•  Same store sales for fourth quarter:
  • Canadian Tire up 2.0%
  • FGL Sports down 0.4% (up 1.6% at Sport Chek)
  • Mark's down 5.2%
• Fourth quarter diluted earnings per share (EPS) was $3.01, up 23.3% or up 13.6% normalized
• 2015 annual revenue of $12.3 billion, record income before tax (IBT) of $1.0 billion and diluted EPS of $8.61

TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2016 /CNW/ - Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (TSX:CTC, TSX:CTC.a) today released fourth quarter and full year results for the period ended January 2, 2016.

"Throughout 2015 – and exemplified this quarter – our Company is executing at a high level. We are extremely pleased with our top and bottom line results, especially in view of the deteriorating value of the Canadian dollar and the unprecedented, unseasonable weather we faced. For Canadian Tire Retail and Sport Chek to post positive comp store sales growth in this environment, while our retail division increased its gross margins, is an outstanding achievement. As well, our efforts to take costs out of our business – while at the same time making significant strides to strengthen our new world retail capabilities – is clearly evident on our bottom line," said Michael Medline, President and CEO, Canadian Tire Corporation.

CONSOLIDATED OVERVIEW

FOURTH QUARTER

• Fourth quarter 2015 results include one less week of retail operations compared to prior year and should be taken into account when looking at fourth quarter results and explanations below.
• Consolidated revenue was down 5.8% to $3.0 billion in the fourth quarter, excluding Petroleum.
  Consolidated revenue decreased 7.5%, down $273.6 million to $3.4 billion in the fourth quarter over the same period last year primarily due to lower shipments at Canadian Tire Retail, decreased sales at FGL Sports and Mark's and reflects the impact of lower year-over-year gas prices at Petroleum.
• Diluted EPS was $3.01 in the quarter, up 23.3% over the fourth quarter of 2014 and up 13.6% after normalizing for the change in fair value of the redeemable financial instrument in the prior year.

FULL YEAR

• Full year 2015 results include one less week of retail operations compared to prior year and should be taken into account when looking at full year results and explanations below.
• Consolidated revenue was up 1.6% for the full year, excluding Petroleum.  Consolidated revenue for the full year decreased 1.5% over 2014 or down $183.3 million, which includes a $344.3 million decline in Petroleum revenue resulting from lower year-over-year gas prices.
• Consolidated retail sales for 2015 were up 2.0% excluding Petroleum. Overall increased retail sales reflect higher sales at Canadian Tire and FGL Sports; partially offset by decreased sales at Mark's.
• Diluted EPS for the year increased 13.5% to $8.61, or 8.4% over the prior year, after normalizing for the one-time charge associated with the early redemption of medium-term notes in Q2 2014 and the change in fair value of the redeemable financial instrument in Q4 2014. Full year results are up despite the sale of 20% of the Financial Services business in Q4 of the prior year.

RETAIL SEGMENT OVERVIEW

FOURTH QUARTER

• Fourth quarter 2015 results include one less week of retail operations compared to prior year and should be taken into account when looking at fourth quarter results and explanations below. Same store sales for the quarter are reported on a comparable 13 week basis.
• Retail segment income before income taxes was up 6.6%, or $15.7 million, to $250.2 million, in the fourth quarter of 2015 compared to 2014.
• Canadian Tire Retail saw fourth quarter retail sales decrease 2.6% partially due to the impact of mild winter weather across the country; however, same store sales were up 2.0% over 2014.
• Retail and same store sales at FGL Sports were down 5.7% and 0.4% respectively partially due to the mild weather conditions. Same store sales at Sport Chek were up 1.6%.
• Retail and same store sales at Mark's decreased 10.2% and 5.2% respectively partially due to the mild weather conditions and the downturn in the Alberta economy.

FULL YEAR

• Full year 2015 results include one less week of retail operations compared to prior year and should be taken into account when looking at full year results and explanations below. Same store sales for the full year are reported on a comparable 52 week basis.
• Retail segment earnings before income taxes increased 13.8% by $73.4 million for the full year compared to 2014 or 10.7% after normalizing for the one-time charge associated with the early redemption of medium-term notes in the prior year.
• For the full year, Canadian Tire Retail sales were up 2.4% over 2014 results and same store sales increased 3.2%.
• FGL Sports' 2015 retail sales were up 2.7% and same store sales increased 4.4%. Sport Chek full year retail sales were up 5.2% and same store sales increased 6.3%.
• Full year retail sales at Mark's were down 2.3% and same store sales decreased 0.5% over 2014.

CT REIT OVERVIEW

• For the full year, eighteen acquisitions (including three acquisitions of land adjoining existing REIT owned retail property), two developments and fifteen intensifications were completed at a total cost of $238.1 million.

FINANCIAL SERVICES OVERVIEW

• Income before income taxes for the quarter was up 11.1% or $7.9 million and for the full year, income before income taxes was up 8.4% over 2014 reflecting solid gross average accounts receivable (GAAR) growth and lower operating expenses.
• Financial Services posted fourth quarter and full year gross average credit card receivables growth of 0.5% and 3.3% respectively.
• Slower GAAR growth in the fourth quarter at Financial Services reflects the decision in late 2014 to tighten credit granting standards.  Although Financial Services took steps in late 2015 to stimulate GAAR growth, we anticipate that the positive effect of these actions may not contribute to GAAR growth until the second half of 2016.  In addition, Financial Services anticipates an increased investment in the first part of 2016 in our successful in-store financing programs to reinvigorate GAAR growth and drive sales at Canadian Tire Retail.  These two factors could impact Financial Services results in the first half of 2016; it should be noted that Financial Services contributes a substantial portion of the Company's consolidated earnings in the first quarter.

CAPITAL ALLOCATION

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES

Capital expenditures were $716.1 million in 2015, down $5.7 million over the prior year. The decline in capital expenditures is primarily due to lower year-over-year CT REIT third party acquisitions; partially offset by increased spending on distribution capacity relating to the Bolton Distribution Centre, as well as increased capital spending on IT initiatives including the Company's digital strategy.

QUARTERLY DIVIDEND

On February 17, 2016, the Company declared dividends payable to holders of Class A Non-Voting Shares and Common Shares at a rate of $0.575 per share payable on June 1, 2016 to shareholders of record as of April 30, 2016. The dividend is considered an "eligible dividend" for tax purposes.

SHARE REPURCHASE

During 2015, the Company completed its previously stated intention to purchase $400 million of its outstanding Class A Non-Voting Shares, in excess of the amount required for anti-dilutive purposes, by the end of 2015. 

In addition, the Company has also purchased a further $165 million of Class A Non-Voting Shares to date in partial fulfilment of its intention to repurchase a further $550 million of its Class A Non-Voting Shares, in excess of the amount required for anti-dilutive purposes, by the end of 2016, that was announced by the Company on November 12, 2015 (the "2016 Share Purchase Intention"). 

The purchase of the $165 million of Class A Non-Voting Shares referred to above, was completed pursuant to the Company's normal course issuer bid which began on March 2, 2015 and expires on March 1, 2016 (the "2015 NCIB").

NORMAL COURSE ISSUER BID

The Company announced its intention to make a normal course issuer bid (the "2016 NCIB") to purchase from March 2, 2016 to March 1, 2017 up to 6.0 million Class A Non-Voting Shares, which represents approximately 8.9% of the 67.1 million approximate public float of Class A Non-Voting Shares issued and outstanding as at February 17, 2016.  There were 70,137,358 Class A Non-Voting Shares issued and outstanding as at February 17, 2016.

The Company intends to purchase Class A Non-Voting Shares under the 2016 NCIB for two purposes: (i) to offset the dilutive effect of the issuance of Class A Non-Voting Shares pursuant to its stock option plan and dividend reinvestment plan consistent with the Company's policy; and (ii) to purchase the balance of Class A Non-Voting Shares required to fulfill the 2016 Share Purchase Intention as part of its capital management plan.

Other than pursuant to private agreements under an issuer bid exemption order issued by a securities regulatory authority or such other means as permitted by the TSX or a securities regulatory authority in accordance with the rules of the TSX, purchases of Class A Non-Voting Shares pursuant to the 2016 NCIB will be made by means of open market transactions through the facilities of the TSX and/or alternative Canadian trading systems, if eligible, at the market price of the Class A Non-Voting Shares at the time of purchase or as otherwise permitted under the rules of the TSX.  For open market transactions, the Company will be subject to a daily purchase limit of 63,064 Class A Non-Voting Shares, which represents 25% of 252,258, the average daily trading volume of the Class A Non-Voting Shares on the TSX, net of purchases made through the TSX, for the six months ended January 31, 2016.  The Class A Non-Voting Shares purchased by the Company pursuant to the 2016 NCIB will be restored to the status of authorized but unissued shares.

The Company also announced that it will enter into an automatic share purchase plan (the "ASPP") with its designated broker to facilitate purchases of Class A Non-Voting Shares under the 2016 NCIB at times when the Company ordinarily would not be permitted to make purchases due to its internal trading black-out periods or applicable regulatory restrictions. Pursuant to the ASPP, before entering into a black-out period, the Company may, but is not required to, instruct its designated broker to make purchases of Class A Non-Voting Shares under the 2016 NCIB during the ensuing black-out period.  Any such instructions will be subject to specified limits, including price, volume and frequency, as determined by the Company. Within these specified limits, the designated broker has discretion with respect to the purchase of the Class A Non-Voting Shares under the 2016 NCIB during the black-out period in accordance with the rules of the TSX.

The ASPP will commence on March 2, 2016 and terminate on the earliest of the date on which: (a) the purchase limit under the 2016 NCIB has been reached; (b) the 2016 NCIB expires; and (c) the Company terminates the ASPP in accordance with its terms. The ASPP constitutes an "automatic securities purchase plan" under applicable Canadian securities laws.

CTC's proposed 2016 NCIB and ASPP are subject to regulatory approval. 

To date, the Company has purchased a total of 3,951,610 Class A Non-Voting Shares under the Company's 2015 NCIB, at the weighted average price of $123.90.

To view a PDF version of Canadian Tire Corporation's full quarterly earnings report please see:http://files.newswire.ca/116/MDA_and_FS_2015.pdf

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This document contains forward-looking information that reflects management's current expectations related to matters such as future financial performance and operating results of the Company. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purposes of providing information about management's current expectations and plans and allowing investors and others to get a better understanding of our anticipated financial position, results of operations and operating environment. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes.

All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this document may constitute forward-looking information, including but not limited to, statements with respect to the factors that could impact Financial Services' results in the first half of 2016 under the heading "Financial Services Overview", statements concerning the Company's intention to make a normal course issuer bid with respect to the purchase of its Class A Non-Voting Shares as well as statements concerning the Company's intention to enter into an automatic securities purchase plan pursuant to which the Company's designated broker may purchase Class A Non-Voting Shares under the Company's normal course issuer bid, under the heading "Normal Course Issuer Bid", and other statements concerning management's expectations relating to possible or assumed future prospects and results, our strategic goals and priorities, our actions (including with respect to proposed new actions by or investments to be made in a segment of the Company's business) and the results of those actions or any decision not to pursue a previously disclosed anticipated course of action and the economic and business outlook for us. Forward-looking information is based on the reasonable assumptions, estimates, analyses, beliefs and opinions of management made in light of its experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable at the date that such information is provided.

By its very nature, forward-looking information requires us to make assumptions and is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties, which give rise to the possibility that the Company's assumptions, estimates, analyses, beliefs and opinions may not be correct and that the Company's expectations and plans will not be achieved. Although the Company believes that the forward-looking information in this document is based on information, assumptions and beliefs which are current, reasonable and complete, this information is necessarily subject to a number of factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from management's expectations and plans as set forth in such forward-looking information.

For more information on the risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause the Company's actual results to differ from current expectations, refer to section 2.10 (Risk Factors) of our Annual Information Form for fiscal 2015 and to sections 7.2.4 (Retail segment business risks), 7.3.3 (CT REIT segment business risks), 7.4.3 (Financial Services segment business risks) and 12.0 (Enterprise risk management) and all subsections thereunder of our  Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended January 2, 2016, as well as the Company's other public filings, available at www.sedar.com and at www.corp.canadiantire.ca.

Statements that include forward-looking information do not take into account the effect that transactions or non-recurring or other special items announced or occurring after the statements are made have on the Company's business. For example, they do not include the effect of any dispositions, acquisitions, asset write-downs or other charges announced or occurring after such statements are made.

The forward-looking statements and information contained herein are based on certain factors and assumptions as of the date hereof. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by it or on its behalf, to reflect new information, future events or otherwise, except as is required by applicable securities laws.

CONFERENCE CALL

Canadian Tire will conduct a conference call to discuss information included in this news release and related matters at 1:00 p.m. ET onFebruary 18, 2016. The conference call will be available simultaneously and in its entirety to all interested investors and the news media through a webcast at http://corp.canadiantire.ca/EN/investors and will be available through replay at this website for 12 months.

ABOUT CANADIAN TIRE CORPORATION

Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited, (TSX:CTC.A) (TSX:CTC) or "CTC," is a family of businesses that includes a retail segment, a financial services division and CT REIT. Our retail business is led by Canadian Tire, which was founded in 1922 and provides Canadians with products for life in Canada across its Living, Playing, Fixing, Automotive and Seasonal categories. PartSource and Gas+ are key parts of the Canadian Tire network. The retail segment also includes Mark's, a leading source for casual and industrial wear, and FGL Sports (Sport Chek, Hockey Experts, Sports Experts, National Sports, Intersport, Pro Hockey Life and Atmosphere), which offers the best active wear brands. The 1,700 retail and gasoline outlets are supported and strengthened by our Financial Services division and the tens of thousands of people employed across the Company. For more information, visit Corp.CanadianTire.ca.

CANADIAN TIRE CORPORATION, LIMITED

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Q4 2015

Note 1 - Certain of the prior year figures have been reclassified to align with management's view of the Company's operations.

SOURCE CANADIAN TIRE CORPORATION, LIMITED - INVESTOR RELATIONS

PDF available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2016/02/18/20160218_C7108_PDF_EN_623559.pdf