Cost Plus 4Q earnings up 27.7%
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, March 24, 2003
Oakland, Calif. — Specialty retailer Cost Plus, No. 30 on last year's Top 100 U.S. Furniture Stores ranking, posted solid sales and earnings increases for its fourth quarter and year ended Feb. 1.
Sales for the quarter were $269.7 million, up 17.3% over last year's $229.9 million. Cost Plus recorded earnings of $25.3 million in the quarter, up 27.7% over the comparable quarter a year ago.
Annual sales were up 21.8% to $692.3 million and profits for the year reached $28.4 million, an increase of 40.5% over earnings of $20.2 million last year.
Same-store sales for the quarter were up 2% and increased 5.6% for the year.
Cost Plus posted net profit margins of 9.4% in the quarter and 4.1% for the year, compared with 8.6% and 3.6%, respectively, for the same periods a year ago.
Murray Dashe, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said, "Record financial performance for the year resulted from increased traffic in our stores, a healthy comparable-store sales increase, strong new store performance and tight cost controls."
Dashe also said home furnishings sales were consistent and relatively strong for the quarter. For the year, home furnishings represented about 63% of total sales, up from 62% last year.
In the fourth quarter, Cost Plus opened six stores, for a net gain of 25 stores for the year. Cost Plus expects to open an additional 29 net new stores this year. So far this year, four stores have opened, one each in Rockford, Ill.; Charlotte, N.C.; Tracy, Calif.; and Dallas.
During January and February, Cost Plus completed the repurchase of 500,000 shares of common stock for about $12.5 million. The company's board of directors has approved an additional repurchase of up to 500,000 shares.
Looking ahead, the company expects a same-store sales increase of about 3% in the coming year, coupled with total sales of approximately $809 million. Net income is expected to be $33.4 million or $1.50 per share.
| Quarter ended 2/1 | 2003 | 2002 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | $269,727,000 | $229,912,000 | 17.3% |
| Operating income | 37,978,000 | 33,868,000 | 12.1% |
| Net income | 25,266,000 | 19,781,000 | 27.7% |
| Earnings per share | 1.14 | 0.91 | 25.3% |
| Year ended 2/1 | 2003 | 2002 | Change |
| Sales | $692,301,000 | $568,472,000 | 21.8% |
| Operating income | 49,632,000 | 38,692,000 | 28.3% |
| Net income | 28,386,000 | 20,202,000 | 40.5% |
| Earnings per share | 1.28 | 0.93 | 37.6% |
