Dallas, Texas 04/23/2014 (FINANCIALSTRENDS) – Rent-A-Center Inc (NASDAQ:RCII) is surging with a 16% bump after delivering a first quarter earnings report that was even better than analysts expected.
The Rent-A-Center First Quarter Earnings Report
Rent-A-Center reported revenues for the quarter ending on March 31, 2014 to be $833.7 million. That’s an increase of $14.4 million from the $819.3 million revenues the company reported for the same quarter last year. The 1.8% increase in revenues was primarily attributed to increases in the Acceptance Now segment and the Mexico segment, while being partially offset by a decrease of revenue in the core U.S. segment.
Net earnings for the quarter was reported to be $28.9 million and the EPS was pegged at $0.54. This obviously doesn’t compare well with the $46.1 million in earnings and $0.79 EPS for the same period last year, but that’s partially attributed to a write-off of unamortized financing costs from the previous credit agreement. If you exclude the special charges, the net earnings per diluted share increases to $0.57.
Statement by Rent-A-Center CEO Robert D. Davis
“We are generally pleased with our results in the quarter as we reported total revenues of $834 million, an increase of $15 million year-over-year, and our adjusted net earnings per diluted share of $0.57 exceeded expectations,” said Rent-A-Center CEO Robert D. Davis.
“Mexico grew revenues over 67% and ended the quarter with 173 locations. While it is still very early in the Mexico City urban store test, we are pleased with the results,” concluded Mr. Davis.
Full Year Guidance Boosts RCII
No doubt the drop in year-on-year EPS for the quarter was a downer, but the positive outlook provided in the company’s annual guidance more than made up for it. Rent-A-Center expects 3.0% to 6.0% total revenue growth for 2014, with diluted earnings per share in the range of $2.30 to $2.50, and EBITDA in the range of $325 to $345 million.
