Home helped Big Lots, for the first quarter ended May 1, post net income of $94.6 million, or $2.62 per diluted share, versus $49.3 million, or $1.26 per diluted share, in the year-before period.
Comparable-store sales increased 11.3%, according to the company. Net sales advanced to $1.63 billion from $1.44 billion in the year-previous quarter. Operating profit was $122.6 million versus $74.4 million in the year-prior period
Among the stronger product segments in terms of sales growth, the company stated in a conference call, home organization saw a 24% increase driven by plastic storage, increased closeout and hampers, baskets and waste cans. In addition, the company pointed out, floor care, kitchen appliances, vacuums, dinnerware and hydration beverage delivered double-digit comps, partially offset by lower comp sales in fans, personal care and housewares. In the conference call, Jonathan Ramsden evp, CFO and chief administrative officer, cautioned that what he referred to as “the nesting trend,” which had been a driver for home sales, may not be as robust as the year continues.
“We don’t know exactly how that’s going to play out going forward, but we assume on our internal forecasting that there will be some moderation of that through the year as things return to normal and people are out and about spending on categories outside the home,” he said.
However, the company has continued to grow sales in certain categories it has expanded recently including, in home merchandise, small appliances and home office.
Bruce Thorn, president and CEO of Big Lots said, “We have completed a record first quarter that was driven both by our underlying Operation North Star strategic initiatives and by customer response to a third round of stimulus distributions that began in March. For the quarter, we saw double digit growth across all merchandise categories other than food and consumables, which were greatly bolstered last year by quarantine-related stock-up spending early in the pandemic. We also saw notable strength in our seasonal assortment, particularly lawn and garden, while Broyhill, launched just last year, drove $225 million in sales for the quarter across our furniture and home assortments, continuing its rapid progress toward becoming an established $1 billion brand. Additionally, our e-commerce business grew 30%, and our Rewards program reached a record high number of active members.”
Thorn noted that the gains came despite supply chain challenges that the company expects to continue through year’s end.
“We are taking other important steps to strengthen our business,” he said. “These include rolling out our forward distribution center strategy to relieve pressure at our regional distribution centers and more efficiently process bulk items such as furniture, strengthening our vendor partnerships to create even greater value for our customers and improve assortment availability, and investing in data-driven space planning technology designed to enhance our customer satisfaction and per-store productivity through more relevant location-based assortments. We are excited by our results, but know that we still have many opportunities for growth and improvement across the business.”
