BJ's Wholesale Club (BJ) 10-Q2023 Q1 Quarterly report

As used in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, unless the context otherwise requires: 

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries is a leading warehouse club operator concentrated primarily in the eastern half of the United States. As of April 29, 2023, the Company operated 237 warehouse clubs and 167 gas stations in 18 states.

The Company follows and reports based on the National Retail Federation’s fiscal calendar. The thirteen week periods ended April 29, 2023 and April 30, 2022 are referred to herein as the "first quarter of fiscal year 2023" and the "first quarter of fiscal year 2022," respectively.

The accompanying interim financial statements of BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. are unaudited and, in the opinion of management, reflect all normal recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair statement of the Company’s financial statements in accordance with GAAP. 

The condensed consolidated balance sheet as of January 28, 2023 is derived from the audited consolidated balance sheet as of that date. The unaudited results of operations for the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 are not necessarily indicative of future results or results to be expected for fiscal year 2023. The Company’s business, in common with the business of retailers generally, is subject to seasonal influences. The Company’s sales and operating income have typically been highest in the fourth quarter holiday season and lowest in the first quarter of each fiscal year. 

These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2022, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 16, 2023.

The Company’s accounting policies are set forth in the audited financial statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for fiscal year 2022. There have been no material changes to these accounting policies and no accounting pronouncements adopted that had a material impact on the Company’s financial statements.

The Company identifies each distinct performance obligation to transfer goods (or bundle of goods) or services. The Company recognizes revenue as it satisfies a performance obligation by transferring control of the goods or services to the customer.

Net sales—The Company recognizes net sales at clubs and gas stations when the customer takes possession of the goods and tenders payment. Sales tax is recorded as a liability at the point of sale. Revenue is recorded at the point of sale based on the transaction price on the shelf sign, net of any applicable discounts, sales tax and expected refunds. For e-commerce sales, the Company recognizes sales when control of the merchandise is transferred to the customer, which is typically at the time of shipment. The following table summarizes the Company’s point of sale transactions at clubs and gas stations, excluding sales tax, as a percentage of both net sales and total revenues:

BJ’s Perks Rewards and My BJ’s Perks programs—The Company’s BJ’s Perks Rewards membership program which was in place in fiscal year 2022, allowed participating members to earn 2% cash back, up to a maximum of $500 per year, on qualified purchases made at BJ’s. The Company also offered a co-branded credit card program, the My BJ’s Perks program, which allowed My BJ’s Perks Mastercard credit card holders to earn up to 5% cash back on eligible purchases made at BJ’s and up to 2% cash back on purchases made with the card outside of BJ’s. Cash back was in the form of electronic awards issued in $10 increments that could be used online or in-club at the register and expired six months from the date issued. 

In the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, the Company rebranded the rewards program. The former BJ's Perks Rewards membership program is now the Club+ program, whereby participating members earn 2% cash back, up to a maximum of $500 per year, on qualified purchases made at BJs and a 5 cent-per-gallon discount at BJ's gas locations. The Company's co-branded credit card program is now the BJ's One and BJ's One+ program, which allows cardholders with the opportunity to earn up to 5% cash back on purchases made in BJ's clubs or online at bjs.com and up to a 15 cent-per-gallon discount on gasoline when paying with a BJ's One or BJ's One+ Mastercard at our BJ’s gas locations. Cash back is in the form of electronic awards issued to each member monthly on their credit card statement date. Earned rewards under these two programs do not expire.

Earned awards may be redeemed on future purchases made at the Company. The Company recognizes revenue for earned awards when customers redeem such awards as part of a purchase at one of the Company’s clubs or the Company’s website. The Company accounts for these transactions as multiple element arrangements and allocates the transaction price to separate performance obligations using their relative fair values. The Company includes the fair value of award dollars earned in deferred revenue at the time the award dollars are earned. This liability was $36.6 million at April 29, 2023, $34.7 million at January 28, 2023 and $32.5 million at April 30, 2022 and is included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the condensed consolidated balance sheets. In the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, the Company recognized $34.7 million of revenue that was included in the deferred liability as of January 28, 2023. In the first quarter of fiscal year 2022, the Company recognized $30.3 million that was included in the deferred liability as of January 29, 2022.

Royalty revenue received in connection with the My BJ’s Perks and the BJ's One and BJ's One+ co-brand credit card program is variable consideration and is considered deferred until the card holder makes a purchase. The Company’s total deferred royalty revenue related to the outstanding My BJ's Perks and BJ's One and BJ's One+ credit card program was $4.1 million, $17.9 million, and $29.2 million at April 29, 2023, January 28, 2023, and April 30, 2022, respectively, and is included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the condensed consolidated balance sheets. The timing of revenue recognition of these awards is driven by actual customer activities, such as redemptions and expirations. As of April 29, 2023, the Company expects to recognize $4.1 million of the deferred revenue in fiscal year 2023.

In connection with the new co-brand credit card program, the Company has deferred approximately $14.7 million for funds received related to marketing and other integration costs as of April 29, 2023. The Company expects to recognize approximately $6.3 million in fiscal year 2023, which is included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities. The Company expects to recognize approximately $8.4 million thereafter, of which $1.1 million is included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities and $7.3 million is included in other non-current liabilities in the condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Membership—The Company charges a membership fee to its customers, which allows customers to shop in the Company’s clubs, shop on the Company’s website, and purchase gasoline at the Company’s gas stations for the duration of the membership, which is generally 12 months. As the Company has the obligation to provide access to its clubs, website, and gas stations for the duration of the membership term, the Company recognizes membership fees on a straight-line basis over the life of the membership. The Company’s deferred revenue related to membership fees was $192.7 million, $183.7 million and $185.2 million at April 29, 2023, January 28, 2023, and April 30, 2022, respectively, and is included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Gift Card Programs—The Company sells BJ’s gift cards that allow customers to redeem the card for future purchases equal to the amount of the original purchase price of the gift card. Revenue from gift card sales is recognized upon redemption of the gift card because the Company’s performance obligation to redeem the gift card for merchandise is satisfied when the gift card is redeemed. Deferred revenue related to gift cards was $13.1 million, $14.1 million and $11.2 million at April 29, 2023, January 28, 2023, and April 30, 2022, respectively. The Company recognized $11.6 million and $10.5 million of revenue from gift card redemptions in the first quarters of fiscal year 2023 and fiscal year 2022, respectively.

The Company’s club retail operations, which include retail club and other sales procured from our clubs and distribution centers, represent substantially all of its consolidated total revenues, and are the Company’s only reportable segment. All the

The following table summarizes the Company’s percentage of net sales disaggregated by category:

The following table summarizes the Company’s debt (in thousands):

On July 28, 2022, the Company entered into the ABL Revolving Facility with an ABL Revolving Commitment of $1.2 billion pursuant to that certain credit agreement (the "Credit Agreement") with Bank of America, N.A., as administrative agent and collateral agent, and the other lenders party thereto. The maturity date of the ABL Revolving Facility is July 28, 2027. In connection with this transaction, the Company extinguished the ABL Facility.

The ABL Revolving Facility places certain restrictions (i.e., covenants) upon the Borrower’s, and its subsidiaries’, ability to, among other things, incur additional indebtedness, pay dividends and make certain loans, investments, and divestitures. The ABL Revolving Facility contains customary events of default (including payment defaults, cross-defaults to certain of our other

At January 28, 2023, there was $405.0 million outstanding in loans under the ABL Revolving Facility and $11.5 million in outstanding letters of credit. The interest rate on the revolving credit facility was 5.63% and unused capacity was $535.2 million.

As of April 29, 2023, there was $400.0 million outstanding in loans under the ABL Revolving Facility and $11.8 million in outstanding letters of credit. The interest rate on the ABL Revolving Facility was 6.08% and unused capacity was $645.0 million.

The ABL Revolving Facility replaced the ABL Facility, which was comprised of a $950.0 million revolving credit facility and a $50.0 million term loan. The ABL Facility was secured on a senior basis by certain "liquid assets" of the Company and secured on a junior basis by certain "fixed assets" of the Company. The $50.0 million term loan payment terms were restricted in that the term loan could not be repaid unless all loans outstanding under the ABL Facility are repaid, and once repaid, cannot be re-borrowed. The availability under the $950.0 million revolving credit facility was restricted based on eligible monthly merchandise inventories and receivables as defined in the facility agreement. Interest on the revolving credit facility was calculated either at the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") plus a range of 125 to 175 basis points or a base rate plus a range of 25 to 75 basis points; and interest on the term loan was calculated at LIBOR plus a range of 200 to 250 basis points or a base rate plus a range of 100 to 150 basis points, in all cases based on excess availability. The applicable spread of LIBOR and base rate loans at all levels of excess availability stepped down by 12.5 basis points upon achieving total net leverage of 3.00 to 1.00. The ABL Facility also provided a sub-facility for issuance of letters of credit subject to certain fees defined in the ABL Facility agreement. The ABL Facility was subject to various commitment fees during the term of the facility based on utilization of the revolving credit facility and was scheduled to mature on August 17, 2023.

As of April 30, 2022, there was $130.0 million outstanding in loans under the ABL Facility and $10.9 million in outstanding letters of credit. The interest rate on the ABL Facility was 1.89%, the interest rate of the term loan was 2.45%, and unused capacity was $859.1 million.

On January 5, 2023, the Company entered into an amendment (the “Third Amendment”) to the First Lien Term Loan Credit Agreement, with Nomura Corporate Funding Americas, LLC, as administrative agent and collateral agent and the lenders party thereto. BofA Securities, Inc., Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., and Wells Fargo Securities LLC acted as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners of the Third Amendment.

The Third Amendment, among other things, extended the maturity date with respect to the term loans outstanding under the First Lien Term Loan Credit Agreement from February 3, 2024 to February 3, 2027. In addition, the Third Amendment transitioned the interest rate, immediately, from LIBOR to SOFR and changed the applicable margin from LIBOR plus 200 – 225 basis points per annum to SOFR plus 275 basis points per annum.

Voluntary prepayments are permitted. Principal payments must be made on the First Lien Term Loan pursuant to an annual excess cash flow calculation when the net leverage ratio exceeds 3.50 to 1.00. As of April 29, 2023, the Company's net leverage ratio did not exceed 3.50 to 1.00, and therefore, no incremental principal payments were required. The First Lien Term Loan is subject to certain affirmative and negative covenants but no financial covenants. It is secured on a senior basis by certain "fixed assets" of the Company and on a junior basis by certain "liquid" assets of the Company.

There was $450.0 million outstanding on the First Lien Term Loan at April 29, 2023 and January 28, 2023 and $701.9 million outstanding at April 30, 2022. The interest rates were 7.58%, 7.11%, and 2.52% at April 29, 2023, January 28, 2023, and April 30, 2022, respectively.

The Company is involved in various legal proceedings that are typical of a retail business. In accordance with applicable accounting guidance, an accrual will be established for legal proceedings if and when those matters present loss contingencies

On June 13, 2018, the Company’s board of directors adopted, and its stockholders approved, the BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. 2018 Incentive Award Plan (the "2018 Plan"). The 2018 Plan provides for the grant of stock options, restricted stock, dividend equivalents, stock payments, restricted stock units, performance shares, other incentive awards, stock appreciation rights, and cash awards. Prior to the adoption of the 2018 Plan, the Company granted stock-based compensation to employees and non-employee directors under the Fourth Amended and Restated 2011 Stock Option Plan of BJ’s Wholesale Club, Inc. (f/k/a Beacon Holding Inc.), as amended (the "2011 Plan") and the 2012 Director Stock Option Plan of BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (f/k/a Beacon Holding, Inc.), as amended (the "2012 Director Plan"). No further grants will be made under the 2011 Plan or the 2012 Director Plan.

The 2018 Plan authorizes the issuance of 13,148,058 shares, including 985,369 shares that were reserved but not issued under the 2011 Plan and the 2012 Director Plan. If an award under the 2018 Plan, the 2011 Plan, or the 2012 Director Plan is forfeited, expires, or is settled for cash, any shares subject to such award may, to the extent of such forfeiture, expiration, or cash settlement, be used again for new grants under the 2018 Plan. Additionally, shares tendered or withheld to satisfy grant or exercise price, or tax withholding obligations associated with an award under the 2018 Plan, the 2011 Plan, or the 2012 Director Plan will be added to the shares authorized for grant under the 2018 Plan. The following shares may not be used again for grant under the 2018 Plan: (1) shares subject to a stock appreciation right ("SAR") that are not issued in connection with the stock settlement of the SAR upon its exercise and (2) shares purchased on the open market with the cash proceeds from the exercise of options under the 2018 Plan, 2011 Plan, or 2012 Director Plan. As of April 29, 2023, there were 4,859,186 shares available for future issuance under the 2018 Plan.

On April 16, 2021, the Compensation Committee approved a modification to the equity awards agreements under the 2011 Plan, 2012 Director Plan and 2018 Plan. In the event that an employee is terminated due to death or disability, the modified equity award agreements provide for: (i) full vesting of all time-based awards, including restricted stock awards and stock options, (ii) pro-rata vesting of all performance-based awards, including performance share units, based on actual performance as of the end of the applicable performance period, pro-rated based on the period of employment during the applicable performance period, and (iii) the extension of the post-termination exercise window for vested stock options.

The following table summarizes the Company’s stock award activity during the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023 (shares in thousands):

Stock-based compensation expense was $10.0 million and $9.1 million for the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023 and April 30, 2022, respectively.

On June 14, 2018, the Company’s board of directors adopted, and its stockholders approved, the ESPP, which became effective July 1, 2018. The aggregate number of shares of common stock that were to be reserved for issuance under the ESPP was to be equal to the sum of (i) 973,014 shares and (ii) an annual increase on the first day of each calendar year beginning in 2019 and ending in 2028 equal to the lesser of (A) 486,507 shares, (B) 0.5% of the shares outstanding (on an as converted basis) on the last day of the immediately preceding fiscal year and (C) such smaller number of shares as determined by the

On November 16, 2021, the Company's board of directors approved a share repurchase program (the "2021 Repurchase Program") that allows the Company to repurchase up to $500.0 million of its outstanding common stock from time to time as market conditions warrant. The 2021 Repurchase Program expires in January 2025. The Company initiated the 2021 Repurchase Program to mitigate potentially dilutive effects of stock options and shares of restricted stock granted by the Company, in addition to enhancing shareholder value.

The Company projects the estimated annual effective tax rate for fiscal year 2023 to be 28.3%, excluding the tax effect of discrete events, such as excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation, changes in tax legislation, settlements of tax audits and changes in uncertain tax positions, among others.

The Company is subject to taxation in the U.S. federal and various state taxing jurisdictions. The Company’s tax years from 2018 forward remain open and subject to examination by the Internal Revenue Service and various state taxing authorities.

On August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law in the United States. We are currently evaluating the Inflation Reduction Act law to determine future impacts on our financial statements.

Certain assets and liabilities are carried at fair value in accordance with GAAP. Fair value is defined as the exchange price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date.

The Company uses a three-level hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs used to measure fair value. This hierarchy requires entities to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. Financial assets and liabilities carried at fair value are to be classified and disclosed in one of the following three levels of the fair value hierarchy, of which the first two are considered observable and the last is considered unobservable:

Level 1: Quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 3: Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities, including certain pricing models, discounted cash flow methodologies and similar techniques that use significant unobservable inputs.

The fair value of the Company's long-term debt is estimated based on current market rates for our specific debt instrument. Judgment is required to develop these estimates. As such, the estimated fair value of long-term debt is classified within Level 2, as defined under U.S. GAAP.

The gross carrying amount and fair value of the Company’s debt at April 29, 2023 are as follows (in thousands):

The gross carrying amount and fair value of the Company’s debt at January 28, 2023 are as follows (in thousands):

The gross carrying amount and fair value of the Company’s debt at April 30, 2022 are as follows (in thousands):

The Company measures certain non-financial assets and liabilities, including long-lived assets, at fair value on a non-recurring basis.

The Company believes that the carrying amounts of its other financial instruments, including cash, accounts receivable, and accounts payable, approximates their carrying value due to the short-term maturities of these instruments.

The table below reconciles basic weighted-average shares of common stock outstanding to diluted weighted-average shares of common stock outstanding for the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023 and April 30, 2022 (in thousands):

The table below summarizes anti-dilutive awards that were excluded from the computation of diluted earnings for the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023 and April 30, 2022, as their inclusion would have been anti-dilutive (in thousands):

On November 13, 2018, the Company entered into three forward starting interest rate swaps (the "Interest Rate Swaps"), which were effective starting on February 13, 2019 and fixed the LIBOR component of $1.2 billion of its floating rate debt at a rate of approximately 3.0% from February 13, 2019 until February 13, 2022. The Company elected hedge accounting for the interest rate swap agreements, and as such, the effective portion of the gains or losses were recorded as a component of other comprehensive income and the ineffective portion of gains or losses were recorded as interest expense.

The Interest Rate Swaps expired in February 2022. There was no liability recorded as of April 29, 2023,  January 28, 2023, or April 30, 2022.

The net of tax amount for the effective and ineffective Interest Rate Swaps was recorded in other comprehensive income and interest expense, respectively. There were no gains or losses recorded in other comprehensive income for the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023. For the thirteen weeks ended April 30, 2022, the Company recorded a $0.8 million gain in other comprehensive income. There was no ineffective portion of gains in the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023. The ineffective portion of gains of $0.3 million for the thirteen weeks ended April 30, 2022 was recorded in interest expense.

On May 2, 2022, the Company completed the Acquisition to bring substantially all of its end-to-end perishable supply chain in-house. The total consideration paid by the Company in connection with the Acquisition was approximately $375.6 million, excluding transaction costs. The Company did not record any transaction costs during the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2023. The Company recorded transaction costs related to the acquisition of $7.9 million during the thirteen weeks ended April 30, 2022. These costs are included in selling, general and administrative expenses in the condensed consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income.

The following table summarizes the consideration paid and the final fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed (in thousands) in connection with the Acquisition:

It is impracticable to provide historical supplemental pro forma financial information along with earnings during the period subsequent to the Acquisition due to a variety of factors, including access to historical information and the operations of acquirees being integrated within the Company shortly after closing and not operating as discrete entities within the Company’s organizational structure.

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements. We intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q should be considered forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding our future results of operations and financial position, business strategy, transformation, strategic priorities and future progress, including expectations regarding deferred revenue, lease commencement dates, impact of infrastructure investments on our operating model and selling, general and administrative expenses, sales of gasoline and gross profit margin rates, and new club and gas station openings, as well as statements that include terms such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "could", "intend", "project", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "continue", "forecast", "would", or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are only predictions. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to:

Given these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Except as required by applicable law, we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future, and you should not rely upon these forward-looking statements after the date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Our leadership team continues to focus on transforming how we use data to improve member experience, instilling a culture of cost discipline, adopting a more proactive approach to growing our membership base and building an omnichannel offering oriented towards making shopping at BJ’s more convenient. These changes continue to deliver results, evidenced by year-over-year income from continuing operations growth, consecutive quarter comparable club sales growth and adjusted EBITDA growth over the last four years.

Our business is moderately seasonal in nature. Historically, our business has realized a slightly higher portion of net sales, operating income, and cash flows from operations in the second and fourth fiscal quarters, attributable primarily to the impact of the summer and year-end holiday season, respectively. Our quarterly results have been, and will continue to be, affected by the timing of new club openings and their associated pre-opening expenses. As a result of these factors, our

The overall economic environment and related changes in consumer behavior have a significant impact on our business. In general, positive conditions in the broader economy promote customer spending in our clubs, while economic weakness, which generally results in a reduction of customer spending, may have a different or more extreme effect on spending at our clubs. Macroeconomic factors that can affect customer spending patterns, and thereby our results of operations, include employment rates, changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), government stimulus programs, tax legislation, business conditions, changes in the housing market, the availability of credit, interest rates, tax rates and fuel and energy costs. In addition, unemployment rates and benefits may cause us to experience higher labor costs.

The membership model is a critical element of our business. Members drive our results of operations through their membership fee income and their purchases. The majority of members renew within six months following their renewal date. Therefore, our renewal rate is a trailing calculation that captures renewals during the period seven to eighteen months prior to the reporting date. We have grown our membership fee income each year for the past two decades and the quality of our membership mix is strong as evidenced by our higher tier penetration growth in the first thirteen weeks of fiscal year 2023. Our membership renewal rate, a key indicator of membership engagement, satisfaction and loyalty, was 90% at the end of fiscal year 2022.

Our net sales and gross profit are affected by our ability to purchase our products in sufficient quantities at competitive prices. Further, our ability to maintain our appeal to existing customers and attract new customers primarily depends on our ability to originate, develop and offer a compelling product assortment responsive to customer preferences. As a result, our level of net sales could be adversely affected due to constraints in our supply chain, including our inability to procure and stock sufficient quantities of some merchandise in a manner that is able to match market demand from our customers.

Our historical operating results reflect the impact of our ongoing investments to support our growth. We have made significant investments in our business that we believe have laid the foundation for continued profitable growth. We believe that expanding our club footprint, bringing substantially all of our end-to-end perishable supply chain in-house with the Acquisition, and enhancing our information systems, including our distribution center and transportation management systems, and investing in hardware and digitally enabled shopping capabilities for convenience, such as BOPIC, curbside pickup, and same day home delivery will enable us to replicate our profitable club format and provide a differentiated shopping experience. We expect these infrastructure investments to support our successful operating model across our club operations.

The market price of gasoline impacts our net sales and comparable club sales, and large fluctuations in the price of gasoline may produce a short-term impact on our margins. Retail gasoline prices are driven by daily crude oil and wholesale commodity market changes and are volatile, as they are influenced by factors that include changes in demand and supply of oil and refined products, global geopolitical events, regional market conditions, and supply interruptions caused by severe weather conditions. Typically, the change in crude oil prices impacts the purchase price of wholesale petroleum fuel products, which in turn impacts retail gasoline prices at the pump. During times when prices are particularly volatile, differences in pricing and procurement strategies between the Company and its competitors may lead to temporary margin contraction or expansion, depending on whether prices are rising or falling, and this impact could affect our overall results for a fiscal quarter.

Our financial results can be directly impacted by substantial increases in product costs due to commodity cost increases or general inflation, which could lead to a reduction in our sales, as well as greater margin pressure, as costs may not be able to be passed on to consumers. Changes in commodity prices and general inflation have impacted several categories of our business. Recent inflationary pressures can be attributed to several macro economic factors including supply chain disruptions, government stimulus, interest rates, and other factors. In response to increasing commodity prices or general inflation, we seek to minimize the impact of such events by sourcing our merchandise from different vendors, changing our product mix or increasing our pricing when necessary.

The following table summarizes key components of our results of operations for the periods indicated: 

Net sales are derived from direct retail sales to customers in our clubs and online, net of merchandise returns and discounts. Growth in net sales is impacted by opening new clubs and increases in comparable club sales.

Net sales for the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 were $4.6 billion, a 5.0% increase from net sales reported for the first quarter of fiscal year 2022 of $4.4 billion. The increase was due primarily to a 2.0% increase in comparable club sales.

We believe net sales is an important driver of our profitability, particularly comparable club sales. Comparable sales growth is a function of increasing shopping frequency from new and existing members and the amount they spend on each visit. Sales comparisons can be influenced by certain factors that are beyond our control such as changes in the cost of gasoline and macro-economic factors such as inflation. The higher comparable club sales, the more we can leverage certain of our selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses, reducing them as a percentage of sales and enhancing profitability. 

Merchandise comparable club sales increased by 5.7% in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 compared to the first quarter of fiscal year 2022 primarily driven by an increase in sales of groceries of 8.1%.

In grocery, sales increased as demand for perishables, salty snacks, beverages, packaged goods, dairy, and bakery categories increased compared to the first quarter of fiscal year 2022, partially offset by a decrease in demand for fresh meat, vitamins, and household cleaning categories.

The impact of gasoline sales is a result of lower retail prices, partially offset by slightly higher comparable gallons sold in the first quarter of fiscal 2023 as compared to the first quarter of fiscal year 2022.

We continue to see growth in the size of our membership base and continued quality. Membership fee income was $102.5 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 compared to $96.6 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022, a 6.1% increase. The increase was primarily driven by membership renewals and new members with greater penetration of higher-tier membership levels, evidencing the strength of our membership quality. 

In connection with our co-brand credit card transition in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, we offered a 5 cent-per-gallon discount on gasoline purchases to our Club+ members. We believe the new program will help drive continued growth in our higher-tier membership penetration.

Cost of sales consists primarily of the direct cost of merchandise and gasoline sold at our clubs, including costs associated with operating our distribution centers, including payroll, payroll benefits, occupancy costs, and depreciation; freight expenses associated with moving merchandise from vendors to our distribution centers and from distribution centers to our clubs, and vendor allowances, rebates, and cash discounts. Inflation levels remained elevated in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, although moderated compared to the prior fiscal year.

Cost of sales was $3.8 billion, or 83.2% of net sales, in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 compared to $3.7 billion, or 84.2% of net sales, in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022. Merchandise gross margin rate, which excludes gasoline sales and

SG&A consists of various expenses related to supporting and facilitating the sale of merchandise in our clubs, including the following: payroll and payroll benefits for team members; rent, depreciation, and other occupancy costs for retail and corporate locations; share-based compensation, advertising expenses; tender costs, including credit and debit card fees; amortization of intangible assets; and consulting, legal, insurance, acquisition and integration costs, and other professional services expenses.

SG&A includes both fixed and variable components and, therefore, is not directly correlated with net sales. We expect that our SG&A will increase in future periods due to investments to spur comparable club sales growth and our expanding footprint as we open new clubs. In addition, any future increases in wages, stock options or other stock-based grants or modifications will increase our SG&A.

SG&A increased by 8.5% to $689.3 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 from $635.4 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022. The year-over-year increase in SG&A was primarily driven by increased labor and occupancy costs as a result of new club and gas station openings, as well as other continued investments to drive strategic priorities. Our growth profile this year is weighted toward owned clubs, elevating our depreciation expense.

Pre-opening expenses include startup costs for new clubs. Expenses will vary based on the number of new club openings, geography of the club, whether the club is owned or leased, and timing of the opening relative to our period end.

Pre-opening expenses were $3.9 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 compared to $4.9 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022. Pre-opening expenses decreased due to timing of spend for club and gas station openings year-over-year. 

Interest expense was $14.7 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 compared to $7.8 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022. The increase is primarily due to rising interest rates year-over-year.

The Company’s effective income tax rate from continuing operations was 32.6% and 21.1% for the first quarters of fiscal years 2023 and 2022, respectively. The increase in the effective tax rate was largely due to an immaterial adjustment to certain deferred tax assets related to prior periods, as well as lower excess tax benefits, offset by higher income in the current period.

The accompanying Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, including the related notes, are presented in accordance with GAAP. In addition to relevant GAAP measures we also provide non-GAAP measures, including adjusted EBITDA, comparable club sales, free cash flow, adjusted net income and adjusted net income per diluted share because management believes these metrics are useful to investors and analysts by excluding items that we do not believe are indicative of our core operating performance. These measures are customary for our industry and commonly used by competitors. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be reviewed in isolation or considered as an alternative to any other performance measure derived in accordance with GAAP and should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or non-recurring items. In addition, adjusted EBITDA, comparable club sales, free cash flow, adjusted net income and adjusted net income per diluted share may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as income from continuing operations before interest expense, net, provision for income taxes and depreciation and amortization, adjusted for the impact of certain other items, including stock-based compensation expense; pre-opening expenses; non-cash rent; acquisition and integration costs; and other adjustments.

The following is a reconciliation of our income from continuing operations to Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of net sales for the periods presented:

Comparable club sales, also known as same-store sales, includes all clubs that were open for at least 13 months at the beginning of the period and were in operation during the entirety of both periods being compared, including relocated clubs and expansions.

Comparable club sales allow us to evaluate how our club base is performing by measuring the change in period-over-period net sales in clubs that have been open for the applicable period. Various factors affect comparable club sales, including consumer preferences and trends, product sourcing, promotional offerings and pricing, customer experience and purchase amounts, weather and holiday shopping period timing and length.

Merchandise comparable club sales represents comparable club sales from all merchandise other than our gasoline operations for the applicable period.

The adjusted net income and adjusted net income per diluted share metrics are important measures used by management to compare the performance of core operating results between periods. We define adjusted net income as net income as reported adjusted for: acquisition and integration costs; home office transition costs; other adjustments; and the tax impact of the foregoing adjustments on net income. We define adjusted net income per diluted share as adjusted net income divided by the weighted-average diluted shares outstanding.

We believe adjusted net income and adjusted net income per diluted share are useful metrics to investors and analysts because they present more accurate year-over-year comparisons for our net income and net income per diluted share because adjusted items are not the result of our normal operations.

Our primary sources of liquidity are cash flows generated from club operations and borrowings from our ABL Revolving Facility. As of April 29, 2023, cash and cash equivalents totaled $23.4 million and we had $645.0 million of unused capacity under our ABL Revolving Facility. Our principal liquidity needs for the next twelve months and beyond are to fund normal recurring operational expenses and anticipated capital expenditures; fund possible acquisitions; fund share repurchases; and meet debt service and principal repayment obligations. We believe that our current resources, together with anticipated cash flows from operations and borrowing capacity under our ABL Revolving Facility, will be sufficient to finance our operations for at least the next twelve months.

In the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, we used $15.3 million of available cash to repurchase 204,040 shares under the 2021 Repurchase Program.

We do not have any off-balance sheet arrangements that have, or are, in the opinion of management, reasonably likely to have, a current or future material effect on our results of operations or financial position. We do, however, enter into letters of credit and purchase obligations in the normal course of our operations.

A summary of our cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities is presented in the following table: 

Cash used in investing activities was $92.1 million for the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, compared to $90.5 million for the first quarter of fiscal year 2022. The slight increase is primarily due to the volume and cost of property, plant and equipment additions as we continue to expand our footprint with more purchased locations. 

We present free cash flow because we use it to report to our board of directors and we believe it assists investors and analysts in evaluating our liquidity. Free cash flow should not be considered as an alternative to cash flows from operations as a liquidity measure. We define free cash flow as net cash provided by operating activities less additions to property and equipment, net of disposals, plus proceeds from sale leaseback transactions.

On July 28, 2022, the Company entered into the ABL Revolving Facility with an aggregate ABL Revolving Commitment of $1.2 billion pursuant to that certain credit agreement with Bank of America, N.A., as administrative agent and collateral agent, and other lenders party thereto. The maturity date of the ABL Revolving Facility is July 28, 2027. As part of this transaction, the Company extinguished the ABL Facility.

On January 5, 2023, the Company amended the First Lien Term Loan to extend the maturity date from February 3, 2024 to February 3, 2027 and transition the interest rate from London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) and changes the applicable margin from LIBOR plus 200 – 225 basis points per annum to SOFR plus 275 basis points per annum. In connection with the amendment the Company made a paid approximately $151.9 million of the principal amount.

At April 29, 2023, there was $400.0 million outstanding in loans under the ABL Revolving Facility and $11.8 million in outstanding letters of credit. The interest rate on the revolving credit facility was 6.08% and unused capacity was $645.0 million.

At April 29, 2023, the interest rate for the First Lien Term Loan was 7.58% and there was $450.0 million outstanding.

Our material cash commitments consist primarily of debt obligations, interest payments, leases and purchase orders for merchandise inventory. These material cash commitments impact our short-term and long-term liquidity and capital needs. As of April 29, 2023, other than those items related to the ordinary course of operations of our business such as inventory purchases, new leases and lease amendments, there were no material changes to our material cash commitments from those described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2022. 

This discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our condensed consolidated financial statements, which we have prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of our financial statements and related disclosures requires us to make estimates, assumptions and judgments that affect the reported amount of assets, liabilities, revenue, costs and expenses, and related disclosures. There were no material changes in critical accounting policies and estimates during the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Refer to Item 7., "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations— Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates," in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2022 for a complete list of our Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates.

There have been no recent accounting pronouncements since those disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2022 that have had a material impact on our financial statements.

We are exposed to changes in market interest rates and these changes in rates will impact our net interest expense and our cash flow from operations. Substantially all of our borrowings carry variable interest rates. There have been no material changes in our market risk from the disclosure included in Part II. "Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures of Market Risk" in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2022.

In designing and evaluating our disclosure controls and procedures, management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives. In addition, the design of disclosure controls and procedures must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints and that management is required to apply judgment in evaluating the benefits of possible controls and procedures relative to their costs. 

Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated, as of the end of the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective at the reasonable assurance level as of April 29, 2023. 

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting identified in management’s evaluation pursuant to Rules 13a-15 or 15d-15 of the Exchange Act during the most recently completed fiscal quarter that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

We are subject to various litigation, claims and other proceedings that arise from time to time in the ordinary course of business. We believe these actions are routine and incidental to the business. While the outcome of these actions cannot be predicted with certainty, we do not believe that any will have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

There have been no material changes to the risk factors relating to the Company set forth under the caption "Item 1A. Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year 2022.

The following table sets forth information regarding our purchases of shares of our common stock during the first quarter of fiscal year 2023.

None.

Not applicable.

None.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.