Restructuring affects Sears Canada Q3 results

Toronto -- Sears Canada posted a net loss of about $46.7 million USD in the third quarter of fiscal 2013, more than double the net loss of $21 million it posted in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year. One-time charges of $41 million related to restructuring and asset impairment helped widen the company’s net loss.



In addition, revenues of $940.7 million were down about 6% from $1 billion. In one bright spot, same-store sales climbed 1.2%. Sears Canada is in the middle of a three-year turnaround program launched in 2012.



"This is the first quarterly same store sales increase for the Company since 2008," said Doug Campbell, president and CEO, Sears Canada Inc. "October was our strongest month of the quarter, during which we adjusted our plans to market conditions and experienced double-digit same store sales increases in both our apparel & accessories and home & hardlines categories. Our direct business also grew substantially during the quarter. When we exclude the $42.8 million of non-recurring items taken in the quarter, we reduced expenses by 8.6% compared to last year. This demonstrates the progress we are making in executing on the value levers that most directly drive our business: merchandising value and efficiency value.”



Sears Canada also announced a special dividend of about $4.79 per share, or $488 million, payable to investors of record as of Dec. 2 on Dec. 6, as well as the appointment of H Ronald Weissman as a member of its board of directors and that E.J. Bird is stepping down as a director of the Sears Canada board and will focus on his current role as the company's executive VP and CFO, a position he has held since March 2013.