Petsmart Posts Growth in Net Income and Net Sales for Q1
Petsmart Inc. of Phoenix, Ariz., reported a net income of $46.3 million in the first quarter of 2009, compared to a net income of $41.2 million in the year-ago period.
Net sales for the first quarter, which ended May 3, increased 9.5 percent to $1.33 billion, compared to the same period a year ago.
Petsmart Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Chip Molloy said business did start to slide a bit toward the end of the first quarter. He anticipates continued pressure on product growth margins in the second quarter.
Comparable store sales, or sales in stores open at least a year, increased 3.9 percent over last year. Molloy said the company expects second quarter comparable store sales in the low-single digits. For fiscal year 2009, the company is maintaining its guidance of comparable store sales of low-single digits.
Also in the first quarter, comparable transactions, which are used to gauge traffic, were up 0.1 percent — the first increase in seven quarters, according to officials.
Pet service sales for the quarter were $142.8 million, which represents an increase of 10.3 percent from the year-ago period. Molloy said grooming remains strong, while boarding and day care continue to weaken. The company expects to see service sales growth for the fiscal year in the mid- to high-single digits.
During the first quarter, 26 stores opened, compared to 35 in the year-ago period. The company is anticipating new store growth for the fiscal year of 2009 at 40 to 42.
