SpartanNash Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2023 Results

Delivers Fiscal 2023 Growth in Net Earnings of 51% and Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of 6%

Provides Fiscal 2024 Outlook

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Feb. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Food solutions company SpartanNash (the “Company”) (Nasdaq: SPTN) today reported financial results for its 12-week fourth quarter and 52-week fiscal year ended Dec. 30, 2023.

“Our team is proud of another strong year in which we have demonstrated year-over-year growth, delivered record profitability, and performed in line with our expectations, all in spite of a challenging macroeconomic environment,” said SpartanNash President and CEO Tony Sarsam. “We are on track to achieve the objectives in our long-term strategic plan as we focus on creating enhanced customer value and capturing additional cost savings from our transformational initiatives. We expect 2024 to be another pivotal year of market share growth in our Wholesale and Retail segments. Our talented Associates have built a strong foundation for us to pursue both organic and inorganic opportunities.”

Fourth Quarter Highlights⁽²⁾

• Net sales decreased 2.8% to $2.25 billion, driven by lower volumes in both the Wholesale and Retail segments.
  • Wholesale segment net sales decreased 2.0% to $1.60 billion due primarily to lower volume in the national accounts customer channel.
  • Retail segment net sales decreased 4.5% to $647.0 million, with comparable store sales down 2.8%. The net sales decrease was primarily driven by a reduction in food assistance program benefits and lower fuel sales.
• Net earnings of $0.30 per diluted share, compared to $0.02 per diluted share in the prior year.
  • The increase was primarily due to a higher gross profit rate and lower incentive compensation. This favorability was partially offset by lower unit volumes and an increase in restructuring and asset impairment charges.
• Adjusted EPS⁽³⁾ of $0.35, compared to $0.28 in the prior year. Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $53.6 million, compared to $47.2 million in the prior year.
  • These measures exclude, among other items, the impact of the LIFO provision and restructuring and asset impairment charges.

Fiscal 2023 Highlights⁽⁴⁾

• Net sales increased 0.9% to $9.73 billion.
  • Wholesale net sales increased 1.1% to $6.92 billion.
  • Retail increased 0.4% to $2.81 billion, with a comparable store sales increase of 2.0%.
• Net earnings of $1.50 per diluted share increased compared to $0.95 per diluted share.
• Adjusted EPS⁽³⁾ of $2.18 decreased from $2.33. Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $257.4 million increased from $242.9 million.
• Cash generated from operating activities of $89.3 million decreased from $110.4 million.
• Net long-term debt⁽⁵⁾ to adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ ratio of 2.3x at year end increased sequentially compared to 2.1x at the end of the third quarter.
• Capital expenditures and IT capital⁽⁶⁾ of $127.4 million increased compared to $102.1 million.
• Returned $48.3 million to shareholders through $18.6 million in share repurchases and $29.7 million in dividends compared to $62.2 million returned to shareholders in the prior year.

Fiscal 2024 Outlook

The following table provides the Company’s guidance for fiscal 2024:

Guidance incorporates the Company’s long-term strategic initiatives, including all transformational programs and tuck-in acquisitions.

Conference Call & Supplemental Earnings Presentation

The Company will host a conference call to discuss its quarterly results with additional comments and details on Thursday, February 15, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. ET. There will also be a simultaneous, live webcast made available at SpartanNash’s website at www.spartannash.com/webcasts under the “Investor Relations” section and will remain archived on the Company’s website through Thursday, February 29, 2024.

A supplemental quarterly earnings presentation will also be available on the Company’s website at www.spartannash.com/investor-presentations.

About SpartanNash

SpartanNash (Nasdaq: SPTN) is a food solutions company that delivers the ingredients for a better life. Committed to fostering a People First culture, the SpartanNash family of Associates is approximately 17,000 strong. SpartanNash operates two complementary business segments – food wholesale and grocery retail. Its global supply chain network serves wholesale customers that include independent and chain grocers, national retail brands, e-commerce platforms, and U.S. military commissaries and exchanges. The Company distributes products for every aisle in the grocery store, from fresh produce to household goods to its OwnBrands, which include the Our Family^® portfolio of products. On the retail side, SpartanNash operates 144 brick-and-mortar grocery stores, primarily under the banners of Family Fare, Martin’s Super Markets and D&W Fresh Market, in addition to dozens of pharmacies and fuel centers. Leveraging insights and solutions across its segments, SpartanNash offers a full suite of support services for independent grocers. For more information, visit spartannash.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

The matters discussed in this press release and in the Company’s website-accessible conference calls with analysts and investor presentations include “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”), about the plans, strategies, objectives, goals or expectations of the Company. These forward-looking statements may be identifiable by words or phrases indicating that the Company or management “expects,” “projects,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “believes,” “intends,” or “estimates,” or that a particular occurrence or event “may,” “could,” “should,” “will” or “will likely” result, occur or be pursued or “continue” in the future, that the “outlook,” “trend,” “guidance” or “target” is toward a particular result or occurrence, that a development is an “opportunity,” “priority,” “strategy,” “focus,” that the Company is “positioned” for a particular result, or similarly stated expectations. Undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based on estimates and assumptions that are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies, many of which, with respect to future business decisions, are subject to change. These uncertainties and contingencies may affect actual results and could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include the Company’s ability to compete in an extremely competitive industry; the Company’s dependence on certain major customers; the Company’s ability to implement its growth strategy and transformation initiatives; the Company’s ability to implement its growth strategy through acquisitions and successfully integrate acquired businesses; disruptions to the Company’s information security network, including security breaches and cyber-attacks; impacts to the availability and performance of the Company’s information technology systems; changes in relationships with the Company’s vendor base; changes in product availability and product pricing from vendors; macroeconomic uncertainty, including rising inflation, potential economic recession, and increasing interest rates; difficulty attracting and retaining well-qualified Associates and effectively managing increased labor costs; failure to successfully retain or manage transitions with executive leaders and other key personnel; impacts to the Company’s business and reputation due to an increasing focus on environmental, social and governance matters; customers to whom the Company extends credit or for whom the Company guarantees loans may fail to repay the Company; changes in the geopolitical conditions; disruptions associated with severe weather conditions and natural disasters, including effects from climate change; disruptions associated with disease outbreaks; the Company’s ability to manage its private brand program for U.S. military commissaries, including the termination of the program or not achieving the desired results; impairment charges for goodwill or other long-lived assets; the Company’s level of indebtedness; interest rate fluctuations; the Company’s ability to service its debt and to comply with debt covenants; changes in government regulations; labor relations issues; changes in the military commissary system, including its supply chain, or in the level of governmental funding; product recalls and other product-related safety concerns; cost increases related to multi-employer pension plans; and other risks and uncertainties listed under “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to the Company or that the Company currently believes are immaterial also may impair its business, operations, liquidity, financial condition and prospects. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements to reflect developments that occur or information obtained after the date of this press release.

INVESTOR CONTACT:
Kayleigh Campbell
Head of Investor Relations
[email protected]

MEDIA CONTACT:
Adrienne Chance
SVP, Communications
[email protected]

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to reporting financial results in accordance with GAAP, the Company also provides information regarding adjusted earnings from continuing operations, as well as per diluted share (“adjusted EPS”), net long-term debt, capital expenditures and IT capital, and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“adjusted EBITDA”). These are non-GAAP financial measures, as defined below, and are used by management to allocate resources, assess performance against its peers and evaluate overall performance. The Company believes these measures provide useful information for both management and its investors. The Company believes these non-GAAP measures are useful to investors because they provide additional understanding of the trends and special circumstances that affect its business. These measures provide useful supplemental information that helps investors to establish a basis for expected performance and the ability to evaluate actual results against that expectation. The measures, when considered in connection with GAAP results, can be used to assess the overall performance of the Company as well as assess the Company’s performance against its peers. These measures are also used as a basis for certain compensation programs sponsored by the Company. In addition, securities analysts, fund managers and other shareholders and stakeholders that communicate with the Company request its financial results in these adjusted formats.

Current year adjusted earnings from continuing operations, and adjusted EBITDA exclude, among other items, LIFO expense, organizational realignment, severance associated with cost reduction initiatives, a non-routine settlement related to a legal matter resulting from a previously closed operation that was resolved during the year and operating and non-operating costs associated with the postretirement plan amendment and settlement. Current year organizational realignment includes consulting and severance costs associated with the Company’s change in its go-to-market strategy as part of its long-term plan, which relates to the reorganization of certain functions. Costs related to the postretirement plan amendment and settlement include non-operating expenses associated with recognition of plan settlement losses and amortization of the prior service credit related to the amendment of the retiree medical plan, which are adjusted out of adjusted earnings from continuing operations. Postretirement plan amendment and settlement costs also include operating expenses related to payroll taxes which are adjusted out of all non-GAAP financial measures. Prior year adjusted earnings from continuing operations, and adjusted EBITDA exclude, among other items, LIFO expense, costs related to shareholder activism, operating and non-operating costs associated with the postretirement plan amendment and settlement, non-operating costs associated with the write off of certain unamortized deferred financing costs related to the debt modification, organizational realignment, and severance associated with cost reduction initiatives. Costs related to shareholder activism include consulting, legal and other expenses incurred in relation to shareholder activism activities. Prior year organizational realignment includes benefits for associates terminated as part of leadership transition plans, which do not meet the definition of a reduction-in-force.

Each of these items are considered “non-operational” or “non-core” in nature.

The Company is unable to provide a full reconciliation of the GAAP to non-GAAP measures used in the Fiscal 2024 Outlook section of this press release without unreasonable effort because it is not possible to predict certain adjustment items with a reasonable degree of certainty since they are not yet known or quantifiable, and do not relate to the Company’s normal operating activities. These adjustments may include, among other items, restructuring and asset impairment activity, acquisition and integration costs, severance, costs related to the postretirement plan amendment and settlement, and organizational realignment costs, and the impact of adjustments to the LIFO inventory reserve. This information is dependent upon future events, which may be outside of the Company’s control and could have a significant impact on its GAAP financial results for fiscal 2024.

Notes: Adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (“adjusted EBITDA”) is a non-GAAP operating financial measure that the Company defines as net earnings plus interest, discontinued operations, depreciation and amortization, and other non-cash items including share-based payments (equity awards measured in accordance with ASC 718, Stock Compensation, which include both stock-based compensation to employees and stock warrants issued to non-employees) and the LIFO provision, as well as adjustments for items that do not reflect the ongoing operating activities of the Company.

Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA by segment are not measures of performance under GAAP and should not be considered as a substitute for net earnings, cash flows from operating activities and other income or cash flow statement data. The Company’s definitions of adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA by segment may not be identical to similarly titled measures reported by other companies.

Notes: Adjusted earnings from continuing operations, as well as per diluted share (“adjusted EPS”), is a non-GAAP operating financial measure that the Company defines as net earnings plus or minus adjustments for items that do not reflect the ongoing operating activities of the Company and costs associated with the closing of operational locations.

Adjusted earnings from continuing operations is not a measure of performance under GAAP and should not be considered as a substitute for net earnings, cash flows from operating activities and other income or cash flow statement data. The Company’s definition of adjusted earnings from continuing operations may not be identical to similarly titled measures reported by other companies.

Notes: Net long-term debt is a non-GAAP financial measure that is defined as long-term debt and finance lease obligations plus current maturities of long-term debt and finance lease obligations less cash and cash equivalents. The Company believes both management and its investors find the information useful because it reflects the amount of long-term debt obligations that are not covered by available cash and temporary investments. Net long-term debt is not a substitute for GAAP financial measures and may differ from similarly titled measures of other companies.

Notes: Capital expenditures and IT capital is a non-GAAP financial measure calculated by adding spending related to the development of cloud computing applications to capital expenditures, the most directly comparable GAAP measure. Cloud computing spend only includes costs incurred during the application development phase and does not include ongoing costs of hosting or maintenance associated with these applications, which are expensed as incurred. The Company believes it is a useful indicator of the Company’s investment in its facilities and systems as it transitions to more cloud-based IT systems. Capital expenditures and IT capital is not a substitute for GAAP financial measures and may differ from similarly titled measures of other companies.

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SOURCE SpartanNash