8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

_______________

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported)  March 16, 2003

21st CENTURY HOLDING COMPANY

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Florida	0-2500111	65-0248866
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

4161 N.W. 5^th Street, Plantation, FL 33317

(Address of Principal Executive Office) (Zip Code)

954-581-9993

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable

(Former Name or Former Address, If Changed Since Last Report.)

Item 7.     Financial Statements, Pro Forma Financial Information and Exhibits.

(a)

Financial Statements of Business Acquired.

Not Applicable.

(b)

Pro Forma Financial Information (unaudited).

Not Applicable.

(c)

Exhibits.

Exhibit No.	Exhibit Description
99.1	21st Century Holding Company Press Release, dated March 15, 2004

Item 9.     Regulation FD Disclosure and Item 12. Disclosure of Results of Operations and Financial Condition.

The information in this Current Report on Form 8-K and Exhibit 99.1 attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference, is concurrently hereby intended to be furnished pursuant to Item 9. “Regulation FD Disclosure” and Item 12. “Disclosure of Results of Operations and Financial Condition,” under Item 9 of Form 8-K. As provided in General Instruction B.2 of SEC Form 8-K, such information shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section, and it shall not be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or under the Exchange Act, whether made before or after the date hereof, except as expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing to this Curr ent Report on Form 8-K.

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.

	21ST CENTURY HOLDING COMPANY
Date:  March 16, 2004	By:	/s/ RICHARD A. WIDDICOMBE
		Richard A. Widdicombe Chief Executive Officer (Principle Executive Officer)
Date:  March 16, 2004	By:	/s/ J. G. JENNINGS, III
		J. G. Jennings, III Chief Financial Officer (Principle Accounting and Financial Officer)

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INDEX TO EXHIBITS

Exhibit No.	Exhibit Title
99.1	21st Century Holding Company Press Release, dated March 15, 2004

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:

Edward J. Lawson, President and Chairman, 21st Century Holding Company

(954) 308-1257 or (954) 581-9993

21st CENTURY HOLDING COMPANY REPORTS

RECORD YEAR-END RESULTS

AND BEATS GUIDANCE

Plantation, Florida, March 15, 2004 - 21st Century Holding Company (Nasdaq: TCHC), today reported record results for the year ended December 31, 2003 (see attached tables).

For the year ended December 31, 2003, the Company reported net income of $8,364,876, or $2.64 per undiluted share. This beat company guidance of $2.25 - $2.45 per undiluted share by $0.19 per share. On a diluted share basis, the Company reported earnings of $2.50 per share. For the fourth quarter, the Company earned $0.56 per share on an undiluted basis and $0.53 per share on a diluted basis, based on 3,708,311 average diluted shares outstanding.

Net premiums earned in the fourth quarter of 2003 increased 33.1% to $12.0 million from $9.0 million in the same period last year.

Total revenues for year-end 2003 increased 49.4% to $60.6 million from $40.6 million in the same period last year.

Edward J. (Ted) Lawson, President & Chairman of the Board, said, “I am very pleased with our results for the fourth quarter and year end. As predicted, we had another solid quarter reflecting significant growth in premiums written from the property and general liability insurance lines. Going forward we expect more of the same. Guidance for calendar year ending December 31, 2004 is $3.25 to $3.75 per share on an undiluted basis with revenue increasing by 40% to 50%.”

The Company will hold an investor conference call at 4:30 PM (ET) on Monday, March 15, 2004. Mr. Lawson and Mr. Richard A. Widdicombe, CEO, will discuss the financial results and review the outlook for the Company. Messrs. Lawson and Widdicombe invite interested parties to participate in the conference call. Listeners can access the conference call by dialing toll free 888-694-4641. Please call at least five minutes in advance to ensure that you are connected prior to the presentation.

About the Company

The Company, through its subsidiaries, underwrites standard and non-standard personal automobile insurance, flood insurance, general liability insurance, mobile home insurance and homeowners’ property and casualty insurance in the State of Florida. The Company underwrites general liability in the state of Georgia as a surplus lines carrier. In addition, the Company has underwriting authority and process’ claims for third party insurance companies. In addition to insurance services, the Company offers premium finance services to its insureds as well as insureds of third party insurance companies. Lastly, the Company offers other ancillary services including licensing of its tax preparation software products, electronic income tax filing, tax preparation and tag and title transfer services.

The Company offers single and master franchise opportunities to individuals through its subsidiaries Fed USA Insurance/Financial Services and EXPRESSTAX^® Franchise Corporation.

Safe harbor statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release that are not historical fact are forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those discussed herein. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “could,” “would,” “estimate,” or “continue” or the other negative variations thereof or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, uncertainties related to estimates, assumptions and projections generally; inflat ion and other changes in economic conditions (including changes in interest rates and financial markets); pricing competition and other initiatives by competitors; ability to obtain regulatory approval for requested rate changes and the timing thereof; legislative and regulatory developments; the outcome of litigation pending against the Company, and settlement thereof; risks related to the nature of the Company’s business; dependence on investment income and the composition of the Company’s investment portfolio; the adequacy of its liability for loss and loss adjustment expense (“LAE”); insurance agents; claims experience; limited experience in the insurance industry; ratings by industry services; catastrophe losses; reliance on key personnel; weather conditions (including the severity and frequency of storms, hurricanes, tornadoes and hail); changes in driving patterns and loss trends; acts of war and terrorist activities; court decisions and trends in litigation and health care and aut o repair costs; and other matters described from time to time by the Company in releases and publications, and in periodic reports and other documents filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, investors should be aware that generally accepted accounting principles prescribe when a company may reserve for particular risks, including litigation exposures. Accordingly results for a given reporting period could be significantly affected if and when a reserve is established for a major contingency. Reported results may therefore appear to be volatile in certain accounting periods.

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21st CENTURY HOLDING COMPANY

Consolidated Statements of Operations

(Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2003			2002			2003			2003
Revenue:
Gross premiums written	$	16,798,631		$	15,862,255		$	73,358,434		$	63,036,468
Gross premiums ceded		(3,667,440	)		(6,012,215	)		(19,498,209	)		(25,286,828	)
Net premiums written		13,131,191			9,850,040			53,860,225			37,749,640
Increase (decrease) in prepaid reinsurance premiums		(877,198	)		(182,458	)		(3,427,818	)		5,691,283
Decrease (increase) in unearned premiums		(266,205	)		(659,612	)		(5,188,177	)		(14,047,919	)
Net change in prepaid reinsurance premiums   and unearned premiums		(1,143,403	)		(842,070	)		(8,615,995	)		(8,356,636	)
Net premiums earned		11,987,788			9,007,970			45,244,230			29,393,004
Commission income		370,702			43,538			1,513,818			1,905,936
Finance revenue		1,080,002			1,092,846			4,327,675			4,452,626
Managing general agent fees		434,157			(427,937	)		2,328,681			1,970,226
Net investment income		395,031			240,309			1,624,216			1,253,765
Net realized investments gains (losses)		777,868			86,552			2,231,333			(1,369,961	)
Other income		743,215			595,481			3,347,020			2,973,949
Total revenue		15,788,763			10,638,759			60,616,973			40,579,546
Expenses:
Loss and loss adjustment expenses		6,905,242			5,243,762			27,508,979			15,987,125
Operating and underwriting expenses		3,473,853			2,961,396			11,782,436			10,425,765
Salaries and wages		2,437,596			2,078,062			9,152,028			8,004,694
Interest expense		319,560			69,182			606,910			353,225
Amortization of deferred acquisition costs, net		193,806			(2,325,618	)		(720,606	)		(2,064,314	)
Total expenses		13,330,057			8,026,784			48,329,747			32,706,495
Income before provision for income tax expense		2,458,706			2,611,975			12,287,226			7,873,050
Provision for income tax expense		(506,996	)		(811,915	)		(3,922,350	)		(3,302,849	)
Net income	$	1,951,710		$	1,800,060		$	8,364,876		$	4,570,201
Basic net income per share	$	0.56		$	0.60		$	2.64		$	1.52
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding		3,457,406			3,005,626			3,171,315			3,005,626
Fully diluted net income per share	$	0.53		$	0.60		$	2.50		$	1.52
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding (assuming dilution)		3,708,311			3,005,626			3,348,625			3,005,626
Dividends declared per share		$0.12		$	0.06		$	0.38		$	0.15

21st CENTURY HOLDING COMPANY

Balance Sheet Data

(Unaudited)

	Period Ending
	12/31/03		12/31/02
Total Cash & Investments	$	54,261,019	$	29,856,179
Total Assets		104,083,912		75,318,011
Unpaid Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense		25,127,679		16,983,756
Total Liabilities		72,087,535		57,220,347
Total Shareholders’ Equity		32,046,376		18,097,664

Premium Breakout

Line of Business	2003		2002
&n bsp;
Automobile	67.2	%	83.4	%
Homeowners	23.4	%	13.8	%
General Liability	7.0	%	0.0	%
Mobile Home Owners	2.4	%	2.8	%
Gross Written Premiums	100.0	%	100.0	%