Bookstore Sales Had Small Six-Month Gain

This was the clear conclusion of the multi-country survey recently undertaken by Two Sides. At the annual meeting of Two Sides Country Managers in London on October 23, 2017, representatives from Europe, North America, South America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand discussed the results of the survey and will build upon the findings to ensure that print on paper remains the preferred and sustainable way to communicate. Two Sides also plans to strengthen its global Anti-Greenwash campaign which is targeted at major banks, utilities, telecoms and others. Over 600 organizations have been researched. Of these 77% have been found to be using greenwash in their marketing, usually in breach of local regulations, and, after being challenged by Two Sides, 60% have voluntarily amended their messaging – a great success story! Click Read More below for additional information.

For the third quarter of 2018, total revenues increased 2.1 percent to $238.5 million compared with $233.7 million in the prior year period. On a comparable basis1 (adjusted for the sale of Fannie May Confection Brands, which closed on May 30, 2017) total revenues increased 10.2 percent. Comparable revenue growth was driven primarily by strong revenue growth of 8.9 percent in the Company’s Consumer Floral segment, combined with growth of 15.5 percent (adjusted for the sale of Fannie May) in the Company’s Gourmet Foods and Gift Baskets segment. Comparable revenue growth benefited from the shift of the Easter holiday into the period. Gross profit margin for the quarter was 39.2 percent, compared with 40.0 percent in the prior year period. Comparable gross profit margin for the prior year was 39.9 percent. Click Read More below for additional information.

For the first quarter, the company reported net loss from continuing operations of $41.7 million, or $0.04 per share, Adjusted net loss from continuing operations of $11.5 million, or $0.01 per share, and Adjusted EBITDA from continuing operations of $147.3 million, or 2.7 percent of revenues. For the first quarter of fiscal 2019, the company reported net income of $214.4 million, or $0.20 per share. Net income for the first quarter included an after-tax gain of approximately $268.6 million relating to the sale of 281 stores to Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. ("WBA"), which completed the sale of stores and related assets to WBA. The sale of the three distribution centers and related inventory is expected to occur after September 1, 2018. As a result of the proceeds received from the store sales, Rite Aid's debt, net of cash, was $3.0 billion as of June 2, 2018. Click Read More below for additional information.