Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions). Your first question comes from the line of Ross Muken - Deutsche Bank Securities.
Ross Muken - Deutsche Bank Securities
In terms of the net new business wins, another great year for Medco; Dave, can you give us some highlights of what you saw in the selling season that surprised you, and in terms of some of the new programs that you’ve rolled out or some of the new strategies, what really do you think were some of the key drivers of another very successful year?
David B. Snow, Jr.
Ross, I would tell you that the selling season has not surprised me. We are seeing continued pricing stability in the marketplace and decisions are primarily being made around the value propositions that companies deliver on top of that fundamental pricing; so, I would say the sales year would be characterized as another very strong and successful one largely because of our clinical innovations and the promise of really bending the curve in a positive direction when it comes to total healthcare cost, and the clients are now starting to see real results and I think the word of mouth is starting to get out there; so, if you talk to our group presidents responsible for the various markets we serve, I think you’d hear unanimously and you will hear at Analyst Day that as we get better and better at what we’re doing with the therapeutic resource centers and with pharmacogenomics, clients are starting to actually see the results and it’s very encouraging. So, the renewals are very positive, we saw 99% retention rate expected in 2010, that’s because we have very satisfied customers; obviously we’re meeting their expectations on pricing and on service, but the clinical value proposition on top of this is really starting to take hold. Just for the record, I think they may have misspelled when I referred to the 2009 adjusted mail order penetration rate, I think I may have said 35.4% expected, it’s actually 34.5% expected; my apology.
Ross Muken - Deutsche Bank Securities
And Rich, you’ve said for some time that given the cash flow, you certainly would like to deploy it but it’s not burning a hole in your pocket, but given the guidance for 2010, it seems like you need some new pants because it’s quite an impressive number again; I think clearly the guidance sort of lays out the plan from a share repurchase perspective, but in terms of the other potential uses and what you’re seeing in the M&A market and what you’re looking to do in terms of internal investments, what else should we be focused on for next year?
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