PHILADELPHIA (Dec. 8, 2015) — Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack reported an eight-fold jump in operating profit for the quarter ended Oct. 31 and returned to the black on a net basis despite a 1.8-percent drop in revenue.
The earnings improvement was based in part on a $6 million gain from the sale of two locations, offset by a $5.6 million in various charges and expenses, Pep Boys said.
Operating income jumped to $4.43 million from $574,000 and the net result was $1.27 million vs. a loss of $1.96 million in the 2014 period. Sales fell to $508.1 million.
For the nine-month period, operating income nearly quadrupled to $38.1 million, while net earings of $18 million contrasted with a loss of $625,000. Sales fell 0.3 percent to $1.58 billion.
Pep Boys — which is the subject of competing takeover bids by Bridgestone Americas Inc. and Icahn Holdings L.P. — said the sales decline was due to a 1.5-percent drop in comparable service center revenue and a 2.2-percent decline in comparable retail sales.
The Philadelphia-based tire and auto service chain ended the quarter with 804 stores, including 238 Service & Tire Centers — up five from the year-ago period.