Earnings Highlights and Review: Monro Muffler Brake Reported Record Breaking Quarterly Sales; Increased Dividend By 6%

Research Desk Line-up: Douglas Dynamics Post Earnings Coverage

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / June 8, 2017 / Pro-Trader Daily publishes post-earnings coverage on Monro Muffler Brake, Inc. (NASDAQ: MNRO) following the Company’s announcement of its fourth quarter and fiscal 2017 financial results on May 18, 2017. The provider of automotive undercar repair and tire services reported earnings that came in below market expectations. Our daily stock reports are accessible for free, and with those to look forward today you also will be signing up for a complimentary member’s account at:

http://protraderdaily.com/register/

Get more of our free earnings reports coverage from other constituents of the Auto Parts industry. Pro-TD has currently selected Douglas Dynamics, Inc. (NYSE: PLOW) for due-diligence and potential coverage as the Company announced on May 08, 2017, its financial results for Q1 2017 which ended on March 31, 2017. Register for a free membership today, and be among the early birds that get access to our report on Douglas Dynamics when we publish it.

At Pro-TD, we make it our mission to bring you news that matter about the stock you follow. Today, our research desk covers a blog story on MNRO; also brushing on PLOW. With the links below you can directly download the report of your stock of interest free of charge at:

http://protraderdaily.com/optin/?symbol=MNRO

http://protraderdaily.com/optin/?symbol=PLOW

Earnings Reviewed

Monro’s sales for Q4 FY17 ended March 25, 2017, increased 10.0% to $252.0 million compared to $229.0 million for Q4 FY16. The increase in sales was attributable to sales from new stores of $40.8 million, including sales of $35.1 million from recent acquisitions, partially offset by a comparable store sales decrease of 8.0%. The Company’s revenue number lagged behind analysts’ consensus of $258 million. Monro’s net sales for fiscal 2017 increased 8.3% to $1.02 billion compared to $943.7 million for fiscal 2016.

For Q4 FY17, Monro’s gross margin decreased 310 basis points to 37.0% compared to 40.1% in Q4 FY16, primarily due to the impact of sales mix from recent acquisitions and deleverage from negative comparable store sales. On a comparable store basis, gross margin declined 40 basis points due to deleverage. The Company’s operating income was $20.1 million, or 8.0% of sales, for the reported quarter compared to $26.5 million, or 11.6% of sales, in the prior year’s corresponding period.

Monro’s net income for Q4 FY17 was $9.7 million compared to $13.9 million in Q4 FY16. The Company’s diluted earnings per share for the reported quarter were $0.29 compared to diluted earnings per share of $0.42 in the prior year’s same quarter. Monro’s earnings came in short of Wall Street’s expectations of $0.35 per share. The Company’s net income for FY17 was $61.5 million, or $1.85 per diluted share, compared to net income of $66.8 million, or $2.00 per diluted share, in FY16.

Store Update

During Q4 FY17, Monro opened 24 Company-operated locations and closed four locations, ending the quarter with 1,118 Company-operated stores. In FY17, the Company opened 105 Company-operated locations, of which 30 were Greenfield locations.

Acquisitions Update

In March 2017, Monro completed the previously announced acquisition of 16 stores from a Car-X franchisee, including 13 locations in Illinois and three in Iowa. The Company expects these stores to add approximately $15 million in annualized sales, representing an expected sales mix of 75% service and 25% tires.

Monro is forecasting that its acquisitions completed in FY17 will provide an additional $150 million in annualized sales and represent 16% in annualized sales growth over FY16. Furthermore, FY17 acquisitions are expected to increase the Company’s tire purchases by approximately 25% on a y-o-y basis, expanding both the Company’s tire assortment and cost competitiveness.

Cash Dividend Increased 6%

In the earnings press release, Monro also announced that its Board of Directors has approved a $0.01 increase in the Company’s cash dividend for Q1 FY18 to $0.18, which translates to an annual rate of $0.72 per share and represents an increase of $0.04 per share, or 5.9%, compared to the total dividends paid in FY17. The Company has increased its cash dividend 12 times in the past 12 years since it issued cash dividend for the first time. The dividend will be payable on June 12, 2017, to shareholders of record as of June 02, 2017.

Outlook

For FY18, Monro is forecasting sales to be in the range of $1.125 billion to $1.155 billion, an increase of 10% to 13% over FY17 sales. The Company’s FY18 sales guidance assumes a comparable store sales increase of 2% to 4% on a 52-week basis.

Monro’s FY18 diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $2.10 to $2.30, which represents an increase of 14% to 24% over FY17.

For Q1 FY18, Monro is anticipating sales to be in the range of $270.0 million to $275.0 million and comparable store sales to increase 2.0% to 3.0% compared to a 6.9% decline in the prior fiscal year’s comparable period. The Company expects diluted earnings per share for the upcoming quarter to be in the band of $0.52 to $0.56 compared to $0.50 in Q1 FY17.

Stock Performance

At the close of trading session on Wednesday, June 07, 2017, Monro Muffler Brake’s stock price was slightly up 0.10% to end the day at $48.80. A total volume of 410.36 thousand shares were exchanged during the session, which was above the 3-month average volume of 380.92 thousand shares. The Company’s shares are trading at a PE ratio of 26.61 and have a dividend yield of 1.48%. At Wednesday’s closing price, the stock’s net capitalization stands at $1.62 billion.

Pro-Trader Daily:

Pro-Trader Daily (Pro-TD) produces regular sponsored and non-sponsored reports, articles, stock market blogs, and popular investment newsletters covering equities listed on NYSE and NASDAQ and Canadian stocks. PRO-TD has two distinct and independent departments. One department produces non-sponsored analyst certified content generally in the form of press releases, articles and reports covering equities listed on NYSE and NASDAQ and the other produces sponsored content (in most cases not reviewed by a registered analyst), which typically consists of compensated investment newsletters, articles and reports covering listed stocks and micro-caps. Such sponsored content is outside the scope of procedures detailed below.

PRO-TD has not been compensated; directly or indirectly; for producing or publishing this document.

PRESS RELEASE PROCEDURES:

The non-sponsored content contained herein has been prepared by a writer (the “Author”) and is fact checked and reviewed by a third party research service company (the “Reviewer”) represented by a credentialed financial analyst, for further information on analyst credentials, please email contact@protraderdaily.com. Rohit Tuli, a CFA® charterholder (the “Sponsor”), provides necessary guidance in preparing the document templates. The Reviewer has reviewed and revised the content, as necessary, based on publicly available information which is believed to be reliable. Content is researched, written and reviewed on a reasonable-effort basis. The Reviewer has not performed any independent investigations or forensic audits to validate the information herein. The Reviewer has only independently reviewed the information provided by the Author according to the procedures outlined by PRO-TD. PRO-TD is not entitled to veto or interfere in the application of such procedures by the third-party research service company to the articles, documents or reports, as the case may be. Unless otherwise noted, any content outside of this document has no association with the Author or the Reviewer in any way.

NO WARRANTY

PRO-TD, the Author, and the Reviewer are not responsible for any error which may be occasioned at the time of printing of this document or any error, mistake or shortcoming. No liability is accepted whatsoever for any direct, indirect or consequential loss arising from the use of this document. PRO-TD, the Author, and the Reviewer expressly disclaim any fiduciary responsibility or liability for any consequences, financial or otherwise arising from any reliance placed on the information in this document. Additionally, PRO-TD, the Author, and the Reviewer do not (1) guarantee the accuracy, timeliness, completeness or correct sequencing of the information, or (2) warrant any results from use of the information. The included information is subject to change without notice.

NOT AN OFFERING

This document is not intended as an offering, recommendation, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell the securities mentioned or discussed, and is to be used for informational purposes only. Please read all associated disclosures and disclaimers in full before investing. Neither PRO-TD nor any party affiliated with us is a registered investment adviser or broker-dealer with any agency or in any jurisdiction whatsoever. To download our report(s), read our disclosures, or for more information, visit http://protraderdaily.com/disclaimer/.

CONTACT

For any questions, inquiries, or comments reach out to us directly. If you’re a company we are covering and wish to no longer feature on our coverage list contact us via email and/or phone between 09:30 EDT to 16:00 EDT from Monday to Friday at:

Email: contact@protraderdaily.com

Phone number: (917) 341.4653

Office Address: Mainzer Landstrasse 50 Frankfurt am Main, Germany 60325

CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

SOURCE: Pro-Trader Daily

ReleaseID: 465240