Easyhome doubles profit in '04
Michael J. Knell -- Furniture Today, March 20, 2005
Edmonton, Alberta — Easyhome, Canada's largest rent-to-own furniture merchant, added 14 stores and 7,000 customers last year, spurring a 13.3% rise in revenues and more than doubling profits.
The fourth quarter also was strong, with revenues up 17% over 2003's last quarter to C$23.9 million, and net income up 7.9% to C$1.7 million. Quarterly same-store sales grew 9.9% year over year, compared with 7.7% for the final quarter of 2003.
Same-store sales rose 9.4% for the year, a big improvement over the 5.9% gain recorded in 2003. Revenues for the year were C$88.4 million, and net income came to C$8.8 million, compared with C$4 million in 2003.
President and CEO David Ingram told analysts in a conference call that Easyhome had achieved 39 consecutive months of year-over-year revenue growth. "We have changed what was a struggling company in 2002 into a robust growth company in 2004," he said.
"We were particularly pleased with the speed at which the average new store achieved profitability in month five (in 2004), compared to our model based on historical run rates of 10 to 12 months," Ingram said.
The company now operates 143 stores nationwide and serves over 50,000 active customers, he said, adding, "We now believe it's realistic to grow beyond the 300 stores we originally targeted."
Meanwhile, Easyhome's board of directors has approved a 3-for-2 stock split, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. The board also approved a 50% increase in the quarterly dividend to six Canadian cents per share on a pre-split basis.
| Easyhome (a) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings per share are fully diluted, and all figures in parentheses are losses or declines. | |||
| Quarter ended 12/31 | 2004 | (b)2003 | Change |
| (a) In Canadian dollars. (b) Restated. |
|||
| Revenues | C$23,914,000 | C$20,432,000 | 17.0% |
| Operating income | 3,193,000 | 2,729,000 | 17.0% |
| Net income | 1,728,000 | 1,601,000 | 7.9% |
| Earnings per share | 0.25 | 0.30 | (16.7%) |
| Year ended 12/31 | 2004 | (b)2003 | Change |
| Revenues | C$88,450,000 | C$78,090,000 | 13.3% |
| Operating income | 11,971,000 | 9,276,000 | 29.1% |
| Net income | 8,752,000 | 4,027,000 | 117.3% |
| Earnings per share | 1.30 | 0.75 | 73.3% |
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