At Home reported a rise in comparable store sales as the retailer continues to expand after its recent initial public offering.
In the third quarter ended October 29, the At Home Group recorded a net loss of $1.9 million, or three cents per diluted share, versus a net loss of $10.9 million, or 21 cents per diluted share, in the year-previous period. But the company did post a pro forma adjusted net income of $1.8 million, or three cents per share, versus a pro forma adjusted net loss of $400,000, or one cent per share, in the prior-year period. At Home beat a MarketBeat-published analyst average earnings per diluted share estimate by a penny.
Comparable store sales increased 4.2%. Net sales were $170.7 million versus $139.4 million in the quarter the year before. Operating income slipped slightly to $4.5 million from $4.6 million in the quarter year over year with higher SG&A expenses primarily responsible for the decrease. According to the company, the SG&A increase primarily resulted from the net addition of 22 stores since the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2015 and $3.4 million of stock-based compensation and transaction costs associated with its initial public offering as well as corporate and strategic investments to support growth strategies, including labor costs associated with the inflow of incremental inventory and a $1.5 million increase in brand advertising to drive consumer awareness.
Lee Bird, At Home president and CEO, said, “We are pleased to report strong third quarter results driven by broad-based strength across both new and existing stores. Our differentiated, value-oriented product offering resonated with our customers and, combined with the progress we are making on our merchandising and marketing initiatives, drove our 10th consecutive quarter of over 20% net sales growth and our 11th consecutive quarter of positive comparable store sales growth. This strong top line performance drove increased profitability on an adjusted basis as we generated pro forma adjusted EPS of three cents while continuing to make the appropriate investments in our business to support our planned growth.”
Of 22 new At Home stores added net over the past year, seven debuted in the third quarter. The company operates 122 stores in 30 states.
