First Quarter of Fiscal 2019 vs. First Quarter of Fiscal 2018
Cost of goods sold increased by $25,965,000, or 3.4%, in the first quarter of fiscal 2019 compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Cost of goods sold as a percentage of net revenues increased to 64.2% in the first quarter of fiscal 2019 from 64.1% in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. This increase was primarily driven by increased shipping costs, partially offset by the leverage of occupancy costs and higher product margins.
SELLING, GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Thirteen Weeks Ended | |
In thousands | | May 5, 2019 | | | % Net Revenues | | | April 29, 2018 | | | % Net Revenues | |
Selling, general and administrative expenses | | $ | 370,199 | | | | 29.8 | % | | $ | 365,614 | | | | 30.4 | % |
Selling, general and administrative expenses consist ofnon-occupancy related costs associated with our retail stores, distribution and manufacturing facilities, customer care centers, supply chain operations (buying, receiving and inspection) and corporate administrative functions. These costs include employment, advertising, third party credit card processing and other general expenses.
First Quarter of Fiscal 2019 vs. First Quarter of Fiscal 2018
Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $4,585,000, or 1.3%, in the first quarter of fiscal 2019 compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percentage of net revenues decreased to 29.8% in the first quarter of fiscal 2019 from 30.4% in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. This decrease as a percentage of net revenues was driven by the leverage of advertising and employment costs, partially offset by an increase in severance-related expenses.
INCOME TAXES
The effective tax rate was 26.7% for the first quarter of fiscal 2019, and 30.9% for the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (“SAB 118”) issued by the SEC in December 2017 provided us with up to one year to finalize our measurement of the income tax effects of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“the Tax Act”) on our fiscal year ended January 28, 2018. The decrease in the effective tax rate for the first quarter of fiscal 2019 compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2018 was primarily due to a SAB 118 adjustment of approximately $2,871,000 to increase the transition tax under the Tax Act in the first quarter of fiscal 2018.
LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES
As of May 5, 2019, we held $107,683,000 in cash and cash equivalents, the majority of which was held in interest bearing demand deposit accounts and money market funds, and of which $70,075,000 was held by our international subsidiaries. As is consistent within our industry, our cash balances are seasonal in nature, with the fourth quarter historically representing a significantly higher level of cash than other periods.
In fiscal 2019, we plan to use our cash resources to fund our inventory and inventory related purchases, advertising and marketing initiatives, property and equipment purchases, stock repurchases and dividend payments. In addition to our cash balances on hand, we have a $500,000,000 unsecured revolving line of credit (“revolver”) and a $300,000,000 unsecured term loan facility (“term loan”). The revolver may be used to borrow revolving loans or request the issuance of letters of credit. We may, upon notice to the administrative agent, request existing or new lenders to increase the revolver by up to $250,000,000, at such lenders’ option, to provide for a total of $750,000,000 of unsecured revolving credit. We had no borrowings under the revolver during the first quarter of fiscal 2019 or the first quarter of fiscal 2018. As of May 5, 2019, we had $300,000,000 outstanding under our term loan. The term loan matures on January 8, 2021, at which point all outstanding principal and any accrued interest must be repaid. Additionally, as of May 5, 2019, a total of $11,716,000 in issued but undrawn standby letters of credit was outstanding under the credit facility. The standby letters of credit were issued to secure the liabilities associated with workers’ compensation and other insurance programs.
As of May 5, 2019, we had three unsecured letter of credit reimbursement facilities for a total of $70,000,000, of which $6,168,000 was outstanding. These letter of credit facilities represent only a future commitment to fund inventory purchases to which we had not taken legal title.
We are currently in compliance with all of our financial covenants under the credit facility and, based on our current projections, we expect to remain in compliance throughout the next 12 months. We believe our cash on hand, in addition to our available credit facilities, will provide adequate liquidity for our business operations over the next 12 months.
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