| ● | Inventory levels were up approximately 36 percent, year-over-year, reflecting efforts to increase inventory levels ahead of the fall buying and back-to-school seasons. Inventory was down 2.7 percent when compared to second quarter of 2019 – a more comparable period; |
| ● | Generated $7.6 million in cash from operations; and |
| ● | Returned $29.6 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. |
Capital Return Progress
During the second quarter, Caleres opportunistically repurchased 1.1 million shares of common stock, representing approximately 3 percent of shares outstanding, at a total cost of $27.0 million. At quarter-end, approximately 7.2 million shares remained available in the current share repurchase authorization. The company views its substantial and ongoing buyback program as a highly effective mechanism for enhancing shareholder value.
In addition to buybacks, Caleres returned $2.6 million to shareholders through its recurring quarterly cash dividend during the second quarter.
Future dividend declarations and share repurchases will be based on a number of factors, including business and market conditions, the company’s future financial performance and other capital priorities.
Outlook
“With $2.70 of diluted earnings per share delivered in the first half, 2022 is shaping up to be another outstanding year for Caleres,” said Sullivan. “Even with ongoing inflationary pressures and uncertainties around the direction of consumer spending, Caleres is exceptionally well-positioned to maintain its significant momentum due to its diversified portfolio that can capitalize on opportunities across a broad spectrum of consumer segments and throughout a wide a range of market environments. Furthermore, the Caleres team is committed to utilizing our core competencies – in brand building, merchandising, marketing and logistics – to further our strategic priorities, while mobilizing quickly to unlock enterprise-wide growth opportunities. With the work we’ve done to structurally strengthen the long-term cash generating potential of the enterprise we are enthusiastic about the long-term prospects for profitability and remain sharply focused on creating value for our shareholders through our capital return program.”
Fiscal Year 2022 Outlook:
Caleres is reiterating its fiscal year 2022 financial outlook. Specifically, the company is raising and tightening its consolidated sales levels from up between 2 percent and 5 percent to up between 4 percent to 6 percent when compared to fiscal year 2021 and still expects earnings per diluted share to be between $4.20 and $4.40, which would represent another year of record or near-record earnings for the organization.
Investor Conference Call
Caleres will host an investor conference call at 5:00 p.m. ET today, Tuesday, August 23. The webcast and associated slides will be available at investor.caleres.com/news/events. A live conference call will be available at (877) 704-4453 for analysts in North America or (201) 389-0920 for international analysts, no passcode necessary. A replay will be available at investor.caleres.com/news/events/archive for a limited period. Investors may also access the replay by dialing (844) 512-2921 in North America or (412) 317-6671 internationally and using the conference pin 13732134.
Definitions
All references in this press release, outside of the condensed consolidated financial statements that follow, unless otherwise noted, related to net earnings attributable to Caleres, Inc. and diluted earnings per common share attributable to Caleres, Inc. shareholders, are presented as net earnings and earnings per diluted share, respectively.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
In this press release, the company’s financial results are provided both in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and using certain non-GAAP financial measures. In particular, the company provides historic and estimated future gross profit, operating earnings, net earnings and earnings per diluted share adjusted to exclude certain gains, charges, and recoveries, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, which are non-GAAP financial measures. These results are included as a complement to results provided in accordance with GAAP because management believes these non-GAAP financial measures help identify underlying trends in the company’s business