Select Comfort Posts 4Q Income of $35.3 Million; Year-End Profit $35.6 Million

February 10, 2010  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Bedding on February 11, 2010 Specialty sleep retailer Select Comfort Corp. (NASDAQ: SCSS) posted net income of $35.3 million for the fourth quarter ended Jan. 2, compared to a net loss of $57.4 million during the same period last year.

Net sales for the quarter totaled $136.5 million, compared to $131.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Both 2008 and 2009 periods included valuation allowance adjustments for income taxes and asset impairment charges. Adjusting for these items, net income would have been $0.08 per share in the fourth quarter of 2009, as compared to a net loss of $0.26 per share in the same period a year ago.

"Our fourth quarter and full-year performance reflects strong execution against a set of initiatives that focused on controlling costs, building our brand for improved sales and preserving cash," said Bill McLaughlin, president and chief executive officer. "The result is significantly improved profitability, with the company experiencing two consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth. The strategic focus and our improved business performance positions us well for continued same-store sales growth and improved profitability throughout 2010."

Net sales for fiscal 2009 totaled $544.2 million, a decrease of 11 percent as compared to $608.5 million in 2008. The company reported a net profit of $35.6 million, compared to a net loss of $70.2 million.

Looking forward to 2010, the company expects to increase earnings per share by 30  percent to 50 percent to between $0.32 and $0.38. The retailer said the outlook reflects improved cost structure of the business and a cautious outlook about economic trends for 2010.

The company ended 2009 with 403 stores and expects to end 2010 with between 380 and 390 stores after the consolidation of planned store openings and closings. The company expects that 2010 capital expenditures will be approximately $10 million.