On Thursday, March 29, after the market close, footwear retailer Finish Line
- Total sales advanced 7.5%, but only 1.4% when subtracting an extra week in the current quarter versus last year. Same-store sales fell 5.4%.
- Diluted earnings fell 24.1%, as the company took a $0.10 charge related to 19 underperforming stores. Weakness was seen in the non-premium performance, women's, and soft good product categories.
- Management expects "the short-term environment for specialty athletic retailing to be challenging," but remains "confident in the long-term growth of the business." Going forward, Finish Line is looking to focus more on fashion and premium brands to differentiate its stores. As such, it recently lured a men's shoe VP away from high-end retailer Nordstrom
(NYSE:JWN) . Finish Line also announced an imminent press release regarding a product-development initiative with Nike(NYSE:NKE) . - Finish Line carries a lowly one-star rating in the Motley Fool CAPS intelligence database. Rival Foot Locker
(NYSE:FL) has a three-star rating, while Skechers(NYSE:SKX) and Nike both boast four-star ratings. Feel free to head to CAPS and offer your own opinion on these and other companies.
(Figures in thousands, except per-share data)
Income Statement Highlights
Q4 2006 |
Q4 2005 |
Change |
|
---|---|---|---|
Sales |
$429,019 |
$399,225 |
7.5% |
Net Profit |
$21,067 |
$28,060 |
(24.9%) |
EPS |
$0.44 |
$0.58 |
(24.1%) |
Diluted Shares |
47,557 |
48,704 |
(2.4%) |
Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.
Margin Checkup
Q4 2006 |
Q4 2005 |
Change* |
|
---|---|---|---|
Gross Margin |
31.57% |
33.1% |
(1.496) |
Operating Margin |
7.9% |
11.1% |
6.77(3.2) |
Net Margin |
4.9% |
7.0% |
(2.1) |
Margins are the earnings engine.
Balance Sheet Highlights
Assets |
Q4 2006 |
Q4 2005 |
Change |
---|---|---|---|
Cash + ST Invest. |
$62,864 |
$96,563 |
(34.9%) |
Inventory |
$287,300 |
$268,590 |
7.0% |
Liabilities |
Q4 2006 |
Q4 2005 |
Change |
---|---|---|---|
Current Liabilities |
$142,886 |
$142,415 |
0.3% |
Deferred Credits From Landlords |
$64,472 |
$56,859 |
13.4% |
The balance sheet reflects the company's health.
Cash Flow Highlights
Fools will have to wait until Finish Line files its 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission for juicy cash flow details.
Free cash flow is a Fool's best friend.
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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.
Fool contributor Ryan Fuhrmann is long shares of Nike 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.