Nicole Strain
Analyst · KeyBanc Capital Markets. Please go ahead
Thank you, Mike. Net sales for the fourth quarter increased approximately 11% compared to the same period in the prior year or 6% on a 52-week basis. Consolidated comparable store sales increased 2%, which included 32% increase in e-commerce revenue. For the quarter, store results by regional were mix with half of our states showing positive comp sales for the quarter, the strongest of which were California and Colorado. Texas and Lusitania were among the softest. A higher average ticket offset negative store traffic during the quarter. We opened five new stores during the quarter and closed two, ending the year with 418 stores, which is a net gain of 14 stores or 3.5%. E-commerce generated $22.6 million in revenue during the quarter, accounting for approximately 10% of total revenue. This increase was driven by a combination of strong increases in Web site traffic and average order value. We also saw healthy increase in revenue derived from our third party drop ship initiatives, which continues to account for a higher portion of e-commerce revenue during the fourth quarter compared to a year ago. And again, sales via this delivery mode result in a lower initial merchandise margin that have limited overhead costs. Before I speak to operating results, let me take a minute to clarify change in presentation made during the fourth quarter, the one that affects both periods. To be more consistent with prevailing retail presentation and more closely align with U.S. GAAP, we are now including depreciation related to our supply chain and store facilities as a component of cost of sales versus depreciation expense as a standalone item. To quantify this reclassification with $5.4 million and $5 million for Q4 2017 and Q4 2016 respectively, the change in presentation had no impact on our operating income or operating income as a percent of sales. We do intend to file an 8-K later today, including the fiscal 2016 and fiscal 2017 under this new presentation. Using the new presentation methodology, gross profit margin on a like-for-like basis for Q4 decreased to 130 basis points from the prior year to 35.2%. Looking at the margin components; merchandize margin decreased 30 basis points to 53.1%; merchandize margin continue to benefit from a higher IMU and the initiatives to eliminate stacking of coupon offers; but this was more than offset by an overall increase in promotional activity during the quarter, as well as the growing mix of third-party drop-ship sales. Store occupancy costs increased 35 basis points as a percentage of sales during Q4 due to sales deleverage. Outbound freight costs, which include e-commerce shipping, increased 85 basis points as a percentage of net sales, which was largely driven by an increase in e-commerce penetration. And finally, central distribution costs decreased modestly as a percent of sales. Moving on to operating expenses. Operating expense for the fourth quarter was 25% of sales, which was up approximately 60 basis points to last year. The primary drivers of this increase were a favorable adjustment to our self-insured workers’ compensation and general liability reserve in the prior year period and a current period severance charge. Those were partially offset by lower share-based compensation expense due to forfeitures and lower corporate professional fees. With the presentation change, depreciation and amortization remained relatively flat for the prior year as a percent of sales. Tax expense for the quarter was $8.4 million or 39.6% of pretax income compared to 36.7% in the prior year period. The increase from last year’s tax rate is due to a one-time adjustment to deferred tax asset balances due to the new tax law and a change in accounting rules for taxes associated with share-based compensation. Combined these two had an approximate 10 percentage point impact on the full year tax rate of 46% and a decrease of full year EPS of $0.06 per share. The tax rate will benefit from the new tax law in 2018 and going forward, which I will discuss in a minute. Net income for the quarter was $0.79 per diluted share, which was a decrease from $0.90 in the prior year quarter. And moving to the balance sheet and the cash flow statement, at the end of the quarter, we had $80.2 million of cash on hand and no long-term debt or borrowings were outstanding under our revolving line of credit. Inventories at the end of Q4 were $81.3 million, which was an increase of approximately 11% over Q4 last year. Most of this increase is a timing issue tied to expansion of our West Coast supply chain operations, which requires us to take ownership of inventory earlier in the pipeline. Fiscal 2017 tax provided by operations was $45.1 million, which reflects our operating performance and changes in working capital. Capital expenditures for 2017 were $28.4 million of which 72% related to new stores and existing store improvements and 28% to e-commerce and supply chain investments. During the fourth quarter, we repurchased approximately 33,000 shares at an average cost of $11.70 under our share repurchase program. Year-to-date in 2018, we have purchased an additional 234,000 shares at an average cost of $9.12, which leaves approximately $7 million available under our current share repurchase authorization. Now turning to our expectations for fiscal 2018. We anticipate total sales to increase 3% to 5%, driven by a higher average store count and continued growth in our e-commerce channel. Total comparable sales are expected to increase between 1% and 2%. As it relates to store count, we expect to open 20 to 25 new stores during fiscal ‘18 and close 10 to 15 stores. The timing of new store openings will be equally spread over the first three quarters of the year, while store closings will be heavier weighted to the first half of the year. Our income tax rate is anticipated to be 24%, reflecting the lower statutory rate included in the new tax law. Full year diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $0.50 to $0.60. We expect earnings improvement in each quarter relative to fiscal 2017 with the exception of Q2, which included some favorable adjustments in the prior year. We expect to continue to generate positive cash flow in 2018 with total capital expenditures in the range of $26 million to $29 million with a larger percentage dedicated to e-commerce and supply chain investments than in the prior year. We anticipate a reduction in our cash taxes due to the lower statutory corporate rate and accelerated depreciation. We also expect to continue to repurchase shares in fiscal 2018 under our current share repurchase authorization. And we do not expect any borrowings on our line of credit during the year. Thank you. And we are now ready for questions.