La-Z-Boy Reports Fiscal 2018 Third-Quarter Results


MONROE, Mich., Feb. 20, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB) today reported its operating results for the fiscal 2018 third quarter ended January 27, 2018. 

  • Consolidated sales increased 6.1% to $413.6 million;
  • Same-store written sales for the La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® network increased 2.6%;
  • Cash flow from operations was $40.0 million;
  • The company returned $21.1 million to shareholders through dividends and share purchases; and
  • Earnings per diluted share for the quarter were $0.25, including a $0.20 per share net charge related to tax reform and a $0.06 per share charge related to a previously announced legal settlement.

Sales for the fiscal 2018 third quarter were $413.6 million, up 6.1% compared with the prior year’s third quarter. Operating margin was 8.0% in the third quarter of fiscal 2018 versus 8.6% in the fiscal 2017 third quarter. The fiscal 2018 third quarter’s operating margin was reduced by 1.0% as a result of the charge for the previously announced settlement of a lawsuit regarding certain power products.

The company reported net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated of $12.1 million, or $0.25 per diluted share, which included a $0.20 per share net charge related to the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act (tax reform) and a $0.06 per share charge related to the previously announced legal settlement, versus $23.3 million, or $0.47 per diluted share in the fiscal 2017 third quarter.

Sales in the company’s upholstery segment increased 6.0% to $321.0 million and the operating margin declined to 9.9% from 11.8% in last year’s third quarter. The charge for the settlement of a lawsuit regarding certain power products reduced operating margin in the segment by 1.3% in the fiscal 2018 third quarter. In the casegoods segment, sales increased 17.0% to $27.2 million and the operating margin increased to 10.3% from 6.8%. Sales in the retail segment increased 3.0% to $125.8 million for the third quarter and the segment’s operating margin increased to 5.6% from 5.2% in the prior-year period. On the core base of 138 stores included in last year’s third quarter, delivered sales declined 1.1% versus the prior-year quarter.

Kurt L. Darrow, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of La-Z-Boy, said, “We experienced positive sales momentum for the quarter and, in addition to posting a 6.1% increase, each of our business segments operated at a high level during the period. Additionally, the La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® store network posted its fourth consecutive quarterly written same-store sales increase. The company also generated strong cash flow from operations enabling us to make the necessary strategic investments to grow our business in the dynamic marketplace and return value to shareholders.”

Darrow added, “In our upholstery segment, we are very pleased with the performance of our new duo product line which, thus far, is exceeding our expectations in the short time it has been on retail floors and is a testament to the innovative spirit that is the hallmark of our brand. During the period, ongoing inflationary pressures for raw materials impacted the upholstery segment’s operating margin in November and December until our price increase became effective on delivered orders in January. For the fourth quarter, raw material prices are not anticipated to be a drag on our margin as the full benefit of the price increase will be in effect on all sales.”

Darrow said, “Our casegoods business continues on an upward trajectory, with increased sales and earnings performance as the group expands floor space with retailers. New, on-trend product collections are resonating with consumers and our supply chain is providing excellent service to customers with quick shipping on our best-selling groups. In our retail segment, we opened one new La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® store during the quarter and acquired one store in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as part of our store build-out strategy. For the quarter, the retail segment’s operating margin improved, resulting from an increase in the average ticket primarily driven by increased design services and custom orders.”

Darrow continued, “With a strong brand, a vast distribution system, including the vibrant and growing La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® store network, a best-in-class global supply chain and a healthy balance sheet to support new initiatives, La-Z-Boy is pursuing a dual growth strategy to drive organic growth with our core consumer while attracting a new and younger consumer through our multi-faceted e-commerce approach. We are optimistic about the many opportunities that exist through our comprehensive strategy and look forward to growing our business with a new consumer group that exhibits different buying characteristics than the core La-Z-Boy consumer. La-Z-Boy will continue to evolve as we make strategic investments to drive growth and profitability in an ever-changing environment.”

FISCAL 2018 PROJECTED* STORE ACTIVITY

 Total FY17NewClosedAcquiredTotal FY18RemodelRelocation
Company-owned143 6(4)1146--
Dealer-owned2044(3)(1)20474
Total34710(7)-35074
        

2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

Our results for the third quarter of fiscal 2018 included a $0.20 per share net charge related to tax reform, or $9.5 million. This included a $9.8 million charge for the provisional re-measurement of certain deferred taxes and related amounts, a provisional $1.9 million of income tax expense for the estimated effects of the transition tax on the deemed repatriation of foreign earnings, and a benefit of $2.2 million primarily related to the lower blended federal tax rate. Based on our current interpretation of the tax reform legislation, we made reasonable estimates to record provisional adjustments during the third quarter of fiscal 2018. Since we are still accumulating and processing data to finalize the underlying calculations and expect regulators to issue further guidance, among other things, we believe our estimates may change. We will continue to refine such amounts within the measurement period allowed, which is not to extend beyond one year of the enactment date.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

During the quarter, the company generated $40.0 million in cash from operating activities. La-Z-Boy ended the quarter with $135.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, $35.4 million in investments to enhance returns on cash, and $2.4 million in restricted cash. During the quarter, the company had $7.8 million in capital expenditures, paid $5.7 million in dividends, and spent $15.4 million purchasing 0.5 million shares of stock in the open market under its existing authorized share purchase program, leaving 7.0 million shares of purchase availability in the program.

Conference Call

La-Z-Boy will hold a conference call with the investment community on Wednesday, February 21, 2018, at 8:30 a.m. eastern time. The toll-free dial-in number is 877.407.0778; international callers may use 201.689.8565. 

The call will be webcast live, with corresponding slides, and archived on the Internet. It will be available at https://lazboy.gcs-web.com/. A telephone replay will be available for a week following the call. This replay will be accessible to callers from the U.S. and Canada at 877.481.4010 and to international callers at 919.882.2331. Enter Conference ID #10442.

Forward-looking Information

This news release contains, and oral statements made from time to time by representatives of La‑Z‑Boy may contain, “forward-looking statements.” With respect to all forward-looking statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. 

Actual results could differ materially from those we anticipate or project due to a number of factors, including: (a) changes in consumer confidence and demographics; (b) the possibility of a recession; (c) changes in the real estate and credit markets and their effects on our customers, consumers and suppliers; (d) international political unrest, terrorism or war; (e) volatility in energy and other commodities prices; (f) the impact of logistics on imports and exports; (g) tax rate, interest rate, and currency exchange rate changes; (h) operating factors, such as supply, labor or distribution disruptions (e.g. port strikes); (i) changes in legislation, including the tax code, or changes in the domestic or international regulatory environment, including new or increased duties and termination or renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement; (j) adoption of new accounting principles; (k) fires, severe weather or other natural events such as hurricanes, earthquakes, flooding, tornadoes and tsunamis; (l) our ability to procure or transport fabric rolls, leather hides or cut-and-sewn fabric and leather sets domestically or abroad; (m) information technology conversions or system failures and our ability to recover from a system failure; (n) effects of our brand awareness and marketing programs; (o) the discovery of defects in our products resulting in delays in manufacturing, recall campaigns, reputational damage, or increased warranty costs; (p) litigation arising out of alleged defects in our products; (q) unusual or significant litigation; (r) our ability to locate new La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® stores (or store owners) and negotiate favorable lease terms for new or existing locations; (s) the ability to increase volume through our e-commerce initiatives; (t) the impact of potential goodwill or intangible asset impairments; and (u) those matters discussed in Item 1A of our fiscal 2017 Annual Report on Form 10-K and other factors identified from time to time in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether to reflect new information or new developments or for any other reason.

Additional Information

This news release is just one part of La-Z-Boy’s financial disclosures and should be read in conjunction with other information filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which is available at: https://lazboy.gcs-web.com/financial-information/sec-filings . Investors and others wishing to be notified of future La-Z-Boy news releases, SEC filings and quarterly investor conference calls may sign up at: https://lazboy.gcs-web.com/.

Background Information

La-Z-Boy Incorporated is one of the world’s leading residential furniture producers, marketing furniture for every room of the home. The La-Z-Boy upholstery segment companies are England and La-Z-Boy. The casegoods segment consists of three brands: American Drew, Hammary, and Kincaid. The company-owned retail segment includes 147 of the 350 La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® stores.

The corporation’s branded distribution network is dedicated to selling La-Z-Boy Incorporated products and brands, and includes 350 stand-alone La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® stores and 532 independent Comfort Studio® locations, in addition to in-store gallery programs for the company’s Kincaid and England operating units. Additional information is available at http://www.la-z-boy.com/.

 

 
 
LA-Z-BOY INCORPORATED 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF INCOME
   
   
  Quarter Ended
(Unaudited, amounts in thousands, except per share data) 1/27/18  1/28/17 
Sales $413,638  $389,992 
Cost of sales  251,140   233,185 
Gross profit  162,498   156,807 
Selling, general and administrative expense  129,403   123,235 
Operating income   33,095   33,572 
Interest expense  113   562 
Interest income  444   241 
Income from Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act, net     273 
Other income (expense), net  (1,094)  (52)
Income before income taxes  32,332   33,472 
Income tax expense   20,047   9,830 
Net income  12,285   23,642 
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests  (176)  (356)
Net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated $12,109  $23,286 
         
Basic weighted average common shares   47,234   48,914 
Basic net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated per share $0.26  $0.47 
         
Diluted weighted average common shares   47,757   49,384 
Diluted net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated per share $0.25  $0.47 
         
Dividends declared per share   $0.12  $0.11 
         
         



LA-Z-BOY INCORPORATED 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF INCOME
   
  Nine Months Ended
(Unaudited, amounts in thousands, except per share data) 1/27/18  1/28/17 
Sales $1,163,922  $1,107,354 
Cost of sales  707,369   666,942 
Gross profit  456,553   440,412 
Selling, general and administrative expense  372,891   350,524 
Operating income   83,662   89,888 
Interest expense  430   794 
Interest income  1,163   679 
Income from Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act, net     273 
Gain on conversion of investment  2,204    
Other income (expense), net  (2,475)  (1,783)
Income before income taxes  84,124   88,263 
Income tax expense   36,889   29,508 
Net income  47,235   58,755 
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests  (579)  (830)
Net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated $46,656  $57,925 
         
Basic weighted average common shares   47,852   49,057 
Basic net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated per share $0.97  $1.17 
         
Diluted weighted average common shares   48,325   49,532 
Diluted net income attributable to La-Z-Boy Incorporated per share $0.96  $1.16 
         
Dividends declared per share   $0.34  $0.31 
         
         


LA-Z-BOY INCORPORATED 
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET 
  
(Unaudited, amounts in thousands, except par value) 1/27/18  4/29/17 
Current assets        
Cash and equivalents $135,266  $141,860 
Restricted cash  2,354   8,999 
Receivables, net of allowance of $2,665 at 1/27/18 and $2,563 at 4/29/17   146,498   150,846 
Inventories, net  186,319   175,114 
Other current assets  43,242   40,603 
Total current assets  513,679   517,422 
Property, plant and equipment, net  174,877   169,132 
Goodwill  75,765   74,245 
Other intangible assets, net  18,510   18,489 
Deferred income taxes – long-term  28,823   40,131 
Other long-term assets, net  81,848   69,436 
Total assets $893,502  $888,855 
         
Current liabilities        
Current portion of long-term debt $231  $219 
Accounts payable  66,672   51,282 
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities  131,166   147,175 
Total current liabilities  198,069   198,676 
Long-term debt  249   296 
Other long-term liabilities  92,346   88,778 
Contingencies and commitments        
Shareholders’ equity        
Preferred shares – 5,000 authorized; none issued      
Common shares, $1 par value – 150,000 authorized; 47,068 outstanding
  at 1/27/18 and 48,472 outstanding at 4/29/17
  47,068   48,472 
Capital in excess of par value  297,408   289,632 
Retained earnings  271,912   284,698 
Accumulated other comprehensive loss  (26,509)  (32,883)
Total La-Z-Boy Incorporated shareholders’ equity  589,879   589,919 
Noncontrolling interests   12,959   11,186 
Total equity  602,838   601,105 
Total liabilities and equity $893,502  $888,855 
 
 


LA-Z-BOY INCORPORATED 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS 
  
  Nine Months Ended 
(Unaudited, amounts in thousands) 1/27/18  1/28/17 
Cash flows from operating activities        
Net income $47,235  $58,755 
Adjustments to reconcile net income to cash provided by 
 (used for) operating activities
        
Gain on disposal of assets  (1,849)  (103)
Gain on conversion of investment  (2,204)   
Deferred income tax expense   10,543   3,214 
Provision for doubtful accounts  198   (64)
Depreciation and amortization  23,671   21,311 
Equity-based compensation expense  7,929   7,571 
Pension plan contributions  (2,000)  (2,300)
Change in receivables  5,057   (576)
Change in inventories  (9,142)  (5,929)
Change in other assets  (3,304)  (4,415)
Change in payables  12,529   6,359 
Change in other liabilities  2,537   9,191 
Net cash provided by operating activities  91,200   93,014 
         
Cash flows from investing activities        
Proceeds from disposals of assets  620   273 
Proceeds from property insurance  1,807    
Capital expenditures  (24,138)  (15,529)
Purchases of investments  (24,124)  (20,778)
Proceeds from sales of investments  17,109   13,899 
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired  (16,495)  (35,878)
Net cash used for investing activities  (45,221)  (58,013)
         
Cash flows from financing activities        
Payments on debt  (203)  (217)
Payments for debt issuance costs  (220)   
Stock issued for stock and employee benefit plans, net of
 shares withheld for taxes
  1,418   1,739 
Excess tax benefit on stock option exercises     1,924 
Purchases of common stock  (46,074)  (25,062)
Dividends paid  (16,343)  (15,270)
Net cash used for financing activities  (61,422)  (36,886)
         
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and equivalents  2,204   (139)
Change in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash  (13,239)  (2,024)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of 
 period
  150,859   121,335 
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period $137,620  $119,311 
         
Supplemental disclosure of non-cash investing activities
 Capital expenditures included in payables 
 $3,926  $1,012 
         
         



LA-Z-BOY INCORPORATED 
SEGMENT INFORMATION 
  
  Quarter Ended  Nine Months Ended 
 (Unaudited, amounts in thousands) 1/27/18  1/28/17  1/27/18  1/28/17 
Sales                
Upholstery segment:                
Sales to external customers $262,874  $246,650  $739,429  $715,357 
Intersegment sales  58,084   56,273   160,697   150,771 
Upholstery segment sales  320,958   302,923   900,126   866,128 
                 
Casegoods segment:                
Sales to external customers  23,887   20,499   68,821   64,651 
Intersegment sales  3,328   2,760   11,969   9,534 
Casegoods segment sales  27,215   23,259   80,790   74,185 
                 
Retail segment sales  125,815   122,121   353,068   325,206 
                 
Corporate and Other:                
Sales to external customers  1,062   722   2,604   2,140 
Intersegment sales  2,818   1,978   6,839   4,751 
Corporate and Other sales  3,880   2,700   9,443   6,891 
                 
Eliminations  (64,230)  (61,011)  (179,505)  (165,056)
Consolidated sales $413,638  $389,992  $1,163,922  $1,107,354 
                 
Operating Income (Loss)                
Upholstery segment $31,699  $35,669  $88,422  $104,388 
Casegoods segment  2,792   1,593   8,833   6,587 
Retail segment  7,076   6,325   12,746   11,515 
Corporate and Other  (8,472)  (10,015)  (26,339)  (32,602)
Consolidated operating income $33,095  $33,572  $83,662  $89,888 
                 

Contact:
Kathy Liebmann
(734) 241-2438
kathy.liebmann@la-z-boy.com