Winmark Corp., the parent of Play It Again Sports, earned $1.46 million, or 28 cents per share, in the fourth quarter ended Dec.
26, versus a loss of $2.08 million, or 38 cents per share, for the same
quarter a year before.
The fourth-quarter 2008 loss was due to a charge of $2.8 million, or 52 cents per share, related to its investment in Tomsten Inc., a Minnetonka-based scrapbooking retail chain that does business as Archiver’s. Winmark took over management of Archiver’s late last year.
Revenue in the latest quarter were up 7.8% to $9.38 million.
“We finished 2009 with strong performance from our franchising business and improved profitability from our leasing activities. We are satisfied with our results in 2009 and feel we are well positioned for 2010,” John Morgan, Winmark’s chairman and CEO, said in a news release.
For the full year, Winmark saw a profit of $5.85 million, or $1.10 per share, up from $1.14 million, or 21 cents per share, in 2008. Revenue was $37.2 million, up from $35.42 million in the previous year.
At Dec. 26, Winmark had 877 franchises in operation under the brands Play It Again Sports, Once Upon A Child, Plato’s Closet, Music Go Round and there were 37 territories in operation under the Wirth Business Credit brand. An additional 46 retail franchises have been awarded but are not open. In addition, at Dec. 26, 2009, the company had loans and leases equal to $39.0 million.
