Leading rent-to-own operator,
Aaron's Inc.
(
AAN
) recently announced that it has opened five new stores at
different locations within the U.S. between mid-October and
early-November this year. These store openings are in sync with
the company's aggressive growth trend. The company opened one
store each in - Delaware, Ohio; Ionia, Michigan; Franklin,
Kentucky; Indianola, Mississippi and Towson, Maryland.
Earlier in September this year, Aaron's marked the opening of
its 2,000th store in Bronx, New York. Further, it has plans to
strengthen its footprint and foster economic development in the
New York market by increasing its store count and adding new jobs
and partnership opportunities in the region.
Looking ahead, the company expects this store expansion trend
to continue, with more stores expected to come up all over the
U.S. The company has managed to expand its network of stores by
354, adding about 2,200 jobs and reporting solid quarterly
results over the past three years. Moreover, Aaron's intends to
increase its new store count by 5%-7% in fiscal 2012 over fiscal
2011 and post a 4%-6% increase in store count in fiscal 2013 over
fiscal 2012.
Aaron's is a rent-to-own operator in the United States, and
has a low price provider strategy. The company is involved in
rental and specialty retailing of consumer electronics,
residential and office furniture, household appliances, and
accessories.
Currently, Aaron's has a customer base of over 1.6 million
throughout the U.S. and Canada. The company offers its customers
low monthly payments on a lease-to-own option and no credit
checks on everyday brand name necessities such as refrigerators,
computers, beds and televisions.
Moreover, Aaron's leverages an extensive network of stores to
effectively penetrate into its target markets, which in turn
facilitates the company to generate healthy sales and gain a
competitive advantage over its rivals. The company currently
operates over 2,009 company-operated and franchised stores across
Canada and 48 states of the U.S.
The company's peer
Rent-A-Center Inc.
(
RCII
) is also expanding its network of stores to boost its top line.
For 2012, Rent-A-Center's management plans to open approximately
35 domestic rent-to-own stores. Through the year, the company
targets to open 40 rent-to-own locations in Mexico and 6 in
Canada. Moreover, the company aims at 300 domestic RAC Acceptance
kiosk additions.
Recently, in October Aaron's posted outstanding third-quarter
2012 results with sales and earnings per share climbing
approximately 9% and 28%, respectively. Based on strong quarterly
results, the company raised its adjusted earnings per share
guidance to $2.05-$2.09 compared with its earlier projected
guidance range of $1.98-$2.06.
Currently, Aaron's holds a Zacks #1 Rank, implying a
short-term Strong Buy rating. We are also reiterating our
long-term 'Outperform' recommendation on the stock.
AARONS INC (AAN): Free Stock Analysis Report
RENT-A-CENTER (RCII): Free Stock Analysis
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