Framingham, Mass. – Staples
fiscal first quarter net income jumped 32 percent year over year.
Net income
for the quarter ended May 1 was $189 million up from the prior year’s $143
million.
Total
company sales for the quarter were up 4 percent to $6.1 billion compared to
last year’s $5.8 billion.
“Our first
quarter performance was strong across the board,” said Ron Sargent, Staples’ chairman/CEO.
“With sales and profit improvement in all three of our businesses, the year is
off to a good start.”
North
American retail sales for the first quarter were $2.3 billion, an increase of 6
percent in U.S. dollars, and 2 percent in local currency compared to the first
quarter of 2009.
First
quarter 2010 comparable store sales increased 1 percent year on year reflecting
increased customer traffic, partially offset by lower average order size, the
company said.
Operating income
rate increased 30 basis points to 7.64 percent compared to the first quarter of
2009. This improvement primarily reflects reduced marketing and depreciation
expense, partially offset by a higher mix of low margin technology products,
Staples said.
The chain
reported that North American retail opened 20 stores and closed three stores,
ending the first quarter of 2010 with 1,888 stores in North America.
