Skip to main content

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. announces record second quarter results

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE: WSM), the world’s largest digital-first, design-led and sustainable home retailer, today announced operating results for the second fiscal quarter ended August 1, 2021 (“Q2 21”) versus the second fiscal quarter ended August 2, 2020 (“Q2 20”).

"We are proud to report another quarter of outperformance with a 30% comp, strong growth across all brands and channels, and 360 basis points of operating margin expansion. These second quarter results demonstrate the success of our growth strategies and the earnings power of our company. We have an advantage in the industry due to our exclusive in-house design capability, our channel strategy which is digital-first but not digital only, and our values - with sustainability and equity underlying all that we do," said Laura Alber, President and Chief Executive Officer.

"The momentum we are seeing in our business and our winning positioning set us up to continue to take share in a fractured market. We do not see any evidence that growth trends are waning, and in fact, we see favorability in the macro environment as more people prioritize their homes and home décor. We believe we are at the intersection of a transformative change that will accelerate the growth of our industry, and our market share within the industry. In addition, our growth strategies are gaining traction faster than we predicted, and our key differentiators are further distancing us from our competition." Alber continued.

Alber concluded, "We see a clear path to beating our previous revenue and profitability targets and we are raising our full year revenue outlook again, with revenue growth now expected to be in the high teens to low twenties and operating margins now expected to be in the range of 16% to 17%. Given our increased optimism, we now expect to achieve our long-term goal of $10 billion in revenues in 2024, one year faster than previously expected, and with higher profitability, which will now be at or above our increased FY21 operating margin."

SECOND QUARTER 2021

  • Revenues grow 30.7%, with strong growth across all brands and channels, including ecommerce holding at 65% of total company revenues
  • Comparable brand revenue growth of 29.8%, including West Elm at 51.1%, Pottery Barn at 29.6%, Pottery Barn Kids and Teen at 18.0%, and Williams Sonoma at 6.4% on top of a 29.4% last year
  • Ecommerce and retail comparable brand revenue growth on a two-year basis were 58.0% and 56.5%, respectively
  • GAAP and non-GAAP gross margin of 44.1%, expanding 710bps and driven by higher year-over-year merchandise margins as well as occupancy leverage of approximately 210bps; occupancy costs were $176 million
  • GAAP operating margin of 16.6%; non-GAAP operating margin of 16.7%, leveraging approximately 360bps
  • GAAP diluted EPS of $3.21; non-GAAP diluted EPS of $3.24, increasing 80% over last year
  • Maintaining strong liquidity position of $655 million in cash and over $475 million in operating cash flow, enabling the company to repurchase an additional $135 million in shares in the second quarter and over $450 million year-to-date. We also announced in a separate release today, an additional 20% quarterly dividend increase to $0.71, and a new stock repurchase authorization raising our existing authorization from the approximate $500 million remaining to $1.25 billion.

OUTLOOK

Fiscal Year 2021

Given the strength of our business year-to-date and the macro trends that we believe will continue to benefit our business, we are raising our fiscal year 2021 outlook to high-teens to low-twenties net revenue growth and non-GAAP operating margin between 16% to 17%.

Long-Term

For the long-term, we are planning for net revenue growth of mid-to-high single digits with an accelerated path to $10 billion in net revenues now over the next four years. Our continued strong results, combined with our three key differentiators of in-house design, digital-first channel strategy and values, and the macro trends that should benefit our business over the long-term, give us confidence in these future growth projections and an accelerated path to $10 billion in net revenues by 2024 while maintaining at least fiscal year end 2021 non-GAAP operating margins. This reflects reaching our long-term revenue outlook one year faster, and with higher profitability.

CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST INFORMATION

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will host a live conference call today, August 25, 2021, at 2:00 P.M. (PT). The call, hosted by Laura Alber, President and Chief Executive Officer, will be open to the general public via live webcast and can be accessed at http://ir.williams-sonomainc.com/events. A replay of the webcast will be available at http://ir.williams-sonomainc.com/events.

SEC REGULATION G NON-GAAP INFORMATION

This press release includes non-GAAP financial measures. Exhibit 1 provides reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. (“GAAP”). We have not provided a reconciliation of non-GAAP guidance measures to the corresponding GAAP measures on a forward-looking basis due to the potential variability and limited visibility of excluded items; these excluded items may include expenses related to the impact of inventory write-offs, the acquisition of Outward, Inc., and asset impairment charges. We believe that these non-GAAP financial measures, when reviewed in conjunction with GAAP financial measures, can provide meaningful supplemental information for investors regarding the performance of our business and facilitate a meaningful evaluation of current period performance on a comparable basis with prior periods. Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures in order to have comparable financial results to analyze changes in our underlying business from quarter to quarter. In addition, certain other items may be excluded from non-GAAP financial measures when the company believes this provides greater clarity to management and investors. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered as a supplement to, and not as a substitute for or superior to the GAAP financial measures presented in this press release and our financial statements and other publicly filed reports. Non-GAAP measures as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they do not fully materialize or are proven incorrect, could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include statements relating to: our ability to capture significant opportunities in the home furnishings industry; increase our market share; macro trends; our ability to continue to improve performance; our focus on operational excellence; our ability to improve customers’ experience; our growth strategies; our optimism about the future; our ability to maximize growth and maintain high profitability; our fiscal year 2021 outlook and long-term financial targets, including projected net revenue growth and operating margin expansion; our stock repurchase program and dividend expectations; our planned capital investments; and our proposed store openings and closures.

The risks and uncertainties that could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements include: continuing changes in general economic conditions, and the impact on consumer confidence and consumer spending; the continuing impact of the coronavirus on our global supply chain, retail store operations and customer demand; new interpretations of or changes to current accounting rules; our ability to anticipate consumer preferences and buying trends; dependence on timely introduction and customer acceptance of our merchandise; changes in consumer spending based on weather, political, competitive and other conditions beyond our control; delays in store openings; competition from companies with concepts or products similar to ours; timely and effective sourcing of merchandise from our foreign and domestic vendors and delivery of merchandise through our supply chain to our stores and customers; effective inventory management; our ability to manage customer returns; successful catalog management, including timing, sizing and merchandising; uncertainties in e-marketing, infrastructure and regulation; multi-channel and multi-brand complexities; our ability to introduce new brands and brand extensions; challenges associated with our increasing global presence; dependence on external funding sources for operating capital; disruptions in the financial markets; our ability to control employment, occupancy and other operating costs; our ability to improve our systems and processes; changes to our information technology infrastructure; general political, economic and market conditions and events, including war, conflict or acts of terrorism; the impact of current and potential future tariffs and our ability to mitigate impacts; the impact of inflation on consumer spending; the potential for increased corporate income taxes; and other risks and uncertainties described more fully in our public announcements, reports to stockholders and other documents filed with or furnished to the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2021 and all subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. We have not filed our Form 10-Q for the quarter ended August 1, 2021. As a result, all financial results described here should be considered preliminary, and are subject to change to reflect any necessary adjustments or changes in accounting estimates that are identified prior to the time we file the Form 10-Q. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to us as of the date hereof, and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

ABOUT WILLIAMS-SONOMA, INC.

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is the world’s largest digital-first, design-led and sustainable home retailer. The company’s products, representing distinct merchandise strategies — Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pottery Barn Teen, West Elm, Williams Sonoma Home, Rejuvenation, and Mark and Graham — are marketed through e-commerce websites, direct-mail catalogs and retail stores. These brands are also part of The Key Rewards, our free-to-join loyalty program that offers members exclusive benefits across the Williams-Sonoma family of brands. We operate in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, offer international shipping to customers worldwide, and have unaffiliated franchisees that operate stores in the Middle East, the Philippines, Mexico, South Korea and India, as well as e-commerce websites in certain locations. We are also proud to lead the industry with our Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) efforts. Our company is Good By Design — we’ve deeply engrained sustainability into our business. From our factories to your home, we’re united in a shared purpose to care for our people and our planet.

For more information on our ESG efforts, please visit: https://sustainability.williams-sonomainc.com/

WSM-IR

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Earnings (unaudited)

 

Thirteen Weeks Ended

Twenty-six Weeks Ended

August 1, 2021

August 2, 2020

August 1, 2021

August 2, 2020

% of

% of

% of

% of

In thousands, except per share amounts

$

Revenues

$

Revenues

$

Revenues

$

Revenues

Net revenues

$

1,948,339

100

%

$

1,490,777

100

%

$

3,697,368

100

%

$

2,725,980

100

%

Cost of goods sold

1,089,951

55.9

939,575

63.0

2,086,127

56.4

1,760,518

64.6

Gross profit

858,388

44.1

551,202

37.0

1,611,241

43.6

965,462

35.4

Selling, general and administrative expenses

535,288

27.5

365,841

24.5

1,012,964

27.4

731,456

26.8

Operating income

323,100

16.6

185,361

12.4

598,277

16.2

234,006

8.6

Interest (income) expense, net

(39

)

6,464

0.4

1,833

8,623

0.3

Earnings before income taxes

323,139

16.6

178,897

12.0

596,444

16.1

225,383

8.3

Income taxes

77,069

4.0

44,333

3.0

122,572

3.3

55,396

2.0

Net earnings

$

246,070

12.6

%

$

134,564

9.0

%

$

473,872

12.8

%

$

169,987

6.2

%

Earnings per share (EPS):

Basic

$

3.29

$

1.73

$

6.29

$

2.19

Diluted

$

3.21

$

1.70

$

6.11

$

2.16

Shares used in calculation of EPS:

Basic

74,786

77,783

75,293

77,522

Diluted

76,584

79,264

77,516

78,841

2nd Quarter Net Revenues and Comparable Brand Revenue Growth by Concept*

Net Revenues

Comparable Brand Revenue

(Millions)

Growth

Q2 21

Q2 20

Q2 21

Q2 20

Pottery Barn

$

732

$

563

29.6

%

8.1

%

West Elm

580

381

51.1

7.0

Williams Sonoma

255

243

6.4

29.4

Pottery Barn Kids and Teen

274

236

18.0

4.8

Other**

107

68

N/A

N/A

Total

$

1,948

$

1,491

29.8

%

10.5

%

* See the Company’s 10-K and 10-Q filings for the definition of comparable brand revenue, which is calculated on a 13-week to 13-week basis for Q2 2021 and Q2 2020. Comparable stores that were temporarily closed due to COVID-19 were not excluded from the comparable stores calculation.

** Primarily consists of net revenues from our international franchise operations, Rejuvenation and Mark and Graham.

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (unaudited)

 

In thousands, except per share amounts

August 1, 2021

January 31, 2021

August 2, 2020

Assets

Current assets

Cash and cash equivalents

$

655,211

$

1,200,337

$

947,760

Accounts receivable, net

141,814

143,728

128,737

Merchandise inventories, net

1,170,561

1,006,299

1,042,340

Prepaid expenses

85,587

93,822

109,495

Other current assets

20,537

22,894

27,098

Total current assets

2,073,710

2,467,080

2,255,430

Property and equipment, net

875,295

873,894

887,401

Operating lease right-of-use assets

1,052,617

1,086,009

1,146,229

Deferred income taxes, net

58,848

61,854

37,789

Goodwill

85,421

85,446

85,419

Other long-term assets, net

99,146

87,141

75,028

Total assets

$

4,245,037

$

4,661,424

$

4,487,296

Liabilities and Stockholders' equity

Current liabilities

Accounts payable

$

601,879

$

542,992

$

373,086

Accrued expenses

224,089

267,592

158,407

Gift card and other deferred revenue

403,409

373,164

292,684

Income taxes payable

61,335

69,476

28,502

Current debt

299,350

Borrowings under revolving line of credit

487,823

Operating lease liabilities

213,784

209,754

221,575

Other current liabilities

74,331

85,672

102,086

Total current liabilities

1,578,827

1,848,000

1,664,163

Deferred lease incentives

18,359

20,612

24,684

Long-term debt

298,995

Long-term operating lease liabilities

994,165

1,025,057

1,080,622

Other long-term liabilities

126,967

116,570

85,910

Total liabilities

2,718,318

3,010,239

3,154,374

Stockholders' equity

Preferred stock: $0.01 par value; 7,500 shares authorized, none issued

Common stock: $0.01 par value; 253,125 shares authorized; 74,426, 76,340, and 77,796 shares issued and outstanding at August 1, 2021, January 31, 2021 and August 2, 2020, respectively

745

764

778

Additional paid-in capital

569,734

638,375

608,892

Retained earnings

964,000

1,019,762

736,772

Accumulated other comprehensive loss

(7,049

)

(7,117

)

(12,921

)

Treasury stock, at cost

(711

)

(599

)

(599

)

Total stockholders' equity

1,526,719

1,651,185

1,332,922

Total liabilities and stockholders' equity

$

4,245,037

$

4,661,424

$

4,487,296

Retail Store Data

(unaudited)

May 2, 2021

Openings

Closings

August 1, 2021

August 2, 2020

Williams Sonoma

195

3

(2

)

196

210

Pottery Barn

195

1

(1

)

195

201

West Elm

121

2

123

121

Pottery Barn Kids

57

57

72

Rejuvenation

10

10

10

Total

578

6

(3

)

581

614

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (unaudited)

 

Twenty-six Weeks Ended

In thousands

August 1, 2021

August 2, 2020

Cash flows from operating activities:

Net earnings

$

473,872

$

169,987

Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to net cash provided by (used in)

operating activities:

Depreciation and amortization

96,687

93,120

Loss on disposal/impairment of assets

455

25,408

Amortization of deferred lease incentives

(2,254

)

(2,975

)

Non-cash lease expense

105,739

108,448

Deferred income taxes

(7,037

)

(2,229

)

Tax benefit related to stock-based awards

10,302

12,694

Stock-based compensation expense

46,260

33,395

Other

(274

)

255

Changes in:

Accounts receivable

2,002

(16,740

)

Merchandise inventories

(163,621

)

60,055

Prepaid expenses and other assets

(4,622

)

(30,968

)

Accounts payable

48,457

(141,602

)

Accrued expenses and other liabilities

(43,653

)

12,117

Gift card and other deferred revenue

30,308

2,936

Operating lease liabilities

(108,791

)

(113,489

)

Income taxes payable

(8,162

)

5,988

Net cash provided by operating activities

475,668

216,400

Cash flows from investing activities:

Purchases of property and equipment

(78,281

)

(76,123

)

Other

97

241

Net cash used in investing activities

(78,184

)

(75,882

)

Cash flows from financing activities:

Repurchases of common stock

(451,388

)

Repayment of long-term debt

(300,000

)

Tax withholdings related to stock-based awards

(100,160

)

(29,589

)

Payment of dividends

(91,069

)

(79,274

)

Borrowings under revolving line of credit

487,823

Debt issuance costs

(1,050

)

Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities

(942,617

)

377,910

Effect of exchange rates on cash and cash equivalents

7

(2,830

)

Net (decrease) increase in cash and cash equivalents

(545,126

)

515,598

Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period

1,200,337

432,162

Cash and cash equivalents at end of period

$

655,211

$

947,760

Exhibit 1

2nd Quarter GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliation

(unaudited)

(Dollars in thousands, except per share data)

Thirteen Weeks Ended

Twenty-six Weeks Ended

August 1, 2021

August 2, 2020

August 1, 2021

August 2, 2020

$

% of

$

% of

$

% of

$

% of

revenues

revenues

revenues

revenues

Gross profit

$

858,388

44.1

%

$

551,202

37.0

%

$

1,611,241

43.6

%

$

965,462

35.4

%

Inventory write-off 1

11,378

Non-GAAP gross profit

$

858,388

44.1

%

$

551,202

37.0

%

$

1,611,241

43.6

%

$

976,840

35.8

%

Selling, general and administrative expenses

$

535,288

27.5

%

$

365,841

24.5

%

$

1,012,964

27.4

%

$

731,456

26.8

%

Outward-related 2

(2,757

)

(3,341

)

(5,596

)

(6,699

)

Asset impairment 3

(6,355

)

(21,975

)

Non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expenses

$

532,531

27.3

%

$

356,145

23.9

%

$

1,007,368

27.2

%

$

702,782

25.8

%

Operating income

$

323,100

16.6

%

$

185,361

12.4

%

$

598,277

16.2

%

$

234,006

8.6

%

Outward-related 2

2,757

3,341

5,596

6,699

Inventory write-off 1

11,378

Asset impairment 3

6,355

21,975

Non-GAAP operating income

$

325,857

16.7

%

$

195,057

13.1

%

$

603,873

16.3

%

$

274,058

10.1

%

$

Tax rate

$

Tax rate

$

Tax rate

$

Tax rate

Income taxes

$

77,069

23.9

%

$

44,333

24.8

%

$

122,572

20.6

%

$

55,396

24.6

%

Outward-related 2

462

451

973

1,192

Inventory write-off 1

2,940

Asset impairment 3

1,287

5,324

Non-GAAP income taxes

$

77,531

23.8

%

$

46,071

24.4

%

$

123,545

20.5

%

$

64,852

24.4

%

Diluted EPS

$

3.21

$

1.70

$

6.11

$

2.16

Outward-related 2

0.03

0.04

0.06

0.07

Inventory write-off 1

0.11

Asset impairment 3

0.06

0.21

Non-GAAP diluted EPS*

$

3.24

$

1.80

$

6.17

$

2.54

∗ Per share amounts may not sum due to rounding to the nearest cent per diluted share

SEC Regulation G – Non-GAAP Information

These tables include non-GAAP gross profit, gross margin, selling, general and administrative expense, operating income, operating margin, income taxes, effective tax rate and diluted EPS. We believe that these non-GAAP financial measures provide meaningful supplemental information for investors regarding the performance of our business and facilitate a meaningful evaluation of our quarterly actual results on a comparable basis with prior periods. Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures in order to have comparable financial results to analyze changes in our underlying business from quarter to quarter. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered as a supplement to, and not as a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP.

Notes to Exhibit 1:

  1. During year-to-date 2020, we incurred approximately $11.4 million of inventory write-offs for inventory with minor damage that we could not liquidate through our outlets due to store closures resulting from COVID-19.
  2. During Q2 2021 and year-to-date 2021, we incurred approximately $2.8 million and $5.6 million, respectively, associated with acquisition-related compensation expense and the amortization of acquired intangibles for Outward, Inc. During Q2 2020 and year-to-date 2020, we incurred approximately $3.3 million and $6.7 million, respectively, associated with acquisition-related compensation expense and the amortization of acquired intangibles for Outward, Inc.
  3. During Q2 2020 and year-to-date 2020, we incurred approximately $6.4 million and $22.0 million, respectively, of expense associated with store asset impairments due to the impact that COVID-19 had on our retail stores.

Contacts:

Julie Whalen EVP, Chief Financial Officer – (415) 616 8524
-or-
Investor Relations – (415) 616 8571

Data & News supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Stock quotes supplied by Barchart
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.