At Home continued its fast growth track in the third quarter, opening new stores and posting strong net sales and comparable store sales.
Net sales in the third quarter grew 24.8% to $213 million from $170.7 million in the third quarter of 2016 driven by the net addition of 22 stores and a comparable store sales increase of 7.1%. Excluding the net impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, comparable store sales would have increased 8.3%, the company said. At Home opened eight new stores in the third quarter, ending the quarter with 144 stores in 33 states.
Net income in the third quarter of fiscal 2018 was $2.4 million compared to a net loss of $1.9 million in the prior year period, which included a $2.7 million loss on extinguishment of debt in the third quarter of fiscal 2017. Earnings per share improved to $0.04 compared to negative $0.03 in the third quarter of fiscal 2017.
In September 2017, At Home also entered into a sale-leaseback transaction, selling six properties for a total of $62.6 million and the leased them back for cumulative initial annual rent of $4.2 million.
Lee Bird, chairman and CEO, At Home, said, “This quarter we once again demonstrated the exciting momentum in our business. We are driving strong results across a variety of pricepoints and style archetypes, indoor and outdoor décor, everyday and seasonal product categories, and new and existing stores across the country. Our new store growth of 18%, combined with our merchandising and marketing initiatives, drove net sales growth of 25% and our 14th consecutive quarter of over 20% percent net sales growth. Additionally, we delivered our 15th consecutive quarter of positive comparable store sales increases with 7.1% growth, marking our third straight quarter of acceleration on a two-year comparable store sales basis. Driven by our top line outperformance and profitability, we more than doubled year-over-year pro forma adjusted EPS to $0.07, enabling us to raise our full year outlook while continuing to reinvest in the expansion of our business.”