any time prior to its expiration. In
the context of this relationship, we have granted Snap-on Tools
exclusive access to our campuses and display advertising and we
have agreed to use Snap-on tools to train our students. We
receive credits from Snap-on Tools for tool kits and any
additional purchases made by our students. We can then redeem
those credits to purchase Snap-on Tools equipment and tools for
our campuses at the full retail list price.
Licensing.
Licensing encompasses our affiliation
with key industry brands. We pay a licensing fee and, in return,
receive the right to use a particular industry
participants name or logo in our promotional materials and
on our campuses. We believe that our current and potential
students generally identify favorably with the recognized brand
names licensed to us, enhancing our reputation and the
effectiveness of our marketing efforts.
An example of a licensing arrangement is:
NASCAR.
In July
1999, we entered into a licensing arrangement with NASCAR and
became its exclusive education provider for automotive
technicians. This written agreement expires on June 30,
2007 and may be terminated for cause by either party at any time
prior to its expiration. In July 2002, the NASCAR Technical
Institute opened in Mooresville, North Carolina. More than
1,000 students currently attend this campus. This
relationship provides us with access to the extensive network of
NASCAR sponsors, presenting us with the opportunity to enhance
our product support relationships. The popular NASCAR brand name
combined with the opportunity to learn on high-performance cars
is a powerful recruiting and retention tool for a broad group of
potential students.
Manufacturer
Training.
Manufacturer training relationships
provide strategic benefits to us that impact each of our
education programs. These relationships induce entry-level
training tailored to
the needs of a specific manufacturer, as well as
continuing education and retraining of experienced technicians.
In our entry-level programs, students receive training and
certification on a given manufacturers products. In
return, the manufacturer supplies equipment, specialty tools and
parts, and assistance in developing curricula. Students who
receive this training are often certified to work on that
manufacturers products when they complete the program.
That certification typically leads to both improved employment
opportunities and the potential for higher wages. Manufacturer
training relationships lower the capital investment necessary to
equip our classrooms and provide us with a significant marketing
advantage. In addition, through these relationships,
manufacturers are able to increase the pool of skilled resources
available to service and repair their products.
We actively seek to extend our relationship with
a given manufacturer by providing the manufacturers
retraining. Like the advanced training, these programs are built
on a strategic training relationship under which the
manufacturer not only provides the equipment and curriculum but
also pays for the students tuition. These retraining
courses often take place within our existing facilities,
allowing the manufacturer to avoid the costs associated with
establishing its own dedicated facility.
Examples of Manufacturer Training relationships
include:
Ford Motor Company.
Pursuant to a written agreement, we offer the Ford Accelerated
Credential Training (FACT) Elective to all of the students in
our Automotive and Automotive/Diesel programs. The FACT Elective
is a 15-week course in Ford-specific training, during which
students are able to earn Ford certifications. Ford Motor
Company provides the curriculum, vehicles, specialty equipment
and other training aids required in this elective. This
agreement has an indefinite term and may be terminated without
cause by either party upon six months written notice.
Mercedes-Benz USA,
LLC.
Pursuant to a written agreement,
we offer the Mercedes-Benz ELITE training program. This is a
16-week advanced training program that enables students to earn
Mercedes-Benz training credits in service maintenance, diagnosis
and repair of most Mercedes-Benz vehicle systems. Highly ranked
graduates of UTIs Automotive and Automotive/ Diesel
programs may apply for acceptance into the Mercedes-Benz ELITE
training program. Tuition for the program is paid by the
manufacturer. All curricula, vehicles, specialty tools and
training aids are provided by Mercedes-Benz. This agreement
expires on September 30, 2005 and may be terminated without
cause by Mercedes-Benz upon 60 days written notice.
Recently, pursuant to an additional written agreement that
expires on May 31, 2006, we added a Mercedes-Benz ELITE
training program for graduates of the CRRT program. In addition,
we provide training for Mercedes-Benz factory technicians on a
regular basis at our Houston, Texas facility.
American Honda Motor Co., Inc.
Pursuant to two written agreements,
American Honda Motor Co., Inc. supports our campus training
program called HonTech® by donating equipment and providing
curriculum. In addition, we provide continuing marine and
motorcycle training for experienced American Honda technicians.
We oversee administration of the training programs, including
scheduling classes and technician enrollment. Our instructors
provide the training at American Honda-authorized training
centers across the United States. The marine training agreement
expires upon completion of the final class taught in March 2004
and the motorcycle training agreement expires on
September 30, 2004. Each agreement may be terminated for
cause by American Honda at any time prior to its expiration.
Field-Based Representatives.
Our field-based education
representatives recruit prospective students from high schools
across the country. Over the last three fiscal years,
approximately 60% of our student population has been recruited
directly out of high school. Currently, we have 128 field-based
education representatives, an increase from 58 field-based
representatives as of the end of our 1998 fiscal year, with
assigned territories covering the United States and
U.S. territories. Our field-based education representatives
recruit students by making career presentations at high schools
and direct presentations at the homes of prospective students.
We estimate that in our 2003 fiscal year, our education
representatives made approximately 9,000 high school visits
and approximately 360,000 student contacts.
Our reputation in local, regional and national
business communities, endorsements from high school guidance
counselors and the recommendations of satisfied graduates are
some of our most effective recruiting tools. Accordingly, we
strive to build relationships with the people who influence the
career decisions of prospective students, such as vocational
instructors and high school guidance counselors. Every year, we
conduct seminars for high school career counselors and
instructors at our training facilities and campuses as a means
of further educating these individuals on the merits of our
programs. We estimate that as much as 10% of our enrollment
comes from referrals from our staff, current students and alumni.
Campus-Based
Representatives.
In
addition to our field-based education representatives, we use
campus-based representatives to recruit students. These
representatives respond to targeted marketing leads and inbound
inquiries to directly recruit new students typically
adults returning to school from anywhere across the
United States. We estimate that our 66 campus-based
education representatives, an increase from 35 campus-based
education representatives at the end of our 1998 fiscal year,
addressed approximately 150,000 media-driven inquiries in our
2003 fiscal year. Since working adults tend to start our
programs throughout the year instead of in the fall as is most
typical of traditional school calendars, these students help
balance our enrollment throughout the year.
Marketing and Advertising.
We make use of multiple direct and
indirect marketing and advertising channels aimed at prompting
enthusiasts and underemployed or unemployed prospective students
to contact us. We select various advertising methods on a
national, regional and local basis to drive enrollments at our
campuses. We utilize television advertising on national cable
networks such as Speed Channel, Fox Sports Net, Spike TV
(formerly known as TNN) and Outdoor Life Network, as well as on
local stations. We advertise in both national and regional
automotive, motorcycle and marine enthusiast publications,
including Harley-Davidsons enthusiast publication which
has a circulation of over 495,000. We also employ direct
mailings and maintain a proprietary database consisting of over
980,000 names that enable us to target both high school students
and working adults throughout the year.
Approximate
Square
School/Program
Location
Footage
UTI
Phoenix, Arizona
(1)
166,000
UTI
Houston, Texas
178,000
UTI
Glendale Heights, Illinois
125,000
UTI
Rancho Cucamonga, California
83,000
MMI
Phoenix, Arizona
109,000
MMI
Orlando, Florida
108,000
NTI
Mooresville, North Carolina
146,000
Headquarters
Phoenix, Arizona (current
through October 2003)
31,300
Phoenix, Arizona (after October, 2003)
47,100
Centers:
Audi Academy
Phoenix, Arizona
10,000
Audi Academy
Glendale Heights, Illinois
6,500
Audi Academy
Allentown, Pennsylvania
6,200
BMW STEP
Phoenix, Arizona
9,700
(1) We have entered into a lease for a new
273,000 square foot facility in Avondale, Arizona. It is
currently contemplated that this new facility will replace the
current Phoenix, Arizona facility in the summer of 2004. This
replacement is not expected to increase our student capacity.
Approximate
Square
School/Program
Location
Footage
BMW STEP
Ontario, California
2,500
BMW STEP
Houston, Texas
7,500
BMW STEP
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey
7,500
BMW STEP
Orlando, Florida
13,300
Ford Technical Institute
Dearborn, Michigan
9,600
Jaguar PACE
Orlando, Florida
13,300
International Tech Education Program
Carol Stream, Illinois
7,100
Mercedes-Benz ELITE
Rancho Cucamonga, California
8,700
Mercedes-Benz ELITE
Orlando, Florida
10,100
Mercedes-Benz ELITE
Houston, Texas
27,600
Mercedes-Benz ELITE
Glendale Heights, Illinois
11,900
Mercedes-Benz ELITE
Allentown, Pennsylvania
10,600
Porsche TAP
Atlanta, Georgia
5,000
Volkswagen V.S.T.T.
Glendale Heights, Illinois
6,900
Volkswagen V.S.T.T.
Allentown, Pennsylvania
6,900
Volkswagen V.S.T.T.
Rancho Cucamonga, California
8,700
Volvo SAFE
Glendale Heights, Illinois
11,000
Volvo SAFE
Phoenix, Arizona
10,000
Universal Technical Institute of Arizona
Additional locations:
Universal Technical Institute, Glendale Heights,
Illinois
Clinton Technical Institute
Universal Technical Institute of Texas
FFEL Cohort Default
Rate
School
1999
2000
2001
6.8
%
6.7
%
4.4
%
7.5
%
8.7
%
5.9
%
12.3
%
15.6
%
8.1
%
the equity ratio, which measures the
institutions capital resources, ability to borrow and
financial viability;
the primary reserve ratio, which measures the
institutions ability to support current operations from
expendable resources; and
the net income ratio, which measures the
institutions ability to operate at a profit.
posting a letter of credit in an amount equal to
at least 50% of the total Title IV Program funds received by the
institution during the institutions most recently
completed fiscal year;
posting a letter of credit in an amount equal to
at least 10% of such prior years Title IV Program funds,
accepting provisional certification, complying with additional
ED monitoring requirements and agreeing to receive Title IV
Program funds under an arrangement other than EDs standard
advance funding arrangement; or
complying with additional ED monitoring
requirements and agreeing to receive Title IV Program funds
under an arrangement other than EDs standard advance
funding arrangement.
MANAGEMENT
Directors and Executive Officers
Below is information with respect to our
executive officers and directors as of October 1, 2003:
Robert D. Hartman
serves as our Chairman of the Board
effective as of October 1, 2003. From 1990 to
September 30, 2003, Mr. Hartman served as our Chief
Executive Officer, and from April 2002 to September 30,
2003, Mr. Hartman served as the Co-Chairman of the Board.
Mr. Hartman has been a member of our Board since 1985. From
1979 to 1990, Mr. Hartman held several positions with UTI,
including Student Services Director, Controller, School Director
and President. He was appointed to the Arizona State Board for
Private Post-secondary Education in 1990 and served until 1995.
In addition, he has served on the Advisory Council for the
Arizona Educational Loan Program, representing the private
career school sector. He was founder and former Chairman of the
Western Council of Private Career Schools. Mr. Hartman
received a BA in General Business from Michigan State University
and an MBA in Finance from DePaul University in Chicago.
John C. White
serves
as our Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Vice Chairman
effective as of October 1, 2003. From April 2002 to
September 30, 2003, Mr. White served as our Chief
Strategic Planning Officer and Co-Chairman of the Board. From
1998 to March 2002, Mr. White served as our Chief Strategic
Planning Officer and Chairman of the Board. Mr. White
served as the President of Clinton Harley Corporation (which
operated under the name Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and
Marine Mechanics Institute) from 1977 until it was acquired by
UTI in 1998. Prior to 1977, Mr. White was a marketing
representative with International Business Machines Corporation.
Mr. White was appointed by the Arizona Senate to serve as a
member of the Joint Legislative Committee on Private Regionally
Accredited Degree Granting Colleges and Universities and Private
Nationally Accredited Degree Granting and Vocational
Institutions in 1990. He was appointed by the Governor of
Arizona to the Arizona State Board for Private Post-secondary
Education, where he was a member and Complaint Committee
Chairman from 1993-2001. Mr. White received a BS in
Engineering from the University of Illinois. Mr. White is
the uncle of David K. Miller, our Senior Vice President of
Admissions.
Kimberly J. McWaters
serves as our Chief Executive Officer
effective as of October 1, 2003. From 2000 to
September 30, 2003, Ms. McWaters served as our President.
From 1984 to 2000, Ms. McWaters held several positions with
UTI, including Vice President of Marketing and Vice President of
Sales and Marketing. She is involved with the Womens Car
Care Council, an organization dedicated to the needs of
67
Jennifer L. Haslip
serves as our Senior Vice President,
Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer effective October 1,
2003. From 2002 to September 30, 2003, Ms. Haslip
served as our Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer,
Treasurer and Secretary. From 1998 to 2002, Ms. Haslip
served as our Director of Accounting, Director of Financial
Planning and Vice President of Finance. From 1993 to 1998, she
was employed in public accounting at Toback CPAs P.C.
Ms. Haslip received a BS in Accounting from Western
International University. She is a certified public accountant
in Arizona.
David K. Miller
has
served as our Senior Vice President of Admissions since 2002.
From 1998 to 2002, Mr. Miller served as our Vice President
of Campus Admissions. From 1979 to 1998, Mr. Miller served
in various positions at MMI, including Admissions
Representative, Admissions Director and National Director.
Mr. Miller joined Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in 1979 as
an education representative. He has served on the Board of the
Arizona Private School Association and was a team leader for the
Accrediting Commission. Mr. Miller received a BS in
Marketing from Arizona State University. Mr. Miller is the
nephew of John White, our Chief Strategic Planning Officer and
Vice Chairman of our Board.
Roger L. Speer
has
served as our Senior Vice President of Operations/ Education
since 2002. From 1988 to 2002, Mr. Speer held several
positions with us, including Director of Graduate Employment at
the UTI Phoenix Campus, Corporate Director of Graduate
Employment, School Director of the UTI Glendale Heights Campus
and Vice President of Operations. Mr. Speer received a BS
in Human Resource Management from Arizona State University.
A. Richard Caputo, Jr.
has served as a director on our board
since 1997. Mr. Caputo has been a managing director of The
Jordan Company, LLC, a private merchant banking firm, and
its predecessors since 1990. Mr. Caputo is also a director
of AmeriKing, Inc., Jackson Products, Inc. and Safety Insurance
Group, Inc. AmeriKing is currently the subject of
Chapter 11 proceedings, and prior to commencement of those
proceedings, Mr. Caputo was appointed a vice president of
that company. Mr. Caputo received a BA in Mathematical and
Business Economics from Brown University.
Robert F. Cioffi
has
served as a director on our board since 2003. Mr. Cioffi
has served as a vice president at GE Equity, a private
equity investment company, since 1998. Mr. Cioffi received
a BA in Political Science and Economics from the University of
Vermont and a MBA from Duke University.
Michael R. Eisenson
has served as a director on our board
since 2002. Mr. Eisenson is a managing director and Chief
Executive Officer of Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC, a
private investment firm and the successor to Harvard Private
Capital Group, which he joined in 1986. Mr. Eisenson is
also a director of CCC Information Services Group, Inc.,
ImmunoGen, Inc., Playtex Products, Inc. and United Auto Group,
Inc. He received a BA in Economics from Williams College and a
JD and MBA from Yale University.
James A. Hislop
has
served as a director on our board since 2002. Mr. Hislop
has been President and Chief Executive Officer of Penske Capital
Partners, L.L.C., an acquisition and investment company
specializing in the transportation and transportation services
industries, since 1997. Mr. Hislop is also a director of
Penske Corporation and United Auto Group, Inc. Mr. Hislop
received a BS in Business Administration from Bucknell
University and a MBA from New York University.
John W.
Jordan, II
has served as a
director on our board since 1997. Mr. Jordan has been a
managing partner of The Jordan Company, LLC since 1982.
Mr. Jordan is also a director of AmeriKing, Inc., Carmike
Cinemas, Inc., Jackson Products, Inc., Jordan Industries, Inc.,
and Kinetek, Inc. (formerly known as Motors & Gears
Holdings, Inc.). AmeriKing is currently the subject of
Chapter 11 proceedings. He received a BA in Business
Administration from the University of Notre Dame.
Roger S. Penske
has
served as a director on our board since 2002. Mr. Penske
has served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer
of United Auto Group, Inc., a publicly-traded auto
68
Several members of our management, including
Robert D. Hartman, John C. White, A. Richard Caputo and
John W. Jordan, are also owners and managers of
NTT Acquisition Corp. In September 2001, we sold our
subsidiary, National Technology Transfer, Inc., to
NTT Acquisition Corp. for nominal consideration of $1.00.
See Certain Relationships and Related
Transactions Transactions with Management and
Others NTT Transaction. We advanced $600,000
to NTT Acquisition Corp. after the sale in exchange for
NTT Acquisition Corps unsecured promissory note. The
loan was made to facilitate the transfer of payroll and related
taxes and benefits, and other operating expenses, of National
Technology Transfer, Inc. NTT Acquisition Corp. has not
made any payments under the promissory note. During 2002, we
recorded a full valuation allowance on the promissory note
because collection under the note was uncertain.
Our Board of Directors
Upon completion of this offering, Kimberly J.
McWaters, Robert F. Cioffi, James A. Hislop and John W.
Jordan, II will resign as directors and our board will
consist of five persons. We intend for our board ultimately to
consist of seven persons, at least a majority of whom will
satisfy the independence requirements of the New York Stock
Exchange. Consequently, we intend to appoint two additional
directors following completion of the offering.
Our executive officers are appointed by the board
on an annual basis and serve until their successors have been
duly elected. There are no family relationships among any of our
directors or executive officers, except that John C. White,
our Vice Chairman and Chief Strategic Planning Officer, and
David K. Miller, our Senior Vice President of Admissions,
are uncle and nephew of each other, respectively.
Terms of Directors and Executive
Officers
Each director serves for a term of three years.
The terms of office of the members of our board of directors are
divided into three classes. Two directors will be appointed
following completion of the offering and shall serve as
Class I Directors (whose terms expire in 2004),
Messrs. Penske and White serve as Class II Directors
(whose terms expire in 2005), and Messrs. Caputo, Eisenson
and Hartman serve as Class III Directors (whose terms
expire in 2006). At each annual meeting of stockholders, the
successors to directors whose terms will then expire will be
elected to serve from the time of election and qualification
until the third annual meeting following election. Any
additional directorships resulting from an increase in the
number of directors will be distributed among the three classes
so that, as nearly as possible, each class will consist of
one-third of the total number of directors. The classification
of our board of directors may have the effect of delaying or
preventing changes in control or management of our company.
Each executive officer is appointed by, and
serves at the discretion of, our board of directors.
Committees of the Board
Currently, our board has an audit committee and a
compensation committee. Messrs. Caputo, Eisenson and Hislop
serve as members of each of those committees.
After this offering, our board will designate new
committees to assist it with its responsibilities. Those
committees are described below.
After this offering, our board will designate a
new audit committee that will consist of at least three
directors, two of whom are expected to be Messrs. Eisenson
and Caputo, both of whom serve on our pre-offering audit
committee. The two directors to be appointed following
completion of this offering are also
69
The audit committee will have at least four
regular meetings each year. The result of each meeting will be
reported at the next regular meeting of our board.
The audit committee will have the responsibility
for overseeing:
To fulfill these responsibilities, the audit
committee will:
After this offering, our board will designate a
new compensation committee that will consist of at least three
directors. It is currently expected that Messrs. Caputo and
Eisenson will serve on the compensation committee after the
offering, along with one of the directors appointed following
completion of this
70
After this offering, our board will designate a
nominating and governance committee that will consist of at
least three directors. It is currently expected that
Messrs. Caputo and Penske will serve on the nominating and
governance committee along with one of the directors appointed
following completion of this offering. The composition of the
nominating and governance committee will satisfy the
independence requirements of the New York Stock Exchange. The
nominating and governance committee will:
To fulfill these responsibilities, the nominating
and governance committee will:
71
Name
Age
Position Held
55
Chairman of the Board
55
Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Vice
Chairman of the Board
39
Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
38
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
and Treasurer
45
Senior Vice President of Admissions
45
Senior Vice President of Operations
37
Director
35
Director
48
Director
45
Director
55
Director
66
Director
(1)
Member of the audit committee.
(2)
Member of the compensation committee.
Audit Committee
our accounting and financial reporting processes;
the reliability of our financial statements;
the effective evaluation and management of our
financial risks;
our compliance with laws and regulations; and
the maintenance of an effective and efficient
audit of our financial statements by a qualified independent
auditor.
be aware of the current areas of greatest
financial risk to us and ensure that management is effectively
assessing and managing risks;
consider the effectiveness of our disclosure
controls and procedures to promote timely, accurate, compliant
and meaningful disclosure in our periodic reports filed with the
SEC;
periodically review with the independent auditors
their assessment as to the adequacy of our structure of internal
controls over financial accounting and reporting, and their
qualitative judgments as to the accounting principals employed
and related disclosures by us and the conclusions expressed in
our financial reports;
review our accounting policies and practices to
ensure they meet the requirements with respect to the FASB, the
SEC and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants;
select, evaluate and, if necessary, replace our
independent auditors;
actively engage in dialogue with the independent
auditors with respect to any disclosed relationships or services
that may impact the objectivity or independence of the
independent auditors;
meet with the independent auditors, the internal
auditors and senior management to review the scope and
methodology of the proposed audit;
discuss with management policies and practices
regarding earnings press releases, as well as financial
information and earnings guidelines provided to analysts and
rating agencies;
set clear hiring policies with respect to any
current or former employees of our independent auditors;
review periodically our code of conduct and
obtain confirmation from management that the policies included
in the code of conduct are understood and implemented; and
establish procedures for the receipt, retention
and treatment of complaints we receive regarding our internal
accounting controls or auditing matters and for the
confidential, anonymous submission by employees of their
concerns regarding our internal accounting controls and auditing
matters.
Compensation Committee
develop and maintain a compensation policy and
strategy that creates a direct relationship between pay levels
and corporate performance and returns to stockholders;
recommend compensation and benefit plans to our
board for approval;
review and approve annual corporate and personal
goals and objectives to serve as the basis for the chief
executive officers compensation, evaluate the chief
executive officers performance in light of the goals and,
based on such evaluation, determine the chief executive
officers compensation;
determine the annual total compensation for our
named executive officers;
with respect to our equity-based compensation
plans, approve the grants of stock options and other
equity-based incentives as permitted under our compensation
plans;
review and recommend compensation for
non-employee directors to our board; and
review and recommend employment agreements,
severance arrangements and change of control plans that provide
for benefits upon a change in control, or other provisions for
our executive officers and directors, to our board. It is
intended that arrangements for change of control benefits for
our executive officers will be considered by the compensation
committee after this offering.
Nominating and Governance
Committee
identify individuals qualified to serve as our
directors;
recommend qualified individuals for election to
our board of directors at annual meetings of stockholders;
recommend to our board the directors to serve on
each of our board committees; and
recommend a set of corporate governance
guidelines to our board.
review periodically the composition of our board;
identify and recommend director candidates for
our board;
recommend to our board nominees for election as
directors;
recommend to our board the composition of the
committees of the board;
review periodically our corporate governance
guidelines and recommend governance issues that should be
considered by our board;
review periodically our committee structure and
operations and the working relationship between each committee
and the board; and
consider, discuss and recommend ways to improve
our boards effectiveness.
Director Compensation
After this offering, each non-employee director
will receive a $20,000 annual retainer, an annual award of
10,000 shares of our common stock and $2,500 per board
meeting attended in person or by telephone. In addition, each
non-employee director will receive a $1,500 stipend per board
meeting attended in person for his or her out-of-pocket expenses
incurred in attending such meetings. Non-employee directors on
committees of the board will each receive an additional payment
of $1,000 for each committee meeting attended on a day other
than the day of a board meeting for which that director has been
compensated, subject to a $1,000 per day limit in the event the
director participates in multiple committee meetings on the same
day. The audit committee chairman will receive an additional
$10,000 annual retainer.
Executive Compensation
The table below sets forth summary information
concerning the compensation awarded to our chief executive
officer and our four most highly compensated executive officers
other than our chief executive officer during 2003. The
individuals listed below are referred to in this prospectus as
our named executive officers.
Summary Compensation Table
Long-Term
Annual Compensation
Compensation
Securities
Underlying
Name and Principal Position
Year
Salary
Bonus
Options
2003
$
344,834
$
393,200
2002
260,000
187,500
2001
260,000
2003
$
343,495
$
393,200
2002
260,000
187,500
2001
260,000
2003
$
307,356
$
193,200
2002
258,654
268,000
2001
206,092
101,250
2003
$
179,885
$
73,750
2002
162,479
116,250
2001
116,474
50,625
2003
$
219,385
$
55,250
2002
190,887
43,896
2001
180,897
54,837
Option Grants in 2003
The following table presents information concerning stock options granted during 2003 to our named executive officers who received a grant in 2003.
Potential Realizable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Individual Grants | Value at | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Assumed Rate of | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Number of | Percent of | Stock Price | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shares | Total Options | Appreciation for | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Underlying | Granted to | Option Term (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Options | Employees | Exercise Price |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Granted | in Year | Per Share | Expiration Date | 0% (2) | 5% | 10% | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
David K. Miller
|
32,625 | 21.7 | % | $ | 7.31 | February 25, 2013 | $ | 93,645 | $ | 150,029 | $ | 380,203 |
(1) | Amounts reported in these columns represent amounts that may be realized upon exercise of the option immediately prior to the expiration of its term assuming the specified compound rates of appreciation (5% and 10%) in the market value of our common stock over the term of the option. These numbers are calculated based |
72
on rules promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission and do not reflect our estimate of future stock price growth. The gains shown are net of the option exercise price, but do not include deductions for taxes or other expenses associated with the exercise of the option or the sale of the underlying shares. The actual gains, if any, on the exercise of this stock option will depend on the future performance of our common stock, the optionholders continued employment through the option period, and the date on which the option is exercised. | |
(2) | The amount reported in this column is the amount by which the fair market value of the shares subject to the option exceeded the aggregate exercise price of the options. |
Option Exercises in Last Fiscal Year and Year-End Option Values
The following table presents information concerning the stock options exercised during the last fiscal year by each of our named executive officers and the fiscal year-end value of unexercised options held by each of our named officers as of September 30, 2003.
Number of Shares | Value of Unexercised | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Underlying Unexercised | in-the-Money Options at | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shares | Options at Year-End | Year-End (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Acquired | Value |
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
on Exercise | Realized | Exercisable | Unexercisable | Exercisable | Unexercisable | ||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Robert D. Hartman
|
181,936 | $ | 3,778,835 | | | $ | | $ | | ||||||||||||||||
Chairman of the Board(1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
John C. White
|
179,616 | $ | 3,730,640 | | | | | ||||||||||||||||||
Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Vice-Chairman of the Board | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kimberly J. McWaters
|
3,938 | $ | 81,800 | 77,711 | 233,132 | $ | 1,290,265 | $ | 3,870,794 | ||||||||||||||||
Chief Executive Officer, President | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Jennifer L. Haslip
|
| | 31,084 | 93,253 | $ | 516,106 | $ | 1,548,318 | |||||||||||||||||
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
David K. Miller
|
15,467 | $ | 321,250 | 8,156 | 24,469 | $ | 111,641 | $ | 334,924 | ||||||||||||||||
Senior Vice President of Admissions |
(1) | There was no public market for our common stock on September 30, 2003. Accordingly, these values have been calculated in accordance with the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission, on the basis of the initial public offering price per share of $21.00, less the applicable exercise price. |
Employment-Related Arrangements
Employment Agreements with Robert D. Hartman and John C. White. In April 2002, we entered into employment agreements with Robert Hartman and John White. Under the terms of the employment agreements, Messrs. Hartman and White have agreed to serve as Chief Executive Officer and Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors, respectively. Each of the employment agreements provides for an initial term ending September 30, 2006 and automatically renewing successive one-year terms thereafter, subject to at least 90 days advance notice by either party of a decision not to renew the employment agreements. Messrs. Hartman and White are each entitled to receive an annual base salary of $312,500, subject to annual cost of living adjustments.
Employment Agreements with Kimberly J. McWaters. In April 2002, we entered into an employment agreement with Kimberly McWaters to serve as our President. This agreement provides for an initial term ending March 31, 2005 and automatically renewing successive one-year terms thereafter, subject to at least 90 days advance notice by either party of a decision not to renew the employment
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Provisions Common to Each Employment Agreement. Certain provisions are common to each of the employment agreements. For example, each employment agreement:
| provides that each executive may be paid an annual, performance-based bonus to be determined by our board of directors, in its sole discretion; | |
| specifies that each executive is entitled to certain perquisites, including reimbursement of expenses, paid vacations, health and medical reimbursement plan, a car allowance and automobile insurance and such other perquisites and benefits, including health, short- and long-term disability, pension and life insurance benefits for our executives and their families, established from time to time at the sole discretion of our board of directors; | |
| provides for our payment of severance compensation and benefits to the executives under certain circumstances, such as when the executives employment is terminated by us other than for cause, as defined in the employment agreements, or by the executive if we materially breach the employment agreement or due to the executives death or disability; and | |
| restricts the employees disclosure and use of our confidential information, as defined in the employment agreement, and prohibit the employee from competing with us for a specified period following the termination of employment. |
The board approves the operating budget for a given fiscal year and may award bonuses based upon achievement of established EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) targets. In addition, the board may award bonuses based upon additional factors as it may in its discretion determine from time to time.
Severance Agreements. It is currently contemplated that we will enter into severance agreements with several of our executive officers or key employees upon the consummation of this offering. Each severance agreement will provide for the payment of severance compensation and other benefits to the employee depending upon the circumstances of their termination of employment, such as if the employee is terminated by us without cause or if the employee leaves for good reason, in each case within 12 months after we have undergone a change in control, as that term is defined in the severance agreement. Each severance agreement, as currently contemplated, will also provide that:
| as a precondition to our payment of any severance compensation or benefits, the employee must execute a waiver and release that we provide to the employee; | |
| the amounts paid to or benefits received by the employee are subject to a downward adjustment so that the total payments to the employee due to a change in control do not constitute an excess parachute payment, as that term is defined in Section 280G of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or cause the employee to be required to pay an excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code; and | |
| the employee is not required to mitigate any amounts paid or benefits received under the severance agreement by seeking other employment or otherwise. |
As part of the consideration for our payment of
the severance payments and benefits, the severance agreement
provides that, for a period of 12 months after the
termination of employment, the employee covenants not to compete
directly or indirectly with us or directly or indirectly
solicit, recruit or employ any persons or entities with whom we
have, or within the 24 months prior to such solicitation,
recruitment or employment have had, business relationships.
Existing Stock and Stock Option
Plans
1997 Restricted Stock Plan.
Our 1997 restricted stock plan was
adopted by the board of directors and became effective in
September 1997. A maximum of 1,022,250 shares of
common stock may be issued under the plan to employees of our
company, or the employees of any subsidiaries of our company,
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The term of the awards granted under the plan is
set forth in each stock award agreement. Beginning on the date
of grant, the participant, as owner of the shares, will have the
right to vote his or her shares. If requested, however, the
participant must agree to place his or her shares in a voting
trust until the shares have vested. Furthermore, all
participants must be signatories to the stockholders agreement
dated September 30, 1997, as amended. The vesting schedule
of all the awards under our 1997 restricted stock plan was
accelerated with effect as of September 30, 1999.
As of June 30, 2003, we have awarded
983,735 shares of our common stock under the plan, all of
which are vested. We do not intend to grant any additional
awards from the plan.
Management 1999 Stock Option Program.
Our 1999 stock option program was
adopted by our board of directors and became effective in
September 1999 to provide for the issuance of up to
469,800 shares of common stock. The program is administered
by our board of directors and its compensation committee.
The program provides for the grant of incentive
and non-qualified stock options to our employees, including
officers and employee directors, and non-qualified stock options
to other persons providing material services to our company or
related companies. A non-employee director is not eligible to
receive an award. Upon cancellation of an award, the optionee
either is permitted to exercise all cancelled awards for a
reasonable period prior to the effective date of the
cancellation or receives reasonable compensation for the value
of the cancelled awards. At the request of the board of
directors, a committee administers the program and determines
the optionees and the terms of options granted, including the
exercise price, number of shares subject to the option and the
exercisability of the shares. None of the members of the
committee is eligible to receive awards or options under the
program.
The term of the options granted under the program
is set forth in each option agreement. The term of an option may
not exceed the earlier of ten years and the date on which the
optionee ceases to be an employee of, and to perform services
for, us and/or related companies. Options granted under the
program vest and become exercisable as set forth in each option
agreement.
No incentive stock options under the program may
be granted to an optionee, which, when combined with all other
incentive stock options becoming exercisable in any calendar
year that are held by that optionee, would have an aggregate
fair market value in excess of $100,000. In the event an
optionee is awarded $100,000 in incentive stock options in any
calendar year, any further stock options granted during the same
year shall be treated as non-qualified stock options.
As of June 30, 2003, we have issued
469,800 shares of common stock upon the exercise of options
granted under the program. No options under the program are
outstanding and we do not intend to grant any additional options
under the program.
Management 2002 Stock Option Program.
Our 2002 stock option program was
adopted by our board of directors and became effective in April
2002. A maximum of 783,000 shares of common stock may be
issued under the program, which is administered by our board of
directors and its compensation committee.
The program provides for the grant of incentive
and non-qualified stock options to employees of our company and
related companies, including officers and employee directors,
and non-statutory options to other persons providing material
services to our company or related companies. A non-employee
director is not eligible to receive an award. None of the
members of the committee is eligible to receive awards under the
program. Upon cancellation of an award, the optionee either is
permitted to exercise all cancelled awards for a reasonable
period prior to the effective date of the cancellation or
receives reasonable compensation for the value of the cancelled
awards, as determined by the committee.
The term of the options granted under the program
is set forth in each option agreement. However, the term of an
option may not exceed the earlier of ten years and the date on
which the optionee ceases to be an employee of, and to perform
services for, our company and/or related companies. Options
granted
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No incentive stock options may be granted to an
optionee, which, when combined with all other incentive stock
options becoming exercisable in any calendar year that are held
by that optionee, would have an aggregate fair market value in
excess of $100,000. In the event an optionee is awarded $100,000
in incentive stock options in any calendar year, any further
stock options granted during the same year shall be treated as
non-qualified stock options.
As of June 30, 2003, 759,327 shares of
our common stock are issuable pursuant to options granted under
the program, at a weighted average exercise price of
$4.97 per share and 23,673 shares remain available for
future option grants under the program.
New Employee Benefits Plans
Set forth below is information concerning our
benefit plans that will be effective immediately following the
consummation of the offering. Under these plans, we propose to
pay cash and non-cash compensation, including equity grants, to
eligible participants of the plans, including our executive
officers.
2003 Stock Incentive
Plan.
Upon completion of the
offering, a new incentive compensation plan will go into effect,
which we refer to in this prospectus as the incentive plan. The
incentive plan will be administered by the compensation
committee of our board of directors, which committee has the
exclusive authority, including the power to determine
eligibility to receive awards, the types and number of shares of
stock subject to the awards, the price and timing of awards and
the acceleration or waiver of any vesting, and performance or
forfeiture restriction. The compensation committee, however,
does not have the authority to waive any performance
restrictions for performance-based awards. As used in this
prospectus, the term administrator means the
compensation committee.
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77
Amendment and termination.
The
administrator, with the boards approval, may terminate,
amend, or modify the incentive plan at any time; however,
stockholder approval will be obtained for any amendment to the
extent necessary and desirable to comply with any applicable
law, regulation or stock exchange rule. We may not make any
grants under the incentive plan after September, 2013.
2003 Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
Subject to board approval, we plan
to sponsor an employee stock purchase plan following the
completion of the offering. The new employee stock purchase plan
will permit eligible employees (as defined in the employee stock
purchase plan) to purchase up
to shares
of our common stock annually at a price of no less than 85% of
the price per share of our common stock either at the beginning
or the end of the six-month offering period, whichever is less.
The compensation committee of our board of directors will
administer the employee stock purchase plan. Our board may amend
or terminate the plan. The employee stock purchase plan will
comply with the requirements of Section 423 of the Code.
Deferred Compensation
Agreements.
We have entered into
deferred compensation agreements with seven of our employees,
providing for the payment of deferred compensation to each
employee in the event that the employee becomes no longer
employed by us. Under each agreement, the employee shall receive
an amount equal to the compensation the employee would have
earned if the employee had repeated the employment performance
of the prior twelve months. We will pay the deferred
compensation in a lump sum or over the period in which the
employee would typically have earned the compensation had the
employee been actively employed, at our option. Our total
commitment under the deferred compensation agreements was
$1.5 million as of June 30, 2003.
Executive Benefit
Plan.
We sponsor the Universal
Technical Institute Executive Benefit Plan that is designed to
attract and retain competent executives and key employees. Under
the plan, eligible employees may contribute base pay as well as
all or any part of their annual bonus on a tax-deferred basis
into the plan. We may elect to make matching contributions on an
annual basis. All employee deferrals and employer matches are
fully vested when deferred and matched. We also provide eligible
employees with individual life insurance coverage at no cost to
them. The plan is an unfunded plan and, as such, is exempt from
the participation and funding requirements of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. As of June 30,
2003, the obligation for deferred compensation under the plan
totaled approximately $0.8 million. The plan assets held to
fund the deferred compensation liability are included in our
financial statements under Other Assets and represent the cash
surrender value of life insurance. This value was
$0.2 million at June 30, 2003.
401(k) Plan
We maintain a plan qualified under
Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code. Under our
401(k) plan, a participant may contribute a maximum of 50% of
his or her pre-tax salary, commissions and bonuses through
payroll deductions, up to the statutorily prescribed annual
limit ($12,000 in calendar year 2003). The percentage elected by
more highly compensated participants may be required to be
lower. In addition, at the discretion of our board of directors,
we may make discretionary matching and/or profit-sharing
contributions into our 401(k) plan for eligible employees.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider
Participation
None of our executive officers has served as a
director or member of the compensation committee of any other
entity whose executive officers served as a director or member
of our compensation committee.
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Participants.
Any of our employees, our
non-employee directors, consultants and advisors to us, as
determined by the compensation committee may be selected to
participate in the incentive plan. We may award these
individuals with one or more of the following:
stock options;
stock appreciation rights;
restricted stock awards;
performance shares;
performance-based awards; and
IPO awards.
Stock options.
Stock options may be
granted under the incentive plan, including incentive stock
options, as defined under Section 422 of the Internal
Revenue Code, as amended (Code), and nonqualified stock options.
The option exercise price of all stock options granted under the
incentive plan will be determined by the administrator, except
that any incentive stock option or any option intended to
qualify as performance-based compensation under Code
Section 162(m) will not be granted at a price that is less
than 100% of the fair market value of the stock on the date of
grant. Stock options may be exercised as determined by the
administrator, but in no event after the tenth anniversary date
of grant.
Upon the exercise of a stock option, the
purchase price must be paid in full in either cash or its
equivalent or by tendering previously acquired shares of our
common stock with a fair market value at the time of exercise
equal to the exercise price, provided such shares have been held
for at least six months prior to tender. The administrator may
also allow a broker-assisted cashless exercise or by any other
means that it determines to be consistent with the purpose of
the incentive plan and as permitted under applicable law.
Stock appreciation rights (SAR).
SAR
entitles a participant to receive a payment equal in value to
the difference between the fair market value of a share of stock
on the date of exercise of the SAR over
Restricted stock.
A restricted stock
award is the grant of shares of our common stock at a price
determined by the administrator (including zero), that is
nontransferable and is subject to substantial risk of forfeiture
until specific conditions or goals are met. Conditions may be
based on continuing employment or achieving performance goals.
During the period of restriction, participants holding shares of
restricted stock may, if permitted by the administrator, have
full voting and dividend rights with respect to such shares. The
restrictions will lapse in accordance with a schedule or other
conditions determined by the administrator.
Performance shares.
A performance share
award is a contingent right to receive pre-determined shares of
our common stock if certain performance goals are met. The value
of performance units will depend on the degree to which the
specified performance goals are achieved but are generally based
on the value of our common stock. The administrator may, in its
discretion, pay earned performance shares in cash, or stock, or
a combination of both.
Performance-based awards.
Grants of
performance-based awards enable us to treat restricted stock and
performance share awards granted under the incentive plan as
performance-based compensation under
Section 162(m) of the Code and preserve the deductibility
of these awards for federal income tax purposes. Because
Section 162(m) of the Code only applies to those employees
who are covered employees, as defined in
Section 162(m) of the Code, only covered employees are
eligible to receive performance-based awards.
Participants are only entitled to receive
payment for a performance-based award for any given performance
period to the extent that pre-established performance goals set
by the administrator for the period are satisfied. These
pre-established performance goals must be based on one or more
of the following performance criteria: pre- or after-tax net
earnings, sales or revenue, operating earnings, operating cash
flow, return on net assets, return on stockholders equity,
return on assets, return on capital, stock price growth,
stockholder returns, gross or net profit margin, earnings per
share, price per share, and market share. These performance
criteria may be measured in absolute terms or as compared to any
incremental increase or as compared to results of a peer group.
With regard to a particular performance period, the
administrator will have the discretion to select the length of
the performance period, the type of performance-based awards to
be granted, and the goals that will be used to measure the
performance for the period. In determining the actual size of an
individual performance-based award for a performance period, the
administrator may reduce or eliminate (but not increase) the
award. Generally, a participant will have to be employed on the
date the performance-based award is paid to be eligible for a
performance-based award for that period.
IPO awards.
IPO awards are non-qualified
stock options granted by the administrator to selected
individuals as of the effective date of the offering. The
exercise price for these awards is the initial public offering
price and will become fully vested as of the third anniversary
of the date of grant and will be subject to such other terms and
conditions included in a participants award agreement.
Shares reserved for issuance.
Subject to certain adjustments, we may
issue a maximum of 4,426,374 shares of our common stock,
including shares of common stock that may be issued upon the
exercise of options, under the incentive plan. The maximum
number of shares of common stock that may be subject to one or
more awards to a participant under the incentive plan during any
fiscal year is 1,000,000. The maximum number of shares of common
stock payable in the form of performance-based awards to any one
participant for a performance period is 1,000,000.
Change of control.
The incentive plan
provides that all awards granted under the incentive plan will
become fully exercisable and all restrictions on awards will
lapse if there is a change of control and the
optionholders employment is terminated without cause by
us, or for good reason by the
optionholder, within one year of the effective
date of the change of control. The term change of
control under the incentive plan is generally defined to
include (1) the acquisition of at least 25% of our voting
securities by any person, (2) certain changes in the
composition of our board of directors, (3) a merger or
consolidation in which our stockholders own less than 50% of the
voting securities of the surviving entity, (4) stockholder
approval of a liquidation or dissolution of our company and
(5) a transfer of all or substantially all of our total
assets.
Adoption by stockholders.
The incentive
plan has been adopted by the approval of holders of a majority
of outstanding shares of our common stock and series D
preferred stock.
CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED
TRANSACTIONS
Management Consulting Agreement
In 1997, we engaged in a leveraged
recapitalization with the assistance of The Jordan Company, LLC,
a New York-based private merchant banking firm that specializes
in buying and building companies in partnership with management.
In connection with that transaction, we entered into a
management consulting agreement with TJC Management Corporation
(Jordan Management), an affiliate of The Jordan Company. Jordan
Management may be considered an affiliate of our company because
Mr. Caputo, one of our directors, is a managing director of
The Jordan Company and, prior to the offering, executives of and
consultants to The Jordan Company beneficially owned an
aggregate of approximately 14.3% of our common stock.
In April 2002, the management consulting
agreement was amended to include Worldwide Training Group, LLC
(Worldwide) and Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC (Charlesbank)
as additional consultants, as such term is defined
in the agreement, in connection with their purchase of our
series D preferred stock. Worldwide and Charlesbank may be
deemed our affiliates because their beneficial ownership of our
common stock prior to the offering, on a converted basis,
represents 19.9% and 22.3%, respectively, of our total equity
ownership. In addition, Mr. Eisenson, one of our directors,
is a managing director and Chief Executive Officer of
Charlesbank. Following the offering, Charlesbank is expected to
own 14.7% of our common stock. Our board of directors has
concluded that Mr. Eisenson will meet the independence
requirement set forth in the rules promulgated under the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and that Mr. Eisenson qualifies
to serve as a member of our audit committee after the completion
of the offering.
Under the management consulting agreement, Jordan
Management, Worldwide and Charlesbank render consulting services
to us in connection with financial and business affairs,
relationships with lenders, stockholders and other third
parties, and the expansion of our business. Under the agreement,
we are required to pay these consultants an aggregate management
fee, in quarterly installments due at the end of each fiscal
quarter, equal to the greater of $300,000 or 2.5% of our EBITDA
earnings, as defined in the agreement, for our preceding fiscal
year.
In addition to the management fee, the agreement
also provides for:
Under the management consulting agreement, any
payment we make pursuant to the agreement will be divided as
follows:
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The table below sets forth the payments we have
made under the management consulting agreement in the first nine
months of our 2003 fiscal year and the prior three fiscal years:
We expect that the management consulting
agreement will be terminated in its entirety upon the
consummation of the offering and that no additional payments
will be made pursuant to that agreement as a result of the
offering or otherwise.
Registration Rights Agreement
As a condition to terminating the amended and
restated stockholders agreement, we anticipate entering
into a registration rights agreement with the following
stockholders: (i) JZ Equity Partners plc and The Jordan
Company, LLC (collectively, the TJC Shareholders);
(ii) Charlesbank Voting Trust, Charlesbank Equity
Fund V, Limited Partnership, CB Offshore Equity
Fund V, L.P., CB Equity Co-investment Fund V, Limited
Partnership and Coyote Training Group, LLC (collectively, the
Charlesbank Shareholders), (iii) Worldwide Training Group,
LLC; (iv) Whites Family Company, LLC and
(v) Robert D. Hartman. Pursuant to the registration rights
agreement, each of the TJC Shareholders, the Charlesbank
Shareholders and Worldwide Training Group, LLC shall have one
demand registration right. Pursuant to this demand
right, at any time after 180 days following the closing of
this offering, any of the TJC Shareholders, the Charlesbank
Shareholders and Worldwide Training Group, LLC may request that
we file a registration statement under the Securities Act of
1933 to cover the restricted shares of our common stock that
they own, as long as the aggregate offering price for the
proposed transaction to be registered is greater than
$25.0 million or represents an offering of at least 10% of
our outstanding common stock. Upon receipt of such request, we
generally will be required to use our best efforts to effect
such registration. We will not be required to effect a requested
registration, however, if we have effected one such registration
which is still in effect, or if the request is made within
360 days following the effective date of any registered
offering we have made to the general public, other than this
offering, in which a holder of restricted stock, as defined in
the registration rights agreement, shall have been able to
effectively register all the restricted stock as to which
registration has been requested. We may also delay filing a
registration statement or withhold efforts to cause a
registration statement to become effective if our board of
directors determines in good faith that such registration
statement will materially and adversely interfere with or affect
the negotiation or completion of any material transaction we are
considering or will involve initial or continuing disclosure
obligations that are not in our stockholders best
interests.
The registration rights agreement also provides
for piggyback rights with respect to the restricted
shares of our common stock held by each of the stockholders
party to this agreement, including Robert D. Hartman, our
Chairman of the Board, and Whites Family Company, LLC, an
entity controlled by John White, our Chief Strategic Planning
Officer and Vice Chairman. Accordingly, if we propose to
register, or are required to register following the exercise of
a demand registration right as described above, any
of our common stock for sale to the public following completion
of this offering, we are required to give written notice of our
intention to do so to each of the stockholders who is a party to
this agreement and to use our best efforts to include in the
registration statement the number of restricted shares of our
common stock beneficially owned and requested to be registered
by such stockholders, subject to reduction of such
80
Transactions with Management and
Others
Senior Subordinated Notes Payable by Us.
Pursuant to a purchase agreement
dated as of January 23, 1998 between us and JZ Equity
Partners plc, formerly known as MCIT plc, we issued two senior
subordinated notes to JZ Equity Partners plc. These notes were
issued in an aggregate principal amount of $15.4 million,
bore interest at an annual rate of 13.5% and were due on
January 1, 2008. Pursuant to the same purchase agreement,
on October 30, 1998 we issued a senior subordinated note in
the amount of $4.0 million due October 31, 2006 and
bearing an annual interest rate of 13.5%. We repaid these three
notes in full, including the associated accrued interest, in
April 2002, concurrently with the closing of our series D
preferred stock offering. JZ Equity Partners is an investment
trust listed on the London Stock Exchange. Its principal
business is to invest, primarily in the United States, in debt
and equity securities recommended by Jordan/ Zalaznick Advisers,
Inc., its sole investment adviser and an affiliate of The Jordan
Company.
Subordinated Promissory Notes Payable by
Us.
In addition to the senior
subordinated notes described above, we also issued on
September 30, 1997 separate subordinated promissory notes
in favor of a group of our officers and employees, including
Robert Hartman, John White, Kimberly McWaters, Roger Speer and
David Miller, and CHC I, Inc. These notes aggregated
$4.0 million in original principal amount, had an annual
interest rate of 13.5% and were due on January 31, 2008.
CHC I, Inc. is controlled by John C. White. We repaid these
notes, including the accrued interests in April 2002,
concurrently with the closing of our series D preferred
stock offering.
Loans to and from Insiders.
In 1997, we made restricted stock
awards to 16 of our employees and officers, including Robert
Hartman, Kimberly McWaters, Roger Speer and David Miller,
pursuant to our 1997 Restricted Stock Plan. Each of them
executed a promissory note in our favor as payment for the
restricted shares received. The aggregate principal amount of
the notes executed by these four officers was approximately
$115,000, plus interest accruing at an annual rate of 6.25%.
Robert Hartman, Kimberly McWaters, Roger Speer and David Miller
have repaid these notes in full, including all accrued interest.
In September 1997, we issued a promissory note in
the principal sum of approximately $4.0 million in favor of
Whites Family Company, LLC, an entity controlled by
John C. White, at an annual interest rate of approximately
6.6% and due on September, 2023. In August 2003, we repaid this
note in full, including all accrued interest. Immediately
following this repayment, Whites Family Company, LLC
remitted to us approximately $4.0 million in satisfaction
of the principal amount of, and accrued interest on, a
subscription note receivable bearing interest at approximately
6.1%.
In June 2003, Robert Hartman, Kimberly McWaters,
Roger Speer, David Miller and an entity affiliated with John
White and the assignee of his options purchased shares of our
common stock pursuant to their respective exercises of vested
options granted under our Management 1999 Stock Option Program.
Each of the optionees executed a note in our favor in payment
for their respective shares of our common stock received
pursuant to the exercise. The aggregate of the obligations under
these notes was $90,475, and interest accrued under these notes
at an annual rate of 6.0%. These notes have been paid in full.
The Preferred Share Exchange.
In addition to the series D
preferred stock, we have issued and outstanding shares of our
series A preferred stock, series B preferred stock and
series C preferred stock, which are held by a total of 21
persons or entities consisting of investors, our employees and
officers, including Robert Hartman, John White and Kimberly
McWaters. The series A preferred stock, series B
preferred stock and series C preferred stock are not
convertible by their terms into common stock. We will offer to
exchange the outstanding shares of series A, series B
and series C preferred stock for shares of our common stock
immediately prior to the consummation of this offering. We plan
to redeem all shares of our series A, series B and
series C preferred stock that are not exchanged and pay all
the accrued and
81
Declaration of Cash Dividend.
In September 2003, our board of
directors declared, and we paid, a cash dividend on the shares
of our common stock payable to the record holders as of
August 25, 2003. Charlesbank and Worldwide, the record
holders of our series D preferred stock, were entitled to
receive, upon conversion, such cash dividend, pro rata and on an
as-converted basis, pursuant to certain provisions of the
certificate of designation of the series D preferred stock.
Our certificate of incorporation was amended to permit the
holders of series D preferred stock to be paid the dividend
prior to the conversion and simultaneously with holders of our
common stock, and the holders of our series A, B and C
preferred stock consented to such payment. The aggregate amount
of the cash dividend was $5.0 million and was paid out
among Charlesbank ($1.2 million), Worldwide
($1.0 million), JZEP ($0.7 million), executives of and
consultants to The Jordan Company ($0.7 million), Robert D.
Hartman ($0.5 million), John C. White ($0.5 million)
and other members of our management (approximately
$0.3 million, in aggregate) by virtue of their ownership of
our common stock.
NTT Transaction.
In June 1998, we acquired National
Technology Transfer, Inc. (NTT) and Performance Training
Associates, Inc. (PTA), a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTT at the
acquisition date. NTT is engaged in technical training that
presents hands-on, equipment-intensive training seminars to the
maintenance, repair and operations sectors of our industry. PTA
organized lecture training seminars in markets similar to those
in which NTT is active. The acquisition of NTT and PTA was
completed for approximately $50.2 million, comprised of the
$37.8 million we borrowed under our senior credit
facilities to finance the acquisition, our issuance of a
$5.2 million subordinated convertible promissory note
payable to the former NTT and PTA shareholder, our issuance of a
$5.4 million 60-day note payable to the former NTT and PTA
shareholder and $1.8 million in transaction costs. PTA was
subsequently merged into NTT. In September of 2001, we sold our
interest in NTT to NTT Acquisition Corp. for a nominal
consideration of $1.00 because contemplated synergies did not
materialize and operating results were less than desired. NTT
Acquisition Corp. is owned by certain of our stockholders,
including affiliates of The Jordan Company, LLC, such as one of
our directors, A. Richard Caputo, and an entity controlled
by one of our directors, John W. Jordan, as well as our
management, including Robert D. Hartman and John C. White, who
serve on our board of directors. We reported the operating
results of NTT and the loss on disposal as discontinued
operations. In addition, we advanced $0.6 million to NTT
Acquisition Corp. subsequent to the sale of NTT, in exchange for
a note receivable in order to facilitate the transition of
payroll services and the payment of related taxes, benefits and
other operating expenses. This note has not been repaid. In
2002, we recorded a full valuation allowance because collection
was uncertain.
Leases.
We
lease some of our properties from entities controlled by John C.
White, our Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Vice Chairman of
our board of directors. A portion of the property comprising our
Orlando location is occupied pursuant to a lease with the John
C. and Cynthia L. White 1989 Family Trust, with the lease term
expiring on August 19, 2022. The annual base lease payments
for the first year under this lease total approximately
$326,000, with annual adjustments based on the higher of
(i) an amount equal to 4% of the total annual rent for the
immediately preceding year or (ii) the percentage of
increase in the Consumer Price Index. Another portion of the
property comprising our Orlando location is occupied pursuant to
a lease with Delegates LLC, an entity controlled by the White
Family Trust, with the lease term expiring on July 1, 2016.
The beneficiaries of this trust are Mr. Whites
82
We believe that the rental rates under these
leases approximate the fair market rental value of the
properties at the time the lease agreements were negotiated.
Other Related Party
Transactions.
In 2000, we engaged a consulting firm
for services related to strategic change management. We learned
about the consulting firm through Shirley Richard, who was a
member of our Advisory Board from 1994 until she joined us in
May 2003 as our Senior Vice President, Strategic Change
Management. Ms. Richard received approximately $116,400 in
2001 from the consulting firm for services rendered.
Ms. Richard has no equity ownership in the consulting firm
and has not had any financial relationship with the consulting
firm other than that described above.
83
an investment banking fee equal to 2% of the
value of any assets or stock of ours or other entity acquired or
sold by us;
a financial consulting fee equal to 1% of the
value of any debt or equity financing we consummate; and
reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket
expenses incurred by the consultants and their personnel in
providing the services to us.
with respect to any management fee, 40% to Jordan
Management or its assignee, 42% to Worldwide or its assignee and
18% to Charlesbank or its assignee; and
with respect to any investment banking fee or
financial consulting fee, 40% to Jordan Management or its
assignee, 30% to Worldwide or its assignee and 30% to
Charlesbank or its assignee.
2003
2000
2001
2002
(as of June 30)
$
0
$
250,000
(2)
$
2,348,949
(1)
$
235,545
(2)
$
0
$
0
$
111,321
(2)
$
247,322
(2)
$
0
$
0
$
47,709
(2)
$
105,995
(2)
(1)
Reflects fees for services rendered from 1998
through 2002, a portion of which were deferred pursuant to an
agreement between Jordan Management and us. These fees include
$900,000 related to the acquisition of National Technology
Transfer, Inc. in 1998, $100,000 related to obtaining a credit
agreement amendment in 1999 and $1,348,949 for ongoing
consulting services related to financial and business affairs.
(2)
Reflects fees related to ongoing financial and
business affairs.
John C. and Cynthia L. White
City Park LLC
1989 Family Trust
Delegates LLC
$
381,841
$
293,942
$
321,543
$
447,795
$
299,597
$
404,912
$
462,567
$
364,508
$
644,715
$
370,481
$
298,081
$
592,732
PRINCIPAL AND SELLING STOCKHOLDERS
The following table sets forth information
regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of
September 30, 2003, and as adjusted to reflect the sale of
shares in the offering by:
To our knowledge, each selling stockholder
purchased the shares of our stock in the ordinary course of
business and, at the time of the securities to be resold, the
selling stockholder had no agreements or understandings,
directly or indirectly, with any person to distribute the
securities.
Footnote (1) below provides a brief
explanation of what is meant by the term beneficial
ownership. For the purpose of calculating the percentage
of shares beneficially owned by any stockholder, the number of
shares of common stock deemed outstanding prior to
offering reflects or assumes the exchange of
3,673 shares of our series A preferred stock,
1,230 shares of our series B preferred stock and
1,151 shares of our series C preferred stock into an
aggregate of 288,269 shares of our common stock and the
automatic conversion of all outstanding shares of series D
preferred stock into an aggregate of 10,253,797 shares of
our common stock and includes shares of common stock subject to
options held by beneficial owners that are currently
exercisable. This table assumes the over-allotment option
granted to the underwriters is not exercised. In determining the
amount of Series A, B & C preferred stock to be
exchanged, management has made assumptions based on their best
estimate of the amount to be exchanged to common stock by the
executive officers, directors and other shareholders upon the
effective date of this Initial Public Offering. There is not a
contractual obligation for these holders of series A,
B & C Preferred to stock exchange. Actual results may
differ from these estimates under different assumptions or
conditions.
The number of shares of common stock outstanding
After Offering includes an additional
3,250,000 shares of common stock offered by us in the
offering. Except as indicated in the footnotes to this table and
subject to applicable community property laws, the persons named
in this table have the sole voting power with respect to all
shares of common stock listed as beneficially owned by them.
84
85
86
87
each person known to us to beneficially own more
than 5% of the outstanding shares of common stock;
each of the executive officers identified in the
summary compensation table;
each of our directors;
all directors and executive officers as a group;
and
each selling stockholder.
Before Offering
After Offering
Number of
Number of
Number of
Shares of
Percent of
Shares
Shares of
Percent of
Common Stock
Common Stock
Offered in
Common Stock
Common Stock
Beneficially
Beneficially
This
Beneficially
Beneficially
Name of Beneficial Owner
(1)
Owned
Owned
Offering
Owned
Owned
5,422,118
22.1
%
1,338,938
4,083,180
14.7
%
4,831,679
19.7
1,192,794
3,638,885
13.1
3,477,821
14.2
631,604
2,846,217
10.2
3,477,825
14.2
1,086,664
2,391,161
8.6
2,563,308
10.4
2,563,308
9.2
2,834,315
11.5
2,834,315
10.2
166,789
0.7
166,789
0.6
31,084
0.1
31,084
0.1
103,258
0.4
103,258
0.4
206,875
0.8
206,875
0.7
Before Offering
After Offering
Number of
Number of
Number of
Shares of
Percent of
Shares
Shares of
Percent of
Common Stock
Common Stock
Offered in
Common Stock
Common Stock
Beneficially
Beneficially
This
Beneficially
Beneficially
Name of Beneficial Owner
(1)
Owned
Owned
Offering
Owned
Owned
347,782
1.4
347,782
1.3
544,714
2.2
%
544,714
2.2
%
6,798,125
27.5
%
6,798,125
24.7
%
*
Less than 1% of the outstanding common stock.
(1)
Beneficial ownership is a term
broadly defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission in
Rule 13d-3 under the Exchange Act, and includes more than
the typical forms of stock ownership, that is, stock held in the
persons name. The term also includes what is referred to
as indirect ownership, meaning ownership of shares
as to which a person has or shares investment or voting power.
For purpose of this table, a person or group of persons is
deemed to have beneficial ownership of any shares as
of a given date that such person or group has the right to
acquire within 60 days after such date.
(2)
Shares beneficially owned prior to the offering
consist of 1,246.46395 shares of series D preferred stock
with a liquidation value of $19,302.60401 per share that are
convertible into 5,422,118 shares of common stock, which
will occur concurrently with the closing of the offering. Number
of shares to be beneficially owned after the offering consists
of 4,083,180 shares which may be transferred to the
respective holders of the trust certificates in accordance with
the procedures described below. Charlesbank Equity Fund V,
Limited Partnership, is the trustee of the voting trust.
Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC is the general partner of
Charlesbank Equity Fund V GP, Limited Partnership,
which is the general partner of the voting trustee of the voting
trust. Michael R. Eisenson, Kim G. Davis, Andrew S. Janower and
Tim R. Palmer have shared voting and investment power over
1,246.46395 shares held in the trust. Charlesbank Capital
Partners, LLCs business address is 600 Atlantic Avenue,
26th Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02210. This voting trust
terminates immediately upon the termination of the amended and
restated stockholders agreement which we anticipate will
terminate upon the closing of this offering. Upon termination of
the voting trust, the voting trustee will require the then
outstanding holders of voting trust certificates to surrender
the trust certificates in exchange for a stock certificate or
certificates representing the number of shares of our common
stock. Currently, holders of the trust certificates are as
follows: Charlesbank Equity Fund V, Limited Partnership,
representing 3,508,185 shares; CB Offshore Equity
Fund V, L.P., representing 493,678 shares; Charlesbank
Equity Co-investment Fund V, Limited Partnership,
representing 50,191 shares Charlesbank Coinvestment
Partners, Limited Partnership representing 4,395 shares and
Coyote Training Group, LLC, representing 1,365,669 shares.
(3)
Shares beneficially owned prior to the offering
consist of 1,110,730.97 shares of series D preferred
stock convertible into 4,831,679 shares of common stock,
which will occur concurrently with the closing of the offering.
Number of shares to be beneficially owned after the offering
consists of 3,638,885 shares held of record by Worldwide
Training Group, LLC. James A. Hislop and Roger Penske have
shared voting and investment power over 1,110.73097 shares
held by Worldwide Training Group, LLC. Worldwide Training Group,
LLC purchased the shares in the ordinary course of business and,
at the time of the purchase of the shares to be resold,
Worldwide Training Group, LLC had no agreements or
understandings, directly or indirectly, with any person to
distribute the shares. Worldwide Training Group, LLCs
business address is 13400 Outer Drive West, Suite B36,
Detroit, Michigan 48239.
(4)
Shares beneficially owned prior to the offering
consist of 3,477,821 shares of common stock held of record
by the voting trust. Shares beneficially owned after the
offering consists of 2,846,217 shares which will be
transferred to the respective holders of the trust certificates
in accordance with the procedures described below. The voting
trustees of the TJC Voting Trust are A. Richard Caputo,
John W. Jordan and David Zalaznick, who are principals of
The Jordan Company, LLC, a private merchant banking firm, with a
business address of 767 Fifth Avenue, 48th Floor, New
York, New York 10153. This voting trust terminates immediately
upon the
termination of the amended and restated
stockholders agreement, which we anticipate will terminate upon
the closing of this offering. Upon termination of the voting
trust, the voting trustees, will require the then outstanding
holders of voting trust certificates to surrender the trust
certificates in exchange for a stock certificate or certificates
representing the number of shares of our common stock.
Currently, holders of the trust certificates are as follows:
John W. Jordan, II, representing 544,714 shares;
Jonathan F. Boucher, representing 466,898 shares;
A. Richard Caputo, representing 347,782 shares;
Adam E. Max, representing 347,782 shares; John R.
Lowden, representing 151,815 shares; The Lowden Family
Trust, representing 109,021 shares; James E.
Jordan Jr. Profit Sharing Plan & Trust,
representing 8,694 shares; David Zalaznick, representing
544,714 shares; Douglas J. Zych, representing
52,167 shares; Paul Rodzevik, representing
34,778 shares, and Leucadia Investors, Inc., representing
869,450 shares.
(5)
JZ Equity Partners plc is an investment trust
listed on the London Stock Exchange. Its business is to invest,
primarily in the United States, in debt and equity securities
recommended by Jordan/Zalaznick Advisers, Inc., a Delaware
corporation based in New York, that is its sole investment
advisor. JZ Equity Partners plc is governed by a board of
independent directors who have shared voting and investment
power over
the shares.
JZ Equity Partners plc purchased the shares in the ordinary
course of business and, at the time of the purchase of the
shares to be resold had no agreements or understandings directly
or indirectly, with any person to distribute the shares. JZ
Equity Partners plc has its business address at
17(a) Curzon Street, London, W1J 5HS England.
(6)
Unless otherwise noted, the business address for
each of the executive officers is 10851 North Black Canyon
Road, Suite 600, Phoenix, Arizona 85029.
(7)
Includes 217,500 shares of common stock held
of record by the Robert D. Hartman and Janice W.
Hartman 1998 Charitable Remainder UniTrust, of which
Robert D. Hartman and Janice W. Hartman are trustees;
857,472 shares of common stock held of record by Hartman
Investments Limited Partnership, of which Robert D. Hartman
is the general partner, and 42,338 shares of common stock
issuable upon the exchange of 889 shares of series B
preferred stock held of record by Robert D. Hartman.
Mr. Hartman has the sole voting and investment power as to
1,445,998 shares and shared voting and investment power as
to 1,074,972 shares. Mr. Hartman is Chairman of our
Board of Directors.
(8)
Includes 2,624,549 shares of common stock
currently held of record, 209,766 shares of common stock
issuable upon the exchange of 3,673 shares of series A
preferred stock and 732 shares of series C preferred
stock, held of record by Whites Family Company, LLC. The
White Descendants Trust u/a/d September 10, 1997 is the
sole member and manager of Whites Family Company, LLC.
John C. White is the trustee of the White Descendants Trust
u/a/d September 10, 1997 and, as such, Mr. White has
sole voting and investment power over these shares.
Mr. White is our Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Vice
Chairman of the Board of Directors.
(9)
Includes options to purchase 77,711 shares
of common stock exercisable by Kimberly J. McWaters and
1,785 shares of common stock issuable upon the exchange of
51 shares of series B preferred stock held of record
by Ms. McWaters, who has sole voting and investment power
over these shares. Ms. McWaters is our President and Chief
Executive Officer.
(10)
Includes options to purchase 31,084 shares
of common stock exercisable by Jennifer L. Haslip, who has
sole voting and investment power over these shares.
Ms. Haslip is our Chief Financial Officer, Senior Vice
President and Treasurer.
(11)
Includes options to purchase 102,464 shares
of common stock held of record by David K. Miller and
794 shares of common stock issuable upon the exchange of
17 shares of series C preferred stock held of record
by David K. Miller. Mr. Miller has sole voting and
investment power over these shares. Mr. Miller is our
Senior Vice President of Admissions.
(12)
A. Richard Caputo serves on our board of
directors and is a managing director of The Jordan Company, LLC.
Mr. Caputos beneficial ownership includes
347,782 shares held by TJC Voting Trust, as described in
Note (4) above. Mr. Caputo is a voting trustee of the
TJC Voting Trust and, as such, has shared voting and
investment power over the shares held in the trust.
Mr. Caputos business address is 767 Fifth Avenue,
48th Floor, New York, New York 10153.
(13)
Robert F. Cioffi serves on our board of
directors and is Vice President of GE Equity. An affiliate of GE
Equity indirectly owns 14.1% of our common stock through
Worldwide Training Group, LLC. Mr. Cioffis business
address is 120 Long Ridge Road, Stamford, Connecticut 06927.
(14)
Michael R. Eisenson serves on our board of
directors and is a managing director and Chief Executive Officer
of Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC. Mr. Eisensons
beneficial ownership is attributable to Charlesbank Voting
Trust, as previously described in Note (2) above.
Mr. Eisenson shares investment and voting power over the
shares owned by Charlesbank Voting Trust.
Mr. Eisenson disclaims his beneficial ownership, other than
the pecuniary interest therein, of all the shares held by
Charlesbank Voting Trust. Mr. Eisensons business
address is Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC, 600 Atlantic
Avenue, 26th Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02210.
(15)
James A. Hislop serves on our board of
directors and is President of Worldwide Training Group, LLC and
President of Penske Capital Partners, LLC.
Mr. Hislops beneficial ownership includes
4,831,679 shares of series D preferred stock held by
Worldwide Training Group, LLC, as previously described in
Note (3) above. Mr. Hislop has shared voting power and
shared investment power over these shares.
Mr. Hislops business address is One Harmon Plaza,
9th Floor, Secausus, New Jersey 07094.
(16)
John W. Jordan serves on our board of
directors. Mr. Jordans beneficial ownership includes
544,714 shares held by the TJC Voting Trust, as previously
described in Note (4) above. Mr. Jordan is a voting
trustee of TJC Voting Trust and, as such, has shared voting and
investment power over the shares held in the trust.
Mr. Jordans address is 875 N. Michigan Avenue,
#4020, Chicago, Illinois 60611.
(17)
Roger S. Penske serves on our board of
directors. Mr. Penske also is Chairman of the Board of
Directors of Penske Corporation, United Auto Group, Inc. and
Penske Truck Leasing Corporation, all of which have ownership
rights in Worldwide Training Group, LLC. Mr. Penske
disclaims his beneficial ownership, other than the pecuniary
interest therein, of all the shares held by Worldwide Training
Group, LLC, that may be attributable to him.
Mr. Penskes business address is 2555 Telegraph
Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302.
DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK
General
We are authorized to
issue shares
of common stock, $0.0001 par value per share,
and shares
of preferred stock,
$ par
value per share.
The following description of the material terms
of our capital stock and our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation and amended and restated bylaws is only a summary.
You should refer to our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation and amended and restated bylaws as in effect upon
the closing of this offering, which are included as exhibits to
the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.
Common Stock
As of June 30, 2003, there were
3,189 shares of common stock outstanding, which were held
of record by 23 stockholders. Prior to or concurrently with
the completion of this offering (i) we will effect a
4,350-for-one common stock split, (ii) our outstanding
shares of series D preferred stock will, in accordance with
their terms, be converted into 10,253,797 shares of common
stock, (iii) we will consummate an offer to holders of our
outstanding shares of our series A preferred stock,
series B preferred stock and series C preferred stock
to exchange such shares for shares of our common stock at an
exchange ratio based upon the initial public offering price of
the common stock in this offering and the liquidation value of
their preferred stock and (iv) we will redeem in accordance
with their terms all shares of our series A, series B
and series C preferred stock which are not timely
transmitted for exchange. We estimate that 3,673 shares of
our series A, 1,130 shares of our series B and
1,151 shares of our series C preferred stock will be
tendered for exchange, resulting in our issuance of
288,269 shares of common stock (assuming an initial public
offering price for the common stock of $21.00 per share, the
mid-point of the price range set forth on the cover of this
prospectus). Consequently, upon completion of this offering,
there will be 27,664,840 shares of common stock outstanding
(assuming no exercise of the underwriters over-allotment
option). In determining the amount of Series A, B & C
preferred stock to be exchanged, management has made assumptions
based on their best estimate of the amount to be exchanged to
common stock by the executive officers, directors and other
shareholders upon the effective date of this Initial Public
Offering. There is not a contractual obligation for these
holders of series A, B & C Preferred stock to exchange.
Actual results may differ from these estimates under different
assumptions or conditions.
Voting rights.
The holders of our common stock
are entitled to one vote per share for each share held of record
on any matter to be voted upon by stockholders. Our amended and
restated certificate of incorporation does not provide for
cumulative voting in connection with the election of directors
and, accordingly, holders of more than 50% of the shares voting
will be able to elect all of the directors standing for election.
Dividend rights.
All shares of our common stock are
entitled to share equally in any dividends our board of
directors may declare from legally available sources. Our senior
secured credit facilities currently impose restrictions on our
ability to declare dividends with respect to our common stock.
Liquidation rights.
Upon liquidation or dissolution of
our company, whether voluntary or involuntary, all shares of our
common stock are entitled to share equally in the assets
available for distribution to stockholders after payment of all
of our prior obligations, including our preferred stock.
Other matters.
The holders of our common stock
have no preemptive or conversion rights and our common stock is
not subject to further calls or assessments by us. There are no
redemption or sinking fund provisions applicable to the common
stock. All outstanding shares of our common stock, including the
common stock offered in this offering, are fully paid and
non-assessable.
88
Preferred Stock
Prior to or concurrently with the completion of
this offering, all outstanding shares of our preferred stock
will either be converted into shares of our common stock,
exchanged for shares of our common stock or redeemed.
Consequently, no shares of preferred stock will be outstanding
immediately following completion of this offering.
Our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation provides for the authorization
of shares
of preferred stock. The shares of preferred stock may be issued
from time to time at the discretion of the board of directors
without stockholder approval. The board of directors is
authorized to issue these shares in different classes and series
and, with respect to each class or series, to determine the
dividend rate, the redemption provisions, conversion provisions,
liquidation preference and other rights and privileges not in
conflict with our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation. No shares of our preferred stock will be
outstanding immediately following completion of this offering,
and we have no immediate plans to issue any preferred stock. The
issuance of any of our preferred stock could provide needed
flexibility in connection with possible acquisitions and other
corporate purposes, however, the issuance could also make it
more difficult for a third party to acquire a majority of our
outstanding voting stock or discourage an attempt to gain
control of us. In addition, the board of directors, without
stockholder approval, can issue shares of preferred stock with
voting and conversion rights which could adversely affect the
voting power and other rights of the holders of common stock.
The listing requirements of the New York Stock Exchange, which
would apply so long as the common stock is listed on the New
York Stock Exchange, require stockholder approval of certain
issuances equal to or exceeding 20% of the then outstanding
voting power of then outstanding number of shares of common
stock. These additional shares may be used for a variety of
corporate purposes, including future public offerings, to raise
additional capital or to facilitate acquisitions.
Directors Exculpation and
Indemnification
Our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation provides that none of our directors shall be
liable to us or our stockholders for monetary damages for any
breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except to the extent
otherwise required by the Delaware General Corporation Law, or
the DGCL. The effect of this provision is to eliminate our
rights, and our stockholders rights, to recover monetary
damages against a director for breach of a fiduciary duty of
care as a director, except to the extent otherwise required by
the DGCL. This provision does not limit or eliminate our right,
or the right of any stockholder, to seek non-monetary relief,
such as an injunction or rescission in the event of a breach of
a directors duty of care. In addition, our amended and
restated certificate of incorporation provides that, if the DGCL
is amended to authorize the further elimination or limitation of
the liability of a director, then the liability of the directors
shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted
by the DGCL, as so amended. These provisions will not alter the
liability of directors under federal or state securities laws.
We have entered into indemnification agreements
with each of our directors and key officers. These
indemnification agreements provide that we will indemnify our
directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by law
for liabilities they may incur because of their status as
directors and officers. These agreements also provide that we
will advance expenses to our directors and officers relating to
claims for which they may be entitled to indemnification. Upon a
potential change of control of our company, our directors and
officers may request that we create a trust for their benefit in
an amount sufficient to satisfy any expenses that they may
reasonably expect to incur in connection with a claim against
them. These indemnification agreements also provide that we will
maintain directors and officers liability insurance.
Registration Rights
We anticipate entering into a registration rights
agreement with certain of our stockholders, including
JZ Equity Partners plc, TJC Voting Trust, Charlesbank
Voting Trust and its affiliates, Worldwide Training Group, LLC,
Whites Family Company, LLC and Robert D. Hartman. See
Certain Relationships And Related Transactions for a
more detailed summary of the proposed registration rights
agreement.
89
Certain Provisions of Our Certificate of
Incorporation and Bylaws
Provisions with anti-takeover implications.
We have opted not to be governed
by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General
Corporation Law. In general, the statute prohibits a publicly
held Delaware corporation from engaging in a business
combination with an interested stockholder for
a period of three years after the date of the transaction in
which the person became an interested stockholder, unless the
business combination is approved by the corporations board
of directors and/or stockholders in a prescribed manner. The
term business combination includes mergers, asset
sales and other transactions resulting in a financial benefit to
the interested stockholder. Subject to certain exceptions, an
interested stockholder is a person who, together
with affiliates and associates, owns, or within three years of
the proposed business combination did own, 15% or more of the
corporations voting stock. Rather than being governed by
Section 203, we have chosen to adopt a fair market
value provision to govern business
combinations with an interested stockholder.
For the purposes of this provision, the definitions of
business combination and interested
stockholder generally correspond to those in Section 203
except that, with regard to the definition of interested
stockholder, our provision contains only a two-year
look-back period for stock ownership and the ownership threshold
is only 10%. We believe that the fair market value
provision not only captures the statutory benefits of
Section 203, but also provides the desired certainty
concerning transactions involving a business
combination with an interested stockholder.
Election and removal of directors.
Our amended and restated
certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws
provide for the division of our board of directors into three
classes as nearly equal in size as possible and with staggered
three-year terms. Any vacancy on our board of directors,
including a vacancy resulting from an enlargement of our board
of directors, may be filled only by the vote of a majority of
the directors then in office. The classification of our board of
directors and the limitation on filling of vacancies could make
it more difficult for a third party to acquire, or discourage a
third party from attempting to acquire, control of our company.
Board meetings.
Our amended and restated bylaws
provide that special meetings of the board of directors may be
called by the chairman of our board of directors, our chief
executive officer or by a majority of the directors in office.
Stockholder meetings.
Our amended and restated bylaws
provide that any action required or permitted to be taken by our
stockholders at an annual meeting or special meeting of
stockholders may only be taken if it is properly brought before
such meeting and may not be taken by written action in lieu of a
meeting. Our bylaws further provide that special meetings of the
stockholders may only be called by the chairman of our board of
directors, by a committee that is duly designated by the board
or by resolution adopted by the affirmative vote of the majority
of the board of directors.
Requirements for advance notification of
stockholder nominations and
proposals.
Our amended and
restated bylaws establish advance notice procedures with respect
to stockholder proposals and the nomination of candidates for
election as directors, other than nominations made by or at the
direction of our board of directors or a committee of the board
of directors. In order for any matter to be considered
properly brought before a meeting, a stockholder
must comply with requirements regarding advance notice and
provide certain information to us. These provisions could have
the effect of delaying until the next stockholders meeting
stockholder actions that are favored by the holders of a
majority of our outstanding voting securities. These provisions
could also discourage a third party from making a tender offer
for our common stock, because even if it acquired a majority of
our outstanding voting securities, it would be able to take
action as a stockholder (such as electing new directors or
approving a merger) only at a duly called stockholders meeting
and not by written consent.
Stockholder action by written consent.
Our amended and restated
certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws
provide that stockholder action may be taken only at a duly
called annual or special meeting of stockholders of our common
stock.
90
Cumulative voting.
Our amended and restated
certificate of incorporation provides that our stockholders
shall have no cumulative voting rights.
Amendment of certificate of incorporation
and bylaws.
Amendment of the
provisions described above in our amended and restated
certificate of incorporation generally will require the
affirmative vote of a majority of our directors, as well as the
affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of our
then outstanding voting stock. Our amended and restated bylaws
may be amended (i) by the affirmative vote of the majority
of our board of directors, (ii) in the case of certain
provisions concerning takeovers or changes of control, by the
affirmative vote of three-fourths of the directors in office or
(iii) on the recommendation of our board of directors, by
the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of our then
outstanding voting stock.
NYSE Trading
We intend to apply to have our common stock
listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol
UTI.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
The transfer agent and registrar issues stock
certificates and keeps track of the registered holders of our
stock. Our transfer agent and registrar is The Bank of New York.
91
AMENDED AND RESTATED CREDIT FACILITY
Following the repayment in full of all borrowings
under our term A loan facility and the term B loan
facility with a portion of the proceeds of this offering, our
senior credit facilities will consist only of a revolving credit
facility that allows for aggregate borrowings of
$30 million. The revolving credit facility provides for the
issuance of letters of credit up to a specified amount for the
benefit of ED or any other third party. The amount available
under the revolving credit facility is reduced by the amount of
outstanding letters of credit. Our wholly-owned subsidiary,
UTI Holdings, Inc., is the borrower under the senior credit
facilities. UTI Holdings, Inc. is an intermediate holding
company that is holding the capital stock of all of our
operating subsidiaries. The revolving credit facility expires on
March 31, 2007.
As of July 2003, the revolving credit facility
bears interest at a rate equal to LIBOR plus 2.50% to 3.50% or,
at our option, the prime rate plus 1.25% to 2.25%, in each case
depending on our leverage ratio during the applicable interest
period. In addition to paying interest on outstanding principal
under the revolving credit facility, we are required to pay to
the issuers of letters of credit under our senior credit
facilities a risk participation fee equal to 1.5% per year on
the amount of such letters of credit.
The obligations of the borrower under the senior
credit facilities and the related documents are secured by a
first priority lien upon substantially all of the
borrowers assets, including a pledge of substantially all
of the common stock of the borrowers subsidiaries. As of
September 30, 2003, there were no outstanding borrowings
under the revolving credit facility, there were outstanding
letters of credit for approximately $15.6 million issued
and outstanding under the facility. Outstanding borrowings under
the term A and term B loan facilities totalled
$31.6 million at September 30, 2003. We plan to use a
portion of the net proceeds of the offering to repay all
outstanding borrowings under our term A and term B
loan facilities.
The senior credit facilities contain a number of
covenants that, among other things, restrict our ability to:
In addition, under the senior credit facilities,
we are required to comply with specified financial ratios and
tests, including minimum fixed charge coverage and interest
coverage ratios and maximum leverage ratios, which become more
stringent over time. The senior credit facilities also contain
customary events of default as well as an event of default in
the event that any of our institutions loses any accreditation
necessary for Title IV Program eligibility, or the ability
of any such institution to participate in the Title IV
Programs is cancelled, and such loss or cancellation is not
cured within a specified period.
92
incur additional indebtedness;
grant liens or other security interests;
make investments;
become liable for contingent obligations;
make specified restricted payments;
dispose of assets or stock of our subsidiaries; or
make capital expenditures above a specified
aggregate amount.
SHARES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALE
Prior to this offering, there has not been a
public market for our common stock. Future sales of substantial
amounts of our common stock in the public market, or the
possibility of these sales, could adversely affect the trading
price of our common stock and could impair our future ability to
raise capital through the sale of our equity at a time and price
we deem appropriate.
Upon completion of this offering, we will have
outstanding 27,664,840 shares of common stock. Of these
shares, the 7,500,000 shares sold in this offering will be
freely tradable without restriction or further registration
under the Securities Act, except for any shares purchased by our
affiliates, as defined in Rule 144 under the
Securities Act, which would be subject to the limitations and
restrictions described below.
Assuming the underwriters over-allotment
option is not exercised, the remaining 20,164,840 shares of
common stock that will be held by existing stockholders will be
restricted securities, as defined in Rule 144.
Restricted securities may be sold in the public market only if
registered or if they qualify for an exemption from registration
under Rules 144 and 144(k) promulgated under the Securities
Act, which rules are summarized below. It is currently
contemplated that included among these restricted securities
will be 18,357,066 shares of common stock owned by a
limited number of our stockholders that will be parties to a
registration rights agreement with us. That agreement provides
certain of the stockholders that are parties to it with the
right, after the expiration of the lock-up agreements described
in Underwriting, to require us to effect the
registration of their shares. In addition, if we propose to
register, or are required to register following the exercise of
a demand registration right as described in the
previous sentence, any of our shares of common stock under the
Securities Act, all of our stockholders that are parties to the
registration rights agreement will be entitled to include their
shares of common stock in that registration. For a description
of the registration rights agreement see Certain
Relationships and Related Transactions Registration
Rights Agreement.
Taking into account the lock-up agreements
described in Underwriting and the provisions of
Rules 144 and 144(k), the restricted securities will be
available for sale in the public market as follows:
All of these restricted securities will be
eligible for sale in the public market, subject in some cases to
the volume limitations and other restrictions of Rule 144,
beginning upon expiration of the lock-up agreements described in
Underwriting. The numbers of shares of common stock
listed above do not include shares of common stock issuable upon
exercise of stock options granted under our stock plans that
were unexercised as of June 30, 2003. Upon completion of
the offering, we intend to file a registration statement on
Form S-8 with the SEC to register 4,426,374 shares of
our common stock reserved for issuance or sale under our
incentive stock plans. As of September 30, 2003, there were
outstanding options to purchase a total of 759,327 shares
of common stock, 152,313 of which were vested. Shares of
common stock issuable upon the exercise of options granted or to
be granted under our stock option plans will be freely tradable
without restriction under the Securities Act, unless such shares
are held by an affiliate of ours.
Rule 144
In general, under Rule 144 as currently in
effect, beginning 90 days after this offering, a person (or
persons whose shares are required to be aggregated), including
an affiliate, who has beneficially owned
93
Sales under Rule 144 are also subject to
manner of sale provisions and notice requirements and to the
availability of current public information about us.
Rule 144(k)
In addition, a person who is not deemed to have
been an affiliate of ours at any time during the 90 days
preceding a sale and who has beneficially owned the shares
proposed to be sold for at least two years, would be entitled to
sell those shares under Rule 144(k) without regard to the
manner of sale, public information, volume limitation or notice
requirements of Rule 144. To the extent that our affiliates
sell their shares, other than pursuant to Rule 144 or a
registration statement, the purchasers holding period for
the purpose of effecting a sale under Rule 144 commences on
the date of transfer from the affiliate.
94
Number of Shares
Date
0
After the date of this prospectus.
0
After 90 days from the date of this
prospectus.
19,473,425
After 180 days from the date of this
prospectus.
1% of then outstanding shares of common stock, or
276,648 shares; and
the average weekly trading volume in the common
stock on the New York Stock Exchange during the four calendar
weeks preceding the date on which notice of sale is filed,
subject to restrictions.
MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL TAX
CONSEQUENCES
The following is a general discussion of the
material U.S. federal income and estate tax consequences to
non-U.S. Holders with respect to the acquisition, ownership
and disposition of our common stock. In general, a
Non-U.S. Holder is any holder of our common
stock other than the following:
This discussion is based on current provisions of
the Internal Revenue Code, Treasury Regulations promulgated
under the Internal Revenue Code, judicial opinions, published
positions of the Internal Revenue Service, and all other
applicable authorities, all of which are subject to change,
possibly with retroactive effect. This discussion does not
address all aspects of U.S. federal income and estate
taxation or any aspects of state, local, or
non-U.S. taxation, nor does it consider any specific facts
or circumstances that may apply to particular
Non-U.S. Holders that may be subject to special treatment
under the U.S. federal income tax laws, such as insurance
companies, tax-exempt organizations, financial institutions,
brokers, dealers in securities, and U.S. expatriates. The
discussion also does not address any tax considerations with
respect to shares that are held by partnerships or other
pass-through entities.
Prospective investors are urged to consult their
tax advisors regarding the U.S. federal, state, local, and
non-U.S. income and other tax considerations of acquiring,
holding, and disposing of shares of common stock.
Dividends
In general, dividends paid to a
Non-U.S. Holder will be subject to U.S. withholding
tax at a rate equal to 30% of the gross amount of the dividend,
or a lower rate prescribed by an applicable income tax treaty,
unless the dividends are effectively connected with a trade or
business carried on by the Non-U.S. Holder within the
United States. Under applicable Treasury Regulations, a
Non-U.S. Holder will be required to satisfy certain
certification requirements, generally on IRS Form W-8BEN,
directly or through an intermediary, in order to claim a reduced
rate of withholding under an applicable income tax treaty. If
tax is withheld in an amount in excess of the amount applicable
under an income tax treaty, a refund of the excess amount may
generally be obtained by filing an appropriate claim for refund
with the IRS.
Dividends that are effectively connected with
such a U.S. trade or business generally will not be subject
to U.S. withholding tax if the Non-U.S. Holder files
the required forms, including IRS Form W-8ECI, or any
successor form, with the payor of the dividend, but instead
generally will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a
net income basis in the same manner as if the
Non-U.S. Holder were a resident of the United States. A
corporate Non-U.S. Holder that receives effectively
connected dividends may be subject to an additional branch
profits tax at a rate of 30%, or a lower rate prescribed by an
applicable income tax treaty, on the repatriation from the
United States of its effectively connected earnings and
profits, subject to adjustments.
95
Gain on Sale or Other Disposition of Common
Stock
In general, a Non-U.S. Holder will not be
subject to U.S. federal income tax on any gain realized
upon the sale or other taxable disposition of the
Non-U.S. Holders shares of common stock unless:
Information Reporting and Backup
Withholding
Generally, we must report annually to the IRS the
amount of dividends paid, the name and address of the recipient,
and the amount, if any, of tax withheld. A similar report is
sent to the recipient. These information reporting requirements
apply even if withholding was not required because the dividends
were effectively connected dividends or withholding was reduced
by an applicable income tax treaty. Under tax treaties or other
agreements, the IRS may make its reports available to tax
authorities in the recipients country of residence.
Payments made to a Non-U.S. Holder that is
not an exempt recipient generally will be subject to backup
withholding, currently at a rate of 28%, unless a
Non-U.S. Holder certifies as to its foreign status, which
certification may be made on IRS Form W-8BEN.
Proceeds from the disposition of common stock by
a Non-U.S. Holder effected by or through a United States
office of a broker will be subject to information reporting and
backup withholding, currently at a rate of 28% of the gross
proceeds, unless the Non-U.S. Holder certifies to the payor
under penalties of perjury as to, among other things, its
address and status as a Non-U.S. Holder or otherwise
establishes an exemption. Generally, United States information
reporting and backup withholding will not apply to a payment of
disposition proceeds if the transaction is effected outside the
United States by or through a non-U.S. office of a broker.
However, if the broker is, for U.S. federal income tax
purposes, a U.S. person, a controlled foreign corporation,
a foreign person who derives 50% or more of its gross income for
specified periods from the conduct of a U.S. trade or
business, specified U.S. branches of foreign banks or
insurance companies, or, a foreign partnership with various
connections to the United States, information reporting but not
backup withholding will apply unless:
Backup withholding is not an additional tax.
Rather, the amount of tax withheld is applied to the
U.S. federal income tax liability of persons subject to
backup withholding. If backup withholding results in an
overpayment of U.S. federal income taxes, a refund may be
obtained, provided the required documents are filed with the IRS.
Estate Tax
Our common stock owned or treated as owned by an
individual who is not a citizen or resident of the United States
(as specifically defined for U.S. federal estate tax
purposes) at the time of death will be includible in the
individuals gross estate for U.S. federal estate tax
purposes, unless an applicable estate tax treaty provides
otherwise.
96
a citizen or resident of the United States,
including an alien individual who is a lawful
permanent resident of the United States or meets the
substantial presence test under
section 7701(b)(1)(A)(3) of the Code;
a corporation (or an entity treated as a
corporation) created or organized in the United States or under
the laws of the United States, any state thereof, or the
District of Columbia;
an estate, the income of which is subject to
U.S. federal income tax regardless of its source; or
a trust, if a U.S. court can exercise
primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one
or more U.S. persons can control all substantial decisions
of the trust, or certain other trusts that have a valid election
in effect.
the gain is effectively connected with a trade or
business carried on by the Non-U.S. Holder within the
United States, in which case the branch profits tax discussed
above may also apply if the Non-U.S. Holder is a
corporation;
the Non-U.S. Holder is an individual who
holds shares of common stock as capital assets and is present in
the United States for 183 days or more in the taxable year
of disposition and various other conditions are met.
the broker has documentary evidence in its files
that the holder is a Non-U.S. Holder and other conditions
are met; or
the holder otherwise establishes an exemption.
UNDERWRITING
Under the terms and subject to the conditions
contained in an underwriting agreement
dated ,
we and the selling stockholders have agreed to sell to the
underwriters named below, for whom Credit Suisse First Boston
LLC is acting as the representative, the following respective
numbers of shares of common stock:
The underwriting agreement provides that the
underwriters are obligated to purchase all the shares of common
stock in the offering if any are purchased, other than those
shares covered by the over-allotment option described below. The
underwriting agreement also provides that if an underwriter
defaults the purchase commitments of non-defaulting underwriters
may be increased or the offering may be terminated.
The selling stockholders have granted to the
underwriters a 30-day option to purchase on a pro rata basis up
to 1,125,000 additional outstanding shares from them at the
initial public offering price less the underwriting discounts
and commissions. The option may be exercised only to cover any
over-allotments of common stock.
The underwriters propose to offer the shares of
common stock initially at the public offering price on the cover
page of this prospectus and to selling group members at that
price less a selling concession of
$ per
share. The underwriters and selling group members may allow a
discount of
$ per
share on sales to other broker/ dealers. After the initial
public offering, the representative may change the public
offering price and concession and discount to broker/dealers.
The following table summarizes the compensation
and estimated expenses we and the selling stockholders will pay:
The representative has informed us that the
underwriters do not expect discretionary sales to exceed 5% of
the shares of common stock being offered.
We have agreed that we will not offer, sell,
contract to sell, pledge or otherwise dispose of, directly or
indirectly, or file with the Securities and Exchange Commission
a registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933 (the
Securities Act), relating to any shares of our
common stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable or
exercisable for any shares of our common stock, or publicly
disclose the intention to make any offer, sale, pledge,
disposition or filing, without the prior written consent of
Credit Suisse First Boston LLC for a period of 180 days
after the date of this prospectus, except that we may issue
shares of common stock pursuant to the conversion or exchange of
convertible or exchangeable securities or the exchange of
preferred shares as described in this prospectus or the exercise
of warrants or options, in each case outstanding on the date of
this prospectus, or grant employee stock options or
97
Our officers, directors, stockholders and
optionholders have agreed that they will not offer, sell,
contract to sell, pledge or otherwise dispose of, directly or
indirectly, any shares of our common stock or securities
convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for any shares
of our common stock, enter into a transaction that would have
the same effect, or enter into any swap, hedge or other
arrangement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the
economic consequences of ownership of our common stock, whether
any of these transactions are to be settled by delivery of our
common stock or other securities, in cash or otherwise, or
publicly disclose the intention to make any offer, sale, pledge
or disposition, or to enter into any transaction, swap, hedge or
other arrangement, without, in each case, the prior written
consent of Credit Suisse First Boston LLC for a period of
180 days after the date of this prospectus. The exercise of
options granted to these persons or the conversion or exchange,
prior to or upon effectiveness of the registration statement
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection
with this offering, of shares of our series A, B, C and D
preferred stock currently outstanding and held by them into
shares of our common stock will not be subject to or prohibited
by these lock-up agreements.
The underwriters have reserved for sale at the
initial public offering price up
to shares
of the common stock for employees, directors and other persons
associated with us who have expressed an interest in purchasing
common stock in the offering. The number of shares available for
sale to the general public in the offering will be reduced to
the extent these persons purchase the reserved shares. Any
reserved shares not so purchased will be offered by the
underwriters to the general public on the same terms as the
other shares.
We and the selling stockholders have agreed to
indemnify the underwriters against liabilities under the
Securities Act, or contribute to payments that the underwriters
may be required to make in that respect.
We intend to apply to list the shares of common
stock on the New York Stock Exchange.
Certain of the underwriters and their respective
affiliates have from time to time performed, and may in the
future perform, various financial advisory, commercial banking
and investment banking services for us and our affiliates in the
ordinary course of business, for which they received, or will
receive, customary fees and expenses.
Prior to the offering, there has been no market
for our common stock. The initial public offering price will be
determined by negotiation between us and the underwriters and
will not necessarily reflect the market price of the common
stock following the offering. The principal factors that will be
considered in determining the public offering price will include:
We offer no assurances that the initial public
offering price will correspond to the price at which the common
stock will trade in the public market subsequent to this
offering or that an active trading market for the common stock
will develop and continue after the offering.
98
In connection with the offering the underwriters
may engage in stabilizing transactions, over-allotment
transactions, syndicate covering transactions and penalty bids
in accordance with Regulation M under the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act).
These stabilizing transactions, syndicate
covering transactions and penalty bids may have the effect of
raising or maintaining the market price of our common stock or
preventing or retarding a decline in the market price of the
common stock. As a result, the price of our common stock may be
higher than the price that might otherwise exist in the open
market. These transactions may be effected on the New York Stock
Exchange or otherwise and, if commenced, may be discontinued at
any time.
A prospectus in electronic format may be made
available on the web sites maintained by one or more of the
underwriters, or selling group members, if any, participating in
the offering and one or more of the underwriters participating
in this offering may distribute prospectuses electronically. The
representative may agree to allocate a number of shares to
underwriters and selling group members for sale to their online
brokerage account holders. Internet distributions will be
allocated by the underwriters and selling group members that
will make internet distributions on the same basis as other
allocations.
99
NOTICE TO CANADIAN RESIDENTS
Resale Restrictions
The distribution of the common stock in Canada is
being made only on a private placement basis exempt from the
requirement that we and the selling stockholders prepare and
file a prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in
each province where trades of common stock are made. Any resale
of the common stock in Canada must be made under applicable
securities laws which will vary depending on the relevant
jurisdiction, and which may require resales to be made under
available statutory exemptions or under a discretionary
exemption granted by the applicable Canadian securities
regulatory authority. Purchasers are advised to seek legal
advice prior to any resale of the common stock.
Representations of Purchasers
By purchasing common stock in Canada and
accepting a purchase confirmation a purchaser is representing to
us, the selling stockholders and the dealer from whom the
purchase confirmation is received that
Rights of Action Ontario
Purchasers Only
Under Ontario securities legislation, a purchaser
who purchases a security offered by this prospectus during the
period of distribution will have a statutory right of action for
damages, or while still the owner of the shares, for rescission
against us and the selling stockholders in the event that this
prospectus contains a misrepresentation. A purchaser will be
deemed to have relied on the misrepresentation. The right of
action for damages is exercisable not later than the earlier of
180 days from the date the purchaser first had knowledge of
the facts giving rise to the cause of action and three years
from the date on which payment is made for the shares. The right
of action for rescission is exercisable not later than
180 days from the date on which payment is made for the
shares. If a purchaser elects to exercise the right of action
for rescission, the purchaser will have no right of action for
damages against us or the selling stockholders. In no case will
the amount recoverable in any action exceed the price at which
the shares were offered to the purchaser and if the purchaser is
shown to have purchased the securities with knowledge of the
misrepresentation, we and the selling stockholders will have no
liability. In the case of an action for damages, we and the
selling stockholders will not be liable for all or any portion
of the damages that are proven to not represent the depreciation
in value of the shares as a result of the misrepresentation
relied upon. These rights are in addition to, and without
derogation from, any other rights or remedies available at law
to an Ontario purchaser. The foregoing is a summary of the
rights available to an Ontario purchaser. Ontario purchasers
should refer to the complete text of the relevant statutory
provisions.
Enforcement of Legal Rights
All of our directors and officers as well as the
experts named herein and the selling stockholders may be located
outside of Canada and, as a result, it may not be possible for
Canadian purchasers to effect service of process within Canada
upon us or those persons. All or a substantial portion of our
assets and the assets of those persons may be located outside of
Canada and, as a result, it may not be possible to satisfy a
judgment against us or those persons in Canada or to enforce a
judgment obtained in Canadian courts against us or those persons
outside of Canada.
Taxation and Eligibility for
Investment
Canadian purchasers of common stock should
consult their own legal and tax advisors with respect to the tax
consequences of an investment in the common stock in their
particular circumstances and about the eligibility of the common
stock for investment by the purchaser under relevant Canadian
legislation.
100
Number
Underwriter
of Shares
7,500,000
Per Share
Total
Without
With
Without
With
Over-allotment
Over-allotment
Over-allotment
Over-allotment
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
the information presented in this prospectus and
otherwise available to the underwriters;
the history of and the prospects for the industry
in which we will compete;
the ability of our management;
the prospects for our future earnings;
the present state of our development and our
current financial condition;
the recent market prices of, and the demand for,
publicly traded common stock of generally comparable companies;
and
the general condition of the securities markets
at the time of the offering.
Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase
the underlying security so long as the stabilizing bids do not
exceed a specified maximum.
Over-allotment involves sales by the underwriters
of shares in excess of the number of shares the underwriters are
obligated to purchase, which creates a syndicate short position.
The short position may be either a covered short position or a
naked short position. In a covered short position, the number of
shares over-allotted by the underwriters is not greater than the
number of shares that they may purchase in the over-allotment
option. In a naked short position, the number of shares involved
is greater than the number of shares in the over-allotment
option. The underwriters may close out any covered short
position by either exercising their over-allotment option and/or
purchasing shares in the open market.
Syndicate covering transactions involve purchases
of the common stock in the open market after the distribution
has been completed in order to cover syndicate short positions.
In determining the source of shares to close out the short
position, the underwriters will consider, among other things,
the price of shares available for purchase in the open market as
compared to the price at which they may purchase shares through
the over-allotment option. If the underwriters sell more shares
than could be covered by the over- allotment option, a naked
short position, the position can only be closed out by buying
shares in the open market. A naked short position is more likely
to be created if the underwriters are concerned that there could
be downward pressure on the price of the shares in the open
market after pricing that could adversely affect investors who
purchase shares in the offering.
Penalty bids permit the representative to reclaim
a selling concession from a syndicate member when the common
stock originally sold by the syndicate member is purchased in a
stabilizing or syndicate covering transaction to cover syndicate
short positions.
the purchaser is entitled under applicable
provincial securities laws to purchase the common stock without
the benefit of a prospectus qualified under those securities
laws,
where required by law, that the purchaser is
purchasing as principal and not as agent, and
the purchaser has reviewed the text above under
Resale Restrictions.
LEGAL MATTERS
The validity of the shares of common stock
offered by this prospectus will be passed upon for us by Bryan
Cave LLP, Phoenix, Arizona. The underwriters have been
represented by Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, New York, New
York.
EXPERTS
The financial statements as of September 30,
2001 and 2002 and for each of the three years in the period
ended September 30, 2002 included in this prospectus have
been so included in reliance on the report of
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, independent accountants, given on
the authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
We have filed with the SEC a registration
statement on Form S-1 under the Securities Act relating to
the common stock we are offering. This prospectus, which
constitutes a part of the registration statement, does not
contain all the information that is in the registration
statement and its exhibits and schedules. Certain portions of
the registration statement have been omitted as allowed by the
rules and regulations of the SEC. Statements in this prospectus
which summarize documents are not necessarily complete, and in
each case you should refer to the copy of the document filed as
an exhibit to the registration statement. You may read and copy
the registration statement, including exhibits and schedules
filed with it, and reports or other information we may file with
the SEC at the public reference facilities of the SEC at
450 Fifth Street, N.W., Room 1024, Washington, D.C.
20549. You may call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further
information on the operation of the public reference rooms. In
addition, the registration statement and other public filings
can be obtained from the SECs internet site at
http://www.sec.gov.
Upon completion of this offering, we will become
subject to information and periodic reporting requirements of
the Exchange Act, and we will file annual, quarterly and current
reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. We
intend to furnish our stockholders written annual reports
containing financial statements audited by our independent
auditors, and make available to our stockholders quarterly
reports for the first three quarters of each year containing
unaudited interim financial statements.
101
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. AND
SUBSIDIARIES
Page | ||||
|
||||
Report of Independent Auditors
|
F-2 | |||
Audited Consolidated Balance Sheets at
September 30, 2001 and 2002, Unaudited Consolidated Balance
Sheet at June 30, 2003 and Unaudited Pro Forma
Shareholders Deficit at June 30, 2003
|
F-3 | |||
Audited Consolidated Statements of Operations for
the years ended September 30, 2000, 2001, and 2003 and
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Operations for the nine
months ended June 30, 2002 and 2003
|
F-4 | |||
Audited Consolidated Statements of
Shareholders Deficit for the years ended
September 30, 2000, 2001, and 2002 and Unaudited
Consolidated Statement of Shareholders Deficit for the
nine months ended June 30, 2003
|
F-5 | |||
Audited Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for
the years ended September 30, 2000, 2001, and 2002 and
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the nine
months ended June 30, 2002 and 2003
|
F-6 | |||
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
|
F-7 | |||
Schedule of Valuation and Qualifying Accounts
|
F-33 |
F-1
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS
To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of
The stock split described in Note 1 to the
consolidated financial statements has not been consummated at
November 11, 2003. When it has been consummated, we will be
in a position to furnish the following report:
In our opinion, the consolidated financial
statements listed in the accompanying index present fairly, in
all material respects, the financial position of Universal
Technical Institute, Inc. and its subsidiaries at
September 30, 2001 and 2002, and the results of their
operations and their cash flows for each of the three years in
the period ended September 30, 2002 in conformity with
accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of
America. In addition, in our opinion, the financial statement
schedule listed in the accompanying index presents fairly, in
all material respects, the information set forth therein when
read in conjunction with the related consolidated financial
statements. These financial statements and financial statement
schedule are the responsibility of the Companys
management; our responsibility is to express an opinion on these
financial statements and financial statement schedule based on
our audits. We conducted our audits of these statements in
accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the
United States of America, which require that we plan and perform
the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the
financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit
includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the
amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing
the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by
management, and evaluating the overall financial statement
presentation. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable
basis for our opinion.
As discussed in Note 3 to the consolidated
financial statements, effective October 1, 2001, the
Company adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards
No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible
Assets.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
F-2
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. AND
SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
Pro Forma
Shareholders
September 30,
Deficit
June 30,
June 30,
2001
2002
2003
2003
(unaudited)
(unaudited)
$
3,353
$
13,554
$
31,215
10,298
12,527
13,611
1,777
3,197
3,460
15,428
29,278
48,286
18,360
23,231
23,319
438
438
135
20,579
20,579
20,579
1,895
2,248
1,871
4,469
372
1,917
740
1,091
$
63,086
$
76,886
$
95,281
$
14,910
$
16,474
$
21,132
7,242
3,016
3,705
15,077
20,427
20,320
3,292
386
886
910
0
3,184
3,552
3,655
44,615
43,855
49,698
2,064
63,320
46,875
44,049
34,016
11,011
11,011
438
438
135
4,259
4,407
5,712
146,648
108,650
110,605
19,414
20,646
21,503
43,749
46,310
4,267
1
1
1
2
42,043
(102,476
)
(95,659
)
(82,529
)
(82,530
)
(15
)
(15
)
(15
)
(15
)
(443
)
(443
)
(534
)
(534
)
(43
)
(43
)
(60
)
(60
)
(102,976
)
(96,159
)
(83,137
)
$
(41,094
)
$
63,086
$
76,886
$
95,281
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
F-3
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. AND
SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF
OPERATIONS
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(unaudited)
$
92,079
$
109,493
$
144,372
$
105,428
$
141,642
48,523
59,554
70,813
51,710
66,551
33,893
38,332
51,541
36,607
48,198
82,416
97,886
122,354
88,317
114,749
9,663
11,607
22,018
17,111
26,893
(586
)
(446
)
(508
)
(333
)
(355
)
11,679
10,336
6,213
5,241
3,007
784
784
549
441
157
847
970
11,877
10,674
7,101
6,319
2,809
(2,214
)
933
14,917
10,792
24,084
(431
)
820
5,228
3,777
8,944
(1,783
)
113
9,689
7,015
15,140
(34,437
)
(8,536
)
(1,316
)
(34,437
)
(9,852
)
(36,220
)
(9,739
)
9,689
7,015
15,140
(1,166
)
(1,166
)
(2,872
)
(1,729
)
(3,434
)
$
(37,386
)
$
(10,905
)
$
6,817
$
5,286
$
11,706
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.51
$
0.39
$
0.87
(2.56
)
(0.63
)
(0.10
)
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.51
$
0.39
$
0.87
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.44
$
0.34
$
0.58
(2.56
)
(0.63
)
(0.10
)
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.44
$
0.34
$
0.58
13,432
13,402
13,402
13,402
13,433
13,432
13,402
20,244
18,642
24,956
$
0.44
$
0.60
$
0.44
$
0.58
18,543
23,687
20,244
24,956
F-4
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. AND
SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS
DEFICIT
Common Stock
Total
Paid-in
Treasury
Accumulated
Subscriptions
Shareholders
Shares
Amount
Capital
Stock
Deficit
Receivable
Deficit
13,445
$
1
$
1,262
$
$
(55,452
)
$
(486
)
$
(54,675
)
(36,220
)
(36,220
)
21
5
5
(1,166
)
(1,166
)
(15
)
(15
)
13,466
1
101
(15
)
(91,672
)
(486
)
(92,071
)
(9,739
)
(9,739
)
(101
)
(1,065
)
(1,166
)
13,466
1
(15
)
(102,476
)
(486
)
(102,976
)
9,689
9,689
(2,872
)
(2,872
)
13,466
1
(15
)
(95,659
)
(486
)
(96,159
)
15,140
15,140
470
108
(108
)
1,281
1,281
35
35
(1,424
)
(2,010
)
(3,434
)
13,936
$
1
$
$
(15
)
$
(82,529
)
$
(594
)
$
(83,137
)
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
F-5
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. AND
SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH
FLOWS
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(unaudited)
$
(36,220
)
$
(9,739
)
$
9,689
$
7,015
$
15,140
3,894
4,532
4,948
3,167
4,476
2,682
1,463
2,681
1,803
1,395
33,941
3,074
1,281
35
539
214
2,045
1,657
925
970
970
25
27
232
76
79
1,316
(3,104
)
(1,765
)
(4,910
)
(149
)
(2,479
)
(309
)
735
(278
)
(118
)
(180
)
257
(411
)
1,120
700
(366
)
2,253
3,540
619
(2,245
)
4,351
402
3,808
5,350
(531
)
(107
)
1,204
1,862
(2,143
)
(2,604
)
603
(63
)
296
148
59
669
256
1,811
5,757
10,763
20,471
9,800
25,822
(3,774
)
(5,472
)
(11,772
)
(7,430
)
(6,044
)
5,869
5,857
20
590
123
303
(3,184
)
(5,472
)
(5,780
)
(1,573
)
(5,721
)
42,043
42,116
16,819
17,451
(7,049
)
(1,914
)
(5,264
)
(39,952
)
(39,327
)
(2,137
)
(23,400
)
(23,400
)
(590
)
(303
)
5
(15
)
(9,563
)
(5,264
)
(4,490
)
(3,160
)
(2,440
)
(6,990
)
27
10,201
5,067
17,661
10,316
3,326
3,353
3,353
13,554
$
3,326
$
3,353
$
13,554
$
8,420
$
31,215
$
10,973
$
10,195
$
6,831
$
5,978
$
2,017
$
455
$
490
$
395
$
395
$
$
1,166
$
1,166
$
2,872
$
1,729
$
3,434
$
(149
)
$
1,269
$
(3,088
)
$
$
$
$
1,489
$
945
$
30
$
307
$
$
$
2,064
$
$
(2,064
)
$
171
$
58
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
108
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
F-6
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
1. Nature of the Business
Business Description |
We are a provider of post-secondary education for students seeking careers as professional automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and marine technicians. We offer undergraduate degree, diploma and certificate programs at seven campuses and manufacturer-sponsored advanced programs at 22 dedicated training centers. We work closely with leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the automotive, diesel, motorcycle and marine industries to understand their needs for qualified service professionals.
The accompanying consolidated financial statements include all the accounts of Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (a Delaware corporation) and each of its wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively we and our). All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.
On November 11, 2003 we approved a 4,350 to 1 stock split of our common shares to be effective immediately prior to the consummation of an Initial Public Offering. All share and per share amounts in the financial statements have been adjusted to reflect the stock split.
2. Government Regulation and Financial Aid
Our schools and students participate in a variety of government-sponsored financial aid programs that assist students in paying the cost of their education. The largest source of such support is the federal programs of student financial assistance under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, commonly referred to as the Title IV Programs, which are administered by the U.S. Department of Education, or ED. During the years ended September 30, 2000, 2001 and 2002, approximately 68%, 67% and 65%, respectively, of our net revenues were indirectly derived from funds distributed under Title IV Programs.
To participate in Title IV Programs, a school must be authorized to offer its programs of instruction by relevant state education agencies, be accredited by an accrediting commission recognized by ED and be certified as an eligible institution by ED. For this reason, our schools are subject to extensive regulatory requirements imposed by all of these entities. After our schools receive the required certifications by the appropriate entities, our schools must demonstrate their compliance with the ED regulations of the Title IV Programs on an ongoing basis. Included in these regulations is the requirement that we must satisfy specific standards of financial responsibility. ED evaluates institutions for compliance with these standards each year, based upon the institutions annual audited financial statements, as well as following a change in ownership of the institution. Under regulations which took effect July 1, 1998, ED calculates the institutions composite score for financial responsibility based on its (i) equity ratio, which measures the institutions capital resources, ability to borrow and financial viability; (ii) primary reserve ratio, which measures the institutions ability to support current operations from expendable resources; and (iii) net income ratio, which measures the institutions ability to operate at a profit.
An institution that does not meet EDs minimum composite score requirements may establish its financial responsibility as follows:
| by posting a letter of credit in favor of ED in an amount up to 50% of the Title IV Program funds received by the institution during the institutions most recently completed fiscal year; | |
| by posting a letter of credit in an amount equal to at least 10% of the Title IV Program funds received during the institutions most recent fiscal year, accepting provisional certification, |
F-7
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
complying with additional ED monitoring requirements and agreeing to receive Title IV Program funds under an arrangement other than EDs standard advance funding arrangement; or | ||
| by complying with additional ED monitoring requirements and agreeing to receive Title IV Program funds under an arrangement other than EDs standard advance funding arrangement. |
Based on its review of our financial statements for each of our fiscal years since the year ended September 30, 1999, ED found that we did not have a composite score of 1.5 or higher. Consequently, since November 2000, we have been required to post a letter of credit on behalf of our institutions in favor of ED and to accept provisional certification and additional ED reporting and monitoring procedures. At September 30, 2002, we have outstanding a letter of credit in the amount of $6.4 million representing approximately 10% of the total Title IV Program funds received by our institutions in the year ended September 30, 2001, as calculated by ED. This letter of credit was increased to $7.6 million in November 2002. The increase in our required letter of credit is attributable to increased funds received under Title IV Programs. Additionally, we are required to credit students accounts before requesting and receiving Title IV Program funds and two of our institutions are required to file additional reports with ED regarding their receipt of Title IV Program funds.
In addition, based upon our year ended September 30, 2002 Title IV compliance audits of our institutions, it was determined that we exceeded EDs late refund threshold of 5% at two of our institutions. While ordinarily we would be required to post letters of credit for this reason, ED informed us that we were not required to post these additional letters of credit because we already posted a larger letter of credit as a result of our financial responsibility composite score.
3. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Principles of Consolidation |
The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Universal Technical Institute, Inc. and each of its wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively we and our). All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.
As permitted by rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission for interim reporting, we have prepared the accompanying interim consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP) for interim financial information. The interim financial data as of June 30, 2003 and for the nine months ended June 30, 2002 and June 30, 2003 are unaudited; however, in our opinion, the interim data include all adjustments, consisting of normal recurring adjustments, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim periods. Operating results for the nine months ended June 30, 2003 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending September 30, 2003. Such interim financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements.
Revenue Recognition |
Net revenues consist primarily of student tuition and fees derived from the programs we provide after reductions for scholarships we sponsor. Tuition and fee revenue is recognized on a pro-rata (straight-line) basis over the term of the course or program offered. If a student withdraws from a program prior to a specified date, any paid but unearned tuition is refunded. Sales of textbooks and program supplies, revenue related to student housing and other revenue are each recognized as sales occur or services are performed. In aggregate, these additional revenues represented less than 10% of total net revenues in each year in the three-year period ended September 30, 2002. Deferred revenue represents the excess of tuition and fee
F-8
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
payments received as compared to tuition and fees earned and is reflected as a current liability in the accompanying consolidated financial statements because it is expected to be earned within the twelve-month period immediately following the date on which such liability is reflected in our consolidated financial statements.
Cash and Cash Equivalents |
We consider all highly liquid investments purchased with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents.
Deferred Financing Fees |
Costs incurred in connection with obtaining financing are capitalized and amortized using the effective interest method over the term of the related debt. Amortization of deferred financing fees was $0.6 million for the year ended September 30, 2000, $0.6 million for the year ended September 30, 2001 and $1.1 million for the year ended September 30, 2002.
Property and Equipment |
Property, equipment and leasehold improvements are recorded at cost. Amortization of equipment under capital leases and leasehold improvements are calculated using the straight-line method over the remaining useful life of the asset or term of lease, whichever is shorter. Equipment under capital leases totaled $1.9 million with accumulated amortization of $0.9 million at September 30, 2001, and totaled $1.8 million with accumulated amortization of $1.2 million at September 30, 2002. Depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life. The estimated useful life of our training, office and computer equipment ranges from 3 years to 7 years. The estimated useful life of our vehicles is 5 years.
Depreciation and amortization related to our property and equipment was $2.7 million for the year ended September 30, 2000, $3.4 million for the year ended September 30, 2001 and $3.8 million for the year ended September 30, 2002. Maintenance and repairs are expensed as incurred.
Software Development Costs |
We capitalize certain internal software development costs which are amortized using the straight-line method over the estimated lives of the software (not to exceed 5 years). Capitalized costs include external direct costs of materials and services consumed in developing or obtaining internal-use software and payroll and payroll related costs for employees who are directly associated with the internal software development project. Capitalization of such costs ceases no later than the point at which the project is substantially complete and ready for its intended purpose.
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets |
Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of the acquired businesses over the fair market value of the acquired net assets. We account for our goodwill in accordance with SFAS No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets, which we adopted effective October 1, 2001. Prior to our adoption of SFAS No. 142, we recorded amortization expense of $0.6 million for each of the fiscal years ended September 30, 2000 and 2001. Amortization of goodwill is no longer required under SFAS No. 142.
F-9
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS (Continued)
The following table presents a comparison of net
income (loss) and earnings per share as if SFAS No. 142 had
been adopted at the beginning of the earliest period presented:
Year ended Sept 30,
2000
2001
2002
$
(1,783
)
$
113
$
9,689
460
69
$
(1,323
)
$
182
$
9,689
$
(37,386
)
$
(10,905
)
$
6,817
2,703
1,257
$
(34,683
)
$
(9,648
)
$
6,817
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.51
0.03
0.01
$
(0.19
)
$
(0.07
)
$
0.51
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.51
0.20
0.09
$
(2.58
)
$
(0.72
)
$
0.51
$
(0.22
)
$
(0.08
)
$
0.44
0.03
0.01
$
(0.19
)
$
(0.07
)
$
0.44
$
(2.78
)
$
(0.81
)
$
0.44
0.20
0.09
$
(2.58
)
$
(0.72
)
$
0.44
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets |
We review the carrying value of our long-lived assets and identifiable intangibles for possible impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable in accordance with the provisions of SFAS No. 121, Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets. Impairment losses, if any, are recorded as a component of earnings from operations.
Prior to adopting SFAS No. 142, we recorded an asset impairment relative to goodwill which was recorded in connection with the purchase of National Technology Training (NTT). We assessed the recoverability of NTT goodwill utilizing its undiscounted projected cash flow. Based upon this analysis and due to a weak market response and lower student densities for our training products offered, as well as declining historical and forecasted operating income, we determined that an impairment of our goodwill existed. Accordingly, based upon the excess of the carrying value as compared to the assets, estimated fair
F-10
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
value impairment losses were recorded in the amount of $33.9 million for the year ended September 30, 2000 and $3.1 million for the year ended September 30, 2001.
Advertising Costs |
Costs related to advertising are expensed as incurred and totaled approximately $3.8 million for the year ended September 30, 2000, $5.0 million for the year ended September 30, 2001 and $5.7 million for the year ended September 30, 2002.
Start-up Costs |
Costs related to the start-up of new campuses are expensed as incurred.
Stock-Based Compensation |
We account for stock-based employee compensation arrangements in accordance with the provisions of Accounting Principles Board (APB) Opinion No. 25, Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees, and related Interpretations, and comply with the disclosure provisions of SFAS No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation as amended by SFAS No. 148, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation Transition and Disclosure An Amendment of SFAS No. 123, which defines a fair value based method and addresses common stock and options given to employees as well as those given to non-employees in exchange for products and services. The following table illustrates the effect on net income and earnings per share if we had applied the fair value recognition provisions of SFAS No. 123:
Nine Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||
Year Ended September 30, | June 30, | |||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2002 | 2003 | ||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
(unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net income (loss) available to common
shareholders as reported
|
$ | (37,386 | ) | $ | (10,905 | ) | $ | 6,817 | $ | 5,286 | $ | 11,706 | ||||||||
Add stock-based compensation expense included in
reported net income, net of taxes
|
| | | | 21 | |||||||||||||||
Deduct total stock-based employee compensation
expense determined using the fair value based method, net of
taxes
|
(6 | ) | (1 | ) | (72 | ) | (40 | ) | (116 | ) | ||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
Net income (loss) pro forma
|
$ | (37,392 | ) | $ | (10,906 | ) | $ | 6,745 | $ | 5,246 | $ | 11,611 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
Earnings per share basic
as reported
|
$ | (2.78 | ) | $ | (0.81 | ) | $ | 0.51 | $ | 0.39 | $ | 0.87 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
Earnings per share
diluted as reported
|
$ | (2.78 | ) | $ | (0.81 | ) | $ | 0.44 | $ | 0.34 | $ | 0.58 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
Earnings per shares basic
pro forma
|
$ | (2.78 | ) | $ | (0.81 | ) | $ | 0.50 | $ | 0.39 | $ | 0.86 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||
Earnings per share
diluted pro forma
|
$ | (2.78 | ) | $ | (0.81 | ) | $ | 0.44 | $ | 0.34 | $ | 0.58 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
F-11
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
The fair value of each option grant is estimated
on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing
model. The following table illustrates the assumptions used for
grants made during each of the years ended September 30,
2000, 2001 and 2002 and the nine months ended June 30, 2002
and 2003.
Nine Months Ended
Year Ended September 30,
June 30,
2000
2001
2002
2002
2003
(unaudited)
5 years
5 years
5.02%
3.25%
Income Taxes |
We account for income taxes as prescribed by SFAS No. 109, Accounting for Income Taxes. SFAS No. 109 requires recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the estimated future tax consequences of events attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and operating losses and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to be recovered or settled. Deferred tax assets are reduced through the establishment of a valuation allowance at the time, based upon available evidence, if it is more likely than not that the deferred tax assets will not be realized.
Comprehensive Income |
SFAS No. 130, Reporting Comprehensive Income, requires that all items that meet the definition of components of comprehensive income be reported in a financial statement for the period in which they are recognized. Components of comprehensive income include revenues, expenses, gains, and losses that under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States are included in comprehensive income but excluded from net income. There are no differences between our net income, as reported, and comprehensive income, as defined for the periods presented.
Concentration of Risk |
Financial instruments that potentially subject us to concentrations of credit risk consist principally of cash and receivables.
We place our cash and cash equivalents with high quality financial institutions. Accounts at these institutions are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to $0.1 million.
We extend credit for tuition and fees to the majority of our students that are in attendance at our campuses. Our credit risk with respect to these accounts receivable is mitigated through the students participation in federally funded financial aid programs unless students withdraw prior to the receipt by us of Title IV funds for those students. In addition, our remaining tuition receivable is primarily comprised of smaller individual amounts due from students throughout the United States.
Use of Estimates |
The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions. Such estimates and
F-12
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses and related disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates and judgments, including those related to revenue recognition, bad debts, fixed assets, long-lived assets including goodwill, income taxes and contingent assets and liabilities. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. The results of our analysis form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions, and the impact of such differences may be material to our consolidated financial statements.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments |
The carrying value of cash equivalents, accounts receivable and payable, accrued liabilities and deferred tuition approximates their fair value at September 30, 2001 and 2002 due to the short-term nature of these instruments.
The carrying value of our long-term variable rate debt reflects its fair value as such long-term debt is subject to fees and interest rates, which adjust regularly to reflect current market rates.
The carrying value of the portion of our long-term debt with stated interest rates reflects its fair value based on current rates offered to us on debt with similar maturities and characteristics.
Earnings per Common Share |
SFAS No 128, Earnings Per Share, requires the dual presentation of basic and diluted earnings per share on the face of the income statement and the disclosure of the reconciliation between the numerators and denominators of basic and diluted earnings per share calculations. The weighted average number of common shares used in determining basic and diluted earnings per share for the years ended September 30, 2000, 2001 and 2002 and for the nine months ended June 30, 2002 and 2003 are as follows:
Year Ended | Nine Months | ||||||||||||||||||||
September 30, | Ended June 30, | ||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2002 | 2003 | |||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
(unaudited) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Basic shares outstanding
|
13,432 | 13,402 | 13,402 | 13,402 | 13,433 | ||||||||||||||||
Dilutive effect of:
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
Options related to the purchase of common stock
|
| | 387 | 290 | 628 | ||||||||||||||||
Convertible promissory note payable
|
| | 1,314 | 1,532 | 641 | ||||||||||||||||
Convertible preferred stock
|
| | 5,141 | 3,418 | 10,254 | ||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
Diluted shares outstanding
|
13,432 | 13,402 | 20,244 | 18,642 | 24,956 | ||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
For the year ended September 30, 2000, the dilutive effect of 26,221 shares related to our convertible debt was not considered, as the effect would be anti-dilutive. For the year ended September 30, 2001, the dilutive effect of 18,333 shares related to our convertible debt and 161 shares related to outstanding options was not considered, as the effect would be anti-dilutive.
F-13
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
Pro forma Shareholders Information (unaudited) |
Immediately prior to the consummation of an initial public offering, our outstanding series D redeemable convertible preferred stock will automatically convert into 10,254 shares of common stock. The proforma effects of this transaction are unaudited and have been reflected in the accompanying Pro forma Shareholders Deficit and Earnings Per Share information as of June 30, 2003.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements |
In June 2001, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued SFAS No. 143, Accounting for Asset Retirement Obligations. SFAS No. 143 addresses financial accounting and reporting for obligations associated with the retirement of tangible long-lived assets and the associated asset retirement costs. SFAS No. 143 is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2002, and we expect that the adoption will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial condition or results of operations.
In August 2001, the FASB issued SFAS No. 144, Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets, which addresses financial accounting and reporting for the impairment or disposal of long-lived assets. SFAS No. 144 retains the fundamental provisions of existing accounting principles generally accepted in the United States with respect to the recognition and measurement of long-lived asset impairment contained in SFAS No. 121, Accounting for the Impairment of Long-Lived Assets and for Long-Lived Assets to be Disposed of. SFAS No. 144 also provides additional guidance intended to address certain significant implementation issues associated with SFAS No. 121, including expanded guidance with respect to appropriate cash flows to be used in determining whether recognition of a long-lived asset impairment is required, and if required, how to measure the amount of the impairment. SFAS No. 144 also requires that any net assets to be disposed of by sale be reported at the lower of carrying value or fair value less cost to sell, and expands the reporting of discontinued operations to include any component of any entity with operations and cash flows that can be clearly distinguished from the rest of the entity. SFAS No. 144 is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2001, and our adoption of it on October 1, 2002 did not have a material effect on our consolidated financial condition or results of operations.
In April 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 145, Rescission of SFAS Nos. 4, 44 and 64, Amendment of SFAS 13, and Technical Corrections. SFAS No. 145 rescinds SFAS No. 4, Reporting Gains and Losses from Extinguishment of Debt, and excludes extraordinary item treatment for gains and losses associated with the extinguishment of debt that do not meet the criteria for such treatment, as outlined in APB Opinion No. 30, Reporting the Results of Operations Reporting the Effects of Disposal of a Segment of a Business, and Extraordinary, Unusual and Infrequently Occurring Events and Transactions. Any gain or loss on extinguishment of debt that was previously classified as an extraordinary item in the reported financial results that does not meet the criteria in APB Opinion No. 30 for classification as an extraordinary item shall be reclassified. SFAS No. 145 was effective beginning after May 15, 2002. We elected to early adopt SFAS 145, which resulted in the classification of costs associated with the early extinguishment of debt of $0.6 million, net of income tax benefit of $0.4 million for the year ended September 30, 2002, to the individual financial statement components of other expense and income tax expense.
In June 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 146, Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities. SFAS No. 146 addresses financial accounting and reporting for costs associated with exit or disposal activities and replaces Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) Issue No. 94-3, Liability Recognition for Certain Employee Termination Benefits and Other Costs to Exit an Activity (including
F-14
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
Certain Costs Incurred in a Restructuring). SFAS No. 146 requires that a liability for a cost associated with an exit or disposal activity be recognized when the liability is incurred and should be initially measured at fair value. Under EITF Issue No. 94-3, a liability for such costs is recognized as of the date of an entitys commitment to an exit plan. The provisions of SFAS No. 146 are effective for exit or disposal activities that we initiated after December 31, 2002. Our adoption of SFAS No. 146 did not have a material effect on our financial condition or results of operations.
In November 2002, the FASB issued Interpretation (FIN) No. 45, Guarantors Accounting and Disclosure Requirements for Guarantees, Including Indirect Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others. FIN No. 45 requires certain guarantees to be recorded at fair value and also requires a guarantor to make certain disclosures regarding guarantees. FIN No. 45s initial recognition and initial measurement provisions are applicable on a prospective basis to guarantees issued or modified after December 31, 2002. Our adoption of this Interpretation did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements or disclosures.
In December 2002, the FASB issued SFAS No. 148, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation Transition and Disclosure. This statement amends SFAS No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation An Amendment of SFAS No. 123. Although SFAS 148 does not require use of the fair value method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation, it does provide alternative methods of transition. It also amends the disclosure provisions of SFAS 123 and APB Opinion No. 28, Interim Financial Reporting, to require disclosure in the summary of significant accounting policies or the effects of an entitys accounting policy with respect to stock-based employee compensation on reported net income and earnings per share in annual and interim financial statements. SFAS 148s amendment of the transition and annual disclosure requirements is effective for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2002. The amendment of disclosure requirements of APB Opinion No. 28 is effective for interim periods beginning after December 15, 2002. Our adoption of SFAS No. 148 has resulted in expanded disclosure to include the effect of stock-based compensation in interim reporting.
In January 2003, the FASB issued FIN No. 46, Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities, an Interpretation of ARB 51. FIN No. 46 provides guidance on the identification of entities of which control is achieved through means other than voting rights (variable interest entities or VIEs) and how to determine when and which business enterprise should consolidate the VIE (the primary beneficiary). In addition, FIN No. 46 requires that both the primary beneficiary and all other enterprises with a significant variable interest in a VIE make additional disclosures. The transitional disclosure requirements of FIN No. 46 are required in all financial statements initially issued after January 31, 2003, if certain conditions are met. Our adoption of this Interpretation did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements or disclosures.
In April 2003, the FASB issued SFAS No. 149, Amendment of Statement 133 on Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities. SFAS No. 149 amends and clarifies the accounting guidance on derivative instruments (including certain derivative instruments embedded in other contracts) and hedging activities that fall within the scope of SFAS No. 133, Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities. SFAS No. 149 is effective prospectively for contracts entered into or modified after June 30, 2003, with certain exceptions, and for hedging relationships designated after June 30, 2003. Our adoption of SFAS No. 149 did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements or disclosures.
In May 2003, the FASB issued SFAS No. 150, Accounting for Certain Financial Instruments with Characteristics of both Liabilities and Equity. SFAS No. 150 changes the accounting and disclosure requirements for certain financial instruments that, under previous guidance, could be classified as equity.
F-15
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
The guidance in SFAS No. 150 is generally effective for all financial instruments entered into or modified after May 31, 2003 and is otherwise effective at the beginning of the first interim period beginning after June 15, 2003. The adoption of SFAS No. 150 is not expected to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements or disclosures. Upon adoption of SFAS No. 150, effective July 1, 2003, we will classify as a liability the redeemable convertible preferred stock series D with a carrying value of approximately $46,310. Additionally, effective July 1, 2003 the dividends on these securities will be included as a component of interest expense instead of preferred stock dividends in the consolidated statement of operations. SFAS No. 150 prohibits restatements of financial statements for periods prior to adoption, accordingly these changes will be made prospectively.
4. | Receivables |
Receivables, net consist of the following:
September 30,
2001
2002
$
11,467
$
13,439
379
664
11,846
14,103
(1,548
)
(1,576
)
$
10,298
$
12,527
5. | Property and Equipment |
Property and equipment, net consist of the
following:
September 30,
2001
2002
$
10,536
$
12,485
12,722
14,571
5,821
7,542
1,531
366
515
1,548
1,343
2,485
32,336
39,129
(13,976
)
(15,898
)
$
18,360
$
23,231
Included in construction in progress are costs associated with the development of software to be utilized in managing our student data and accounting records. These costs totalled approximately $1.0 million at September 30, 2001 and $0.3 million at September 30, 2002. In addition, at September 30, 2002, we have recorded $2.1 million in construction in progress and its corresponding construction liability related to a build-to-suit lease agreement for a new campus facility.
F-16
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
6. | Accounts Payable and Accrued Expenses |
Accounts payable and accrued expenses consist of
the following:
September 30,
June 30,
2001
2002
2003
(unaudited)
$
4,671
$
4,031
$
2,364
6,208
9,543
14,178
4,031
2,900
4,590
$
14,910
$
16,474
$
21,132
7. | Investment in Land |
We previously acquired land in Phoenix, Arizona for possible future expansion. We did not make formal plans for the development of the land and have placed the land for sale. The land parcels are valued at the lower of cost or market value less selling costs. In connection with our 1999 recapitalization where we issued additional common stock and our Series C preferred stock, we agreed to distribute any proceeds received from the sale of the land to the participating common shareholders. The carrying value of the land at September 30, 2001 and 2002 was $0.4 million. We also have recorded a corresponding long-term liability in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets to reflect the required distribution payable to shareholders.
During the year ended 2000, we sold certain parcels of the land held for sale. Total proceeds from the sale were $0.5 million and were distributed to the common shareholders. In June 2003, we sold certain parcels of the remaining land held for sale. Total proceeds from the sale were $0.3 million and were distributed to the common shareholders.
8. | Revolving Credit Facility |
Effective March 29, 2002, we restructured our debt in conjunction with the issuance of series D preferred stock (Note 16) and entered into a Second Amendment and Restatement of Credit Agreement (Second Amendment). The Second Amendment increased the borrowing limit under the revolving credit facility from $12.5 million to $20.0 million and increased the limit on letters of credit that may be issued under the revolving credit facility to ED from $5.0 million to the greater of $10.0 million or 10% of Title IV funding not to exceed $15.0 million. There were no outstanding borrowings under the revolving credit facility at September 30, 2001 or September 30, 2002. Issued and outstanding letters of credit were $5.0 million at September 30, 2001 and $6.4 million at September 30, 2002.
In October 2002, we issued an additional letter of credit totaling $6.0 million that expires October 31, 2003 to secure existing surety bonds required by certain state entities that were previously secured by personal guarantees of certain officers. In September 2003, we posted an additional $2.0 million letter of credit.
The revolving credit facility matures on March 31, 2007 and is secured by a security interest in substantially all the assets of UTI Holding Inc., the borrower under our senior credit facilities. UTI Holding Inc. is an intermediate holding company that is holding the capital stock of all of our operating subsidiaries. Borrowings under the revolving credit facility bear interest based upon, at our option at the time of the borrowing, LIBOR or an alternative base rate, at the alternate base rate plus 1.50% to 2.25% or LIBOR plus 2.75% to 3.50%, in each case depending on our leverage ratio during the applicable interest
F-17
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
period. In addition to paying interest on outstanding principal under the revolving credit facility, we are required to pay a commitment fee to the lenders under the revolving credit facility with respect to the unused commitments at a rate equal to 0.5% per year, and a risk participation fee equal to 1.5% per year to the issuers of letters of credit under our revolving credit facility with respect to the amount of such letters of credit. Interest is payable quarterly. The alternate base rate was 7.25% at September 30, 2001 and 6.5% at September 30, 2002. LIBOR was 5.375% at September 30, 2001 and 4.813% at September 30, 2002.
The Second Amendment contains certain restrictive covenants, including but not limited to maintenance of certain financial ratios and restrictions on capital expenditures, indebtedness, contingent obligations, investments and certain payments. We were not in compliance with certain restrictive covenants, however, we received a waiver of these violations from our lenders.
In July 2003, we further amended our credit agreements. The amendment increased our available borrowing under our revolving credit facility from $20.0 million to $30.0 million, increased the limit for letters of credit issued under the revolving credit facility from the greater of (a) $10,000,000 and (b) an amount, not exceeding $15,000,000, equal to 10% of Title IV funding received by us to the greater of (x) $15,000,000 and (y) an amount, not exceeding $22,500,000, equal to 10% of Title IV funding received by us. The amendment also increased the level of permitted capital expenditures, reduced the interest rate from the alternate base rate plus 1.50% to 2.25% or LIBOR plus 2.75% to 3.5% to the alternate base rate plus 1.25% to 2.25% or LIBOR plus 2.50% to 3.50%, in each case depending on our leverage ratio during the applicable interest period and approved certain restricted cash payments. In connection with the amendment, we were required to repay $15.0 million on our Term B loan facility discussed in Note 8.
9. | Long-Term Debt and Capital Leases |
As discussed in Note 8, in March 2002 we executed the Second Amendment which restructured our revolving credit facility and term loan facilities. The amendment relative to our term loan facilities modified our payment schedules, interest rates and various financial and non-financial covenants. Borrowings under our Term A and Term B loan facilities are secured by a security interest in substantially all the assets of UTI Holding Inc., the borrower under our senior credit facilities. UTI Holding Inc., is an intermediate holding company that is holding the capital stock of all our operating subsidiaries.
The Term A loan facility requires interest to be paid quarterly at either the alternate base rate plus 1.75% or LIBOR plus 3%, at our election at the time of the borrowing, and expires March 31, 2007. The Term B loan facility requires interest to be paid quarterly at either the alternate base rate plus 2.25% or LIBOR plus 3.5%, at our election at the time of the borrowing, and expires March 31, 2009. We may prepay Term A and Term B loan facilities in whole or in part, without penalty.
As a result of our debt restructuring, we incurred additional deferred financing fees of approximately $2.0 million and recognized approximately $1.0 million in other expense related to the write-off of previously recorded and unamortized deferred financing fees.
Our alternate base rate was 7.25% at September 30, 2001 and 6.5% at September 30, 2002. The LIBOR rate was 5.375% at September 30, 2001 and 4.813% at September 30, 2002. As discussed in Note 8, the Second Amendment contains certain restrictive covenants. We were not in compliance with certain restrictive covenants, however, we received a waiver of these violations from our lenders.
At September 30, 2002, we have recorded a construction liability of $2.1 million in connection with a build to suit lease for a new campus facility. We also have various capital leases related to training
F-18
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
equipment utilized in our campus classrooms and office equipment. These capital leases bear interest at rates from 6.0% to 14.2% and are secured by the underlying equipment.
As discussed in Note 8, in July 2003, we amended our Second Amendment. In addition to the modifications related to the revolving credit facility, we amended the interest rate applicable to the Term A loan facility and Term B loan facility. The interest rate on the Term A loan facility was amended from the alternate base rate plus 1.5% to 2.25% or LIBOR plus 2.75% to 3.5% to the alternate base rate plus 1.25% to 2.25% or LIBOR plus 2.5% to 3.5%, in each case depending on our leverage ratio during the applicable interest period. The interest rate on the Term B loan facility was amended from the alternate base rate plus 2.0% to 2.75% or LIBOR plus 3.25% to 4.0% to the alternate base rate plus 1.75% to 2.75% or LIBOR plus 3.0% to 4.0%, in each case depending on our leverage ratio during the applicable interest period. In connection with the amendment, we were required to repay $15.0 million on our Term B loan facility.
Long-term debt and capital leases consist of the
following:
September 30,
2001
2002
$
14,188
$
19,150
54,966
29,850
69,154
49,000
(6,722
)
(2,500
)
62,432
46,500
1,408
891
(520
)
(516
)
888
375
$
63,320
$
46,875
Maturities on long-term debt at
September 30, 2002 are as follows:
$
2,500
3,500
4,750
6,250
9,750
22,250
$
49,000
F-19
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS (Continued)
Future minimum lease payments under our capital
lease agreements at September 30, 2002 are as follows:
10. Subordinated
Long-Term Related Party Debt
$
576
375
11
4
966
(75
)
891
(516
)
$
375
We issued several subordinated promissory notes to related parties in connection with acquisitions and capital raising transactions. All of these notes are with related parties.
In April 2002, in addition to restructuring our bank debt described in Note 8 and Note 9, we sold shares of our series D preferred stock for aggregate gross proceeds of $45.5 million. A portion of the net proceeds received from the sale was utilized to repay in full the 13.5% subordinated promissory notes having a principal amount of $23.4 million.
Subordinated long-term related party debt consist of the following:
F-20
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS (Continued)
Maturities on subordinated long-term debt at
September 30, 2002 are as follows:
$
7,011
4,000
$
11,011
In August 2003, we negotiated terms for the early payment of the 8.0% subordinated convertible promissory note payable to a shareholder and related party with a face value of $7.0 million. Under the terms of the repayment agreement, we paid $6.3 million with available cash and recognized a gain in the amount of $0.7 million, representing an early payment discount of approximately 10%.
In August 2003, we repaid, without penalty, the 6.6% subordinated promissory note payable to a shareholder and related party with a face value of $4.0 million.
10. Income Taxes
The components of income tax benefit (expense)
are as follows:
Year Ended September 30,
2000
2001
2002
$
(384
)
$
(361
)
$
1,964
(47
)
1,181
3,264
$
(431
)
$
820
$
5,228
$
(431
)
$
820
$
5,228
1,239
(544
)
$
808
$
276
$
5,228
The income tax benefit for the loss on sale of the discontinued operation of $13.9 million was recorded and fully reserved during the year ended September 30, 2001 resulting in an income tax benefit of zero for the period.
The income tax provision differs from the tax
that would result from application of the statutory federal tax
rate. The reasons for the differences are as follows:
Year Ended September 30,
2000
2001
2002
$
(842
)
$
317
$
5,073
72
70
68
238
241
329
101
192
(242
)
$
(431
)
$
820
$
5,228
F-21
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS (Continued)
The components of the deferred tax assets
(liabilities) are recorded in the accompanying Consolidated
Balance Sheets as follows:
September 30,
2001
2002
$
922
$
972
616
860
2,932
3,795
17,048
14,034
(13,933
)
(13,933
)
7,585
5,728
(3,247
)
(2,444
)
(399
)
(1,705
)
(380
)
(65
)
(4,026
)
(4,214
)
$
3,559
$
1,514
The deferred tax assets (liabilities) are
reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets as
follows (in thousands):
September 30,
2001
2002
$
(910
)
$
1,142
4,469
372
$
3,559
$
1,514
At September 30, 2001 and 2002, we had a valuation allowance of $13.9 million to reduce our deferred tax assets to an amount that management believes is more likely than not to be realized. The valuation allowance primarily relates to a deferred tax asset arising from a capital loss carryforward from the sale of a discontinued business. Our capital loss carryforward expires in 2005.
12. Noncompete and Consulting Agreements
Effective September 30, 1997, we entered into a management consulting agreement with our largest outside shareholder. Effective April 1, 2002, the management consulting agreement was amended to include all outside shareholders as additional consultants. Under the amended consulting agreement, all outside shareholders render consulting services to us in connection with financial and business matters. The annual management consulting fee is equal to the greater of $0.3 million or 2.5% of a defined earnings measure as described in the agreement. The agreement expires upon the earlier of September 30, 2007, and shall be automatically renewed for successive one-year terms unless certain events occur. We have recorded and paid management consulting fees of $0.5 million for the year ended September 30, 2000, $0.4 million for the year ended September 30, 2001 and $0.5 million for the year ended September 30, 2002. We expect that the management consulting agreement will be terminated upon the consummation of
F-22
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
this offering and that no additional payments will be made pursuant to that agreement as a result of the offering or otherwise.
We have entered into consulting and non-compete agreements with two former officers. The agreements expired December 1, 2000. In accordance with these agreements, we paid the former officers approximately $0.2 million in the aggregate for the year ended September 30, 2000.
13. Commitments and Contingencies
Operating Leases |
We lease our facilities and certain equipment
under non-cancelable operating leases, some of which contain
renewal options, escalation clauses and requirements to pay
other fees associated with the leases. We recognize rent expense
on a straight line basis. Two of our campus facilities are
leased from a related party. Future minimum rental commitments
at September 30, 2002 for all non-cancelable operating
leases for each of the years ending September 30 are as
follows:
$
9,745
9,235
7,797
7,631
7,456
64,707
$
106,571
Rent expense for operating leases was approximately $5.9 million, $6.9 million and $8.6 million for the years ended September 30, 2000, 2001 and 2002, respectively. Rent paid to related parties was approximately $1.9 million, $2.2 million and $2.3 million for the years ended September 30, 2000, 2001 and 2002, respectively.
On September 15, 2003, Universal Technical Institute of Arizona executed a Construction Agency Agreement and Lease Agreement with an independent third party lessor in connection with a build-to-suit lease. The obligations of Universal Technical Institute of Arizona under these agreements are guaranteed by Universal Technical Institute, Inc. The lease anticipates an occupancy date of June 2004 with an initial term of 20 years. Our lease payments are estimated to be approximately $230,000 per month. Future increases in monthly rent are based on changes in the consumer price index.
Licensing Agreement |
In 1997, we entered into a licensing agreement that gives us the right to use certain materials and trademarks in the development of our courses and delivery of services on our campuses. The agreement was amended in January 2002. Under the terms of the amended license agreement, we are committed to pay royalties based upon a flat per student fee for students who elect and attend the licensed program. Minimum payments of $0.2 million are required for the each of the calendar years 2002 through 2004, and minimum payments of $0.3 million are required for the calendar year 2005. A license fee is also payable based upon a percentage of net sales related to the sale of any product which bears the licensed trademark. In addition, we are required to pay a minimum marketing and advertising fee for which in return we receive the right to utilize certain advertising space in the licensors published periodicals. The minimum
F-23
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
marketing and advertising fee is $0.3 million for calendar years 2002 through 2004 and $0.4 million for the calendar year 2005. The agreement expires December 31, 2005.
In 1999, we entered into a licensing agreement that gives us the right to use certain materials and trademarks in the development of our courses. Under the terms of the agreement, we are required to pay a flat per student fee for each three week phase a student completes of the total 3 phases offered in connection with this license agreement. There are no minimum license fees required to be paid. The agreement terminates upon the written notice of either party providing not less than six months notification of the intent to terminate. In addition, the agreement may be terminated by the licensor after notification to licensee of a contractual breach if such breach remains uncured for more than 30 days.
In 2001, we entered into a licensing agreement that gives us the right to use certain trademarks in connection with the development and operation of our campuses and courses. In accordance with the agreement, we have prepaid $1.0 million that will be used to satisfy future minimum annual royalties. We are committed to pay royalties based upon net revenue, as defined in the agreement, commencing in calendar year 2001 and ending upon the expiration of the agreement in calendar year 2006. The agreement requires minimum royalty payments of $0.4 million in calendar year 2002 and $0.5 million thereafter. In connection with the royalty agreement, we have recorded royalty expense totalling $0.1 million for the year ended September 30, 2001 and $0.4 million for the year ended September 30, 2002.
Vendor Relationship |
In 1998, we entered into an agreement with Snap-on Tools. The agreement provides that we may purchase promotional tool kits for our students at a discount from their list price. In addition, we earn credits that are redeemable for equipment we use in our business. Credits are earned on our purchases as well as purchases made by students enrolled at our campuses. We have agreed to provide Snap-on Tools exclusive access to our campuses and display advertising as well as to use Snap-on tools to train our students. The credits earned under this agreement may be redeemed for Snap-on tools or equipment at the full retail list price, which is more than we would be required to pay using cash.
Students are each promised the receipt of a tool kit upon completing certain coursework. The cost of the tool kits (net of the credit) is accrued during the time period in which the students begin attending school until they have reached the phase in which the promotional tool kits are provided.
As we have opened new campuses, Snap-on has historically advanced us credits for the purchase of their tools or equipment that support our new campus growth. At September 30, 2001, our net Snap-on liability resulting from using credits in excess of credits earned was $0.8 million, and at September 30, 2002 that liability was $1.4 million.
Upon termination of the agreement, we continue to earn credits relative to promotional tool kits we purchase or additional tools our active students purchase. We continue to earn these credits until a tool kit is provided to the last student eligible under the agreement.
Executive Employee Agreement |
We have entered into employment contracts with key executives. At September 30, 2002, the future employment contract commitments for such employees were approximately $0.6 million, plus benefits, for each fiscal year ending September 30, 2003 through 2006, respectively.
F-24
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
Legal |
In the ordinary conduct of our business, we are subject to periodic lawsuits, investigations and claims, including, but not limited to, claims involving students or graduates and routine employment matters. Although we cannot predict with certainty the ultimate resolution of lawsuits, investigations and claims asserted against us, we do not believe that any currently pending legal proceeding to which we are a party will have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows or financial condition.
14. | Employee Benefit Plans |
401(k) Plan |
We sponsor a defined contribution 401(k) plan, under which our employees elect to withhold specified amounts from their wages to contribute to the plan and we have a fiduciary responsibility with respect to the plan. The plan provides for matching a portion of employees contributions at managements discretion. All contributions and matches by us are invested at the direction of the employee in one or more mutual funds. We made contributions totaling approximately $0.1 million for the year ended September 30, 2000, $0.2 million for the year ended September 30, 2001 and $0.5 million for the year ended September 30, 2002.
Deferred Compensation Plan |
We have entered into deferred compensation agreements with seven of our employees, providing for the payment of deferred compensation to each employee in the event that the employee becomes no longer employed by us. Under each agreement, the employee shall receive an amount equal to the compensation the employee would have earned if the employee had repeated the employment performance of the prior twelve months. We will pay the deferred compensation in a lump sum or over the period in which the employee would typically have earned the compensation had the employee been actively employed, at our option. Our total commitment under the deferred compensation agreements was approximately $1.5 million as of September 30, 2001 and 2002.
Executive Benefit Plan |
We sponsor the Universal Technical Institute Executive Benefit Plan. The plan provides for the annual deferral of all or part of certain executive bonuses into the plan as well as amounts withheld from executives wages, where applicable. We may elect to match contributions on an annual basis. All amounts are fully vested when deferred and matched. The obligation for deferred compensation under the plan totaled approximately $1.1 million at September 30, 2001 and $0.8 million at September 30, 2002, and is included in Other liabilities in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets. The plan assets held to fund the deferred compensation liability are included in Other assets and represent the cash surrender value of life insurance totaling $0.6 million and $0.2 million at September 30, 2001 and 2002, respectively, and $0.5 million of our Series C preferred stock at September 30, 2001 and 2002, respectively (Note 15).
15. | Common Stock |
Holders of our common stock shall be entitled to receive dividends when and as declared by the board of directors. The common stock is not redeemable. The holder of each share of common stock has the right to one vote per share owned. At September 30, 2001 and 2002, we had outstanding related party subscriptions receivable of $0.5 million and $0.6 million, respectively. In August 2003, we received payments on the outstanding subscriptions receivable of $0.4 million.
F-25
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
In September 2003, our board of directors declared, and we paid, a $5.0 million cash dividend on the shares of our common stock payable to the record holders as of August 25, 2003. The record holders of our Series D preferred stock were entitled to receive, upon conversion, such cash dividend pro rata and on an as-converted basis, pursuant to certain provisions of the certificate of designation of the Series D preferred stock. Our certificate of incorporation was amended to permit the holders of Series D preferred stock to be paid the dividend prior to the conversion and simultaneously with holders of our common stock, and the holders of our Series A, B and C preferred stock consented to such payment.
16. | Preferred Stock |
Preferred stock consists of the following:
September 30, 2001
Accrued and
Liquidation
Subscriptions
Unpaid
Held by
Transaction
Carrying
Amount
Receivable
Dividends
UTI Trust
Fees
Amount
$
11,178
$
(3,673
)
$
2,683
$
$
$
10,188
4,067
976
5,043
4,200
504
(521
)
4,183
$
19,445
$
(3,673
)
$
4,163
$
(521
)
$
$
19,414
September 30, 2002
Accrued and
Liquidation
Subscriptions
Unpaid
Held by
Transaction
Carrying
Amount
Receivable
Dividends
UTI Trust
Fees
Amount
$
11,178
$
(3,673
)
$
3,353
$
$
$
10,858
4,067
1,220
5,287
4,200
756
(455
)
4,501
19,445
(3,673
)
5,329
(455
)
20,646
45,500
1,706
(3,457
)
43,749
$
64,945
$
(3,673
)
$
7,035
$
(455
)
$
(3,457
)
$
64,395
Series A and Series B Preferred Stock |
In January 1998, we issued 11,178 shares of series A preferred stock (Series A) and 4,067 shares of series B preferred stock (Series B), each with a par value of $.0001. The Series A and Series B provide for cumulative annual dividends of 6%, whether or not declared, payable on June 30 of each year. The Series A and Series B are subject to mandatory redemption on March 31, 2010 and October 15, 2017, respectively. The liquidation value is equal to one thousand dollars per share. The redemption value is equal to the liquidation value plus accrued and unpaid dividends.
F-26
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
In August 2003, we collected, in its entirety, the subscription receivable from a shareholder and related party with a face value of approximately $3.7 million.
Series C Preferred Stock |
In September 1999, in conjunction with a recapitalization transaction, we issued 4,200 shares of series C preferred stock (Series C) with a par value of $.0001. The stock was recorded at its fair value on the date of issuance. The Series C provides for cumulative annual dividends of 6%, whether or not declared, payable on September 30 of each year. The Series C is subject to mandatory redemption on March 31, 2010. The liquidation value is equal to one thousand dollars per share. The redemption value is equal to the liquidation value plus accrued and unpaid dividends.
We own the UTI Tax-Deferred Trust (UTI Trust), which was set up to facilitate the provision of deferred compensation to our executives (Note 14). The UTI Trust held 465 shares of Series C at September 30, 2001 and 386 shares at September 30, 2002. The carrying value of these shares, including accrued and unpaid dividends, was $0.5 million at September 30, 2001 and 2002 and is reflected as a reduction of the total carrying value of Series C in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets.
Series D Preferred Stock |
In April 2002, in conjunction with a recapitalization transaction, we issued 2,357 shares of $.0001 par value convertible Series D preferred stock (Series D) for aggregate gross proceeds of $45.5 million. The Series D was recorded at $42.0 million, net of its issuance costs of $3.5 million. The Series D provides for annual dividends of 7.5% which shall be cumulative, whether or not declared, payable on September 30 of each year. Series D is convertible on a one for one basis and redeemable, at the holders option, upon a change in control. Pursuant to the certificate of designation, a change of control occurs if, among other things, (i) we sell all or substantially all of our assets; (ii) we are not the surviving entity after a merger or consolidation with an unaffiliated party or our stockholders, immediately before a merger or consolidation, no longer own at least the majority of the common stock of the surviving entity; or (iii) any person or entity becomes the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of more than 50% of the total voting power of our outstanding capital stock, as more particularly described in the certificate of designation. Series D converts automatically into shares of common stock upon a qualified initial public offering, as that term is defined in the certificate of designation.
Ranking, Liquidation Preference and Voting Rights |
The Series A, Series B and Series C (Senior Stock) rank senior to, and have preference and priority with respect to any payment of any dividend or distribution on, the Series D, the common stock or any other shares of our capital stock. The Series D ranks senior to, and has preference and priority with respect to any payment of any dividends or distribution on, the common stock or any other shares of our capital stock (other than the Senior Stock). All capital stock ranking junior to the Series D is referred to as Junior Stock.
Upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, whether voluntary or involuntary, the holders of shares of Series D then outstanding shall be entitled to be paid out of our assets available for distribution to our shareholders, after and subject to the payment in full of all amounts required to be distributed to the holders of any Senior Stock (liquidation value per share plus any accrued and unpaid dividends), but before any payment shall be made to the holders of Junior Stock by reason of their ownership thereof, an amount equal to the liquidation value per share plus any accrued and unpaid dividends thereon.
F-27
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
If upon such liquidation, our assets are not sufficient to permit payment in full of the liquidation value (plus any accrued and unpaid dividends) of the Series A, Series B, Series C and Series D, our entire assets are to then be distributed ratably among the holders of such stock.
The Series A, Series B and Series C do not carry voting rights. The holders of outstanding shares of Series D are entitled to vote together with the holders of shares of common stock, as a single class, on all matters on which holders of common stock are entitled to vote, with each share of Series D voting on an as-if-converted basis.
17. | Shareholders Agreement |
Our shareholders have entered into an agreement setting forth certain rights and restrictions relating to ownership of our securities. This agreement restricts the transfer of stock without our prior written consent. Further restrictions exist upon employee termination or retirement. In cases of involuntary termination for cause and voluntary termination, we may elect to repurchase (call) all of the stock owned by the shareholder. Upon retirement or involuntary termination other than for cause, the shareholder may elect to have us repurchase (put) all shares owned. In all instances, except involuntary termination other than for cause, the call or put price shall be an amount equal to the greater of (i) one-half of the fair market value or (ii) cost; however, upon execution by the selling shareholder of a non-competition agreement, the call or put price shall be an amount equal to the fair market value of the stock. Upon involuntary termination other than for cause, the put price will be equal to the fair market value of the stock. In all instances, the fair market value is to be determined by our board of directors.
The agreement also grants shareholders a right to purchase stock being offered by a selling shareholder, based upon their pro rata ownership basis. The selling shareholder must also require certain buyers to irrevocably offer to other shareholders the right to acquire additional shares of stock, subject to a specified formula.
These restrictions shall terminate upon the closing of a Public Offering (as defined in the stockholders agreement) or execution of a registration rights agreement.
18. | Employee Stock Plans |
Restricted Stock Plan |
We adopted a Restricted Stock Plan (Stock Plan) pursuant to which eligible participants may receive an award of restricted common stock (Restricted Stock). In January 1998, 1,022 shares of Restricted Stock were issued to certain of our executives and managers in exchange for 6.25% subscription notes receivable due January 31, 2009. Effective September 30, 1999, we vested all shareholders. There were 984 shares outstanding under the Stock Plan at September 30, 2001 and 2002. Subscription notes receivable related to these shares totaled $0.2 million for the years ended September 30, 2001 and 2002. In August 2003, we received payment of outstanding subscription notes receivable from all of our executive officers participating in the Stock Plan and certain other participants totalling $0.1 million.
Management Stock Option Plans |
We have two stock option plans, which we refer to as the Management 1999 Option Program (1999 Plan) and the Management 2002 Option Program (2002 Plan).
On September 30, 1999, we granted non-qualified options to purchase 470 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.23 per share, the fair market value of our common stock as of that date. All grants
F-28
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
were immediately vested. In June 2003, all outstanding options issued under the 1999 Plan were exercised by tender of 6% subscription notes receivable which were repaid in August 2003. The exercise of the non-qualified options generated a tax savings of approximately $1.3 million relative to the additional compensation expense we are required to report to the Internal Revenue Service.
The 2002 Plan was approved and adopted on April 1, 2002 and authorized the issuance of options to purchase 746 shares of our common stock. Options to acquire 609 shares were granted on April 1, 2002 at an exercise price of $4.40 per share, the fair market value of our common stock as of that date. On February 25, 2003, our board of directors authorized an additional 37 shares to be issued under options to purchase our common stock and granted options on an additional 150 shares at an exercise price of $7.31 per share, which is less than the fair market value at that date. Options vest ratably each year over a four-year period.
The expiration date of options granted under these plans is the earlier of the ten-year anniversary of the grant date; the one-year anniversary of the termination of the participants employment by reason of death or disability; thirty days after the date of the participants termination of employment if caused by reasons other than death, disability, cause, material breach or unsatisfying performance; or on the termination date if termination occurs for reasons of cause, material breach or unsatisfactory performance. The weighted average remaining contractual life for the 1999 Plan was 8 years and 7 years as of September 30, 2001 and 2002, respectively. The remaining contractual life for the 2002 Plan was 9.5 years as of September 30, 2002.
The following table summarizes stock option activity for 2001 and 2002:
Year Ended | Year Ended | |||||||||||||||
September 30, 2001 | September 30, 2002 | |||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||
Stock | Weighted Average | Stock | Weighted Average | |||||||||||||
Options | Exercise Price | Options | Exercise Price | |||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||
Outstanding, beginning of year
|
470 | $ | 0.23 | 470 | $ | 0.23 | ||||||||||
Granted
|
| | 609 | 4.40 | ||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||
Outstanding, end of year
|
470 | $ | 0.23 | 1,079 | $ | 2.48 | ||||||||||
Exercisable, end of year
|
470 | $ | 0.23 | 470 | $ | 0.23 |
19. Discontinued Operations
On September 29, 2001, our board of directors authorized a Stock Purchase Agreement between us and NTT Acquisition Corp. by which we sold NTT for nominal consideration of $1.00, which was our estimate of NTTs fair market value. Certain of NTT Acquisition Corp. shareholders are also our shareholders. We reported the operating results of NTT and the loss on disposal as discontinued operations for all periods in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Operations. At September 30, 2001, we recorded a loss on the sale of NTT of approximately $1.3 million.
F-29
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
Our historical Consolidated Statements of
Operations have been adjusted to show the results of the
discontinued operations separately. The results of the
discontinued operations for the periods presented in our
Consolidated Statements of Operations consist of the following:
Year Ended
September 30,
2000
2001
$
28,874
$
25,224
11,419
11,785
16,711
19,450
33,942
3,074
(33,198
)
(9,085
)
5
(33,198
)
(9,080
)
(1,239
)
544
$
(34,437
)
$
(8,536
)
There were no assets and liabilities of the discontinued operations to be disposed of included in our Consolidated Balance Sheets for the years ended September 30, 2001 and 2002.
We advanced funds to NTT Acquisition Corp. subsequent to the sale of NTT in exchange for a note receivable in the amount of $0.6 million. This note has not been repaid. During the year ended September 30, 2002, we recorded a full valuation reserve because collection was uncertain.
20. Segment Information
We follow SFAS No. 131, Disclosures about segments of an Enterprise and Related Information. SFAS establishes standards for the way that public business enterprises report certain information about operating segments in their financial reports. Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise about which separate financial information is available that is evaluated on a regular basis by the chief operating decision maker, or decision making group, in assessing performance of the segment and in deciding how to allocate resources to an individual segment. SFAS No. 131 also establishes standards for related disclosures about products and services, geographic areas and major customers.
Our principal business is providing post-secondary education. We also provide manufacturer-specific training, and these operations are managed separately from our campus operations. These operations do not currently meet the quantitative criteria for segments and therefore are not deemed reportable under SFAS No. 131 and are reflected in the Other category. Corporate expenses are allocated to Post-Secondary Education and the Other category.
F-30
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS (Continued)
Summary information by reportable segment is as
follows as of and for the years ended September 30:
2000
Post-
Secondary
Education
Other
Total
$
86,307
$
5,772
$
92,079
$
10,681
$
(1,018
)
$
9,663
$
3,759
$
128
$
3,887
$
21,150
$
$
21,150
$
69,237
$
(392
)
$
68,845
2001
Post-
Secondary
Education
Other
Total
$
99,852
$
9,641
$
109,493
$
12,479
$
(872
)
$
11,607
$
4,340
$
193
$
4,533
$
20,579
$
$
20,579
$
63,977
$
(891
)
$
63,086
2002
Post-
Secondary
Education
Other
Total
$
132,607
$
11,765
$
144,372
$
23,319
$
(1,301
)
$
22,018
$
4,681
$
270
$
4,951
$
20,579
$
$
20,579
$
78,244
$
(1,358
)
$
76,886
Summary information by reportable segment is as
follows as of and for the nine months ended June 30:
2002
Post-
Secondary
Education
Other
Total
(unaudited)
$
96,716
$
8,712
$
105,428
$
18,304
$
(1,193
)
$
17,111
$
2,966
$
201
$
3,167
$
20,579
$
$
20,579
$
64,744
$
(2,194
)
$
62,550
F-31
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS (Continued)
2003
Post
Secondary
Education
Other
Total
(unaudited)
$
131,350
$
10,292
$
141,642
$
26,568
$
325
$
26,893
$
4,260
$
216
$
4,476
$
20,579
$
$
20,579
$
96,227
$
(946
)
$
95,281
F-32
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
SCHEDULE OF VALUATION AND QUALIFYING
ACCOUNTS
(In thousands)
Beginning
Ending
Balance
Additions
Reductions
Balance
$
1,379
3,167
2,246
2,300
$
$
2,300
2,259
3,011
1,548
$
13,933
13,933
$
1,548
2,465
2,437
1,576
$
13,933
13,933
F-33
PART II
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN THE
PROSPECTUS
The following are the estimated expenses to be
incurred in connection with the issuance and distribution of the
securities registered under this Registration Statement, other
than underwriting discounts and commissions. All amounts shown
are estimates except the Securities and Exchange Commission
registration fee and the National Association of Securities
Dealers, Inc. filing fee. The following expenses will be borne
solely by the Registrant.
Section 145 of the Delaware General
Corporation Law permits a corporation to include in its charter
documents, and in agreements between the corporation and its
directors and officers, provisions expanding the scope of
indemnification beyond that specifically provided by the current
law.
The Registrants certificate of
incorporation provides for the indemnification of directors and
officers to the fullest extent under Delaware law. In addition,
the Registrants certificate of incorporation and
individual indemnification agreements between the Registrant and
its directors and officers provide for indemnification of the
Registrants directors and officers for liabilities and
expenses that they may incur in such capacities. In general,
directors and officers are indemnified with respect to actions
taken in good faith in a manner reasonably believed to be in, or
not opposed to, the best interests of the Registrant and, with
respect to any criminal action or proceeding, actions that the
indemnitee had no reasonable cause to believe were unlawful.
In addition, the Registrant has purchased
directors and officers liability insurance.
During the past three years, we have issued
unregistered securities to a limited number of persons, as
described below. None of these transactions involved any
underwriters or any public offerings and we believe that each of
these transactions was exempt from registration requirements
pursuant to Section 3(a)(9) or Section 4(2) of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, Regulation D
promulgated thereunder or Rule 701 of the Securities Act of
1933 pursuant to compensatory benefit plans and contracts
related to compensation as provided under Rule 701. The
recipients of the securities in these transactions represented
their intention to acquire the securities for investment only
and not with a view to or for sale in connection with any
distribution thereof, and appropriate legends were affixed to
the share certificates and instruments issued in these
transactions.
In 2003,
and pursuant to an exchange agreement between us and certain
holders of our Series A preferred stock, Series B
preferred stock and Series C preferred stock, we issued a
total
of shares
of our common stock to these same stockholders in exchange
for shares
of our
II-1
In February 2003, we granted stock options
to purchase an aggregate of 150,075 shares of our common
stock at an exercise price of $7.31 per share to certain of our
employees. The options were issued pursuant to our Management
2002 Option Program. We received no payment from optionees upon
issuance of the options.
In April 2002, we granted stock options to
purchase an aggregate of 609,000 shares of our common stock
at an exercise price of $4.40 per share to certain of our
employees. The options were issued pursuant to our Management
2002 Option Program. None of the options has been exercised as
of September 30, 2003, and we received no payment from
optionees upon issuance of the options.
In April 2002, we issued
2,357.19491 shares of our series D convertible
preferred stock to Charlesbank Voting Trust and Worldwide
Training Group, LLC, for an aggregate amount of
$45.5 million. Charlesbank Equity Fund V, Limited
Partnership, is the trustee of the Charlesbank Voting Trust, and
Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC is the general partner of
Charlesbank Equity Fund V GP, which, in turn, is the general
partner of the voting trustee. These securities were issued in
reliance on the exemption from registration pursuant to
Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 and
Regulation D promulgated thereunder.
(a)
Exhibits.
II-2
Filed previously.
(b)
Financial Statement Schedules.
All schedules for which provision is made in the
applicable accounting regulations of the Securities and Exchange
Commission are not required under the related instructions or
are inapplicable, and therefore have been omitted.
Item 17.
Undertakings
II-3
II-4
Item 13.
Other Expenses of Issuance and
Distribution
$15,351
$13,000
$161,600
$500,000
$650,000
$500,000
$16,200
43,849
1,900,000
Item 14.
Indemnification of Directors and
Officers
Item 15.
Recent Sales of Unregistered
Securities
Item 16.
Exhibits and Financial Statement
Schedules
*1
.1
Form of Underwriting Agreement.
3
.1
Second Amended and Restated Certificate of
Incorporation of registrant and amendments thereto.
3
.2
Form of Amended and Restated Certificate of
Incorporation of registrant (to become effective upon completion
of the offering).
3
.3
Bylaws of registrant.
3
.4
Form of Amended and Restated of Bylaws of
registrant (to become effective upon completion of the offering).
4
.1
Specimen Certificate evidencing shares of common
stock.
4
.2
Form of Registration Rights Agreement,
dated ,
2003, between registrant
and .
4
.3
Form of Lock-up Agreement by and among the
existing stockholders of registrant, registrant and the
underwriters.
5
.1
Form of Opinion of Bryan Cave LLP regarding
legality of common stock.
10
.1
Second Amendment and Restatement of Credit
Agreement dated March 29, 2002, among registrant, UTI
Holdings, Inc., Antares Capital Corporation, JP Morgan Chase
Bank, as Trustee of the Antares Funding Trust, and the Royal
Bank of Scotland plc, as lenders, and Heller Financial, Inc., as
agent and lender, as amended.
10
.2
Universal Technical Institute Executive Benefit
Plan, effective March 1, 1997.
10
.3
1997 Restricted Stock Plan.
10
.4
Management 1999 Option Program.
10
.5
Management 2002 Option Program.
10
.6
2003 Stock Incentive Plan.
10
.7
2003 Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
10
.8
Amended and Restated Employment and
Non-Interference Agreement dated April 1, 2002, between
registrant and Robert D. Hartman, as amended.
10
.9
Employment and Non-Interference Agreement dated
April 1, 2002, between registrant and John C. White, as
amended.
10
.10
Employment and Non-Interference Agreement dated
April 1, 2002, between registrant and Kimberly J. McWaters,
as amended.
10
.11
Form of Severance Agreement between registrant
and certain executive officers.
10
.12
Lease Agreement dated April 1, 1994, as
amended, between City Park LLC, as successor in interest to 2844
West Deer Valley L.L.C., as landlord, and the Clinton Harley
Corporation, as tenant.
10
.13
Lease Agreement dated July 2, 2001, as
amended, between John C. and Cynthia L. White, as trustees of
the John C. and Cynthia L. White 1989 Family Trust, as landlord,
and The Clinton Harley Corporation, as tenant.
10
.14
Lease Agreement dated July 2, 2001, between
Delegates LLC, as landlord, and the Clinton Harley Corporation,
as tenant.
21
.1
Subsidiaries of registrant.
23
.1
Consent of Bryan Cave LLP (included in
Exhibit 5.1).
23
.2
Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
24
.1
Power of Attorney (included on signature page).
*
To be filed by amendment.
(a) Insofar as indemnification for
liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be
permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the
Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise,
the Registrant has been informed that in the opinion of the
Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is
against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore,
unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification
against such liabilities (other than the payment by the
Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer,
or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful
defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such
director, officer, or controlling person in connection with the
securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the
opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by
controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate
jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is
against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and
will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
(b) The undersigned Registrant undertakes
that:
(i)
For purposes of determining any liability under
the Securities Act of 1933, the information omitted from the
form of prospectus filed as part of this Registration Statement
in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in the form of
prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to
Rule 424(b)(1) or (4) or 497(h) under the Securities
Act shall be deemed to be part of this Registration Statement as
of the time it was declared effective; and
(ii)
For the purpose of determining any liability
under the Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment
that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new
Registration Statement relating to the securities offered
therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall
be deemed to be the initial
bona fide
offering thereof.
(c) The undersigned Registrant undertakes to
provide to the underwriters at the closing specified in the
underwriting agreement, certificates in such denominations and
registered in such names as required by the underwriters to
permit prompt delivery to each purchaser.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this
Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in Phoenix, Arizona on
November 12, 2003.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement has been
signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the
dates indicated.
S-1
S-2
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
By:
/s/ ROBERT D. HARTMAN
Robert D. Hartman
Chairman of the Board
Signature
Title
Date
/s/ ROBERT D. HARTMAN
Robert D. Hartman
Chairman of the Board
November 12, 2003
*
John C. White
Chief Strategic Planning Officer and Vice
Chairman of the Board
November 12, 2003
*
Kimberly J. McWaters
Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
November 12, 2003
*
Jennifer L. Haslip
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
and Treasurer and (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
November 12, 2003
*
Michael R. Eisenson
Director
November 12, 2003
*
A. Richard Caputo, Jr.
Director
November 12, 2003
Signature
Title
Date
Robert F. Cioffi
Director
November 12, 2003
John W. Jordan, II
Director
November 12, 2003
James A. Hislop
Director
November 12, 2003
Roger S. Penske
Director
November 12, 2003
*By:
/s/ ROBERT D. HARTMAN
Robert D. Hartman
Attorney-in-Fact
November 12, 2003
EXHIBIT INDEX
The following exhibits are filed with this
Registration Statement.
Exhibit
Number
Description
*1.1
Form of Underwriting Agreement.
3.1
Second Amended and Restated Certificate of
Incorporation of registrant and amendments thereto.
3.2
Form of Amended and Restated Certificate of
Incorporation of registrant (to become effective upon completion
of the offering).
3.3
Bylaws of registrant.
3.4
Form of Amended and Restated Bylaws of registrant
(to become effective upon completion of the offering).
4.1
Specimen Certificate evidencing shares of common
stock.
4.2
Form of Registration Rights Agreement,
dated ,
2003, between registrant
and .
4.3
Form of Lock-up Agreement by and among the
existing stockholders of registrant, registrant and the
underwriters.
5.1
Form of Opinion of Bryan Cave LLP regarding
legality of common stock.
10.1
Second Amendment and Restatement of Credit
Agreement dated March 29, 2002, among registrant, UTI
Holdings, Inc., Antares Capital Corporation, JP Morgan Chase
Bank, as Trustee of the Antares Funding Trust, and the Royal
Bank of Scotland plc, as lenders, and Heller Financial, Inc., as
agent and lender, as amended.
10.2
Universal Technical Institute Executive Benefit
Plan, effective March 1, 1997.
10.3
1997 Restricted Stock Plan.
10.4
Management 1999 Option Program.
10.5
Management 2002 Option Program.
10.6
2003 Stock Incentive Plan.
10.7
2003 Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
10.8
Amended and Restated Employment and
Non-Interference Agreement dated April 1, 2002, between
registrant and Robert D. Hartman, as amended.
10.9
Employment and Non-Interference Agreement dated
April 1, 2002, between registrant and John C. White, as
amended.
10.10
Employment and Non-Interference Agreement dated
April 1, 2002, between registrant and Kimberly J. McWaters,
as amended.
10.11
Form of Severance Agreement between registrant
and certain executive officers.
10.12
Lease Agreement dated April 1, 1994, as
amended, between City Park LLC, as successor in interest to 2844
West Deer Valley L.L.C., as landlord, and the Clinton Harley
Corporation, as tenant.
10.13
Lease Agreement dated July 2, 2001, as
amended, between John C. and Cynthia L. White, as trustees of
the John C. and Cynthia L. White 1989 Family Trust, as landlord,
and The Clinton Harley Corporation, as tenant.
10.14
Lease Agreement dated July 2, 2001, between
Delegates LLC, as landlord, and the Clinton Harley Corporation,
as tenant.
21.1
Subsidiaries of registrant.
23.1
Consent of Bryan Cave LLP (included in
Exhibit 5.1).
23.2
Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
24.1
Power of Attorney (included on signature page).
*
To be filed by amendment.
Filed previously.
Exhibit 4.1
[FRONT OF UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. STOCK CERTIFICATE]
NUMBER SHARES
No.
COMMON STOCK COMMON STOCK
SEE REVERSE FOR CERTAIN DEFINITIONS
CUSIP 913915 10 4
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
INCORPORATED UNDER THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE
This is to certify that
is the owner of
FULLY PAID AND NON-ASSESSABLE SHARES OF THE PAR VALUE OF $0.0001 EACH OF UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. (hereinafter called the "Corporation"), transferable on the books of the Corporation by the holder hereof in person, or by duly authorized attorney, upon surrender of this certificate properly endorsed. This certificate and the shares represented hereby are issued and shall be held subject to all of the provisions of the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation and all amendments thereto, to all of which the holder of this certificate assents by his or her acceptance hereof. This is not valid until countersigned and registered by the Transfer Agent and Registrar.
WITNESS the facsimile seal of the Corporation and the facsimile signatures of its duly authorized officers.
Dated: COUNTERSIGNED AND REGISTERED: THE BANK OF NEW YORK: by TRANSFER AGENT AND REGISTRAR Universal Technical Institute, Inc. Chairman of the Board and Director[signature] 1997 President and Chief Executive Officer [signature] Delaware Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Secretary and Treasurer [signature] |
[Corporate Seal] Authorized Officer |
[BACK OF UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC. STOCK CERTIFICATE]
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
THE CORPORATION WILL FURNISH TO ANY STOCKHOLDER UPON REQUEST AND WITHOUT CHARGE A FULL STATEMENT OF THE DESIGNATION, RELATIVE RIGHTS, PREFERENCES AND LIMITATIONS OF THE SHARES OF EACH CLASS AND SERIES AUTHORIZED TO BE ISSUED SO FAR AS THE SAME HAVE BEEN FIXED, AND THE AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS TO DESIGNATE AND FIX THE RELATIVE RIGHTS, PREFERENCES AND LIMITATION OF OTHER SERIES. ANY SUCH REQUEST MAY BE MADE TO THE CORPORATION OR TO ITS TRANSFER AGENT. The following abbreviations, when used in the inscription on the face of this certificate, shall be construed as though they were written out in full according to applicable laws or regulations:
TEN COM - as tenants in common UNIF GIFT MIN ACT - Custodian ---- ---- TEN ENT - as tenants by the entireties (Cust) (Minor) JT TEN - as joint tenants with right of under Uniform Gifts to Minors survivorship and not as tenants Act in common -------------------------- (State) |
Additional abbreviations may also be used though not in the above list.
For value received, ---------- hereby sell, assign and transfer unto
PLEASE INSERT SOCIAL SECURITY OR OTHER IDENTIFYING NUMBER OF ASSIGNEE
PLEASE PRINT OR TYPEWRITE NAME AND ADDRESS INCLUDING ZIP CODE OF ASSIGNEE
Shares of the Common Stock represented by the within Certificate, and do hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint
Attorney to transfer the said stock on the books of the within named Corporation with full power of substitution in the premises.
THE SIGNATURE(S) MUST BE GUARANTEED BY AN ELIGIBLE GUARANTOR INSTITUTION (BANKS, STOCKBROKERS, SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS, AND CREDIT UNIONS WITH MEMBERSHIP IN AN APPROVED SIGNATURE GUARANTEE MEDALLION PROGRAM), PURSUANT TO S.E.C. RULE 17Ad-15. KEEP THIS CERTIFICATE IN A SAFE PLACE. IF IT IS LOST, STOLEN, MUTILATED OR DESTROYED, THE CORPORATION WILL REQUIRE A BOND OF INDEMNITY AS A CONDITION TO THE ISSUANCE OF A REPLACEMENT CERTIFICATE.
EXHIBIT 4.2
REGISTRATION RIGHTS AGREEMENT
THIS REGISTRATION RIGHTS AGREEMENT, dated as of ______, 2003 (the "Agreement"), is by and between UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC., a Delaware corporation (the "Company"), and the Persons whose names are set forth on the signature pages of this Agreement.
RECITALS
A. The Company and the signatories to this Agreement (as well as other Persons who are not parties hereto) were parties to that Amended and Restated Stockholders Agreement dated as of April 1, 2002 (the "Prior Agreement"), which provided in Article V thereof for certain registration rights in respect of securities of the Company.
B. In connection with the Company's Initial Public Offering (capitalized terms used without definition are defined in Article I of this Agreement), the parties to the Prior Agreement agreed to terminate the Prior Agreement in connection with the consummation of such Initial Public Offering and the satisfaction of certain conditions, one such condition being that this Agreement be executed and delivered by the Company and the other Persons whose names are set forth on the signature pages of this Agreement.
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the agreements, representations, warranties and indemnities hereinafter set forth, the parties hereto agree as follows:
ARTICLE I
DEFINITIONS
1.1 Definitions. Unless otherwise defined herein, capitalized terms used herein shall have the meaning given to such terms below:
"Affiliate" means with respect to any Person (a) any Person which,
directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, controls, is
controlled by, or is under common control with, such Person, (b) any member of
such Person's family or any individual who is a director or an executive officer
(i) of such Person, (ii) of any subsidiary of such Person or (iii) of any Person
described in clause (a) above, or with respect to any Stockholder, the Company.
For purposes of this definition, "control" of a Person shall mean the power,
direct or indirect, (x) to vote or direct the voting of more than 50% of the
outstanding shares of voting stock of such Person or (y) to direct or cause the
direction of the management and policies of such Person, whether by contract or
otherwise.
"Beneficial Ownership" means "beneficial ownership" as defined in Rule 13d-5 promulgated under the Exchange Act. The terms "Beneficial Ownership" and "Beneficially Owns" shall have correlative meanings.
"Charlesbank Stockholders" means, collectively, Charlesbank Equity Fund V, Limited Partnership, CB Offshore Equity Fund V, L.P., Charlesbank Equity Coinvestment Fund V, Limited Partnership, Coyote Training Group, LLC, Charlesbank Voting Trust, and their respective Permitted Transferees.
"CHC Stockholders" means White LLC and its Permitted Transferees.
"Commission" means the Securities and Exchange Commission, or any other federal agency at the time administering the Securities Act.
"Common Stock" means the issued and outstanding common stock of the Company.
"Common Stock Equivalent" means Common Stock and any securities or other rights of the Company convertible into or exercisable for Common Stock.
"Exchange Act" means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or any similar federal statute, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, all as the same shall be in effect at the time.
"Fully-Diluted Basis" means, (i) when referring to the computation of a percentage of the shares of Common Stock that would be held by a Stockholder, the ratio, after giving effect to the full conversion or exercise, as the case may be, of (A) all outstanding securities of the Company held by such Stockholder whether or not such securities are then convertible or exercisable, as the case may be, to (B) the aggregate number of shares of' Common Stock that would be outstanding after giving effect to the full exercise and conversion, as the case may be, of any outstanding securities of the Company held by all security holders, whether or not such securities are then exercisable or convertible and (ii) when referring to the number of shares of Common Stock held by a Stockholder, after giving effect to the full conversion or exercise, as the case may be, of all outstanding securities of the Company held by such Stockholder, whether or not such securities are then exercisable or convertible.
"GE Capital Stockholders" means GE Capital Equity Holdings. Inc., a member, of Worldwide Training, Group, LLC, and its Permitted Transferees and Affiliates.
"Initial Public Offering" means the public offering by the Company of its Common Stock pursuant to a Form S-1 registration statement (Commission file no. 333-109430) filed by the Company with the Commission, and underwritten by one or more reputable investment banks, where the aggregate gross proceeds to the Company from such public offering shall be not less than $50,000,000.
"JZEP" means JZ Equity Partners PLC, a public limited liability company incorporated in England and Wales.
"JZEP Investors" means JZEP, JZEP Preferred Holdings Limited, a public limited liability company incorporated in England and Wales, and its Permitted Transferees.
"Lien" means any lien, mortgage, security interest, claim, restriction, encumbrance, pledge, hypothecation or interest of any Person, of any kind or nature.
"Penske Stockholders" means, collectively, Worldwide Training Group, LLC and its Permitted Transferees.
"Permitted Transferee" means, in the case of any Stockholder, (a) any
voting trust created, or agreement executed, for the purpose of voting the
shares of Common Stock held by such Stockholder; (b) any member of such
Stockholder's immediate family (as defined in the regulations promulgated under
Section 16 of the Exchange Act), including any child of a deceased or living
spouse of a Stockholder or the child or children of any such child; (c) any
trust created for the benefit of such Stockholder or any of his or her family
members; (d) any legal representative and the testate or intestate
distributee(s) to whom such Stockholder shall transfer any Common Stock at any
time or from time to time; (e) in the case of any Stockholder that is an
Affiliate of The Jordan Company, LLC, any Person listed on Exhibit A attached
hereto and any other Person that is an Affiliate of The Jordan Company; (f) in
the case of any JZEP Investor, any other Person that is an Affiliate of JZEP;
(g) in the case of the White LLC, John White, any member of his immediate family
(as defined above) and any trust primarily for the benefit of John White or any
member of his immediate family; (h) in the case of any Stockholder that is a
Penske Stockholder, to any Affiliate or limited partner or member (or Affiliate
of such limited partner or member) of a Penske Stockholder; (i) in the case of
any Stockholder that is a GE Capital Stockholder, to any Permitted SPV; and (j)
in the case of any Stockholder that is a Charlesbank Stockholder, to any
Affiliate or limited partner or member of a Charlesbank Stockholder.
"Permitted SPV" means a Person for which such GE Capital Stockholder or an Affiliate thereof (x) holds an irrevocable proxy to vote all of the Shares held by such Person, (y) retains an economic interest in such person, and (z) has the power to manage and direct the business affairs and properties of such Person.
"Person" means any individual, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, joint venture, organization, and any governmental entity or any department, agency or subdivision thereof.
"Prior Agreement" is defined in Recital A.
"Registration Expenses" has the meaning set forth in Section 2.3.
"Restricted Stock" means all of the Common Stock Equivalents of the Company. As to any particular Restricted Stock, such securities shall cease to be Restricted Stock after issuance when (a) a registration statement with respect to the sale of such securities shall have become effective under the Securities Act and such securities shall have been disposed of in accordance with such registration statement, (b) such securities shall have been distributed to the public pursuant to Rule 144 (or any successor provision) or are saleable pursuant to Rule 144(k) (or and, successor provision) under the Securities Act, (c) such securities shall have been otherwise transferred, new certificates for them not bearing a legend restricting further transfer shall have been delivered by the Company and subsequent disposition of them shall not require registration or qualification of them under the Securities Act or any similar state law then in force, or (d) such securities shall have ceased to be outstanding.
"Securities Act" means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any similar federal statute, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, all as the same shall be in effect at the time.
"Senior Manager Stockholders" means, collectively, the UTI Stockholders and the CHC Stockholders.
"Shares" means, with respect to each Stockholder, the shares of Stock owned or held by such Stockholder.
"Stock" means the Common Stock and any other capital stock of the Company.
"Stockholder" means each of the parties to this Agreement (other than the Company) and any Permitted Transferee(s) of such party.
"TJC Stockholders" means, collectively, JZEP, Permitted Transferees of JZEP, those stockholders set forth on Exhibit A, and the respective Permitted Transferees of such stockholders.
"Transfer" means any sale, transfer, assignment, pledge, hypothecation, gift, bequest, granting of a Lien, or other disposition or event of any kind that would (or could), directly or indirectly, by operation of law or otherwise, change in any manner the actual or Beneficial Ownership of any shares of Stock. Each Transfer must comply with all of the terms of this Agreement. Consent by the Company to Transfers made for estate planning purposes shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed.
"UTI Stockholders" means Robert Hartman and his Permitted Transferees.
"White LLC" means Whites' Family Company, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.
ARTICLE II
REGISTRATION RIGHTS
2.1 Registration Rights.
(a) Requested Registration. If after 180 days following the date on which the Initial Public Offering has been consummated, the Company shall receive from any of the TJC Stockholders, the Penske Stockholders or the Charlesbank Stockholders (the "Initiating Stockholder(s)"), a written request that the Company effect any registration, the Company shall, subject to the limitations and conditions hereinafter set forth:
(i) promptly give written notice of the proposed registration to all other Stockholders; and
(ii) as soon as practicable use its best efforts to register (including, without limitation, the execution of an undertaking to file post-effective
amendments and any other governmental requirements) all Restricted Stock which the Initiating Stockholder(s) request to be registered, and all Restricted Stock of other Stockholders who elect to participate in such registration, pursuant to Section 2.1(b); provided, that the Company shall not be obligated to file a registration statement pursuant to this Section 2.1(a):
(A) in any particular state in which the Company would be required to execute a general consent to service of process in effecting such registration;
(B) within 360 days following the effective date of any registered offering of the Company's securities to the general public in which the Stockholder of Restricted Stock shall have been able effectively to register all Restricted Stock as to which registration shall have been requested (excluding, in all events, the Initial Public Offering;
(C) in any registration which does not either (1) have an aggregate offering price for the shares offered (before deduction of underwriting discounts and expenses of sale) of at least $25,000,000 or (2) cover the offer and sale of a number of shares of Common Stock equal to at least 10% (ten percent) of the total number of shares of Common Stock outstanding at the time that the request is made pursuant to Section 2.1(a) (it being agreed that the determination whether the registration covers at least 10% of such shares shall be made without regard to any over-allotment option of the underwriters); or
(D) after the Company has effected, in the case of any demand by any of the Penske Stockholders, the Charlesbank Stockholders or the TJC Stockholders, one such registration requested by each of such collective group of such Stockholders pursuant to this Section 2.1(a) and such registration has been declared or ordered effective and not withdrawn or suspended, it being understood that each of the Penske Stockholders, the Charlesbank Stockholders and the TJC Stockholders shall be entitled to a single demand registration under this Section 2.1(a) (such that the Company may be required to effect a maximum of three such registrations pursuant to this Section 2.1(a)), and that the Senior Manager Stockholders do not have registration rights under this Section 2.1(a).
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company may delay in filing a registration statement and may withhold efforts to cause a registration statement to become effective, if the Company determines in good faith that such registration will (i) materially and adversely interfere with or affect the negotiation or completion of any actual or pending material transaction that is being contemplated by the Company (whether or not a final decision has been made to undertake such transaction) at the time the right to delay or withhold efforts is exercised, or (ii) involve initial or continuing disclosure obligations that are not in the best interests of the Company's stockholders. The Company may exercise such right to delay or withhold efforts not more than once in any period of 12 consecutive months and for not more than ninety (90) days. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary that may be contained in this Agreement, if the Company exercises its right to delay or to withhold efforts, the Company shall use its reasonable best efforts to have the
registration statement filed or declared effective, as the case may be, at the earliest practicable date after the Company's reasons for delaying or withholding efforts are no longer applicable (but subject to the time limitation in the immediately preceding sentence).
(b) Piggyback Registration. If the Company, at any time pursuant to
Section 2.1(a) or otherwise after consummation of the Initial Public
Offering, proposes or is required to use its best efforts to register any
Common Stock under the Securities Act for sale to the public (other than
pursuant to a registration statement on Forms S-4 or S-8, or any successor
forms), each such time the Company will give written notice to each
Stockholder of its intention to do so. Upon the written request of a
Stockholder received by the Company within 21 days after the giving of any
such notice by the Company, to register such number of shares of
Restricted Stock owned of record or beneficially by such Stockholder
specified in such written request, the Company will use its best efforts
to cause the Restricted Stock as to which registration shall have been so
requested to be included in the shares of Common Stock to be covered by
the registration statement proposed to be filed by the Company, all to the
extent requisite to permit the Transfer by each Stockholder (in accordance
with his, her or its written request) of such Restricted Stock once so
registered. In the event that any registration pursuant to this Section
2.1 shall be, in whole or in part, an underwritten public offering of
Common Stock, the number of shares of Restricted Stock requested to be
included in such an underwriting may be reduced if and to the extent that
the managing underwriter shall be of the opinion that such inclusion would
adversely affect the marketing of the shares of Common Stock to be sold by
the Company or any other Person therein. In the event such a reduction is
necessary, (a) if the registration is being made upon the demand of the
Initiating Stockholders pursuant to Section 2.1(a), then the first
priority in such registration shall be given to Restricted Stock owned by
the Stockholders (including the Initiating Stockholder(s)) who request to
participate in such registration pursuant to Sections 2.1(a) or 2.1(b) (on
a pro rata basis in accordance with the number of shares of Restricted
Stock on a Fully-Diluted Basis owned by such Stockholders), and second
priority shall be given in such registration to any shares of Restricted
Stock that the Company desires to issue on its own account; and (b) if the
registration is being made on the Company's account, then the first
priority in such registration shall be given to shares of Common Stock
that the Company desires to issue on its own account, and second priority
shall be given to Restricted Stock owned by the Stockholders who request
to participate in such registration pursuant to Section 2.1(b) (on a pro
rata basis in accordance with the number of shares of Restricted Stock on
a Fully-Diluted Basis owned by such Stockholders). A Stockholder may elect
to withdraw from a registration in which the Stockholder requested to
participate pursuant to Section 2.1(b) all shares of Restricted Stock held
by him, her or it as to which registration was requested. Notwithstanding
the foregoing provisions, the Company may withdraw any registration
statement referred to in this Section 2.1 without thereby incurring any
liability to any Stockholder if such withdrawal otherwise complies with
the terms of Section 2.1(a).
If any registration pursuant to this Section 2.1(b) is an underwritten offering, the Company and the Stockholders participating in such offering shall enter into a customary underwriting agreement with the underwriter(s) administering the offering. A Stockholder may not participate in any piggyback registration without (i) agreeing to sell
securities on the basis provided in the underwriting arrangements approved by the Company, and (ii) completing all questionnaires, powers of attorney, indemnities, underwriting agreements and other documents reasonably required by the underwriting arrangements.
2.2 Registration Procedures. If and whenever, the Company is required by the provisions of Section 2.1 hereof to use its best efforts to effect the registration of any shares of Restricted Stock under the Securities Act, the Company will promptly:
(a) prepare and file with the Commission a registration statement (which shall be on any form of general applicability satisfactory to the managing underwriter (if any) with respect to such securities);
(b) prepare and file with the Commission such amendments and supplements to such registration statement and the prospectus used in connection therewith as may be necessary to keep such registration statement effective for the period of distribution and comply with the provisions of the Securities Act with respect to the disposition of all Restricted Stock covered by such registration statement in accordance with the intended method of disposition set forth in such registration statement for such period;
(c) furnish to each selling Stockholder and to each underwriter such number of copies of the registration statement and the prospectus included therein (including each preliminary prospectus) as such Persons reasonably may request in order to facilitate the public sale or other disposition of the Restricted Stock covered by such registration statement;
(d) use its commercially reasonable best efforts to register or qualify the Restricted Stock covered by such registration statement under the securities or "blue sky" laws of such jurisdictions as each selling Stockholder, or, in the case of an underwritten public offering, the managing underwriter reasonably shall request; provided, however, that the Company shall not for any such purpose be required to qualify generally to transact business as a foreign corporation in any jurisdiction where it is not so qualified or to consent to general service of process in any such jurisdiction;
(e) use its commercially reasonable best efforts to list the Restricted Stock that is Common Stock covered by such registration statement with any securities exchange or the Nasdaq Stock Market National Market on which the Common Stock of the Company is then listed or quoted;
(f) notify each selling Stockholder at any time when a prospectus relating to Restricted Stock is required to be delivered under the Securities Act of the happening of any event as a result of which the prospectus included in such registration statement contains an untrue statement of a material fact or omits any fact necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and the Company, will prepare a supplement or amendment to such prospectus (at the expense of the party making or omitting such material fact) so that, as thereafter delivered to the purchasers of such Restricted Stock, such prospectus will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any
fact necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided that the 90-day period described below will be tolled from the time a prospectus contains such a statement or omission until a prospectus correcting such statement or omission has been delivered to the Stockholder and may be delivered to the purchasers of such Restricted Stock in compliance with the Securities Act;
(g) notify each selling Stockholder immediately, and confirm the
notice in writing, (1) when the registration statement becomes effective,
(2) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order or of the
initiation, or the written threat, of any proceedings for that purpose,
(3) of the receipt by the Company of any notification with respect to the
suspension of qualification of the Restricted Stock for sale in any
jurisdiction or of the initiation, or the written threat, of any
proceedings for that purpose, and (4) of the receipt of any comments, or
requests for additional information, from the Commission or any state
regulatory authority. If the Commission or any state regulatory authority
shall enter such a stop order or order suspending qualification at any
time, the Company will promptly use its best efforts to obtain the lifting
of such order; and
(h) otherwise use its best efforts to comply with all applicable rules and regulations of the Commission, and make available to its security holders as soon as reasonably practicable, but not later than 15 months after the effective date of the registration statement, an earnings statement covering a period of at least 12 months beginning after the effective date of the registration statement, which earnings statement shall satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act.
For purposes hereof, the period of distribution of Restricted Stock in a firm commitment underwritten public offering shall be deemed to extend until each underwriter has completed the distribution of all securities purchased by it, and the period of distribution of Restricted Stock in any other registration shall be deemed to extend until the earlier of the sale of all Restricted Stock covered thereby or 90 days after the effective date thereof.
In connection with each registration hereunder each Stockholder will furnish to the Company in writing such information with respect to it as a stockholder as shall be necessary in order to assure compliance with federal and applicable state securities laws.
In connection with each registration pursuant to Section 2.1 hereof covering an underwritten public offering, (i) the Company and each selling Stockholder agree to enter into a written agreement with the managing underwriter in such form and containing such provisions as are customary in the securities business for such an arrangement between such underwriter and companies of the Company's size and investment stature, including but not limited to a customary lockup agreement, and (ii) each selling Stockholder agrees to convert any Common Stock Equivalents that are being registered and sold into Common Stock upon the consummation of such registration and sale.
2.3 Expenses. All reasonable expenses incurred by the Company in complying with Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof, including, without limitation, all registration and filing fees, printing expenses, fees and disbursements of counsel and the independent auditor for the Company, fees and expenses (including counsel fees) incurred in connection with complying with state
securities or `blue sky" laws, fees of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc., transfer taxes, fees of transfer agents and registrars, and fees and disbursements of one counsel for the sellers of Restricted Stock, but excluding any Selling Expenses (as defined below), are called "Registration Expenses." All underwriting discounts and selling commissions applicable to the sale of Restricted Stock are called "Selling Expenses."
(a) The Company shall pay all Registration Expenses attributable to the shares of Restricted Stock of the Stockholders included in the registration in connection with each registration statement under Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof.
(b) All Selling Expenses in connection with each registration statement under Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof shall be borne by the selling Stockholders in proportion to the number of shares of Common Stock sold by each Stockholder.
2.4 Indemnification and Contribution.
(a) In the event of a registration of any of the Restricted Stock
under the Securities Act pursuant to Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof, the
Company will indemnify, and hold harmless each Stockholder (provided any
such Stockholder is a seller of Restricted Stock thereunder), each
underwriter of such Restricted Stock thereunder, and, each other Person,
if any, who controls such Stockholder, its directors and its officers or
underwriters within the meaning of the Securities Act, against any losses,
claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which such
Stockholder, such underwriter or such Person may become subject under the
Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or
liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon
any untrue statement or alleged untrue statements of any material fact
contained in any registration statement under which any shares of
Restricted Stock were registered under the Securities Act pursuant to
Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof, any preliminary prospectus or final prospectus
contained therein, or any amendment or supplement thereof, or arise out of
or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a
material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the
statements therein not misleading, or any violation by the Company of the
Securities Act or any rule or regulation thereunder applicable to the
Company (other than a violation arising from any action or inaction
required of the Company by any applicable regulatory authority in
connection with any registration, qualification or compliance), and will
reimburse each such Stockholder, each such underwriter and each such
Person for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by any of them
in connection with investigating or defending any such loss, claim,
damage, liability or action; provided, however, that the Company will not
be liable in any such case if and to the extent that any such loss, claim,
damage or liability arises out of or is based upon an untrue statement or
alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission (i) so made in
conformity with information furnished by such Stockholder, such
underwriter or such Person in writing specifically for use in such
registration statement or prospectus or (ii) made in any preliminary
prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, if a copy of the final
prospectus, or any amendment or supplement, if applicable, was not
delivered by or on behalf of such underwriter or a Stockholder (if such
Stockholder had a duty, under applicable law or agreement, to deliver the
same) to the person asserting any claim against such
underwriter or such Stockholder and the untrue statement or alleged untrue statement in or omission or alleged omission from such preliminary prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto was corrected in the final prospectus, or any amendment or supplement, if applicable, unless such failure to deliver the final prospectus or any amendment or supplement was a result of noncompliance by the Company with Section 2.2(c) hereof.
(b) In the event of a registration of any of the shares of Restricted Stock under the Securities Act pursuant to Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof, each Stockholder including shares of Restricted Stock in such registration, severally, but not jointly, will indemnify and hold harmless the Company, each Person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of the Securities Act, each officer of the Company who signs the registration statement, each director of the Company, each underwriter, and each Person who controls any underwriter within the meaning of the Securities Act, against all losses, claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which such Person may become subject under the Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of any material fact contained in the registration statement under which any shares of Restricted Stock were registered under the Securities Act pursuant to Section 2.1 or 2.2 hereof, any preliminary prospectus, or final prospectus contained therein, or any amendment hereof or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and will reimburse the Company and each such officer, director, underwriter and controlling Person for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by them in connection with investigating or defending any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action; provided, however, that each such Stockholder will be liable hereunder in any such case only to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage or liability arises out of or is based upon, an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with information pertaining to such Stockholder, as such, respectively, furnished in writing to the Company by such Stockholder specifically for use in such registration statement or prospectus; provided further that, in any such case, no such holder will be liable for any amount in excess of the net proceeds received from the sale of Restricted Stock offered by such holder pursuant to such registration statement. In no event will any Stockholder be required to enter into any agreement or undertaking in connection with any registration under this Agreement providing for any indemnification or contribution obligation on the part of such Stockholder greater than any other Stockholder's obligation under this Section 2.4(b).
(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party hereunder of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party hereunder, notify the indemnifying party in writing thereof, but the omission so to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have to such indemnified party other than under this Article 2 and shall only relieve it from any liability which it may have to such indemnified party under this Article 2 if and to the extent the indemnifying party is prejudiced by such omission. In case any such action shall be brought against any
indemnified party and it shall notify the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate in and, to the extent it shall wish, to assume and undertake the defense thereof with counsel satisfactory to such indemnified party, and, after notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of its election so to assume and undertake the defense thereof, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to such indemnified party under this Article 2 for any legal expenses subsequently incurred by such indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation and of liaison with counsel so selected; provided, however, that, if the defendants in any such action include both the indemnified party, and the indemnifying party and the indemnified party shall have reasonably concluded that there may be reasonable defenses available to it which are different from or additional to those available to the indemnifying party or if the interests of the indemnified party reasonably may be deemed to conflict with the interests of the indemnifying party, the indemnified party shall have the right to select a separate counsel and to assume such legal defenses and otherwise to participate in the defense of such action, with the reasonable expenses and fees of such separate counsel and other expenses related to such participation to be reimbursed by the indemnifying party as incurred.
(d) In order to provide for just and equitable contribution to joint
liability under the Securities Act in any case in which either (1) any
holder of Restricted Stock exercising rights under this Agreement, or any
controlling Person of any such holder, makes a claim for indemnification
pursuant to this Article 2 but it is judicially determined (by the entry
of a final judgment or decree by a court of competent jurisdiction and the
expiration or time to appeal or the denial of the last right of appeal)
that such indemnification may not be enforced in such case notwithstanding
the fact that this Article 5 provides for indemnification in such case, or
(2) contribution under the Securities Act may be required on the part of
any such selling holder of Restricted Stock or any such controlling Person
in circumstances for which indemnification is provided under this Article
2; then, and in each such case, the Company and such holder will
contribute to the aggregate losses, claims, damages or liabilities to
which they may be subject (after contribution from others) in such
proportion so that such holder is responsible for the portion represented
by the percentage that the public offering proceeds of its Restricted
Stock offered by the registration statement bears to the public offering
proceeds of all securities offered by such registration statement, and the
Company shall be responsible for the remaining portion; provided, however,
that, in any such case, (A) no such holder will be required to contribute
any amount in excess of the net proceeds received from the sale of
Restricted Stock offered by such holder pursuant to such registration
statement; and (B) no Person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation
(within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) will be
entitled to contribution from any Person who was not guilty of such
fraudulent misrepresentation.
2.5 Changes in Capital Structure. If, and as often as, there is any change in the capital structure of the Company by way of a stock split, stock dividend, combination or reclassification, or through a merger, consolidation, reorganization or recapitalization, or by any other means, appropriate adjustment shall be made in the provisions hereof so that the registration rights granted in this Article 2 shall continue with respect to the capital structure of the Company as so changed.
2.6 Rule 144 Reporting. With a view to making available the benefits of certain rules and regulations of the Commission which may at any time permit the sale of a Stockholder's Common Stock to the public without registration, at all times after 90 days after any registration statement covering a public offering of securities of the Company under the Securities Act shall have become effective, the Company agrees to:
(a) make and keep public information available, as those terms are understood and defined in Rule 144 under the Securities Act;
(b) use its best efforts to file with the Commission in a timely manner all reports and other documents required of the Company under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act; and
(c) furnish to each holder of Restricted Stock forthwith upon request a written statement by the Company as to its compliance with the reporting requirements of Rule 144 and of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, a copy of the most recent annual or quarterly report of the Company, and such other reports as such Stockholder may reasonably request in availing itself of any rule or regulation of the Commission allowing such Stockholder to sell any Restricted Stock without registration.
2.7 Conversion of Common Stock Equivalents. In order to have any Restricted Stock that is not Common Stock registered and sold in connection with any registration pursuant to this Article II, a Stockholder must convert such Restricted Stock into Common Stock or exercise such Restricted Stock for Common Stock in connection with the consummation of such registration and sale.
2.8 Termination of Registration Rights. The right of a Stockholder under this Agreement to request or demand registration pursuant to Section 2.1(a) shall terminate and be of no further force or effect from and after the date on which for any reason such Stockholder (together with all of its Permitted Transferees) ceases to beneficially own at least five percent (5%) of the issued and outstanding shares of the Common Stock. The right of a Stockholder under this Agreement to request registration pursuant to Section 2.1(b) shall terminate and be of no further force or effect from and after the date on which for any reason such Stockholder (together with all of its Permitted Transferees) ceases to beneficially own at least one percent (1%) of the issued and outstanding shares of the Common Stock.
ARTICLE III
MISCELLANEOUS
3.1 Amendments and Waivers. Each Stockholder agrees that no purported amendment of this Agreement, or waiver, discharge or termination of any obligation under it, shall be enforceable or admissible unless, and only to the extent expressly set forth in a writing signed by Stockholders who Beneficially Own at least a majority of the Common Stock Equivalents; provided, that no such amendment, waiver, discharge or termination shall be effective as against the Charlesbank Stockholders, the Penske Stockholders, the TJC Stockholders, the UTI Stockholders or the CHC Stockholders without the consent of such Stockholders if such amendment, waiver, discharge or termination materially and adversely
affects such Stockholders' rights or obligations hereunder. The failure of any party hereto to enforce at any time any provision of this Agreement shall not be construed to be a waiver of such provision. No waiver of any breach of this Agreement shall be held to constitute a waiver of any other or subsequent breach.
3.2 Notices. Any notice, request, demand or other communications provided for in this Agreement ("Notice") shall be given in writing and if delivered personally, sent by registered or certified mail (return receipt requested), sent by overnight mail or courier service or sent by facsimile transmission (with a confirmation copy sent within one day) shall be addressed, in the case of the Company to Universal Technical Institute, Inc., 20410 North 19th Avenue, Suite 200, Phoenix, Arizona 85027, Attention: Jennifer L. Haslip, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, with a copy to Bryan Cave LLP, Two North Central Avenue, Suite 2200, Phoenix, Arizona 85004-4406, Attention: Joseph P. Richardson; and in the case of a Stockholder, to his, her or its address included on the signature page hereto, or in either case, to such other Persons or addresses as shall be furnished in writing by any party to the other parties hereto. Notice shall be deemed to have been given on the date personally delivered or sent by facsimile transmission or such return receipt is issued or the day after if sent by overnight mail or courier.
3.3 Assignment. This Agreement and all of the provisions hereof will be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and Permitted Transferees, provided, that the right of a Stockholder under this Agreement to request or demand registration pursuant to Section 2.1(a) shall only inure to the benefit of any successor or Permitted Transferee to the extent that any such Stockholder expressly assigns such right to such successor or Permitted Assignee.
3.4 Severability, Etc. This Agreement shall be governed by, construed, applied and enforced in accordance with the laws of the state of New York, except that no doctrine of choice of law shall be used to apply any law other than that of the state of New York, and no defense, counterclaim or right of set-off given or allowed by the laws of any other state or jurisdiction, or arising out of the enactment, modification or repeal of any law, regulation, ordinance or decree of any foreign jurisdiction, shall be interposed in any action hereon. Each party waives personal service of process and agrees that a summons and complaint commencing an action or proceeding shall be properly served and shall confer personal jurisdiction if served by registered or certified mail to the party at the address set forth in this Agreement, or as otherwise provided by the laws of the state of New York or the United States.
3.5 No Strict Construction. The language used in this Agreement will be deemed to be the language chosen by the parties hereto to express their mutual intent, and no rule of strict construction will be applied against any Person.
3.6 Headings. The headings used in this Agreement are for convenience of reference only and do not constitute a part of this Agreement and will not be deemed to limit, characterize or in any way affect any provision of this Agreement, and all provisions of this Agreement will be enforced and construed as if no heading had been used in this Agreement.
3.7 Complete Agreement. This document contains the complete agreement among the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes any prior understandings, agreements or representations by or among the parties, written or oral, which may have related to the subject matter hereof in any way, including, without limitation, the Prior Agreement.
3.8 Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.
3.9 Attorneys' Fees. If any legal action or other proceeding is commenced to enforce or interpret any provision of, or otherwise relating to, this Agreement, the losing party shall pay the prevailing party's reasonable expenses incurred in the investigation of any claim leading to the proceeding, preparation for and participation in the proceeding, any appeal or other post judgment motion, and any action to enforce or collect the judgment, including contempt, garnishment, levy, discovery and bankruptcy. "Expenses" shall include, without limitation, court or other proceeding costs and experts' and attorneys' fees and their expenses. The phrase "prevailing party" shall mean the party who is determined in the proceeding to have prevailed and who prevails by dismissal, default or otherwise.
3.10 Effective Time of this Agreement. The parties to this Agreement intend and agree that this Agreement shall be effective without further action by any Person from and after the consummation of the Initial Public Offering.
[Remainder of page is blank; signatures follow.]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned duly executed this Agreement by themselves or by their respective representatives thereunto duly authorized.
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
JZ EQUITY PARTNERS, PLC
WHITES' FAMILY COMPANY, LLC
WORLDWIDE TRAINING GROUP, LLC
One Harmon Plaza, 9th Floor
Secaucus, New Jersey 07094
Attention: James Hislop
and
c/o Penske Capital Partners, L.L.C.
13400 Outer West Drive, Suite B36
Detroit, Michigan 48239
Attention: Robert H. Kurnick, Jr., Esq.
CHARLESBANK VOTING TRUST
By: Charlesbank Equity Fund V, Limited
Partnership, as Voting Trustee
By: Charlesbank Equity Fund V GP,
Limited Partnership, its General
Partner
By: Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC,
its General Partner
CHARLESBANK EQUITY FUND V, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
By: Charlesbank Equity Fund V GP,
Limited Partnership, its General
Partner
By: Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC,
its General Partner
CB OFFSHORE EQUITY FUND V, L.P.
By: Charlesbank Equity Fund V GP,
Limited Partnership, its Managing
General Partner
By: Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC,
its General Partner
Address for Charlesbank Stockholders:
c/o Charlesbank Capital Partners LLC
600 Atlantic Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts 02210
Attention: Michael R. Eisenson
The undersigned, each a Permitted Transferee of The Jordan Company and identified on Exhibit A to the within Registration Rights Agreement, agrees to be bound by the terms and provisions of said Agreement as of the date first above written
JOHN W. JORDAN, II REVOCABLE TRUST
THE LOWDEN FAMILY TRUST
JAMES E. JORDAN, JR.S PROFIT SHARING PLAN TRUST
LEUCADIA INVESTORS, INC.
EXHIBIT A
Additional Permitted Transferees of The Jordan Company, LLC
1. John W. Jordan, II Revocable Trust
2. David W. Zalaznick
3. Jonathan F. Boucher
4. A. Richard Caputo
5. Adam E. Max
6. John R. Lowden
7. The Lowden Family Trust
8. James E. Jordan, Jr. Profit Sharing Plan and Trust
9. Douglas J. Zych
10. Paul Rodzevik and/or Paul Rodzevik Profit Sharing Plan and Trust
11. Leucadia Investors, Inc.
Exhibit 5.1
Bryan Cave LLP
Two North Central Avenue, Suite 2200
Phoenix, Arizona 85004
602-364-7000 (phone) 602-364-7070 (fax)
_____________, 2003
Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
Board of Directors
20410 North 19th Avenue, Suite 200
Phoenix, Arizona 85027
Re: REGISTRATION STATEMENT ON FORM S-1
Ladies and Gentlemen:
This opinion is furnished to you in connection with a Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-109430) (the "Registration Statement") filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission") under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), for the registration of up to a maximum aggregate of $189,750,000 of its Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share (the "Shares"), of Universal Technical Institute, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company"), including any additional Shares issuable upon exercise of an over-allotment option granted by the Company.
The Shares are to be sold by the Company and certain of its current stockholders pursuant to an underwriting agreement (the "Underwriting Agreement") to be entered into by and among the Company and Credit Suisse First Boston, as representatives of the several underwriters named in the Underwriting Agreement, the form of which has been or will be filed as Exhibit 1.1 to the Registration Statement.
We are acting as counsel for the Company in connection with the issue and sale by the Company and the selling stockholders of the Shares pursuant to the Registration Statement. We have examined signed copies of the Registration Statement as filed with the Commission. We have also examined and relied upon the Underwriting Agreement, minutes of meetings of the stockholders and the Board of Directors of the Company as provided to us by the Company, stock record books of the Company as provided to us by the Company, the Certificate of Incorporation and By-Laws of the Company, each as restated and/or amended to date, and such other documents as we have deemed necessary for purposes of rendering the opinions hereinafter set forth.
In our examination of the foregoing documents, we have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the
conformity to original documents of all documents submitted to us as copies, the authenticity of the originals of such latter documents and the legal competence of all signatories to such documents.
We assume that the appropriate action will be taken, prior to the offer and sale of the Shares in accordance with the Underwriting Agreement, to register and qualify the Shares for sale under all applicable state securities or "blue sky" laws.
We are admitted and authorized to practice in the State of Arizona and we express no opinion herein as to the laws of any state or jurisdiction other than the state laws of Arizona, the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, and the federal laws of the United States of America.
Based upon and subject to the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the Shares have been duly authorized for issuance and, when the Shares are issued and paid for in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Underwriting Agreement, the Shares will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.
It is understood that this opinion is to be used only in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares while the Registration Statement is in effect.
Please note that we are opining only as to the matters expressly set forth herein, and no opinion should be inferred as to any other matters. This opinion is based upon currently existing statutes, rules, regulations and judicial decisions, and we disclaim any obligation to advise you of any change in any of these sources of law or subsequent legal or factual developments which might affect any matters or opinions set forth herein.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion with the Commission as an exhibit to the Registration Statement in accordance with the requirements of Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act and to the use of our name therein and in the related Prospectus under the caption "Legal Matters." In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or the rules and regulations of the Commission.
Very truly yours,
Bryan Cave LLP
Exhibit 10.11
SEVERANCE AGREEMENT
SEVERANCE AGREEMENT (the "Agreement") dated _____________, ____ ("Effective Date") between _____________ ("Employee") and Universal Technical Institute, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company").
WHEREAS, in order to accomplish its objectives, the Company believes it is essential that certain of its executives, such as Employee, be encouraged to remain with the Company during management transition and thereafter and in the event there is any change in corporate structure which results in a Change in Control.
WHEREAS, Employee wishes to have the protection provided for in this Agreement and, in exchange for such protection, is willing to give to the Company, under certain circumstances, a covenant not to compete.
NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree as follows:
1. DEFINITIONS.
a. "Board of Directors" means the Board of Directors of the Company.
b. "Business" means (a) ownership and operation of private post-secondary educational institutions, the primary educational program of which teaches motorcycle, marine, automotive, diesel, and collision repair and refinishing technologies, or (b) any similar or incidental business conducted, or engaged in, by the Company Group prior to the date hereof or at any time during the Term.
c. "Cause" means any of the following:
(i) Employee's conviction of, or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, a felony or a crime involving embezzlement, conversion of property or moral turpitude;
(ii) a finding by a majority of the Board of Directors of Employee's fraud, embezzlement or conversion of the Company's property;
(iii) Employee's conviction of, or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, a crime involving the acquisition, use or expenditure of federal, state or local government funds or the unlawful use, possession or sale of illegal substances;
(iv) an administrative or judicial determination that Employee committed fraud or any other violation of law involving federal, state or local government funds;
(v) a finding by a majority of the Board of Directors of Employee's knowing breach of any of Employee's fiduciary duties to any company in the Company Group or the Company's stockholders or making of a misrepresentation or omission which breach, misrepresentation or omission would reasonably be expected to materially adversely affect the business, properties, assets, condition (financial or other) or prospects of any company in the Company Group;
(vi) Employee's neglect or failure to discharge the material duties, responsibilities or obligations prescribed by this Agreement or any other agreement between Employee and any company in the Company Group;
(vii) Employee's alcohol or substance abuse, which materially interferes with Employee's ability to discharge the duties, responsibilities and obligations prescribed by this Agreement; provided, that Employee has been given notice and 30 days from such notice fails to cure such abuse;
(viii) Employee's personal (as opposed to the Company's) material and knowing failure, to observe or comply with Regulations whether as an officer, stockholder or otherwise, in any material respect or in any manner which would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect in respect of the Company Group's ongoing business, operations, conditions, other business relationship or properties.
d. "Change in Control" means: (i) any sale, lease, exchange, or other transfer (in one transaction or series of related transactions) of all or substantially all the Company's assets to any person or group of related persons under Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act ("Group"); (ii) the Company's shareholders approve and complete any plan or proposal for the liquidation or dissolution of the Company; (iii) any person or Group becomes the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of shares representing more than 50% of the aggregate voting power of the issued and outstanding stock entitled to vote in the election of directors of the Company ("Voting Stock") and such person or Group has the power and authority to vote such shares; (iv) any person or Group acquires sufficient shares of Voting Stock to elect a majority of the members of the Board; or (v) the completion of a merger or consolidation of the Company with another entity in which holders of the Stock immediately before the completion of the transaction hold, directly or indirectly, immediately after the transaction, 50% or less of the common equity interest in the surviving corporation in the transaction. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event will a Change in Control be deemed to have occurred as a result of an initial public offering of the Stock.
e. "Code" means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
f. "Company Group" shall mean the Company and the entities listed on Schedule 1.
g. "Confidential Information" means any confidential information including, without limitation, any study, data, calculations, software storage media or other compilation of information, patent, patent application, copyright, "know-how", trade secrets, customer lists, details of client or consultant contracts, pricing policies, operational methods, marketing plans or strategies, product development techniques or plans, business acquisition plans or any portion or phase of any scientific or technical information, ideas, discoveries, designs, computer programs (including source of object codes), processes, procedures, formulae, improvements or other proprietary or intellectual property of the Company Group, whether or not in written or tangible form, and whether or not registered, and including all files, records, manuals, books, catalogues, memoranda, notes, summaries, plans, reports, records, documents and other evidence thereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term "Confidential Information" does not include, and there shall be no obligation hereunder with respect to, information that is or becomes generally available to the public other than as a result of a disclosure by the Employee not permissible hereunder.
h. "Good Reason," when used with reference to a voluntary termination by Employee of Employee's employment with the Company, shall mean (i) a material reduction in Employee's authority, perquisites, position or responsibilities (other than such a reduction which affects all of the Company's senior executives on a substantially equal or proportionate basis), or (ii) a requirement that Employee relocate greater than 50 miles from Employee's primary work location.
i. "Market" means any county in the United States of America and each similar jurisdiction in any other country in which the Business was conducted by or engaged in by the Company Group prior to the date hereof or is conducted or engaged in by the Company Group at any time during the Term.
j. "Regulations" means any laws, ordinances, regulations or rules of any governmental, regulatory or administrative body, agent or authority, any court or judicial authority, or any public, private or industry regulatory authority.
k. "Term" means the period commencing on the Effective Date and terminating three years after the Effective Date; provided, however, that the Term shall automatically be extended for successive additional one year periods unless either party to this Agreement provides the other party with notice of termination of this Agreement at least six months prior to the expiration of the original three-year period or any one-year period thereafter.
l. "Termination Date" shall mean the effective date as provided hereunder of the termination of Employee's employment.
2. TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT WITHIN 12 MONTHS AFTER A CHANGE IN CONTROL WHICH OCCURS DURING THE TERM.
a. Employee's employment may be terminated by the Company for Cause at any time, effective upon the giving to Employee of written notice of termination specifying in detail the particulars of the conduct of Employee deemed by the Company to justify such termination for Cause.
b. Employee's employment may be terminated by the Company without Cause at any time, effective upon the giving to Employee of a written notice of termination specifying that such termination is without Cause.
c. Employee may terminate Employee's employment with the Company at any time.
d. Upon a termination by the Company of Employee's employment for
Cause within 12 months after a Change in Control which occurs during the
Term, Employee shall be entitled only to the payments specified in Section
3.a. below. Upon a termination by the Company of Employee's employment
without Cause within 12 months after a Change in Control which occurs
during the Term, Employee shall be entitled to all of the payments and
benefits specified in Section 3 below; provided that, the amount payable
under Section 3.b. below shall be reduced to the extent necessary so that
the total of all payments to Employee under Section 3 and otherwise due to
a Change in Control do not (i) constitute an "excess parachute payment"
(as defined in Section 280G of the Code) and (ii) cause the Employee to be
required to pay an excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code. If such
reduction is necessary, the aggregate amount payable to Employee under
Section 3.b. shall be reduced to the largest amount that would result in
no portion of the amounts payable to the Employee upon a Change in Control
being subject to the excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code. The
determination of the reductions to be made shall be made by the Company's
certified public accountants for the year immediately prior to the
Termination Date, and such determination shall be conclusive and binding
upon the Company and the Employee.
e. If Employee voluntarily terminates Employee's employment within
12 months after a Change in Control which occurs during the Term, Employee
shall notify the Company in writing if Employee believes the termination
is for Good Reason. Employee shall set forth in reasonable detail why
Employee believes there is Good Reason. If such termination is for Good
Reason, Employee shall be entitled to all of the payments and benefits
specified in Section 3 below; provided that, the amount payable under
Section 3.b. below shall be reduced to the extent necessary so that the
total of all payments to Employee under Section 3 and otherwise due to a
Change in Control do not (i) constitute an "excess parachute payment" (as
defined in Section 280G of the Code) and (ii) cause the Employee to be
required to pay an excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code. If such
reduction is necessary, the aggregate amount payable to Employee
under Section 3.b. shall be reduced to the largest amount that would result in no portion of the amounts payable to the Employee upon a Change in Control being subject to the excise tax under Section 4999 of the Code. The determination of the reductions to be made shall be made by the Company's certified public accountants for the year immediately prior to the Termination Date, and such determination shall be conclusive and binding upon the Company and the Employee.
If such voluntary termination is for other than Good Reason, then Employee shall be entitled only to the payments specified in Section 3.a. below.
3. PAYMENTS AND BENEFITS UPON TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT WITHIN 12 MONTHS AFTER A CHANGE IN CONTROL WHICH OCCURS DURING TERM. To the extent provided in 2 above, upon termination of Employee's employment within 12 months after a Change in Control which occurs during the Term, Employee shall receive the following payments and benefits:
a. The Company shall pay to Employee on the Termination Date (i) the full base salary earned by Employee through the Termination Date and unpaid at the Termination Date, plus (ii) any bonus earned by Employee through the Termination Date and unpaid at the Termination Date; (iii) credit for any vacation earned by Employee through the Termination Date but not taken at the Termination Date, plus (iv) all other amounts earned by Employee and unpaid as of the Termination Date.
b. The Company shall pay to Employee, in equal installments in accordance with Company's regular payroll periods and practices, an amount equal to x/12(1/) multiplied by Employee's base annual salary at the highest rate in effect at any time during the twelve months immediately preceding the Termination Date. In addition, the Company shall pay to Employee, in equal installments in accordance with the Company's regular payroll periods and practices, x/12 (1/) multiplied by Employee's targeted bonus for the fiscal year in which the Termination Date occurs prorated to the Termination Date.
c. The Company shall provide to Employee for a period of twelve months after the Termination Date medical and/or dental coverage under the medical and dental plans maintained by the Company. The Employee does not have to pay any premiums for this coverage. This extended coverage shall run concurrently with any period of continuation coverage to which the Employee is entitled under Section 601 of ERISA. Upon Employee's re-employment during such period, to the extent covered by the new employer's plan, coverage under the
Company's plan shall lapse, subject to any continuation of coverage rights under Section 601 of ERISA. Additionally, the Company shall pay to Employee in equal installments in accordance with Company's regular payroll periods and practices, an amount equal to, with respect to each non-vested option to purchase Company stock held by the Employee which would have vested within the twelve (12) month period following the Termination Date, the excess, if any, of the fair market value (determined as of the Termination Date) of the Company stock subject to such option over the exercise price of such option.
Employee's participation in and/or coverage under all other employee benefit plans, programs or arrangements sponsored or maintained by the Company shall cease to be effective as of the Termination Date, unless the terms of an insured employee benefit plan, program or arrangement provide for an earlier date of termination due to an actively at work requirement that ceases to be satisfied prior to the Termination Date.
d. The Company shall pay the reasonable costs of outplacement services selected by the Company.
4. MITIGATION OR REDUCTION OF BENEFITS. Employee shall not be required to mitigate the amount of any payment provided for in Section 3 by seeking other employment or otherwise. Except as otherwise specifically set forth herein, the amount of any payment or benefits provided in Section 3 shall not be reduced by any compensation or benefits or other amounts paid to or earned by Employee as the result of employment by another employer after the Termination Date or otherwise.
5. EMPLOYEE EXPENSES AFTER CHANGE IN CONTROL. If Employee's employment is terminated by the Company within 12 months after a Change in Control which occurs during the Term and there is a dispute with respect to this Agreement, then all Employee's costs and expenses (including reasonable legal and accounting fees) incurred by Employee (a) to defend the validity of this Agreement, (b) if Employee's employment has been terminated for Cause, to contest such termination, (c) to contest any determinations by the Company concerning the amounts payable by the Company under this Agreement, or (d) to otherwise obtain or enforce any right or benefit provided to Employee by this Agreement, shall be paid by the Company if Employee is the prevailing party.
6. RELEASE. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary stated in this
Agreement, no benefits will be paid pursuant to Section 3 except under Section
3.a. prior to execution by Employee of a release to the Company in the form
attached as Exhibit A.
7. COVENANT NOT TO COMPETE. Benefits payable pursuant to Sections 3.b,
3.c, and 3.e, are subject to the following restrictions.
a. Post-Termination Restrictions.
(i) Employee acknowledges that services to be provided give Employee the opportunity to have special knowledge of the Company and
its Confidential Information and the capabilities of individuals employed by or affiliated with the Company and that interference in these relationships would cause irreparable injury to the Company. In consideration of this Agreement, Employee covenants and agrees that:
(A) From the date hereof until twelve (12) months (or for six (6) months if a court finds that twelve (12) months are unreasonable) after the termination of the Term (the "Restricted Period"), Employee will not, without the express written approval of the Chief Executive Officer of the Company, directly or indirectly, anywhere in the Market, in one or a series of transactions, own, manage, operate, control, invest or acquire an interest in or otherwise engage or participate in, whether as a proprietor, partner, stockholder, lender, director, officer, employee, joint venturer, investor, lessor, agent, representative or other participant, any business which competes, directly or indirectly, with the Business in the Market ("Competitive Business") without regard to (a) whether the Competitive Business has its office or other business facilities within or without the Market, (b) whether any of the activities of the Employee referred to above occur or are performed within or without the Market, or (c) whether the Employee resides, or reports to an office, within or without the Market; provided, however, that (x) the Employee may, anywhere in the Market, directly or indirectly, in one or a series of transactions, own, invest or acquire an interest in up to five percent (5%) of the capital stock of a corporation whose capital stock is traded publicly, or (y) Employee may accept employment with a successor company to the Company.
(B) Without regard to the reason for Employee's
termination, from the date hereof until twelve (12) months
after the termination of the Term (which shall not be reduced
by (x) any period of violation of this Agreement by Employee
or (y) if the Company is the prevailing party in any
litigation to enforce its rights under this Section 7, the
period which is required for such litigation), Employee will
not, without the express prior written approval of the Chief
Executive Officer of the Company, directly or indirectly, in
one or a series of transactions: (a) recruit, solicit or
otherwise induce or influence any proprietor, partner,
stockholder, lender, director, officer, employee, sales agent,
joint venturer, investor, lessor, customer, agent,
representative or any other person which has a business
relationship with the Company Group or had a business
relationship with the Company Group within the twenty-four
(24) month period preceding the date of the incident in
question, to discontinue, reduce or modify such employment,
agency or business relationship with the Company Group; or (b)
employ or seek to employ or cause any Competitive
Business or any other private post secondary educational institution to employ or seek to employ any person or agent who is then (or was at any time within twenty-four (24) months prior to the date the Employee or the Competitive Business employs or seeks to employ such person) employed or retained by the Company Group. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing herein shall prevent the Employee from providing a letter or recommendation to an employee with respect to a future or any other employment opportunity.
(C) The scope and term of this Section 7 would not preclude Employee from earning a living with an entity that is not a Competitive Business.
(ii) Upon the determination of a majority of the Board of Directors that Employee has breached Employee's obligations in any material respect under this Section 7, the Company, in addition to pursuing all available remedies under this Agreement, at law or otherwise, and without limiting its right to pursue the same, shall cease all payment to Employee under this Agreement.
b. Acknowledgment Regarding Restrictions. Employee recognizes and agrees that the restraints contained in Section 7.a. (both separately and in total) are reasonable and should be fully enforceable in view of the high level positions Employee has had with the Company, and the Company's legitimate interests in protecting its Confidential Information and its goodwill and relationships. Employee specifically hereby acknowledges and confirms that Employee is willing and intends to, and will, abide fully by the terms of Section 7.a. of this Agreement. Employee further agrees that the Company would not have adequate protection if Employee were permitted to work in a Competitive Business in violation of the terms of this Agreement since the Company would be unable to verify whether its Confidential Information was being disclosed and/or misused.
c. Company's Right to Injunctive Relief. In the event of a breach or imminent breach of any of Employee's duties or obligations in this Agreement, including without limitation Employee's duties and responsibilities under the terms and provisions of Section 7.a. of this Agreement, the Company shall be entitled to immediately cease all payments and benefits to Employee under Section 3.b. and, in the event of an actual breach, require Employee to disgorge and repay to Company all payments and benefits previously paid to or conferred upon Employee under this Agreement. Employee agrees that if Employee breaches any duties or obligations Employee has under this Agreement, that Employee has no right to any money under this Agreement that Employee must return any money paid to Employee hereunder, and that Employee forfeits any right to receive money under this Agreement. In addition to any other legal or equitable remedies the Company may have (including any right to damages that it
may suffer), the Company shall be entitled to temporary, preliminary and permanent injunctive relief restraining such breach or imminent breach. Employee hereby expressly acknowledges that the harm which might result to Company's business as a result of noncompliance by Employee with any of the provisions of Section 7.a. would be largely irreparable. Employee specifically agrees that if there is a question as to the enforceability of any of the provisions of Section 7.a. hereof, Employee will not engage in any conduct inconsistent with or contrary to such Section until after the question has been resolved by a final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction. Employee undertakes and agrees that if Employee breaches or threatens to breach the Agreement, Employee shall be liable for any attorneys' fees and costs incurred by Company in enforcing its rights hereunder.
d. Employee Agreement to Disclose this Agreement. Employee agrees to disclose, during the twelve-month period following a Termination Date described in the second sentence of Section 2.d, the terms of this Section 7 to any potential future employer.
8. CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.
a. During and after the Term, Employee will not, directly or indirectly, in one or a series of transactions, disclose to any person, or use or otherwise exploit for the Employee's own benefit or for the benefit of anyone other than the Company, any Confidential Information, whether prepared by Employee or not; provided, however, that any Confidential Information may be disclosed (i) to officers, representatives, employees and agents of the Company who need to know such Confidential Information in order to perform the services or conduct the operations required or expected of them in the Business, and (ii) in good faith by the Employee in connection with the performance of Employee's duties hereunder. Employee shall use Employee's best efforts to prevent the removal of any Confidential Information from the premises of the Company, except as required in Employee's normal course of employment by the Company. Employee shall use Employee's best efforts to cause all persons or entities to whom any Confidential Information shall be disclosed by Employee hereunder to observe the terms and conditions set forth herein as though each such person or entity was bound hereby. Employee shall have no obligation hereunder to keep confidential any Confidential Information if and to the extent disclosure of any thereof is specifically required by law; provided, however, that in the event disclosure is required by applicable law, the Employee shall provide the Company with prompt notice of such requirement, prior to making any disclosure, so that the Company may seek an appropriate protective order. At the request of the Company, Employee agrees to deliver to the Company, at any time during the Term, or thereafter, all Confidential Information which Employee may possess or control. Employee agrees that all Confidential Information of the Company (whether now or hereafter existing) conceived, discovered or made by Employee during the Term exclusively belongs to the Company (and not to Employee). Employee will promptly disclose such Confidential Information, to the Company
and perform all actions reasonably requested by the Company to establish and confirm such exclusive ownership.
b. The terms of Section 7 shall survive the termination of this Agreement regardless of who terminates this Agreement, or the reasons therefor.
9. NOTICE. All notices hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given (a) when delivered personally or by courier, or (b) on the third business day following the mailing thereof by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, or (c) on the first business day following the mailing thereof by overnight delivery service, in each case addressed as set forth below:
a. If to the Company:
(Prior to October 31, 2003)
Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
10851 North Black Canyon Highway
Phoenix, Arizona 85029
Facsimile No.: (602) 216-76020 Attn: General Counsel
(After October 31, 2003)
Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
20410 North 19th Avenue, Suite 200
Phoenix, Arizona 85027
Facsimile No.: (623) 445-9501 Attn: General Counsel
b. If to Employee:
Any party may change the address to which notices are to be addressed by giving the other party written notice in the manner herein set forth.
10. SUCCESSORS; BINDING AGREEMENT.
a. The Company will require any successor (whether direct or indirect, by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise) to all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company, upon or prior to such succession, to expressly assume and agree to perform this Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent that the Company would have been required to perform it if no such succession had taken place. A copy of such assumption and agreement shall
be delivered to Employee promptly after its execution by the successor. Failure of the Company to obtain such agreement upon or prior to the effectiveness of any such succession shall be a breach of this Agreement and shall entitle Employee to benefits from the Company in the same amounts and on the same terms as Employee would be entitled hereunder if Employee terminated Employee's employment for Good Reason. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the date on which any such succession becomes effective shall be deemed the Termination Date. As used in this Agreement, "Company" shall mean the Company as hereinbefore defined and any successor to its business and/or assets as aforesaid which executes and delivers the agreement provided for in this Section 10.a. or which otherwise becomes bound by the terms and provisions of this Agreement by operation of law.
b. This Agreement is personal to Employee and Employee may not assign or delegate any part of Employee's rights or duties hereunder to any other person, except that this Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be enforceable by Employee's legal representatives, executors, administrators, heirs and beneficiaries.
11. SEVERABILITY. If any provision of this Agreement or the application thereof to any person or circumstance shall to any extent be held to be invalid or unenforceable, the remainder of this Agreement and the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid or unenforceable shall not be affected thereby, and each provision of this Agreement shall be valid and enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law. A court can reasonably modify this Agreement by rewriting it and/or it can "blue-pencil" this Agreement by striking things out.
12. HEADINGS. The headings in this Agreement are inserted for convenience of reference only and shall not in any way affect the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement.
13. COUNTERPARTS. This Agreement may be executed in one or more identical counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.
14. WAIVER. Neither any course of dealing nor any failure or neglect of either party hereto in any instance to exercise any right, power or privilege hereunder or under law shall constitute a waiver of such right, power or privilege or of any other right, power or privilege or of the same right, power or privilege in any other instance. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Employee's continued employment without objection shall not constitute Employee's consent to, or a waiver of Employee's rights with respect to, any circumstances constituting Good Reason. All waivers by either party hereto must be contained in a written instrument signed by the party to be charged therewith, and, in the case of the Company, by its duly authorized officer.
15. ENTIRE AGREEMENT. This instrument constitutes the entire agreement of the parties in this matter and shall supersede any other agreement between the parties, oral or written, concerning the same subject matter.
16. AMENDMENT. This Agreement may be amended only by a writing which makes express reference to this Agreement as the subject of such amendment and which is signed by Employee and by a duly authorized officer of the Company.
17. GOVERNING LAW. In light of Company's and Employee's substantial contacts with the State of Arizona, the facts that the Company is headquartered in Arizona and Employee resides in and/or reports to Company management in Arizona, the parties' interests in ensuring that disputes regarding the interpretation, validity and enforceability of this Agreement are resolved on a uniform basis, and Company's execution of, and the making of, this Agreement in Arizona, the parties agree that: (i) any litigation involving any noncompliance with or breach of the Agreement, or regarding the interpretation, validity and/or enforceability of the Agreement, shall be filed and conducted exclusively in the state or federal courts in Arizona; and (ii) the Agreement shall be interpreted in accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of Arizona, without regard for any conflict/choice of law principles.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Employee and the Company have executed this Agreement as of the day and year first above written.
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
By: __________________________
EMPLOYEE
By: __________________________
SCHEDULE 1
Additional Companies in the Company Group
a. Universal Technical Institute, Inc.
b. UTI Holdings, Inc.
c. U.T.I. of Illinois, Inc.
d. Universal Technical Institute of Texas, Inc.
e. Universal Technical Institute of California, Inc.
f. Custom Training Group, Inc.
g. The Clinton Harley Corporation
h. Universal Technical Institute of North Carolina, Inc.
Exhibit A
RELEASE
RELEASE (the "Release") dated _____________, _____ between _______________ ("Employee") and Universal Technical Institute, Inc., a Delaware corporation ("Company").
WHEREAS, the Company and Employee are parties to a Severance Agreement dated ____________, ____ (the "Severance Agreement"), which provides certain protection to Employee during management transition and thereafter and in the event there is any change in corporate structure which results in a change in control of the Company.
WHEREAS, the execution of this Release is a condition precedent to, and material inducement to, the Company's provision of certain benefits under the Severance Agreement;
NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree as follows:
1. MUTUAL PROMISES. The Company undertakes the obligations contained in the Severance Agreement, which are in addition to any compensation to which Employee might otherwise be entitled, in exchange for Employee's promises and obligations contained herein. The Company's obligations are undertaken in lieu of any other severance benefits.
2. RELEASE OF CLAIMS; AGREEMENT NOT TO FILE SUIT.
a. Employee, for and on behalf of him or herself and his/her heirs, beneficiaries, executors, administrators, successors, assigns and anyone claiming through or under any of the foregoing, agrees to, and does, remise, release and forever discharge the Company and its subsidiaries and affiliates, each of their shareholders, directors, officers, employees, agents and representatives, and its successors and assigns (collectively, the "Company Released Persons"), from any and all matters, claims, demands, damages, causes of action, debts, liabilities, controversies, judgments and suits of every kind and nature whatsoever, foreseen or unforeseen, known or unknown, which have arisen or could arise from matters which occurred prior to the date of this Release, which matters include without limitation: (i) the matters covered by the Severance Agreement and this Release, (ii) Employee's employment, and/or termination from employment with the Company, and (iii) any claims which might otherwise arise in the future as a result of arrangements or agreements in effect as of the date of this Release or the continuance of such arrangements and agreements.
b. Employee, for and on behalf of him or herself and his/her heirs, beneficiaries, executors, administrators, successors, assigns, and anyone claiming
through or under any of the foregoing, agrees that Employee will not file or otherwise submit any charge, claim, complaint, or action to any agency, court, organization, or judicial forum (nor will Employee permit any person, group of persons, or organization to take such action on Employee's behalf) against any Company Released Person arising out of any actions or non-actions on the part of any Company Released Person arising before the date of this Release or any action taken after the date of this Release pursuant to the Severance Arrangement. Employee further agrees that in the event that any person or entity should bring such a charge, claim, complaint, or action on Employee's behalf, Employee hereby waives and forfeits any right to recovery under said claim and will exercise every good faith effort to have such claim dismissed.
c. The charges, claims, complaints, matters, demands, damages, and causes of action referenced in Sections 2(a) and 2(b) include, but are not limited to: (i) any breach of an actual or implied contract of employment between Employee and any Company Released Person, (ii) any claim of unjust, wrongful, or tortuous discharge (including any claim of fraud, negligence, retaliation for whistle blowing, or intentional infliction of emotional distress), (iii) any claim of defamation or other common law action, or (iv) any claims of violations arising under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C.Section 2000e et seq., the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C.Section 621 et seq., the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C.Section 12101 et seq., the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended, 29 U.S.C.Section 201 et seq., the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C.Section 701 et seq., or any other relevant federal, state, or local statutes or ordinances, or any claims for pay, vacation pay, insurance, or welfare benefits or any other benefits of employment with any Company Released Person arising from events occurring prior to the date of this Release other than those payments and benefits specifically provided herein.
d. This Release shall not affect Employee's right to any governmental benefits payable under any Social Security or Worker's Compensation law now or in the future.
3. RELEASE OF BENEFIT CLAIMS. Employee, for and on behalf of him or herself and his/her heirs, beneficiaries, executors, administrators, successors, assigns and anyone claiming through or under any of the foregoing, further releases and waives any claims for pay, vacation pay, insurance or welfare benefits or any other benefits of employment with any Company Released Person arising from events occurring prior to the date of this Release other than claims to the payments and benefits specifically provided for in the Severance Agreement.
4. REVOCATION PERIOD; KNOWING AND VOLUNTARY AGREEMENT.
a. Employee acknowledges that Employee had at least forty-five (45) days to consider whether or not to accept this Agreement. Furthermore, Employee may revoke this Agreement for seven (7) days following its execution.
b. Employee represents, declares and agrees that Employee voluntarily accepts the payments described above for the purposes of making a full and final compromise, adjustment and settlement of all potential claims hereinabove described. Employee hereby acknowledges that Employee has been advised of the opportunity to consult an attorney and that Employee understands the Release and the effect of signing the Release.
5. SEVERABILITY. If any provision of this Release or the application thereof to any person or circumstance shall to any extent be held to be invalid or unenforceable, the remainder of this Release and the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid or unenforceable shall not be affected thereby, and each provision of this Release shall be valid and enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law.
6. HEADINGS. The headings in this Release are inserted for convenience of reference only and shall not in any way affect the meaning or interpretation of this Release.
7. COUNTERPARTS. This Release may be executed in one or more identical counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.
8. ENTIRE AGREEMENT. This Release and Related Severance Agreement constitutes the entire agreement of the parties in this matter and shall supersede any other agreement between the parties, oral or written, concerning the same subject matter.
9. GOVERNING LAW. This Release shall be governed by, and construed and enforced in accordance with, the laws of the State of Arizona, without reference to the conflict of laws rules of such State.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Employee and the Company have executed this Release as of the day and year first above written.
UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
By: __________________________
EMPLOYEE
By: __________________________
EXHIBIT 23.2
CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS
We hereby consent to the use in this Registration Statement on Form S-1 of our reports dated October 2, 2003, relating to the financial statements and financial statement schedule of Universal Technical Institute, Inc., which appear in such Registration Statement. We also consent to the reference to us under the heading "Experts" in such Registration Statement.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
/s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Phoenix, Arizona November 12, 2003 |