Large Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) on Friday announced its third quarter financial results, which exceeded analyst estimates for net sales and earnings. The retailer secured first place in November in Total Retail’s 2020 report of the leading omnichannel retailers.
Mr. Big Lots said his net profit for the quarter ended October 31st was £22.02 million, or 56.15 pence per share. This compares to net profit of £93.82 million or £2.40 per share for the same quarter last year, due to a one-off tax benefit of £100.91 million.
For the previous quarter (Q2), Big Lots had reported a net profit of £338.62 million in the middle of the COVID 19 crisis, according to the report released last week in August.
Big Lots’ financial results for the 3rd quarter compared to analysts’ estimates
Adjusted for non-recurring items, the retail company earned 56.15 pence per share in the last quarter compared to a loss of 13.30 pence per share in the previous year. FactSet Consensus of Big Lots’ adjusted earnings per share for the third quarter were lower at 48.76 pence.
The Columbus-based company also said on Friday that its third quarter net revenues were up 18% year-on-year to £1.02 billion. According to FactSet, experts had forecast lower net revenues of £1.0 billion for big lots in the last quarter.
Other prominent figures in Friday’s Big Lots earnings report include annualized growth of 17.8% in comparable store sales in the third quarter compared to an expected 15.3% decline. The retailer bought back 2.2 million shares for £74 million in the third quarter.
CEO Bruce Thorn’s comments on Friday
CEO Bruce Thorn commented on Friday and said
“Although we expect business to be moderate in view of the extended season, we are pleased with the good start to the fourth quarter”.
Big lots opened on Friday on the stock exchange with a minus of just under 10%. In the year to date, the company’s shares have now risen by around 80%, having recovered by almost 400% since their low in March when the ongoing coronavirus pandemic temporarily closed their businesses.
Big lots closed on the stock market last year on average almost unchanged. At the time of writing this article, it is valued at £1.53 billion and has a price-earnings ratio of 2.91.
