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Dollar Tree – DLTR – Sales increased in both basic and variety categories

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Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR), North America’s leading operator of discount variety stores selling everything for $1 or less, reported its results for the quarter ended October 27, 2012 (“third quarter”) .

  • Diluted earnings per share increased to $0.68, including non-operating gain from the sale of Ollie’s Holdings, Inc.
  • Diluted earnings per share, excluding the Ollie’s gain, increased 18.6%, to $0.51
  • Consolidated net sales increased 7.8%
  • Comparable store sales increased 1.6%

DLTR – Third-Quarter Results

Consolidated net sales for the third quarter were $1.72 billion, a 7.8% increase compared to $1.60 billion reported for the quarter ended October 29, 2011 (“third quarter 2011″). Comparable store sales increased 1.6%, on top of a 4.8% increase for the third quarter 2011.

Earnings per diluted share for the third quarter were $0.68, including a one-time gain of $0.17 per share relating to the Company’s previously announced sale of its ownership interest in Ollie’s Holdings, Inc. Absent this gain, diluted earnings per share were $0.51, an increase of 18.6% compared to the $0.43 earnings per diluted share reported for the quarter ended October 29, 2011.

“Sales increased in both basic and variety categories,” said President and CEO Bob Sasser. “Comp store sales were positive every month and we saw sequential improvement from August through October.”

“Operating margin increased significantly and the Company delivered record third quarter earnings per share.”

“I am particularly pleased with the performance of our new stores which have opened at historically higher levels of productivity.  This speaks to the continued relevance of our stores and our focus on the customer.  For millions of shoppers across North America, Dollar Tree is an important destination for extreme-value merchandise and a great shopping experience. Our stores are ready and in-stock with our best values ever for the Holiday shopping season.”

Operating margin increased 40 basis points for the quarter to 10.7%.

Cash and investments at quarter-end totaled $222.4 million, compared with $280.2 million at the end of the third quarter 2011. During the third quarter, the Company repurchased 3.3 million shares for $149.8 million. Year-to-date through the third quarter, the Company repurchased 5 million shares on the open market for $235.3 million.  The Company has $965 million remaining on its share repurchase authorization.

During the third quarter, Dollar Tree opened 111 stores, expanded or relocated 16 stores, and closed 4 stores. Retail selling square footage increased 7.1% compared to a year ago, to 40.1 million square feet.

DLTR Guidance

The Company estimates sales for the fourth quarter of 2012 to be in the range of $2.20 billion to $2.26 billion, based on flat- to- a low-single digit comparable store sales increase. Diluted earnings per share are estimated to be in the range of $0.97 to $1.02.

About Dollar Tree – DLTR

Dollar Tree (DLTR), a Fortune 500 Company, operated 4,630 stores in 48 states and 5 Canadian Provinces as of October 27, 2012. Dollar Tree, Inc. (Dollar Tree) is an operator of discount variety stores offering merchandise at the fixed price. As of January 28, 2012, the Company operated 4,351 discount variety retail stores. Its stores operate under the names of Dollar Tree, Deal$, Dollar Tree Deal$, Dollar Giant and Dollar Bills. As of January 28, 2012, it operated 4,252 stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia, as well as 99 stores in Canada. It buys approximately 58% to 60% of its merchandise domestically and imports the remaining 40% to 42%.

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edliston
Post Written By: Ed Liston
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.

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Ed Liston

Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing.

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