QUINCY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE:JILL) today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended January 28, 2023.

Claire Spofford, President and Chief Executive Officer of J.Jill, Inc. stated, “We are pleased with our strong finish for the year as we delivered better than expected top and bottom line results for the fourth quarter and full year. Throughout fiscal 2022, our teams did an exceptional job in delivering strong operating results while executing against our strategic initiatives including the launch of our Welcome Everybody campaign.”

Ms. Spofford, continued, “In 2023, we expect to build on this progress while maintaining the disciplined approach to inventory and expense management that we have demonstrated over the past eight quarters. While we are cautious with respect to our outlook for this year given the ongoing macro-related headwinds, we remain focused on positioning J.Jill for long term profitable growth.”

For the fourth quarter ended January 28, 2023:

• Total net sales for the thirteen weeks ended January 28, 2023 were up 1.7% to $147.7 million compared to $145.2 million for the thirteen weeks ended January 29, 2022.
• Total company comparable sales, which includes comparable store and direct to consumer sales, increased by 5.3% for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022.
• Direct to consumer net sales were down 2.5% compared to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 and represented 49.9% of total net sales.
• Gross profit was $95.1 million compared to $92.7 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. Gross margin was 64.4% compared to 63.9% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. The 50 basis points increase was driven by freight favorability which more than offset margin pressure from additional promotional activity in the quarter.
• SG&A was $87.3 million compared to $85.2 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. In comparing the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 to fiscal 2021, the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 had a one time $0.3 million benefit. Excluding the non-recurring and other one-time costs from both periods, SG&A as a percentage of total net sales was 59.1%, compared to 58.9% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• Operating income was $7.8 million compared to $7.5 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. Operating income margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 was 5.3% compared to 5.2% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. Adjusted Income from Operations*, which excludes non-recurring items and impairment charges, was $7.8 million compared to $7.3 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• Interest expense was $5.7 million compared to $4.4 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, the Company recorded an income tax provision of $1.1 million compared to an income tax benefit of $0.4 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 and the effective tax rate was 51.2% compared to (13.0%) in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• Net Income was $1.0 million compared to $3.6 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• Net Income per Diluted Share was $0.07 compared to $0.25 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 including the impact of non-recurring items. Excluding the impact of these items, Adjusted Net Income per Diluted Share* in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 was $0.11 compared to $0.15 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• Adjusted EBITDA* for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 was $15.0 million compared to $15.2 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021. Adjusted EBITDA margin* for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 was 10.2% compared to 10.5% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• The Company closed 5 stores and opened 1 new store in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 ending the quarter with 243 stores.

For the year ended January 28, 2023:

• Total net sales were up 5.1% to $615.3 million compared to $585.2 million for the year ended January 29, 2022.
• Total company comparable sales, which includes comparable store and direct to consumer sales, increased by 6.5% for the year ended January 28, 2023.
• Direct to consumer net sales were down 1.2% over fiscal 2021 and represented 46.8% of total net sales, compared to 49.8% for the year ended January 29, 2022.
• Gross profit was $422.1 million compared to $394.4 million for the year ended January 29, 2022. Gross margin was 68.6% compared to 67.4% for the year ended January 29, 2022. The year over year gross margin increase was driven by strong full price selling and reduced promotions.
• SG&A was $341.9 million compared to $335.7 million for the year ended January 29, 2022. In comparing fiscal 2022 to fiscal 2021, SG&A benefited from $0.5 million of non-recurring and other one-time expenses. Excluding the non-recurring and other one-time costs from both periods, SG&A as a percentage of total net sales was 55.6% compared to 57.3% for the year ended January 29, 2022.
• Operating income was $78.7 million compared to $58.7 million for the year ended January 29, 2022. Operating income margin for the year ended January 28, 2023 was 12.8% compared to 10.0% for the year ended January 29, 2022. Adjusted Income from Operations*, which excludes non-recurring items, adjustments for costs to exit retail stores and impairment charges, was $79.9 million compared to Adjusted Income from Operations* of $59.0 million for the year ended January 29, 2022. For the year ended January 28, 2023, the Company incurred $1.4 million of impairment charges related to right-of-use assets and leasehold improvements.
• Interest expense was $20.1 million compared to $19.1 million for the year ended January 29, 2022.
• During the year ended January 28, 2023, the Company recorded an income tax provision of $16.5 million compared to $8.0 million in the year ended January 29, 2022, and the effective tax rate was 28.1% compared to (39.8)% in the year ended January 29, 2022.
• Net Income was $42.2 million compared to a Net Loss of $28.1 million for the year ended January 29, 2022 which included $59.8 million non-cash charges related to the fair value adjustment of the warrants and the Priming Loan embedded derivative.
• Net Income per Diluted Share was $2.95 compared to a Net Loss of $2.26 for the year ended January 29, 2022 including the impact of non-recurring items. Excluding the impact of these items, Adjusted Net Income per Diluted Share* for the year ended January 28, 2023 was $3.01 compared to $2.13 for the year ended January 29, 2022.
• Adjusted EBITDA* for the year ended January 28, 2023 was $109.4 million compared to $91.8 million for the year ended January 29, 2022.
• The Company closed 11 stores and opened 1 new store in fiscal 2022, ending the year with 243 stores.

Balance Sheet Highlights

• Cash flow from operations for the year ended January 28, 2023 was $74.4 million compared to $75.0 million for the year ended January 29, 2022. The Company ended the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 with a cash balance of $87.1 million.
• Inventory at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 was $50.6 million compared to $56.0 million at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021.
• The company continues to explore options to refinance its existing term loans.

*Non-GAAP financial measures. Please see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted EBITDA,” “Reconciliation of GAAP Operating Income to Adjusted Income from Operations” and “Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted Net Income” for more information.

Outlook

For fiscal 2023, the Company expects Annual Adjusted EBITDA dollars to be approximately flat, total capital expenditures between $18.0 and $20.0 million and a flat store count to end fiscal 2023.

For the first quarter of fiscal 2023, the Company expects revenues to be down in the mid-single-digits compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2022, and for Adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $25.0 million and $30.0 million.

Conference Call Information

A conference call to discuss fourth quarter 2022 results is scheduled for today, March 14, 2023, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Those interested in participating in the call are invited to dial (888) 330-3391 or (646) 960-0845 if calling internationally. Please dial in approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the call and reference Conference ID 2289963 when prompted. A live audio webcast of the conference call will be available online at http://investors.jjill.com/Investors-Relations/News-Events/events.

A taped replay of the conference call will be available approximately two hours following the call and can be accessed both online and by dialing (800) 770-2030 or (647) 362-9199. The pin number to access the telephone replay is 2289963. The telephone replay will be available until Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

About J.Jill, Inc.

J.Jill is a national lifestyle brand that provides apparel, footwear and accessories designed to help its customers move through a full life with ease. The brand represents an easy, thoughtful, and inspired style that celebrates the totality of all women and designs its products with its core brand ethos in mind: keep it simple and make it matter. J.Jill offers a high touch customer experience through 200+ stores nationwide and a robust ecommerce platform. J.Jill is headquartered outside Boston. For more information, please visit www.jjill.com or http://investors.jjill.com. The information included on our websites is not incorporated by reference herein.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To supplement our unaudited consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), we use the following non-GAAP measures of financial performance:

• Adjusted EBITDA, which represents net income (loss) plus interest expense, provision (benefit) for income taxes, depreciation and amortization, equity-based compensation expense, impairments of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, fair value adjustments of warrants and derivatives and other non-recurring expenses and one-time items. We present Adjusted EBITDA on a consolidated basis because management uses it as a supplemental measure in assessing our operating performance, and we believe that it is helpful to investors, securities analysts and other interested parties as a measure of our comparative operating performance from period to period. We also use Adjusted EBITDA as one of the primary methods for planning and forecasting overall expected performance of our business and for evaluating on a quarterly and annual basis actual results against such expectations. Further, we recognize Adjusted EBITDA as a commonly used measure in determining business value and as such, use it internally to report results. We also use Adjusted EBITDA margin which represents, for any period, Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of net sales.
• Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations, which represents operating income (loss) plus impairments of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets and other non-recurring expense and one-time items. We present Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations because management uses it as a supplemental measure in assessing our operating performance, and we believe that it is helpful to investors, securities analysts, and other interested parties as a measure of our comparative operating performance from period to period.
• Adjusted Net Income (Loss), which represents net income (loss) plus impairments of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, fair value adjustments of warrants and derivatives and other non-recurring expenses and one-time items. We present Adjusted Net Income (Loss) because management uses it as a supplemental measure in assessing our operating performance, and we believe that it is helpful to investors, securities analysts and other interested parties as a measure of our comparative operating performance from period to period.
• Adjusted Net Income per Diluted Share (“Adjusted Diluted EPS”) represents Adjusted Net Income (Loss) divided by the number of fully diluted shares outstanding. Adjusted Diluted EPS is presented as a supplemental measure in assessing our operating performance, and we believe that it is helpful to investors, securities analysts and other interested parties as a measure of our comparative operating performance from period to period.

While we believe that Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations, Adjusted Net Income (Loss) and Adjusted Diluted EPS are useful in evaluating our business, they are non-GAAP financial measures that have limitations as analytical tools. Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations, Adjusted Net Income (Loss) and Adjusted Diluted EPS should not be considered alternatives to, or substitutes for, Net Income (Loss), Income (Loss) from Operations or Net Income (Loss) per Diluted Share, which are calculated in accordance with GAAP. In addition, other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations, Adjusted Net Income (Loss) and Adjusted Diluted EPS differently or not at all, which reduces the usefulness of such non-GAAP financial measures as tools for comparison. We recommend that you review the reconciliation and calculation of Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations, Adjusted Net Income (Loss) and Adjusted Diluted EPS to Net Income (Loss), Income (Loss) from Operations and Net Income (Loss) per Diluted Share, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, under “Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted EBITDA,” “Reconciliation of GAAP Operating Income to Adjusted Income from Operations” and “Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted Net Income” and not rely solely on Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, Adjusted Income (Loss) from Operations, Adjusted Net Income (Loss), Adjusted Diluted EPS or any single financial measure to evaluate our business.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains, and oral statements made from time to time by our representatives may contain, “forward-looking statements.” All statements that address activities, events or developments that we intend, expect or believe may occur in the future are forward-looking statements, including, among others, statements under “Outlook” and other statements identified by words such as “could,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “likely,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “seeks,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “continues,” “projects,” “goal,” “target” (although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words) and similar references to future periods, or by the inclusion of forecasts or projections. Forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and assumptions regarding capital market conditions, our business, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, by their nature, they are inherently subject to a number of risks, uncertainties, potentially inaccurate assumptions and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. As a result, our actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, regional, national or global political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory conditions, including risks regarding: (1) our ability to successfully expand and increase sales, including by opening new retail stores on a profitable basis, to maintain and enhance a strong brand image, and to optimize our omnichannel operations; (2) changes in consumer confidence, preference and spending, and our ability to adapt to such changes; (3) the competitive environment we operate in; (4) post-pandemic changes in consumer behavior and the timeline of overall economic recovery; (5) our level of indebtedness and ability to work with lenders to pursue options to refinance; and (6) other factors that may be described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including the factors set forth under “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 29, 2022. You are encouraged to read our filings with the SEC, available at www.sec.gov, for a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties. We caution investors, potential investors and others not to place considerable reliance on the forward-looking statements in this press release and in the oral statements made by our representatives. Any such forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made. J.Jill undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

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