Hibbett Sports Inc. reported sales increased 9.9 percent in the fourth quarter, to $239.3 million compared with $217.8 million for the 13-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014. Comparable store sales increased 5.4 percent.

Gross profit was 35.5 percent of net sales for the 13-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, compared with 35.8 percent for the 13-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014.

Store operating, selling and administrative expenses were 20.4 percent of net sales for the 13-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, compared with 21.7 percent of net sales for the 13-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014.

Net income for the 13-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, increased 18.1 percent to $19.9 million compared with $16.9 million for the 13-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014. Earnings per diluted share increased 23.4 percent to $0.79 for the 13-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, compared with $0.64 for the 13-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014.

Jeff Rosenthal, president and chief executive officer, stated, “We are very pleased with our performance in the fourth quarter. We experienced strong comps during the holiday period on top of solid comps last year, and our product assortment resonated well with customers. In Jan., comps were especially strong due to better weather and earlier tax refunds. As we started Fiscal 2016, we experienced softer sales in Feb. due to weather-related store closures across many of our markets. We believe this trend will normalize over the next few weeks, and feel confident in our assortment and inventory position.

“We are excited to announce that we achieved our store growth goal for the year, opening 80 new stores along with 9 expansions. We also continue to make progress on our major initiatives, and feel confident that these efforts will result in continued strong performance.”

Fiscal 2015 Results

Net sales for the 52-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, increased 7.2 percent to $913.5 million compared with $852.0 million for the 52-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014. Comparable store sales increased 2.9 percent.

Gross profit was 35.8 percent of net sales for the 52-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, compared with 36.3 percent for the 52-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014.

Store operating, selling and administrative expenses were 21.1 percent of net sales for the 52-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, compared with 21.3 percent of net sales for the 52-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014.

Net income for the 52-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, increased 3.8 percent to $73.6 million compared with $70.9 million for the 52-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014. Earnings per diluted share increased 6.3 percent to $2.87 for the 52-week period ended Jan. 31, 2015, compared with $2.70 for the 52-week period ended Feb. 1, 2014.

For the year, Hibbett opened 80 new stores, expanded 9 high performing stores and closed 19 underperforming stores, bringing the store base to 988 in 31 states as of Jan. 31, 2015.

Liquidity and Stock Repurchases

Hibbett ended the fourth quarter of Fiscal 2015 with $88.4 million of available cash and cash equivalents on the consolidated balance sheet, no bank debt outstanding and full availability under its $80.0 million unsecured credit facilities.

During the fourth quarter, the company repurchased 133,711 shares of common stock for a total expenditure of $6.4 million. Approximately $173.3 million of the total authorization for future stock repurchases remained as of Jan. 31, 2015.

Fiscal 2016 Outlook

The company provided the following guidance for Fiscal 2016:

  • Earnings per diluted share in the range of $2.95 to $3.09.
  • Increase in comparable store sales in the low-to-mid single digit range.
  • Approximately 80 to 85 new stores, 10 to 15 expansions and 15 to 20 closures.
  • Slightly positive product gross margin rate compared to Fiscal 2015.
  • An estimated reduction of $0.05 per diluted share due to the implementation of a point-of-sale upgrade across all stores. This upgrade will provide foundational elements needed to execute future phases of our growth strategy.
  • An estimated reduction of $0.04 per diluted share due to increased health care and IT costs.
  • An estimated reduction of $0.03 per diluted share due to an increase in depreciation resulting from the new wholesale and logistics facility, IT investments and an increase in new store openings.