Bed Bath Swept Away: Fool by Numbers

After the market close on December 20, national retail chain Bed Bath & Beyond (Nasdaq: BBBY) released fiscal 2006 third-quarter earnings for the period ended November 25, 2006. Here are the quick and dirty details for the quarter.

• Sales grew 11.8% to $1.6 billion as same-store sales advanced 4.6%.
• Total diluted earnings grew 11.1% but came in below analyst projections.
• Inventory growth outpaced sales expansion, growing 15.1% and accounting for the bulk of decreased free cash flow as compared to last year's third quarter.

(Figures in thousands, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

	Q3 2006	Q3 2005	Change
Sales	$1,619,240	$1,448,680	11.8%
Net Profit	$142,436	$134,620	5.8%
EPS	$0.50	$0.45	11.1%
Diluted Shares	285,664	301,075	(5.1%)

*Three months ended November 25, 2006 and November 26, 2005.

Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.

Margin Checkup

	Q3 2006	Q3 2005	Change*
Gross Margin	43.5%	42.5%	1.00
Operating Margin	13%	14.2%	(1.2)
Net Margin	8.8%	9.3%	(0.5)

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine. See how they work.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets	Q3 2006	Q3 2005	Change
Cash + ST Invest.	$817,554	$941,032	(13.1%)
Inventory	$1,639,355	$1,424,730	15.1%

Liabilities	Q3 2006	Q3 2005	Change
Accounts Payable	$668,727	$602,421	11%
Long-Term Debt	$0	$0	N/A

Learn the ways of the balance sheet.

Cash Flow Highlights

	Q3 2006	Q3 2005	Change
Cash From Ops.	$217,715	$312,408	(30.3%)
Capital Expenditures	$235,187	$167,224	40.7
Free Cash Flow	($17,472)	$145,184	N/A

*Nine months ended November 25, 2006 and November 26, 2005.

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Comparable companies:

• Restoration Hardware (Nasdaq: RSTO)
• Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM)
• Target (NYSE: TGT)
• Pier 1 (NYSE: PIR)

Related Foolishness:

• Foolish Fundamentals: Free Cash Flow
• Foolish Fundamentals: Return on Invested Capital

Fool by Numbers is designed to give you the raw earnings information in a timely fashion, putting all the numbers you need in one easy-to-read place. But at The Motley Fool, we believe numbers tell only part of the story, so check Fool.com for more of our in-depth discussion of what the numbers mean.

Bed Bath & Beyond is both a Stock Advisor and an Inside Value recommendation.

Fool contributor Ryan Fuhrmann is long shares of Bed Bath but has no financial interest in any other company mentioned. Feel free to email him with feedback or to discuss any companies mentioned further. The Fool has an ironclad disclosure policy.