Filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(1)

Registration Statement No. 333-169398

PROSPECTUS

 

19,030,515 Shares

 

 

Verisk Analytics, Inc.

 

Class A Common Stock

 

 

The selling stockholders identified in this prospectus are offering 19,030,515 shares of our Class A Common Stock. We will not receive any of the proceeds from the sale of shares being sold by the selling stockholders.

 

Our Class A Common Stock is listed for trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “VRSK.” On September 27, 2010, the last sale price of the shares as reported on the NASDAQ Global Select Market was $27.54 per share.

 

Investing in our common stock involves risks that are described in the “Risk Factors” section incorporated by reference herein.

 

 

 

The underwriters may also purchase up to an additional 2,854,577 shares of Class A Common Stock from the selling stockholders at the offering price, less the underwriting discount, within 30 days from the date of this prospectus to cover over-allotments, if any. Concurrently with the closing of this offering, we will repurchase 7,300,000 shares of our common stock directly from those selling stockholders that currently own Class B shares at a price per share equal to the net proceeds per share the selling stockholders receive in this offering.

 

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.

 

The shares will be ready for delivery on or about October 1, 2010.

 

 

 

 

Wells Fargo Securities

 

 

September 27, 2010

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

We and the selling stockholders have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different from that contained in this prospectus or in any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of us or to which we have referred you. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give you. We and the selling stockholders are offering to sell, and seeking offers to buy, shares of Class A common stock only in jurisdictions where offers and sales are permitted. The information contained in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date of this prospectus, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus or of any sale of the common stock.

 

Unless otherwise stated herein or the context otherwise requires, the terms “Verisk,” the “Company,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Verisk Analytics, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries.

 

PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

	•	Our Solutions are Embedded In Our Customers’ Critical Decision Processes.  Our customers use our solutions to make better risk decisions and to price risk appropriately. In the U.S. P&C insurance industry, our solutions for prospective loss costs, policy language, rating/underwriting rules and regulatory filing services are the industry standard. In the U.S. healthcare and mortgage industries, our predictive models, loss estimation tools and fraud identification applications are the primary solutions that allow customers to understand their risk exposures and proactively manage them. Over each of the five years ended December 31, 2009, we have retained approximately 98% of our customers across all of our businesses, which we believe reflects our customers’ recognition of the value they derive from our solutions.
	•	Extensive and Differentiated Data Assets and Analytic Methods.  We maintain what we believe are some of the largest, most accurate, and most complete databases in the markets we serve. Much of the information we provide is not available from any other source and would be difficult and costly for another party to replicate. As a result, our accumulated experience and years of significant investment have given us a competitive advantage in serving our customers.
	•	Culture of Continuous Improvement.  Our intellectual capital and focus on continuous improvement have allowed us to develop proprietary algorithms and solutions that assist our customers in making informed risk decisions. Our team includes approximately 800 individuals with advanced degrees, certifications and professional designations in such fields as actuarial science, data management, mathematics, statistics, economics, soil mechanics, meteorology and various engineering disciplines. Our compensation and benefit plans are pay-for-performance- oriented, including incentive compensation plans and substantial equity participation by employees. As of June 30, 2010, our employees owned approximately 20% of the company.
	•	Attractive Operating Model.  We believe we have an attractive operating model due to the recurring nature of our revenues, the scalability of our solutions and the low capital intensity of our business.

	•	Increase Sales to Insurance Customers.  We expect to expand the application of our solutions in insurance customers’ internal risk and underwriting processes. Building on our deep knowledge of, and embedded position in, the insurance industry, we expect to sell more solutions to existing customers tailored to individual insurance segments. By increasing the breadth and relevance of our offerings, we believe we can strengthen our relationships with customers and increase our value to their decision making in critical ways.
	•	Develop New, Proprietary Data Sets and Predictive Analytics.  We work with our customers to understand their evolving needs. We plan to create new solutions by enriching our mix of proprietary data sets, analytic solutions and effective decision support across the markets we

		serve. We constantly seek to add new data sets that can further leverage our analytic methods, technology platforms and intellectual capital.

	•	Leverage Our Intellectual Capital to Expand into Adjacent Markets and New Customer Sectors.  Our organization is built on nearly four decades of intellectual property in risk management. We believe we can continue to profitably expand the use of our intellectual capital and apply our analytic methods in new markets, where significant opportunities for long-term growth exist. We also continue to pursue growth through targeted international expansion. We have already demonstrated the effectiveness of this strategy with our expansion into healthcare and non-insurance financial services.
	•	Pursue Strategic Acquisitions that Complement Our Leadership Positions.  We will continue to expand our data and analytics capabilities across industries. While we expect this will occur primarily through organic growth, we have and will continue to acquire assets and businesses that strengthen our value proposition to customers. We have developed an internal capability to source, evaluate and integrate acquisitions that have created value for shareholders. As of June 30, 2010, we have acquired 16 businesses in the past five and a half years.

 

THE OFFERING

Class A common stock offered by the selling stockholders		19,030,515 shares
Class A common stock outstanding after the offering		142,245,651 shares (145,032,036 shares if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full)
Over-allotment option		2,854,577 shares of Class A common stock from the selling stockholders (which includes 68,192 Class A shares already outstanding)
Class B common stock outstanding after the offering		30,170,229 shares (27,655,070 shares if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full)
Direct purchases		Concurrently with the closing of this offering, we will repurchase 7,300,000 shares of our common stock directly from those selling stockholders that currently own Class B shares at a price per share equal to the net proceeds per share the selling stockholders receive in this offering.
Sale and transfer restrictions on Class B common stock		The Class B (Series 1) common stock is not transferable until April 6, 2011 and the Class B (Series 2) common stock is not transferable until October 6, 2011.
		These transfer restrictions are subject to limited exceptions, including underwritten offerings approved by our Board of Directors and transfers to other holders of Class B common stock. See “Description of Capital Stock — Common Stock — Transfer Restrictions.”
Conversion of Class B common stock		After termination of the restrictions on transfer described above for each series of Class B common stock, such series of Class B common stock will be automatically converted into Class A common stock. No later than October 6, 2011, there will be no outstanding shares of Class B common stock.
		In the event that Class B common stock is transferred and converts into Class A common stock, it will have the effect of diluting the voting power of our existing holders of Class A common stock. See “Description of Capital Stock — Common Stock — Conversion.”
Use of proceeds		The Company will not receive any proceeds from the sale of common stock in the offering.
Dividend policy		We currently do not intend to pay dividends on our Class A common stock or Class B common stock.
Voting rights		The holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock generally have identical voting rights, except that only holders of Class A common stock are entitled to vote on the election of Class A directors and only holders of Class B common stock are entitled to vote on the election of Class B directors. Until the earlier of (a) October 6, 2011 or (b) the date on which there are no shares of Class B common stock issued and outstanding, the

		amendment of certain of the provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes cast thereon by the outstanding shares of each of the Class A common stock and the Class B common stock, voting separately as a class. See “Description of Capital Stock — Common Stock.” The holders of our Class B common stock have the right to elect up to three out of twelve of our directors and their interests in our business may be different than yours.
Stock symbol		“VRSK”

	•	shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of outstanding stock options at a weighted average exercise price of $13.13 per share; and
	•	an aggregate of 8,683,159 shares of Class A common stock that will be reserved for future issuances under our 2009 Equity Incentive Plan.

 

We have made or incorporated by reference statements under the captions “Prospectus Summary,” “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” “Business” and in other sections of this prospectus or the documents incorporated by reference herein that are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential” or “continue,” the negative of these terms and other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us, may include projections of our future financial performance, our anticipated growth strategies and anticipated trends in our business. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. There are important factors that could cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results, level of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including those factors discussed under the caption entitled “Risk Factors.” You should specifically consider the numerous risks outlined under “Risk Factors.”

 

Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Moreover, neither we nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. We are under no duty to update any of these forward-looking statements after the date of this prospectus to conform our prior statements to actual results or revised expectations.

 

The selling stockholders are selling all of the shares of common stock in this offering and we will not receive any proceeds from the sale of the shares.

 

Our Class A common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “VRSK.”

 

The following table shows the quarterly range of the high and low per share closing sales prices for our common stock as reported by the NASDAQ Global Select Market.

 

 

 

As of September 17, 2010, there were approximately 17 Class A and 56 Class B stockholders of record. We believe the number of beneficial owners is substantially greater than the number of record holders, because a large portion of Class A common stock is held in “street name” by brokers.

 

Our board of directors does not anticipate authorizing the payment of cash dividends on our Class A common stock or Class B common stock in the foreseeable future. Any determination to pay dividends to holders of our Class A common stock or Class B common stock in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on many factors, including our financial condition, results of operations, general business conditions, contractual restrictions, capital requirements, business prospects, restrictions on the payment of dividends under Delaware Law, and any other factors our board of directors deems relevant.

 

The following table sets forth our capitalization as of June 30, 2010 and as adjusted for this offering, the direct purchase of approximately $192.5 million of shares by the Company from certain selling stockholders and new borrowings of $160.0 million in connection with the direct purchases, and assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option. The as adjusted numbers in the table do not give effect to any share repurchases, stock option exercises or option grants that occurred subsequent to June 30, 2010. The table should be read in conjunction with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and the unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements, and the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto incorporated by reference in this prospectus:

 

 

 

 

The following selected historical financial data should be read in conjunction with, and are qualified by reference to, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto incorporated by reference in this prospectus. The consolidated statement of operations data for the years ended December 31, 2007, 2008 and 2009 and the consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2008 and 2009 are derived from the audited consolidated financial statements incorporated by reference in this prospectus. The consolidated statement of operations data for the year ended December 31, 2006 and the consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2007 are derived from audited consolidated financial statements that are not included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. The consolidated statement of operations data for the year ended December 31, 2005 and the consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2005 and 2006 are derived from unaudited consolidated financial statements that are not included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. The condensed consolidated statement of operations data for the six-month periods ended June 30, 2009 and 2010 and the condensed consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2010 are derived from unaudited condensed financial statements that are incorporated by reference in this prospectus. The condensed consolidated balance sheet data as of June 30, 2009 is derived from unaudited condensed financial statements that are not included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements, in our opinion, have been prepared on the same basis as the audited consolidated financial statements and reflect all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments, necessary for a fair presentation of our results of operations and financial position. Results for the six-month period ended June 30, 2010 are not necessarily indicative of results that may be expected for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010 or any other future period.

 

From January 1, 2005 to June 30, 2010 we have acquired 16 businesses, which may affect the comparability of our financial statements.

 

 

The financial operating data below sets forth information we believe is useful for investors in evaluating our overall financial performance:

 

 

The following table is a reconciliation of income from continuing operations to EBITDA(3):

 

 

The following table sets forth our consolidated balance sheet data:

 

 

 

 

 

The following table sets forth information regarding beneficial ownership of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock as of September 17, 2010 by:

 

 

In accordance with the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission, beneficial ownership includes voting or investment power with respect to securities and includes the shares issuable pursuant to stock options that are exercisable within 60 days of September 17, 2010. Shares issuable pursuant to stock options are deemed outstanding for computing the percentage of the person holding such options but are not outstanding for computing the percentage of any other person. Unless otherwise indicated, the address for each listed stockholder is: c/o Verisk Analytics, Inc., 545 Washington Boulevard, Jersey City, New Jersey, 07310-1686. To our knowledge, except as indicated in the footnotes to this table and pursuant to applicable community property laws, the persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to their shares of common stock.

 

 

 

 

Our authorized capital stock consists of 1,200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share, 800,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.001 per share, sub-divided into the following two series of Class B common stock: (1) 400,000,000 shares of Class B (Series 1) common stock and (2) 400,000,000 shares of Class B (Series 2) common stock, and 80,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.001 per share.

 

The following descriptions are summaries of the material terms of our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws, and the descriptions are qualified by reference to those documents. Please refer to the more detailed provisions of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws, copies of which are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission as exhibits to our registration statement and applicable law.

 

Common Stock

 

Voting Rights

 

Holders of our common stock have the sole right and power to vote on all matters on which a vote of stockholders is to be taken, except as provided by statute or resolution of our board of directors in connection with the issuance of preferred stock in accordance with our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation. The holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock generally have identical rights, except that only holders of Class A common stock are entitled to vote on the election of Class A directors and only holders of Class B common stock are entitled to vote on the election of Class B directors.

 

Until the earlier of (a) October 6, 2011 or (b) the date on which there are no shares of Class B common stock issued and outstanding, the amendment of certain of the provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes cast thereon by the outstanding shares of each of the Class A common stock and the Class B common stock, voting separately as a class. These provisions include certain of the limitations described below under “— Dividend Rights”, “— Liquidation Rights”, “— Transfer Restrictions”, “— Conversion”, “— Beneficial Ownership Limitations” and “Anti-Takeover Effects of Delaware Law—Staggered Boards.” From and after the earlier of the events described above, the amendment of the provisions described below under “— Beneficial Ownership Limitations” in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the voting power of the outstanding shares of common stock.

 

Dividend Rights

 

Our Class A common stock and Class B common stock will share equally (on a per share basis) in any dividend declared by our board of directors, subject to any preferential or other rights of any outstanding preferred stock and to the distinction that any stock dividends will be paid in shares of Class A common stock to the holders of our Class A common stock and in shares of Class B common stock to the holders of our Class B common stock.

 

Liquidation Rights

 

Upon liquidation, dissolution or winding up, our Class A common stock and Class B common stock will be entitled to receive ratably the assets available for distribution to the stockholders after payment of liabilities and payment of preferential and other amounts, if any, payable on any outstanding preferred stock.

 

Transfer Restrictions

 

Shares of our Class B (Series 1) common stock are not transferable until April 6, 2011. Shares of our Class B (Series 2) common stock are not transferable until October 6, 2011. The above described limitations on transfer are, however, subject to the following exceptions:

 

 

Our board of directors may approve exceptions to the limitation on transfers of our Class B common stock in their sole discretion, in connection with the sale of such Class B common stock in a public offering registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission or in such other limited circumstances as our board of directors may determine. Any Class B common stock sold to the public will first be converted to Class A common stock.

 

Conversion

 

Our Class A common stock is not convertible into any other shares of our capital stock. On April 6, 2011, each share of Class B (Series 1) common stock shall convert automatically, without any action by the holder, into one share of Class A common stock. On October 6, 2011, each share of Class B (Series 2) common stock shall convert automatically, without any action by the holder, into one share of Class A common stock. The conversion rate applicable to any conversion of shares of our Class B common stock shall always be one-to-one (i.e., one share of Class B common stock will, upon transfer, be converted into one share of Class A common stock).

 

Once transferred and converted into Class A common stock, the Class B common stock shall not be reissued. No class of common stock may be subdivided or combined unless the other class of common stock concurrently is subdivided or combined in the same proportion and in the same manner.

 

No conversions of shares of Class B common stock will be effected prior to the expiration of the transfer restrictions described under “— Transfer Restrictions,” although our board of directors may make exceptions to such transfer restrictions, including in connection with a registered public offering of our Class A common stock, such as the transaction described in this prospectus.

 

Beneficial Ownership Limitations

 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation prohibits any insurance company from beneficially owning more than ten percent of the aggregate outstanding shares of our common stock. If any transfer is purportedly effected which, if effected, would result in a violation of this limitation, the intended transferee will acquire no rights in respect of the shares in excess of this limitation, and the purported transfer of such number of excess shares will be null and void. In this context an insurance company means any insurance company whose primary activity is the writing of insurance or the reinsuring of risks underwritten by insurance companies or any other entity controlling, controlled by or under common ownership, management or control with such insurer or reinsurer.

 

Preferred Stock

 

The board of directors has the authority to issue the preferred stock in one or more series and to fix the rights, preferences, privileges and restrictions thereof, including dividend rights, dividend rates, conversion

rights, voting rights, terms of redemption, redemption prices, liquidation preferences and the number of shares constituting any series or the designation of such series, without further vote or action by the stockholders. The issuance of preferred stock may have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control of the Company without further action by the stockholders and may adversely affect the voting and other rights of the holders of common stock. At present, we have no plans to issue any of the preferred stock.

 

Anti-Takeover Effects of Delaware Law

 

We are subject to the “business combination” provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law. In general, such provisions prohibit a publicly held Delaware corporation from engaging in various “business combination” transactions with any interested stockholder for a period of three years after the date of the transaction in which the person became an interested stockholder, unless

 

 

A “business combination” is defined to include mergers, asset sales and other transactions resulting in financial benefit to a stockholder. In general, an “interested stockholder” is a person who, together with affiliates and associates, owns (or within three years, did own) 15% or more of a corporation’s voting stock. The statute could prohibit or delay mergers or other takeover or change in control attempts with respect to the Company and, accordingly, may discourage attempts to acquire us even though such a transaction may offer our stockholders the opportunity to sell their stock at a price above the prevailing market price.

 

Advance Notice of Proposals and Nominations

 

Our bylaws establish advance notice procedures with regard to stockholders’ proposals relating to the nomination of candidates for election as directors or other business to be brought before meetings of its stockholders. These procedures provide that notice of such stockholders’ proposals must be timely given in writing to our secretary prior to the meeting at which the action is to be taken. Generally, to be timely, notice must be received at our principal executive offices not less than 60 days nor more than 90 days prior to the first anniversary date of the annual meeting for the preceding year. The notice must contain certain information specified in the bylaws.

 

Limits on Written Consents

 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation prohibits stockholder action by written consent.

 

Limits on Special Meetings

 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that special meetings of the stockholders may be called by our board of directors, the chairman of the board, the Chief Executive Officer, the President or our Secretary.

 

Staggered Boards

 

Our board of directors is divided into three classes serving staggered terms. The number of directors will be fixed by our board of directors, subject to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Until the earlier of (a) October 6, 2011, or (b) the date on which there are no shares of Class B

common stock issued and outstanding, our board of directors will consist of between 11 and 13 directors, and will be comprised as follows:

 

 

Vacancies on our board of directors among the Class A directors will be filled by a majority of the remaining Class A directors and vacancies among the Class B directors will be filled by a majority of the remaining Class B directors.

 

From and after the earlier of the events described above, there will no longer be Class B directors, and each director will be elected for a three-year term by the holders of a plurality of the votes cast by the holders of shares of common stock present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote on the election of the directors.

 

Listing

 

Our Class A common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “VRSK.”

 

Transfer Agent and Registrar

 

The Transfer Agent and Registrar for the Class A common stock is American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC.

 

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC are acting as representatives of the underwriters named below. Under the terms and subject to the conditions described in an underwriting agreement among us, the selling stockholders and the underwriters, the selling stockholders have agreed to sell to the underwriters, and the underwriters severally have agreed to purchase from the selling stockholders, the number of shares indicated below.

 

The underwriters have agreed to purchase all of the shares of Class A common stock if any of these shares are purchased. If an underwriter defaults, the underwriting agreement provides that the purchase commitments of the non-defaulting underwriters may be increased or the underwriting agreement may be terminated.

 

The underwriters are offering the shares, subject to prior sale, when, as and if transferred to and accepted by them, subject to approval of legal matters by their counsel, including the validity of the shares, and other conditions contained in the underwriting agreement, such as the receipt by the underwriters of officers’ certificates and legal opinions.

 

We expect to deliver the shares against payment therefor on or about the date specified in the last paragraph of the cover page of this prospectus, which will be the third business day following the date of the pricing of the shares.

 

Indemnification

 

We and the selling stockholders have agreed to indemnify the underwriters against some liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or to contribute to payments the underwriters may be required to make in respect of those liabilities to the extent set forth in the underwriting agreement.

 

Over-allotment Option

 

The selling stockholders have granted the underwriters options to purchase up to 2,854,577 additional shares of our Class A common stock, at the public offering price less the underwriting discount. Shares of Class B common stock will be automatically converted into Class A common stock to the extent the underwriters exercise these options. The underwriters may exercise these options for 30 days from the date of this prospectus solely to cover any over-allotments. If the underwriters exercise these options, each will be obligated, subject to conditions contained in the underwriting agreement, to purchase a number of additional shares from the selling stockholders proportionate to that underwriter’s initial amount reflected in the above table.

 

Commissions and Discounts

 

The underwriters propose to offer the shares of Class A common stock to the public at the public offering price on the cover page of this prospectus and to dealers at that price less a concession not in excess of $0.53 per share. After the public offering, the public offering price, concession and discount may be changed.

 

The following table shows the per share public offering price, underwriting discount and proceeds before expenses to the selling stockholders. The information assumes either no exercise or full exercise by the underwriters of their over-allotment option.

 

 

Our expenses related to the offering, not including the underwriting discount, are estimated to be approximately $734,000. The underwriters have agreed to reimburse us for up to $500,000 of these expenses.

 

Lock-up Agreements

 

We, the selling stockholders, our officers and our directors have agreed, subject to certain exceptions, not to sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of or hedge any shares of Class A common stock or securities convertible or exchangeable into our Class A common stock for at least 90 days after the date of this prospectus without first obtaining the written consent of the representatives. We have also agreed not to waive the provision of our certificate of incorporation relating to restrictions on transfer for a period of 90 days from the date of this prospectus.

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the 90th day after the date of this prospectus occurs within 17 days following an earnings release by us or the occurrence of material news or a material event related to us, or if we intend to issue an earnings release within 16 days following the 90th day, the 90-day period will be extended to the 18th day following such earnings release or the occurrence of the material news or material event, unless such extension is waived by the representatives.

 

These lock-up agreements also apply to Class A common stock or securities convertible or exchangeable into our Class A common stock or securities convertible or exchangeable into our Class A common stock owned now or acquired later by the person executing the agreement or for which the person executing the agreement later acquires the power of disposition.

 

Listing on NASDAQ

 

Our Class A common stock is listed for trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “VRSK.” On September 27, 2010, the last sale price of the shares as reported on the NASDAQ Global Select Market was $27.54 per share.

 

Price Stabilization, Short Positions and Penalty Bids

 

Until the distribution of the shares is completed, Securities and Exchange Commission rules may limit the ability of the underwriters and selling group members from bidding for and purchasing our Class A common stock. However, the representatives may engage in transactions that stabilize the price of our Class A common stock, such as bids or purchases to peg, fix or maintain that price.

 

If the underwriters create a short position in the Class A common stock in connection with the offering, i.e., if they sell more shares than are listed on the cover of this prospectus, the representatives may elect to reduce any short position by purchasing shares in the open market. The representatives may also elect to reduce any short position by exercising all or part of the over-allotment option described above. The

underwriters may sell more shares than could be covered by exercising all of the over-allotment option, in which case they would have to cover these sales through open market purchases. Purchases of the Class A common stock to stabilize its price or to reduce a short position may cause the price of the Class A common stock to be higher than it might be in the absence of such purchases.

 

The representatives may also impose a penalty bid on underwriters and selling group members. This means that if the representatives purchase our Class A common stock in the open market to reduce the underwriters’ short position or to stabilize the price of such Class A common stock, they may reclaim the amount of the selling concession from the underwriters and selling group members who sold those shares. The imposition of a penalty bid may also affect the price of the shares in that it discourages resales of shares.

 

Neither we nor any of the underwriters makes any representation or prediction as to the direction or magnitude of any effect that the transactions described above may have on the price of our Class A common stock. In addition, neither we nor any of the underwriters makes any representation that the representatives will engage in these transactions or that these transactions, once commenced, will not be discontinued without notice.

 

Electronic Prospectus Delivery

 

In connection with this offering, this prospectus in electronic format may be made available on the internet sites or through other online services maintained by one or more of the underwriters participating in this offering, or by their affiliates. In those cases, prospective investors may view offering terms online. Depending upon the particular underwriter, prospective investors may be allowed to place orders online. The underwriters may agree with us to allocate a specific number of shares for sale to online brokerage account holders. Any such allocation for online distributions will be made on the same basis as other allocations.

 

Other than this prospectus in electronic format, the information concerning any underwriter’s web site and any information contained in any other web site maintained by an underwriter is not intended to be part of this prospectus or the registration statement, has not been approved and/or endorsed by us or any underwriter in its capacity as underwriter. Investors should not rely on such information.

 

Other Relationships

 

Each of the underwriters and their affiliates have engaged in, and may in the future engage in, investment banking and other commercial dealings in the ordinary course of business with us. They have received, and they will in the future receive, customary fees and commissions for these transactions. Certain affiliates of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, RBS Securities Inc. and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. are lenders under our $575.0 million revolving credit facility.

 

Notice to Prospective Investors in the EEA

 

In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area which has implemented the prospectus Directive (each, a “Relevant Member State”) an offer to the public of any shares which are the subject of the offering contemplated by this prospectus may not be made in that Relevant Member State except that an offer to the public in that Relevant Member State of any shares may be made at any time under the following exemptions under the Prospectus Directive, if they have been implemented in that Relevant Member State:

 

(a) to legal entities which are authorized or regulated to operate in the financial markets or, if not so authorized or regulated, whose corporate purpose is solely to invest in securities;

 

(b) to any legal entity which has two or more of (1) an average of at least 250 employees during the last financial year; (2) a total balance sheet of more than €43,000,000 and (3) an annual net turnover of more than €50,000,000, as shown in its last annual or consolidated accounts;

 

(c) to fewer than 100 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive) subject to obtaining the prior consent of the manager for any such offer; or

 

(d) in any other circumstances falling within Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive,

 

provided that no such offer of shares shall result in a requirement for the publication by the Company or any Manager of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive.

 

Any person making or intending to make any offer of securities within the EEA should only do so in circumstances in which no obligation arises for us or any of the underwriters to produce a prospectus for such offer. Neither we nor the underwriters have authorized, nor do they authorize, the making of any offer of securities through any financial intermediary, other than offers made by the underwriters which constitute the final offering of securities contemplated in this prospectus.

 

For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer to the public” in relation to any shares in any Relevant Member State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and any shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase any shares, as the same may be varied in that Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Member State and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC and includes any relevant implementing measure in each Relevant Member State.

 

Each person in a Relevant Member State who receives any communication in respect of, or who acquires any securities under, the offer of securities contemplated by this prospectus will be deemed to have represented, warranted and agreed to and with us and each underwriter that:

 

(A) it is a “qualified investor” within the meaning of the law in that Relevant Member State implementing Article 2(1)(e) of the Prospectus Directive; and

 

(B) in the case of any securities acquired by it as a financial intermediary, as that term is used in Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive, (i) the securities acquired by it in the offering have not been acquired on behalf of, nor have they been acquired with a view to their offer or resale to, persons in any Relevant Member State other than “qualified investors” (as defined in the Prospectus Directive), or in circumstances in which the prior consent of the representatives has been given to the offer or resale; or (ii) where securities have been acquired by it on behalf of persons in any Relevant Member State other than qualified investors, the offer of those securities to it is not treated under the Prospectus Directive as having been made to such persons.

 

In addition, in the United Kingdom, this document is being distributed only to, and is directed only at, and any offer subsequently made may only be directed at persons who are “qualified investors” (as defined in the Prospectus Directive) (i) who have professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within Article 19 (5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as amended (the “Order”) and/or (ii) who are high net worth companies (or persons to whom it may otherwise be lawfully communicated) falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together being referred to as “relevant persons”). This document must not be acted on or relied on in the United Kingdom by persons who are not relevant persons. In the United Kingdom, any investment or investment activity to which this document relates is only available to, and will be engaged in with, relevant persons.

 

Notice to Prospective Investors in Switzerland

 

This document as well as any other material relating to the securities which are the subject of the offering contemplated by this prospectus does not constitute an issue prospectus pursuant to Articles 652a and/or 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations. The shares will not be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and, therefore, the documents relating to the shares, including, but not limited to, this document, do not claim to comply with the disclosure standards of the listing rules of the SIX Swiss Exchange and corresponding prospectus schemes annexed to the listing rules of the SIX Swiss Exchange. The shares are being offered in Switzerland by way of a private placement, i.e. to a small number of selected investors only, without any public offer and only to investors who do not purchase the shares with the intention to distribute them to the

public. The investors will be individually approached by the Company from time to time. This document as well as any other material relating to the shares is personal and confidential and does not constitute an offer to any other person. This document may only be used by those investors to whom it has been handed out in connection with the offering described herein and may neither directly nor indirectly be distributed or made available to other persons without express consent of the Company. It may not be used in connection with any other offer and shall in particular not be copied and/or distributed to the public in (or from) Switzerland.

 

Notice to Prospective Investors in the Dubai International Financial Centre

 

This document relates to an Exempt Offer in accordance with the Offered Securities Rules of the Dubai Financial Services Authority (“DFSA”). This prospectus is intended for distribution only to persons of a type specified in the Offered Securities Rules of the DFSA. It must not be delivered to, or relied on by, any other person. The DFSA has no responsibility for reviewing or verifying any documents in connection with Exempt Offers. The DFSA has not approved this prospectus nor taken steps to verify the information set forth herein and has no responsibility for the prospectus. The shares to which this prospectus relates may be illiquid and/or subject to restrictions on their resale. Prospective purchasers of the securities offered should conduct their own due diligence on the securities. If you do not understand the contents of this prospectus you should consult an authorized financial advisor.

 

The validity of the issuance of the shares of common stock offered hereby will be passed upon for the Company by Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, New York, New York. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, New York, New York, is representing the underwriters.

 

The consolidated financial statements and the related financial statement schedule, incorporated by reference in this Prospectus from the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009 have been audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report, which is incorporated herein by reference herein (which report expresses an unqualified opinion and includes explanatory paragraphs regarding the Company’s completion of its corporate reorganization and initial public offering in October 2009, and the Company’s adoption of the new accounting standard for the Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes, effective January 1, 2007). Such financial statements and financial statement schedule have been so incorporated in reliance upon the report of such firm given upon their authority as experts in accounting and auditing.

 

This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed with the SEC. The registration statement, including the attached exhibits, contains additional relevant information about us. The rules of the SEC allow us to omit from this prospectus some of the information included in the registration statement. This information may be read and copied at the Public Reference Room of the SEC at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the operation of these public reference facilities. The SEC maintains an Internet site, http://www.sec.gov, which contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that are subject to the SEC’s reporting requirements.

 

We are subject to the informational requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. We fulfill our obligations with respect to such requirements by filing periodic reports and other information with the SEC. These reports and other information are available as provided above.

 

The rules of the SEC allow us to incorporate by reference information into this prospectus. The information incorporated by reference is considered to be a part of this prospectus. This prospectus incorporates by reference the documents listed below:

 

 

Any statement made in this prospectus or in a document incorporated by reference in this prospectus will be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this prospectus to the extent that a statement contained in this prospectus modifies or supersedes that statement. Any statement so modified or superseded will not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this prospectus.

 

You can obtain any of the filings incorporated by reference in this prospectus through us or from the SEC through the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov. We will provide without charge to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom a copy of this prospectus is delivered, upon written or oral request of such person, a copy of any or all of the documents referred to above which have been or may be incorporated by reference in this prospectus. You should direct requests for those documents to Verisk Analytics, Inc., 545 Washington Boulevard, Jersey City, NJ 07310-1686, Attention: Investor Relations (telephone: (201) 469-2138). The incorporated materials may also be found on the Investor Relations portion of our website at investor.verisk.com. Our website and the information contained in it or connected to it shall not be deemed to be incorporated into this prospectus or the registration statement.