PHILADELPHIA – Pep Boys has announced results for the 13 (third quarter) and 39 weeks ended Oct. 27.
 
Sales for the 13 weeks ended Oct. 27, decreased by $12.6 million, or 2.4 percent, to $509.6 million from $522.2 million for the 13 weeks ended Oct. 29, 2011.
 
Net loss for the third quarter of fiscal 2012 was $6.8 million (13 cents per share) as compared to net earnings of $7 million (13 cents per share) recorded in the same period last year. The 2012 results include, on a pre-tax basis, debt refinancing expense of $11.2 million and an asset impairment charge of $8.8 million.
 
Sales for the 39 weeks ended Oct. 27, 2012, increased by $1.6 million, or 0.1 percent, to $1,559.9 million from $1,558.3 million for the 39 weeks ended Oct. 29, 2011.
 
Net earnings for the first nine months of 2012 decreased to $27.4 million (51 cents per share) from the $33.3 million (62 cents per share) recorded in the same period last year. The 2012 results include, on a pre-tax basis, merger termination fees, net of related expenses, of $42.8 million, debt refinancing expense of $11.2 million, an asset impairment charge of $8.8 million and severance expense of $0.7 million. The 2011 results included a tax benefit of $3.6 million and, on a pre-tax basis, an asset impairment charge of $0.4 million and acquisition related expenses of $1.5 million.
 
"Positives for the quarter include a 3.4 percent increase in comparable service customer transactions and recovering tire margins,” said President and CEO Mike Odell. “The service customer increase was again driven by maintenance and repair services. Tire margins had declined significantly over the previous 19 months, but have now been recovering for the past three months."
 
Odell continued, "We also reached our next e-commerce milestone with the launch of Buy Online, Ship to Home. This complements our previously launched online capabilities of service appointment scheduling, TreadSmart (tires from information to installation) and Buy Online, Pick Up In Store. We are continuing to further integrate our complete automotive service offerings and automotive superstore with our emerging digital capabilities."
 
Executive Vice President and CFO David Stern added, “During the quarter, we refinanced our debt, reducing the principal by approximately $95 million and extending the maturity to 2018. While this refinancing activity resulted in a one-time charge to interest expense of $11.2 million, it also reduces our annual interest expense by approximately $11 million.”