Whole Foods Market Inc.
's (
WFM
) fourth-quarter 2012 earnings of 60 cents a share came in line
with the Zacks Consensus Estimate, and jumped substantially from
42 cents earned in the prior-year quarter. However, the Austin,
Texas-based company reiterated its earnings per share outlook but
raised its dividend payout.
The company seems to sustain its growth momentum in fiscal
2013 on the back of strong sales as shoppers are flocking to the
grocery chain. The company has been gaining better market share
as against other supermarket chains, defying economic
apprehensions.
Let's Unveil the Picture
Whole Foods, a leading natural and organic foods supermarket,
sustained its top-line growth momentum with revenue climbing
23.6% to $2,910.3 million in the quarter, and also came ahead of
the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,905 million. Consumers, who
had cut back their spending during the recession, are now
gradually returning to the chain.
Effective inventory management and improved store-level
performance have helped the company sustain the downturn and
achieve improved sales and profit. Whole Foods has been revamping
its pricing strategy and concentrating more on value offerings,
while maintaining healthy margins. In the last five fiscal years,
gross margin has been in the range of 34% to 35%.
Whole Foods said that comparable-store sales rose 8.5% in the
quarter, down from 8.7% in the prior-year quarter but up from
8.2% in the previous quarter. For the first five weeks of the
first quarter of fiscal 2013, comparable-store sales jumped
7.3%.
The company also notified that identical-store sales climbed
8.3% in the quarter compared with 8.4% in the year-ago quarter
and 8% in the preceding quarter. For the first five weeks of the
first quarter of fiscal 2013, identical-store sales jumped
7.1%.
Management hinted that sales in the first five weeks of the
first quarter of fiscal 2013 remains somewhat muted when compared
with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012 due to the impact of
Hurricane Sandy that hit the northeast region.
Whole Foods indicated that gross profit rose 26.4% to $1,026.6
million, whereas gross margin grew 76 basis points to 35.3%.
Store contribution soared 40.3% to $285.8 million. As a
percentage of sales, store contribution increased 117 basis
points to 9.8%.
Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter surged 36.2% to $275.6
million, whereas adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 90 basis points
to 9.5%. Operating income for the quarter jumped 49.7% to $175.6
million, whereas operating margin increased 100 basis points to
6%.
Stores Update
Whole Foods currently operates 342 stores. The company opened
7 outlets during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012. So far in the
first quarter of fiscal 2013, the company has opened 7 stores,
and plans to open 3 more stores.
The company plans to open 32 to 34 stores in fiscal 2013 and
33 to 38 stores in fiscal 2014. The company had opened 25 stores
in fiscal 2012. The company believes that there exists room for
1,000 stores in the long run, and sees expansion opportunity in
Canada and the United Kingdom.
Other Financial Details
Whole Foods ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents
of $89 million, total long-term debt and capital lease
obligations of $24.1 million, and shareholders' equity of
$3,802.5 million.
During the quarter, Whole Foods generated cash flow from
operations of $188.8 million and incurred capital expenditures of
$130.3 million, resulting in free cash flow of $58.6 million. The
company paid $25.8 million in dividends during the quarter under
review.
The company raised its quarterly dividend by 43% to 20 cents a
share from 14 cents. The company will pay the dividend on January
29, 2013 to stakeholders of record as of January 18.
The company has been utilizing its cash flows for opening new
stores, paying down debt and returning cash to shareholders
through dividends and share repurchases.
Strolling through Guidance
White foods provided guidance for fiscal 2013. Management now
projects an escalation of 10% to 12% in total sales on the back
of an expected 6.5% to 8.5% rise in comparable-store sales and 6%
to 8% growth in identical-store sales.
Management projects EBITDA in the range of $1.18 billion to
$1.20 billion, and expects operating margin between 6.6% and
6.7%. The company now anticipates capital expenditures in the
range of $565 million to $615 million.
Management reiterated its earnings forecast of $2.83 to $2.87
per share, portraying a year-over-year jump of 12% to 14%.
Analysts polled by Zacks estimate fiscal 2013 earnings at
$2.86.
Recommendation
Currently, we have a long-term Neutral recommendation on the
stock. Moreover, Whole Foods, which competes with
The Kroger Company
(
KR
) and
Supervalu Inc.
(
SVU
), holds a Zacks #2 Rank that translates into a short-term Buy
rating and well defines the company's optimistic outlook.
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