MEMPHIS, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fred's Inc. (NASDAQ: FRED) today reported sales for the four-week fiscal month of January, fourth quarter and year ended January 31, 2015.
Fred's total sales for the month increased 3% to $138.8 million from $134.7 million in January 2014. Comparable store sales for the month increased 4.3% versus a decrease of 1.8% for the same period last year. Total sales reflect the closing of 47 stores, or 7% of total stores, during the fourth quarter, which is in line with the Company's reconfiguration plan.
Total sales for the fourth quarter of 2014 increased 2% to $503.6 million versus $495.0 million in the year-earlier quarter. Comparable store sales for the fourth quarter were flat compared with an increase of 0.1% in the fourth quarter last year.
Fred's total sales for fiscal 2014 increased 2% to $1.969 billion from $1.939 billion for the same period last year. On a comparable store basis, fiscal 2014 decreased 0.6% versus an increase of 0.6% for the year-earlier period.
Commenting on the announcement, Jerry A. Shore, Chief Executive Officer, said, "As we ended fiscal 2014, we were pleased that comparable store sales reached the high end of our January plan and that customer traffic turned positive. Favorable weather conditions during the month helped as we experienced a well-balanced sales mix throughout our general merchandise departments, led by health and beauty aids, hardware, toys, housewares, domestics, infants, and hosiery. The pharmacy department also continued to perform strongly, with growth in both scripts and sales aided by the seasonal influenza.
"We are focused on implementing the process improvement initiatives outlined over the past few months, designed to restore traffic, control inventory, and promote profitability at Fred's," Shore continued. "The key drivers for success in 2015 will be a greater emphasis on our pharmacy department and specialty pharmacy division expansion, along with upgrading to the need-it-now convenience model. Our new management is excited and has the entire team looking forward to 2015 and growing Fred's business."
During January, Fred’s closed one Xpress location.
Fred's operates 660 discount general merchandise stores, including 19 franchised Fred's stores, in the southeastern United States. For more information about the Company, visit Fred's website at www.fredsinc.com.
Comments in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. A reader can identify forward-looking statements because they are not limited to historical facts or they use such words as "outlook," guidance," "may," "should," "could," "believe," "anticipate," "plan," "expect," "estimate," "forecast," "goal," "intend," "committed," "continue," or "will likely result" and similar expressions that concern the Company's strategy, plans, intentions or beliefs about future occurrences or results. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those associated with the Company's announced strategic plan, the ultimate terms of the reworked pharmacy distribution agreement, lease buyouts and the underlying assumptions and projections upon which they are based, as well as risks that intended results may not be achieved or may not occur as quickly as expected; general economic trends; changes in consumer demand or purchase patterns; delays or interruptions in the flow of merchandise between the Company's distribution centers and its stores or between the Company's suppliers and same; a disruption in the Company's data processing services; costs and delays in acquiring or developing new store sites; and the factors listed under "Risk Factors" in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly filings on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made. Fred's undertakes no obligation to release revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unforeseen events, except as required to be reported under the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
