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Nordstrom Reports Third Quarter Earnings Per Share Increase 33 Percent

SEATTLE, Nov. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE: JWN) today reported net earnings of $135.7 million, or $0.52 per diluted share, for the third quarter ended October 28, 2006. For the same period last year, net earnings were $107.5 million, or $0.39 per diluted share.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20001011/NORDLOGO )

Total sales for the third quarter of 2006 increased 12.4 percent to $1.9 billion, compared to sales of $1.7 billion in the same period last year. Third quarter same-store sales increased 10.7 percent.

THIRD QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

Net earnings increased 26.3 percent in the third quarter compared to the same quarter last year, primarily due to the company's improved execution of its merchandising strategy. The company continues to focus on providing customers with compelling merchandise and superior service.

* Same-store sales increased 10.7 percent for the quarter. All major merchandise categories performed above the company's low single digit growth plan. Results in intimate apparel, accessories, women's better and designer apparel exceeded the company's overall percentage increase. The company's Direct and Rack channels achieved double digit same-store sales increases.
* Gross profit as a percent of sales increased 156 basis points versus the prior year. Merchandise margin improved versus the prior year driven primarily by lower markdowns, particularly in women's apparel. Above plan sales results created incremental leverage on buying and occupancy expenses.
* Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percent to sales decreased 17 basis points versus the prior year. Total sales growth outpaced an increase in general and administrative expenses. Further rate improvement was held back by a rise in compensation costs linked to the price of the company's stock, which appreciated 38.4 percent in the quarter. This cost increase impacted the total SG&A expense rate by 64 basis points, and diluted earnings per share by $0.03 for the quarter.
* As a result of the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R), "Share-Based Payment," the company recorded $6.5 million in compensation expense, which resulted in a $0.01 impact on diluted earnings per share for the quarter. Of the total expense, $2.9 million was recorded in buying and occupancy and $3.6 million was recorded in selling, general and administrative expenses.

YEAR-TO-DATE RESULTS

Year-to-date net earnings increased 23.5 percent to $445.7 million for the three quarters ended October 28, 2006, compared to net earnings of $360.9 million for the same period last year. Earnings per diluted share for the same periods were $1.67 and $1.30, respectively.

Year-to-date total sales increased 9.3 percent to $5.9 billion compared to prior year sales of $5.4 billion. Same-store sales increased 7.2 percent.

EXPANSION AND CAPITAL INVESTMENT UPDATE

Nordstrom opened its newly relocated store at Westfield Topanga Mall in Canoga Park, Calif., on October 6, 2006. The 213,000 square foot, three-level store features the company's most comprehensive designer offering in the country along with new design concepts, amenities and services.

The company opened a new 35,000 square foot Nordstrom Rack store at Grand Plaza in San Marcos, Calif., on November 16, 2006.

Nordstrom announced plans today to open three new stores and for one store relocation.

* In the spring of 2009, Nordstrom will open a newly relocated 140,000 square foot store at the Fashion Place, in Murray, Utah.
* In the fall of 2009, Nordstrom will open a new 140,000 square foot store at the Kenwood Towne Centre in Cincinnati, Ohio.
* In the spring of 2010, Nordstrom will open a new 140,000 square foot store at the St. Louis Galleria in St. Louis, Missouri.
* In the spring of 2011, Nordstrom will open a new 140,000 square foot store at the Christiana Mall in Wilmington, Delaware.

Nordstrom's board of directors recently approved the company's budget for capital expenditures for the 2007 through 2011 fiscal years. The total amount planned is for $2.8 billion over the five years, with approximately 80% of the capital allocated to new stores, store relocations and store remodels.

SHARE REPURCHASE

Nordstrom repurchased approximately 896,000 shares of its common stock during the third quarter for $32.6 million. This reduction in weighted- average shares outstanding had no material impact on diluted earnings per share for the quarter.

2006 OUTLOOK

For the 53 week fiscal year ending February 3, 2007, the company now anticipates diluted earnings per share in the range of $2.46 to $2.51, including an estimated expense of $0.06 per diluted share for stock option compensation following the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) at the beginning of this fiscal year. For the 14 week fourth quarter, the company is planning low single digit same-store sales growth and earnings per share in the range of $0.79 to $0.84. Under the 4-5-4 retail calendar, the 2006 fourth quarter and fiscal year include an additional week.

CONFERENCE CALL INFORMATION

Company management will be hosting a conference call and webcast to discuss third quarter results at 4:30 p.m. (ET) today. Access to the conference call is open to the press and general public in a listen only mode. To participate, please dial 212-547-0138 ten minutes prior to the call (passcode: NORD). A telephone replay will be available for 48 hours beginning approximately one hour after the conclusion of the call by dialing 866-444-9038. Interested parties may also access the call over the Internet by visiting the Investor Relations section of the company's corporate website at http://about.nordstrom.com/aboutus/investor/webcasts.asp . An archived version of the webcast will be available at this location for 30 days.

Nordstrom, Inc. is one of the nation's leading fashion specialty retailers, with 157 US stores located in 27 states. Founded in 1901 as a shoe store in Seattle, today Nordstrom operates 99 full-line stores, 50 Nordstrom Racks, five Faconnable boutiques, one free-standing shoe store, and two clearance stores. Nordstrom also operates 35 international Faconnable boutiques in Europe. Additionally, Nordstrom serves customers through its online presence at http://www.nordstrom.com and through its catalogs. Nordstrom, Inc. is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol JWN.

Certain statements in this news release contain "forward-looking" information (as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) that involves risks and uncertainties, including anticipated results for the fiscal year ending February 3, 2007 and the fourth quarter, store openings and trends in company operations. Actual future results and trends may differ materially from historical results or current expectations depending upon factors including, but not limited to, the impact of economic and competitive market forces, the impact of terrorist activity or the impact of a war on the company, its customers and the retail industry, the company's ability to predict fashion trends, consumer apparel buying patterns, trends in personal bankruptcies and bad debt write-offs, changes in interest rates, employee relations, the company's ability to continue its expansion plans, changes in government or regulatory requirements, the company's ability to control costs, weather conditions and hazards of nature. Our SEC reports, including our Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 28, 2006 and our Form 10-Q for the quarter ended October 28, 2006 to be filed with the SEC, contain other information on these and other factors that could affect our financial results and cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking information we may provide. The company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events, new information or future circumstances.

    Investor Contact:                       Media Contact:
    RJ Jones, 206-303-3007                  Deniz Anders, 206-373-3038


                               NORDSTROM, INC.
              CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS - 3rd Quarter
   (unaudited; amounts in thousands, except per share data and percentages)

                                             % of                  % of
                               Quarter     sales(1)   Quarter    sales(1)
                                ended     (except as    ended   (except as
                              10/28/06    indicated)  10/29/05  indicated)

    Net sales                $1,872,103     100.0%  $1,666,130    100.0%
    Cost of sales and
     related buying &
     occupancy costs         (1,160,123)    (62.0%) (1,058,452)   (63.5%)
    Gross profit                711,980      38.0%     607,678     36.5%
    Selling, general and
     administrative expenses   (538,210)    (28.7%)   (481,768)   (28.9%)
    Operating income            173,770       9.3%     125,910      7.6%
    Interest expense, net       (11,419)     (0.6%)    (10,248)    (0.6%)
    Other income including
     finance charges, net        58,819       3.1%      47,350      2.8%
    Earnings before income tax
     expense                    221,170      11.8%     163,012      9.8%
    Income tax expense          (85,497)    (38.7%)(2) (55,559)   (34.1%)(2)
    Net earnings               $135,673       7.2%    $107,453      6.4%
    Earnings per share
      Basic                       $0.53                  $0.40
      Diluted                     $0.52                  $0.39

    ADDITIONAL DATA
    Weighted average shares
     outstanding
      Basic                     256,757                271,599
      Diluted                   261,616                277,293

    (1) Subtotals and totals may not foot due to rounding.
    (2) Percent of earnings before income tax expense.


                               NORDSTROM, INC.
              CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS - Year to Date
   (unaudited; amounts in thousands, except per share data and percentages)

                                              % of                     % of
                              Nine Months   sales(1)  Nine Months   sales(1)
                                ended     (except as    ended    (except as
                               10/28/06    indicated)  10/29/05   indicated)

    Net sales                 $5,929,794     100.0%  $5,427,042     100.0%
    Cost of sales and related
     buying & occupancy costs (3,729,759)    (62.9%) (3,452,132)    (63.6%)
    Gross profit               2,200,035      37.1%   1,974,910      36.4%
    Selling, general and
     administrative expenses  (1,611,982)    (27.2%) (1,498,386)    (27.6%)
    Operating income             588,053       9.9%     476,524       8.8%
    Interest expense, net        (34,953)     (0.6%)    (33,791)     (0.6%)
    Other income including
     finance charges, net        173,508       2.9%     135,052       2.5%
    Earnings before income tax
     expense                     726,608      12.3%     577,785      10.6%
    Income tax expense          (280,950)    (38.7%)(2)(216,876)    (37.5%)(2)
    Net earnings                $445,658       7.5%    $360,909       6.7%
    Earnings per share
      Basic                        $1.70                   $1.32
      Diluted                      $1.67                   $1.30

    ADDITIONAL DATA
    Weighted average shares
     outstanding
      Basic                      261,920                 272,683
      Diluted                    266,893                 278,399

    (1) Subtotals and totals may not foot due to rounding.
    (2) Percent of earnings before income tax expense.


                               NORDSTROM, INC.
                         CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
                      (unaudited; amounts in thousands)

                                       10/28/06        1/28/06      10/29/05
    Assets
    Current assets:
      Cash and cash equivalents        $208,715       $462,656     $205,943
      Short-term investments                  -         54,000       34,000
      Accounts receivable, net          667,748        639,558      626,864
      Investment in asset backed
       securities                       313,656        561,136      509,759
      Merchandise inventories         1,228,230        955,978    1,166,471
      Current deferred tax assets,
       net                              169,858        145,470      149,622
      Prepaid expenses and other         65,711         55,359       53,451
    Total current assets              2,653,918      2,874,157    2,746,110
    Land, buildings and equipment,
     net                              1,748,395      1,773,871    1,778,579
    Goodwill                             51,714         51,714       51,714
    Acquired tradename                   84,000         84,000       84,000
    Other assets                        170,355        137,607      129,130
    Total assets                     $4,708,382     $4,921,349   $4,789,533

    Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
    Current liabilities:
      Accounts payable                  758,402        540,019      683,137
      Accrued salaries, wages and
       related benefits                 253,440        285,982      235,137
      Other current liabilities         385,767        409,076      365,872
      Income taxes payable               42,970         81,617       47,850
      Current portion of long-term
       debt                             106,572        306,618      306,967
    Total current liabilities         1,547,151      1,623,312    1,638,963
    Long-term debt, net                 624,631        627,776      626,978
    Deferred property incentives, net   351,733        364,382      367,511
    Other liabilities                   223,262        213,198      206,980
    Shareholders' equity:
      Common stock, no par value:
       1,000,000 shares authorized;
       256,904, 269,549 and 269,690
       shares issued and outstanding    791,678        685,934      663,810
      Unearned stock compensation             -           (327)        (438)
      Retained earnings               1,171,364      1,404,366    1,277,674
      Accumulated other comprehensive
       (loss) earnings                   (1,437)         2,708        8,055
    Total shareholders' equity        1,961,605      2,092,681    1,949,101
    Total liabilities and
     shareholders' equity            $4,708,382     $4,921,349   $4,789,533


                               NORDSTROM, INC.
                    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
                      (unaudited;  amounts in thousands)

                                                    Nine Months    Nine Months
                                                       ended         ended
    Operating Activities                              10/28/06      10/29/05
    Net earnings                                      $445,658      $360,909
    Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to
     net cash provided by operating activities:
      Depreciation and amortization of buildings
       and equipment                                   205,816       204,496
      Amortization of deferred property incentives
       and other, net                                  (25,255)      (24,331)
      Stock-based compensation expense                  25,075         7,672
      Deferred income taxes, net                       (49,755)        1,173
      Tax benefit of stock-based payments               29,691        31,281
      Excess tax benefit from stock-based payments     (25,384)            -
      Provision for bad debt expense                    10,715        18,327
      Change in operating assets and liabilities:
        Accounts receivable                            (38,652)         (769)
        Investment in asset backed securities          242,204       (86,786)
        Merchandise inventories                       (235,623)     (250,441)
        Prepaid expenses                               (10,092)          855
        Other assets                                    (4,203)       (6,079)
        Accounts payable                               213,294       190,601
        Accrued salaries, wages and related benefits   (34,861)      (56,758)
        Other current liabilities                      (22,559)       (2,099)
        Income taxes payable                           (38,647)      (67,705)
        Deferred property incentives                    13,779        41,891
        Other liabilities                               11,328        14,209
    Net cash provided by operating activities          712,529       376,446

    Investing Activities
    Capital expenditures                              (187,748)     (205,015)
    Purchases of short-term investments               (109,550)     (397,500)
    Sales of short-term investments                    163,550       405,325
    Other, net                                          (6,380)       (6,404)
    Net cash used in investing activities             (140,128)     (203,594)

    Financing Activities
    Proceeds from long-term borrowing                  100,000             -
    Principal payments on long-term debt              (306,465)      (99,769)
    (Decrease) increase in cash book overdrafts        (21,511)        4,720
    Proceeds from exercise of stock options             38,917        61,057
    Proceeds from employee stock purchase plan          16,300        15,600
    Excess tax benefit from stock-based payments        25,384             -
    Cash dividends paid                                (83,139)      (64,236)
    Repurchase of common stock                        (595,521)     (246,302)
    Other, net                                            (307)        1,398
    Net cash used in financing activities             (826,342)     (327,532)
    Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents         (253,941)     (154,680)
    Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period   462,656       360,623
    Cash and cash equivalents at end of period        $208,715      $205,943

SOURCE Nordstrom, Inc.
11/20/2006
CONTACT: investors, RJ Jones, +1-206-303-3007, or media, Deniz Anders, +1-206-373-3038, both of Nordstrom, Inc.
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Web site: http://www.nordstrom.com