Note: EPS may not be comparable

J.Jill (NYSE: JILL) reported Q4 EPS of $0.13, $0.04 better than the analyst estimate of $0.09. Revenue for the quarter came in at $188.7 million versus the consensus estimate of $178.5 million.

For the fourth quarter ended February 3, 2018:

• Total net sales for the fourteen weeks ended February 3, 2018 were $188.7 million versus $166.9 million for the thirteen weeks ended January 28, 2017.
• Total company comparable sales increased by 8.9%. This includes comparable store and direct to consumer sales on a thirteen week basis.
• Direct to consumer net sales represented 46.6% of total net sales, compared to 48.8% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016.
• Gross profit increased to $117.3 million from $105.5 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016. Gross margin was 62.2% compared to fourth quarter gross margin of 63.2% in fiscal 2016.
• SG&A was $105.6 million compared to $94.6 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016. Fourth quarter 2017 SG&A included approximately $2.3 million of non-recurring expenses. Fourth quarter 2016 SG&A included $2.9 million of non-recurring expenses. Excluding the nonrecurring expenses from both this year’s and last year’s figures, fourth quarter SG&A as a percentage of total net sales was 54.8% versus 55.0% for the fourth quarter of 2016.
• Income from operations, inclusive of non-recurring SG&A expenses, increased to $11.7 million from $10.8 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016.
• Adjusted EBITDA* for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017 increased by 7.6% to $24.2 million from $22.5 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016. As a percentage of total net sales, Adjusted EBITDA was 12.8% compared to 13.5% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016.
• Interest expense decreased to $4.7 million from $5.0 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016, including the impact of a $5.0 million open market repurchase of the Company’s term loan.
• Income tax benefit was $22.4 million compared to income tax expense of $3.7 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016, and the effective tax rate was (320.3%) compared to 64.7% in the fourth quarter of 2016. The U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, enacted in December 2017, significantly reduced the federal corporate income tax rate, and required the Company to revalue its deferred income tax liabilities based on the lower enacted federal corporate income tax rate, resulting in a one-time benefit of $24.0 million.
• Diluted earnings per share was $0.67, including the impact of one-time expenses and tax reform compared to $0.05 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016.
• Adjusted diluted earnings per share* for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, which excludes non-recurring expenses and other one-time items, including tax reform, affecting diluted earnings per share, was $0.13 compared to $0.08 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on J.Jill (JILL) click here.