Reitman’s Ltd. (TSX:RET.A) stock was up 0.69% as the noon hour came to a close on July 9. Shares are up 2.6% in 2018 so far. Like other clothing retailers Reitman’s has faced challenges with the shifting environment in recent years. Reitman’s leadership has opted to scale back its brick-and-mortar operations and ramp up its e-commerce offerings. This has been a winning formula for other retailers.
Reitman’s released its fiscal 2019 first-quarter results on June 5. The aforementioned trend was clearly present in the results, as has been the case in previous quarters. Same store sales fell 0.8% year-over-year with store sales dropping 3.9%. E-commerce sales climbed 21.9% from fiscal 2018 Q1 on positive grown in this developing channel.
Its e-commerce success was enough to push gross profit up 2.7% from the prior year to $116.3 million. Earnings received a boost with an extra week in Q1 fiscal 2019 and positive impacts from foreign exchange. Operating activities posted a $4.3 million loss compared to a $12.3 million loss in the prior year. The continued loss was driven by the reduction in stores.
The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.05 per share representing a 3.5% dividend yield.
Reitman’s is still on the comeback trail and the stock offers a solid dividend. The stock comes cheap and its progress with its e-commerce push is promising. It is worth a look for those seeking income and potential capital growth going forward in July.
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