The new Breed: Sam Wyly
Business & Industry Texas
September 1968


From outward appearances Samuel E. Wyly of Dallas is just an average guy – he’s young, blond, most and soft-spoken. At age 33, he doesn’t come on like a man with either promotional zeal or a computer mind.

But, that’s his private side. Look at him from the business angle and he’s a near genius.

The 5-foot, 7-inch tall Louisiana native bought a used computer five years ago and build a $600 million dollar publicly held computer service company. As president and chief executive of University Computing Company, Wyly owns over $60 million in UCC stock. Five years ago, UCC was only an idea.

His University Computing Co., headquartered in Dallas and providing computer services around the world, grew almost as fast as the legendary bean stalk. And, it didn’t take Sam Wyly long to climb to the top in the 15-year-old computer industry. His company is worldwide, just as he planned, and has been doubling in sales and earnings each year, thanks to an array of acquisitions.

UCC had a highly productive 1967, with $16.6 million in sales. Wyly anticipates $30 million by the end of 1968. It’s right on schedule. During the first quarter in 1968, revenues totaled $7,065,867.

University Computing is a computer-service-house – one of a growing army of small, independent firms selling skill in programming and systems analysis or computer time. UCC does both, and more.

It sells software; through a subsidiary it leases hardware; and, with a group of time-sharing Univacs, sells computing as a utility would sell power. Its training center, the Academy of Computer Sciences, is 10 times larger than was projected six months ago.

Last year Sam Wyly clinched a $1.2 stock bonus and his salary was doubled by the board of directors when he acquired two British computer service firms which had $1.5 million in combined sales. UCC was one of the first computer companies to establish a foothold in the United Kingdom, a nation just beginning to catch up with the fast-growing U.S. market.

The firm’s beginning was in 1963 when Sam Wyly was 28. The young computer-oriented accountant decided to form a large-scale computer center to serve the scientific community gather in Dallas with Texas Instruments, Collins Radio, Southern Methodist University, the Graduate Research Center of the Southwest (now Texas University Center for Advanced Studies at Dallas) and others.

With a new state corporate charter in July 1963, Wyly arranged to purchase a used Control Data 1604 computer for $650,000. (It sold for $1.5 million new). When the computer was delivered in October 1963, he traded computer time to SMU for a place to house it.

“We had no contracts but we had a high expectancy for business,” Wyly said. Soon he had contracts with Texas Instruments, Sun Oil Co. and SMU.

From there the UCC story is just plain phenomenal and some people still can’t believe University Computing is real.

When UCC stock went on the open market at $4.50 a share in September 1965 and proceeded to move up to $20 during a “bad market year” (1966), the financial community turned its head. And then when a second block of that stock hit the market at $20 a share a year later and skyrocketed to $80 a share by mid-May 1967, it was impossible for businessmen not to take note.

That was only the beginning. Today that stock is selling over-the-counter above $130 a share and had hit a high of $155 earlier this year, but dropped back during July and August. In less than three years, the price of University Computing stock rose from $1.50 a share (adjusted for splits) to the $155 high. The stock market valued this newcomer at more than $600 million. (Price/earnings ratio: 100/1).

Earlier this year to gain capital strength, the firm bought 25 percent of Gulf Insurance Group, a well established Dallas company. And other acquisitions are being planned.

The computer service route is rugged and there are a lot of dropouts, Wyly asserted.“It takes a lot of money to play the computer services game and the risks are high,” he explained.“The last few years are littered with the carcasses of failures. There has been an unusually high mortality rate among computer service firms for varied reasons.”

But, with the guidance and easy manner of Sam Wyly and his finance-minded brother Charles Wyly Jr., who joined him in early 1964, University Computing overcame these risks and prospered.

Charles is executive vice-president and chief financial officer.
“The key was to provide a place where highly talented people can work comfortably and productively. Since we have a great deal of faith in the individual, we seek capable technical people, then give them goals and plenty of freedom,” Wyly added.

Wyly admits that he is satisfied with UCC’s progress so far. But, UCC continues to grow stronger and plan far ahead.

“What are we going to do new?” is a familiar query at University Computing’s corporate headquarters in the Frito-Lay Tower. If it’s not Sam Wyly asking the question it’s his brother or one of the other youthful executives.

Meanwhile, not too far away a large number of UCC’s 1,700 employees work freely in a high-rise world headquarters building. Inscribed “UCC….Computer Utility”, the $2 million structure houses over $5 million worth of computer equipment. The ominous appearing edifice is a vital link for the 30
UCC offices around the world. UCC operates in all 50 states and 12 countries.