The net gain of 16 new stores compared with a gain of 14 in the first quarter last year. Phil Francis, chairman and CEO, commented that the chain "continues to grow square footage at one of the fastest rates in all of retail."
Timothy Kullman, CFO, said that the company expects to remodel a third of its stores by the end of this year, to complete another third next year and to finish the job in 2008.
PetSmart executives talked about expansion and remodeling plans as part of a conference call in which they focused on financial results for the quarter ended April 30. Net income dipped a bit in the quarter, but last year's comparable period benefited from a one-time gain. Revenue rose by 12% to $1 billion, and comparable store sales grow by 3.7%, following a 5.7% increase in the first quarter last year.
The company's net income of $41.8 million compared with net income of $44.7 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2005, which included a pre-tax gain of $8.5 million, related to a legal settlement. In both years, the net worked out to 30 cents per diluted share.
PetSmart Inc. operates more than 840 pet stores in the US and Canada, along with a growing number of PetsHotels. Its target for new PetHotels this year is 30.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.