Nordstrom Inc. is gearing up to go private by being a little quieter.
The Seattle department store retailer offered results for its fiscal fourth quarter and full year ended Feb. 1, but didn’t supply the markets with much beyond prepared statements in a press release.
Nordstrom also ducked out of providing guidance for its current year or hosting a conference call with analysts. The quieter-than-usual financial update comes as its pending $6.3 billion go-private deal with members of the founding family and El Puerto de Liverpool nears. The deal pencils out to $24.25 per share and is expected to close in the first half of the year.
“Customers responded positively to the strength of our offering across both banners in the fourth quarter,” CEO Erik Nordstrom said in a press release.
President Pete Nordstrom offered in that same release the company was able to work in “real-time” during the key holiday selling period and drive “strong financial results.”
Starting at the top, companywide quarterly net sales fell 2.1 percent to $4.2 billion with net earnings increasing to $165 million from $134 million a year ago. That’s across more than 350 stores under the Nordstrom, Nordstrom Local and Nordstrom Rack brands.
Nordstrom Inc. overall ended the fiscal year up 2.2 percent to $14.6 billion, with net earnings rising from $134 million to $294 million.
The company’s namesake chain slipped 3.7 percent in the quarter to $2.8 billion. For the fiscal year, Nordstrom slid less than 1 percent to $9.4 billion in net sales.
Discount division Nordstrom Rack, the consistent bright spot for the company, rose 1.2 percent to $1.4 billion. For the year, Rack net sales bumped up 8 percent to $5.2 billion.
Companywide digital sales were off 1.8 percent in the quarter.
The quarterly results also came with news that CFO Cathy Smith will part ways with the company in the next month to join Starbucks.
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