• Bassett Announces Fiscal First Quarter Results

    المصدر: Nasdaq GlobeNewswire / 30 مارس 2023 09:00:01   America/New_York

    BASSETT, Va., March 30, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bassett Furniture Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq: BSET) announced today its results of operations for its first quarter ended February 25, 2023.

    Fiscal 2023 First Quarter Highlights of Continuing Operations
    (Dollars in millions)

     Sales Operating Income (Loss)
     1st Qtr Dollar% 1st Qtr% of 1st Qtr% of
      2023 2022 ChangeChange 2023 Sales  2022 Sales
    Consolidated (1)$107.7$117.9 $(10.2)-8.7% $2.7 2.5% $6.5 5.5%
                
    Wholesale$69.9$83.5 $(13.6)-16.3% $9.0 12.9% $10.2 12.2%
                
    Retail$65.0$64.1 $0.9 1.4% $1.5 2.3% $2.6 4.1%
                
    Corporate & Other (2)$3.0$- $3.0 100.0% $(7.8)N/A $(6.2)N/A
                
    (1) Our consolidated results include certain intercompany eliminations. See Table 4, “Segment Information” below for an illustration of the
    effects of these items on our consolidated sales and operating income.      
                
    (2) Corporate and Other includes the operations of Noa Home Inc. for 2023 along with the shared Corporate costs that are benefiting both
    the Wholesale and Retail segments. This represents a change in our segment presentation from prior periods. Previously, those shared
    Corporate costs had been included in the Wholesale segment and the operations of Noa Home Inc. were included in the Retail segment.
    Prior period results have been restated to conform to the current presentation.      

    Early in our first quarter we fulfilled the remaining excess portion of the large backlog created during the pandemic boom and are now producing and shipping at a rate commensurate with our written business. As the industry and Bassett wrestle with macroeconomic inconsistencies, we are focused on efficiently targeting our consumers, new product innovation, providing the best buying experience and service possible, and working to sharpen our value proposition on the heels of the unprecedented cost pressures that we faced over the past thirty months. We are managing our expense structure while investing in the growth initiatives that are essential for the Company’s future. Our balance sheet continues to provide the foundational element on which our strategy rests and provides the strength to weather the depth of the current market downturn.

    Wholesale sales were 16% behind last year but 7.5% ahead of the last corresponding pre-pandemic quarter. For the past two months, we have been working reduced production schedules in our facilities. As a consequence, we have adjusted manufacturing employment levels by 11% this year, primarily through attrition. Total wholesale inventories were reduced by 15% for the period. As previously reported, we continue to right size our Club Level imported motion inventories and are suffering margin degradation in so doing as the inventory is valued with the exorbitant ocean freight costs incurred last year and we are discounting the product to move the goods. The corresponding effect resulted in a 250 basis point blow to overall operating margins for the quarter versus last year. The bottom-line effects of the price reduction lessened somewhat as the period unfolded but will represent a hindrance to operating results until sometime in the third quarter at current sales levels. Once we return to Club Level inventories that were shipped from Asia with current ocean freight rates, those margins will return to historical levels, which is already the case for certain styles.

    The turmoil caused by pandemic supply chain upheaval is now behind us. Part of the disruption included skyrocketing raw material prices and the aforementioned freight costs. As the environment has normalized, certain manufacturing cost inputs have been reduced. Armed with the results of a thorough line-wide cost analysis, we plan to sharpen price points on key items across the line to enhance sales and improve overhead absorption in our factories. We will implement the new pricing strategy in our stores and to our wholesale customers sometime in April, which we believe will not adversely affect wholesale margins based on our internal calculations.

    While year over year retail delivered sales increased by 1.4% for the quarter, retail operating profit fell to $1.5 million. Gross margins were flat compared to last year as the effects of heavier promotional activity were offset by the positive impacts of LIFO valuation adjustments. We elected to increase marketing expenses as well to maintain consumer engagement on the web and in our stores. The increase in interest rates also impacted our consumer finance costs. Our new Dallas store opened in the period and we also remodeled two other existing locations in the Dallas market to test a new fixturing package designed to further enhance accessory sales. We will begin work on our new large store (25,000 square feet) in Tampa early in April. We are excited about the new face that our latest formats put on our brand presentation, and we will monitor the performance of these locations as we consider enhancements to certain stores in the rest of the fleet.

    2023 is a big year from a technology standpoint as our long-awaited digital transformation becomes more obvious with the debut of our new web platform in the next ninety days. Adding a new level of omni-channel capabilities has been a major objective from the outset and we are close to bringing it to the marketplace. On a related note, February brought the second quarter of our ownership of pure-play e-commerce provider Noa Home to a close. Noa is operating at a loss and will likely do so until at least the latter part of the year as we hone their operating metrics and adjust certain pricing strategies. We also continue to work on broadening their assortment. We value the insights that we are gaining from owning Noa and look forward to growing the business and reaching a new consumer in their existing international markets and ultimately the U.S.

    Once again, we will manage our capital allocation strategy in keeping with the economic uncertainty that we see around us today. We have postponed certain elements of our capital expenditure plan as we gain clarity on consumer behavior over the next few months. Although we have slowed the pace of share repurchases as compared to the prior year, we retired $1.8 million of our stock in the quarter and plan to continue to actively acquire shares while we believe the stock is undervalued. We are confident in the investments that we are making for the future but recognize that the fluid economic environment in which we are currently operating merits the conservative capital allocation approach that we are taking.

    Robert H. Spilman, Jr., Chairman and CEO

    About Bassett Furniture Industries, Inc.
    Bassett Furniture Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:BSET), is a leading manufacturer and marketer of high quality home furnishings. With 92 company- and licensee-owned stores at the time of this release, Bassett has leveraged its strong brand name in furniture into a network of corporate and licensed stores that focus on providing consumers with a friendly environment for buying furniture and accessories. Bassett’s retail strategy includes stylish, custom-built furniture that features the latest on-trend furniture styles, free in-home design visits, and coordinated decorating accessories. Bassett also has a traditional wholesale business with more than 700 accounts on the open market, across the United States and internationally and a logistics business specializing in home furnishings. For more information, visit the Company’s website at bassettfurniture.com. (BSET-E)

    Certain of the statements in this release, particularly those preceded by, followed by or including the words “believes,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “should,” “estimates,” or similar expressions, or those relating to or anticipating financial results or changes in operations for periods beyond the end of the first fiscal quarter of 2023, constitute “forward looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. For those statements, Bassett claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In many cases, Bassett cannot predict what factors would cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Expectations included in the forward-looking statements are based on preliminary information as well as certain assumptions which management believes to be reasonable at this time. The following important factors affect Bassett and could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward looking statements: the effects of national and global economic or other conditions (including, without limitation, the effects on revenue, supply and demand resulting from the duration and extent of the COVID-19 pandemic) and future events on the retail demand for home furnishings and the ability of Bassett’s customers and consumers to obtain credit; the success of marketing, logistics, retail and other initiatives; and the economic, competitive, governmental and other factors identified in Bassett’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement that Bassett makes speaks only as of the date of such statement, and Bassett undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Comparisons of results for current and any prior periods are not intended to express any future trends or indication of future performance, unless expressed as such, and should only be viewed as historical data.


    Table 1
    BASSETT FURNITURE INDUSTRIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
    Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income - unaudited
    (In thousands, except for per share data)
          
          
     Quarter Ended
     February 25, 2023 February 26, 2022
      Percent of  Percent of
     AmountNet Sales AmountNet Sales
          
    Net sales of furniture and accessories$107,698 100.0% $117,864 100.0%
    Cost of furniture and accessories sold 50,501 46.9%  60,471 51.3%
    Gross profit 57,197 53.1%  57,393 48.7%
          
    Selling, general and administrative expenses 54,495 50.6%  50,915 43.2%
    Income from operations 2,702 2.5%  6,478 5.5%
          
    Other loss, net (415)-0.4%  (629)-0.5%
    Income from continuing operations before income taxes 2,287 2.1%  5,849 5.0%
          
    Income tax expense 842 0.8%  1,558 1.3%
    Income from continuing operations 1,445 1.3%  4,291 3.6%
          
    Income from discontinued operations - net of tax -    1,282  
          
    Net income$1,445   $5,573  
          
    Basic and diluted earnings per share:     
    Income from continuing operations$0.16   $0.44  
    Income from discontinued operations -    0.13  
    Basic and diluted earnings per share$0.16   $0.57  


    Table 2
    BASSETT FURNITURE INDUSTRIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
    Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
    (In thousands)
      (Unaudited)  
    Assets February 25, 2023 November 26, 2022
    Current assets    
    Cash and cash equivalents $54,892  $61,625
    Short-term investments  17,725   17,715
    Accounts receivable, net  18,308   17,838
    Inventories, net  79,011   85,477
    Recoverable income taxes  1,707   2,353
    Other current assets  12,103   11,487
    Total current assets  183,746   196,495
         
    Property and equipment, net  78,030   77,001
         
    Other long-term assets    
    Deferred income taxes, net  5,438   5,528
    Goodwill and other intangible assets  21,599   21,727
    Right of use assets under operating leases  96,454   99,472
    Other  6,350   6,050
    Total long-term assets  129,841   132,777
    Total assets $391,617  $406,273
         
    Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity    
    Current liabilities    
    Accounts payable $17,956  $20,359
    Accrued compensation and benefits  9,942   12,921
    Customer deposits  31,040   35,963
    Current portion of operating lease obligations  18,947   18,819
    Other current liabilities and accrued expenses  12,695   12,765
    Total current liabilities  90,580   100,827
         
    Long-term liabilities    
    Post employment benefit obligations  10,386   9,954
    Long-term portion of operating lease obligations  93,618   97,477
    Other long-term liabilities  3,173   2,406
    Total long-term liabilities  107,177   109,837
         
         
    Stockholders’ equity    
    Common stock  44,311   44,759
    Retained earnings  149,611   150,800
    Additional paid-in-capital  -   -
    Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)  (62)  50
    Total stockholders' equity  193,860   195,609
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $391,617  $406,273


    Table 3
    BASSETT FURNITURE INDUSTRIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
    Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - unaudited
    (In thousands)
         
      Three Months Ended
      February 25, 2023 February 26, 2022
    Operating activities:    
    Net income $1,445  $5,573 
    Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in)    
    operating activities:    
    Depreciation and amortization  2,340   3,655 
    Deferred income taxes  132   116 
    Other, net  852   770 
    Changes in operating assets and liabilities    
    Accounts receivable  (470)  (4,609)
    Inventories  6,466   (3,675)
    Other current and long-term assets  30   781 
    Right of use assets under operating leases  4,587   6,559 
    Customer deposits  (4,923)  2,999 
    Accounts payable and other liabilities  (4,596)  (2,194)
    Obligations under operating leases  (5,300)  (7,109)
    Net cash provided by operating activities  563   2,866 
         
    Investing activities:    
    Purchases of property and equipment  (3,341)  (2,424)
    Proceeds from sale of property and equipment  -   9 
    Other  (563)  (465)
    Net cash used in investing activities  (3,904)  (2,880)
         
    Financing activities:     
    Cash dividends  (1,421)  (1,374)
    Other issuance of common stock  80   93 
    Repurchases of common stock  (1,844)  (765)
    Taxes paid related to net share settlement of equity awards  (109)  - 
    Repayments of finance lease obligations  (69)  (434)
    Net cash used in financing activities  (3,363)  (2,480)
    Effect of exchenge rate changes on cash and cash equivalents  (29)  - 
    Change in cash and cash equivalents  (6,733)  (2,494)
    Cash and cash equivalents - beginning of period  61,625   34,374 
         
    Cash and cash equivalents - end of period $54,892  $31,880 


    Table 4
    BASSETT FURNITURE INDUSTRIES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
    Segment Information - unaudited
    (In thousands)
         
      Quarter Ended
      February 25, 2023 February 26, 2022
    Sales Revenue    
    Wholesale sales of furniture and accessories $69,884  $83,485 
    Less: Sales to retail segment  (30,099)  (29,728)
    Wholesale sales to external customers  39,785   53,757 
    Retail sales of furniture and accessories  64,962   64,107 
    Corporate & Other (1)  2,951   - 
    Consolidated net sales of furniture and accessories$107,698  $117,864 
         
         
    Income from Operations    
    Wholesale $8,994  $10,202 
    Retail  1,530   2,622 
    Net expenses - Corporate and other (1)  (7,771)  (6,245)
    Inter-company elimination  (51)  (101)
    Consolidated $2,702  $6,478 
         
         
         
    (1) Corporate and Other includes the operations of Noa Home Inc. for 2023 along with the shared
    Corporate costs that are benefiting both the Wholesale and Retail segments. This represents a
    change in our segment presentation from prior periods. Previously, those shared Corporate costs
    had been included in the Wholesale segment and the operations of Noa Home Inc. were included
    in the Retail segment. Prior period results have been restated to conform to the current presentation.

     

    J. Michael Daniel
    Senior Vice President and
    Chief Financial Officer
    (276) 629-6614 – Investors
    mdaniel@bassettfurniture.com

    Peter D. Morrison
    Vice President of Communications
    (276) 629-6450 – Media


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