Sponsored By

Ingles Markets keeps sales on the upswing in Q1

Chairman Robert Ingle says refinancing to cut interest costs ‘for many years to come’

Russell Redman

February 7, 2020

2 Min Read
Ingles Markets-supermarket exterior.png
First-quarter sales climbed during the key holiday selling period, Ingles Markets noted.Ingles Markets

Ingles Markets upheld the sales growth momentum from its recently completed fiscal year with gains in its 2020 first quarter.

For the three months ended Dec. 28, net sales totaled $1.08 billion, up 1.6% from $1.06 billion a year earlier, Asheville, N.C.-based Ingles said yesterday. Same-store sales climbed 2.4% year over year, excluding fuel.

Ingles’ fiscal 2019 sales grew 2.7% to $4.2 billion, with comparable-store sales excluding gasoline up 3.9% from the previous year.

In the 2020 first quarter, operating income came in at $38.5 million, down from $39.5 million a year ago. Gross profit was $257.5 million (23.9% of sales), compared with $258.4 million (24.3% of sales) in the prior-year period. Ingles noted that the results reflect “unusually high” gross profit for fuel industrywide in the 2018 quarter.

Ingles tallied $222 million in operating and administrative expenses for the 2020 quarter versus $218.7 million a year earlier. The grocer said the increase stems mainly from higher personnel costs, reflecting rising sales and continued strong demand for labor.

First-quarter 2020 net earnings were $17.7 million compared with $22.2 million in the year-ago period. Ingles said the decrease reflects $3.7 million of refinancing costs that will pare interest expense for future periods.

Related:Ingles Markets finishes fiscal year on positive note

On a per-share basis, Ingles reported net income of 90 cents (basic) and 87 cents (diluted) for its publicly traded Class A common stock, down from $1.12 (basic) and $1.09 (diluted) in the fiscal 2018 quarter.

“We were pleased with our sales growth during the important holiday period,” Ingles Markets Chairman Robert Ingle II said in a statement. “We completed a successful long-term financing that will lower our interest cost for many years to come.”

During the first quarter, $155 million of 5.75% debt was refinanced with 10-year, fixed-rate secured debt at 2.95%, according to Ingles. Total debt declined to $850 million at the end of the quarter from $880 million a year earlier. Interest expense came in at $11.9 million in the 2020 quarter, down from $12.2 million in the prior-year period.

Ingles closed out the first quarter with 198 supermarkets in the Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and Virginia, compared with 200 a year ago. The company said it totaled capital expenditures of $31.1 million versus $71 million in the 2019 quarter, which included additional new store construction, store remodeling and property acquisitions. Overall fiscal 2020 capital spending is projected at $120 million to $160 million.

Related:Third-quarter sales edge up at Ingles Markets

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

Stay up-to-date on the latest food retail news and trends
Subscribe to free eNewsletters from Supermarket News

You May Also Like