Bed Bath And Beyond Earnings

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY) today reported net earnings of $1.17 per diluted share ($224.0 million) in the fiscal second quarter ended August 30, 2014, compared with net earnings for the fiscal second quarter of 2013 of $1.16 per diluted share ($249.3 million).  Net sales for the fiscal second quarter of 2014 were approximately $2.945 billion, an increase of approximately 4.3% from net sales of approximately $2.824 billion reported in the fiscal second quarter of 2013.  Comparable sales in the fiscal second quarter of 2014 increased by approximately 3.4%, compared with an increase of approximately 3.7% in last year's fiscal second quarter.
During the fiscal second quarter of 2014, the Company repurchased approximately $1.0 billion of its common stock, representing approximately 16.9 million shares.  As of August 30, 2014, the remaining balance of the new $2.0 billion share repurchase program authorized in July 2014 was approximately $1.8 billion.
For the fiscal first half ended August 30, 2014, the Company reported net earnings of $2.09 per diluted share ($411.0 million) compared with $2.09 per diluted share ($451.8 million) in the corresponding period a year ago.  Net sales for the fiscal first half of 2014 were approximately $5.602 billion, an increase of approximately 3.0% from net sales of approximately $5.436 billion in the corresponding period a year ago.  Comparable sales for the fiscal first half of 2014 increased by approximately 2.0%, compared with an increase of approximately 3.5% in last year's fiscal first half.
The Company is modeling net earnings per diluted share to be approximately $1.17 to $1.21 for the fiscal third quarter of 2014, approximately $1.78 to $1.83 for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2014, and approximately $5.00 to $5.08 for the fiscal full year.  The timing and amount of the Company's share repurchases impacts the quarterly and full year diluted weighted average shares outstanding differently with the impact on the individual quarters being greater than the impact on the full year.  Therefore, the sum of the net earnings per diluted share for the four fiscal quarters of the year, representing the two fiscal quarters already reported, and the estimated net earnings per diluted share for the third and fourth fiscal quarters, are greater than the estimated fiscal full year net earnings per diluted share by approximately five to six cents.  The modeling of net earnings per diluted share is based upon a number of assumptions which will be described in the Company's second quarter of fiscal 2014 conference call. Information regarding access to the call is available in the Investor Relations section of the Company's website, www.bedbathandbeyond.com.
Cost Plus World Market was excluded from the comparable sales calculations through the end of the fiscal first half of 2013 and is included beginning with the fiscal third quarter of 2013.  Linen Holdings is excluded from the comparable sales calculations and will continue to be excluded on an ongoing basis because it represents non-retail activity.