SALT LAKE CITY, April 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: OSTK) today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2011.

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Key Q1 2011 metrics (comparison to Q1 2010):

• Revenue:  $265.5M vs. $264.3M (0% increase);
• Gross margin: 18.9% vs. 17.9% (100 basis point increase);
• Gross profit:  $50.1M vs. $47.3M (6% increase);
• Sales and marketing expense: $15.4M vs. $14.3M (8% increase);
• Contribution (non-GAAP measure): $34.7M vs. $33.0M (5% increase);
• G&A/Technology expense: $34.6M vs. $28.9M (20% increase);
• Net income (loss) attributable to common shares: ($454,000) vs. $3.7M ($4.2M decrease); and
• Diluted EPS: ($0.02)/share vs. $0.16/share ($(0.18) decrease).

The Company will hold a conference call and webcast to discuss its first quarter 2011 financial results today at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Please email questions to Kevin Moon at kmoon@overstock.com prior to the conference call.

Key financial and operating metrics:

Total revenue — Revenues were flat in the first quarter of 2011 on a year-over-year basis. Total revenue was $265.5 million and $264.3 million in the first quarter of 2011 and 2010, respectively. Direct revenue decreased 4.8% to $48.2 million, and fulfillment partner revenue increased 1.7% to $217.3 million. Pricing initiatives, which were a key driver of strong revenue growth last year, have largely been realized and did not have a significant impact on revenue growth this quarter. In addition, revenues from Google's natural search rankings were impacted due to the penalty imposed by Google Inc. for noncompliance with some of its natural search guidelines. We estimate that our revenues were adversely impacted from February 22, 2011 through April 21, 2011 while the penalty was in place.  

Gross profit —Gross profit for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010 was $50.1 million and $47.3 million, respectively, a 6% increase, representing 18.9% and 17.9% of total revenue for those periods.  Gross margin for the direct business decreased to 10.7% for the first quarter of 2011, from 13.8% for the same period last year. The decrease is primarily due to promotional activities to sell seasonal merchandise along with higher returns costs, partially offset by a shift in product mix from lower to higher margin products. Gross margin for the fulfillment partner business increased to 20.7% for the first quarter of 2011, from 18.8% last year. The increase is primarily due to a shift in product mix from lower to higher margin products, reduced shipping costs and improved product pricing.

Contribution (a non-GAAP financial measure) and contribution margin (a non-GAAP financial measure) — Contribution for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010 was $34.7 million and $33.0 million, respectively, a 5% increase. Contribution margin was 13.1% and 12.5% for those same periods.  

Contribution (a non-GAAP financial measure) (which we reconcile to "gross profit" in our statement of operations) consists of gross profit less sales and marketing expense and reflects an additional way of viewing our results. Contribution margin is contribution as a percentage of total net revenue. When viewed with our GAAP gross profit less sales and marketing expenses, we believe contribution and contribution margin provides management and users of the financial statements information about our ability to cover our fixed operating costs, such as technology and general and administrative expenses. Contribution and contribution margin are used in addition to and in conjunction with results presented in accordance with GAAP and should not be relied upon to the exclusion of GAAP financial measures. You should review our financial statements and publicly-filed reports in their entirety and not rely on any single financial measure. The material limitation associated with the use of contribution is that it is an incomplete measure of profitability as it does not include all operating expenses or non-operating income and expenses. Management compensates for these limitations when using this measure by looking at other GAAP measures, such as operating income (loss) and net income (loss).

For further details on contribution and contribution margin, see the calculation of these non-GAAP financial measures and the reconciliation of contribution to gross profit below (in thousands):

Sales and marketing expenses — Sales and marketing expenses totaled $15.4 million and $14.3 million for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010, respectively, an 8% increase and representing 5.8% and 5.4% of revenue for the same periods. The increase in sales and marketing costs as a percentage of revenue was primarily due to increased marketing expenditures to mitigate the negative impact of the Google penalty, and an increase in salaries and benefits expense (primarily due to increases in staffing).

Technology expenses — Technology expenses totaled $16.7 million and $13.9 million for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010, respectively, a 19% increase, and representing 6.3% and 5.3% of revenue for those respective periods. The $2.8 million increase is primarily due to a $1.6 million increase in salaries and benefits expense (primarily due to increases in staffing), and an $898,000 increase in depreciation expense as a result of significant capital expenditures for information technology assets in 2010.

General and administrative ("G&A") expenses — G&A expenses totaled $18.0 million and $14.9 million for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010, respectively, a 21% increase and representing 6.8% and 5.6% of total revenue for those respective periods.  The $3.1 million increase is primarily due to a $1.8 million increase in legal fees, a $1.0 million increase in salaries and benefits expense (primarily due to increases in staffing), partially offset by a $1.1 million decrease in professional service fees for our external auditors. 

Restructuring — No restructuring charges occurred during the first quarter of 2011 and 2010. We reversed $136,000 of lease termination costs liability during the first quarter 2010 due to changes in the estimate of sublease income, primarily as a result of our entering into an agreement with a sublessee to terminate the sublease and re-occupy a portion of the space previously abandoned, due to our growth and need for additional space.

Operating income — Operating income for the first quarter of 2011 was $13,000 compared to $4.3 million in 2010, a $4.3 million decrease, and representing 0% and 1.6% of total revenue for those respective periods.  

Interest income — Interest income was $52,000 and $16,000 for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010, respectively.

Interest expense — Interest expense for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010 was $676,000 and $802,000, respectively. Interest expense is largely related to interest incurred on our Senior Notes, finance obligations and capital leases. The decrease in interest expense in 2011 is primarily a result of extinguishments of Senior Notes, partially offset by increased interest expense related to our finance obligations.

Other income, net — Other income, net for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010 was $189,000 and $371,000, respectively.

Income taxes — Income tax for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010 was $22,000 and $129,000, respectively.

Net income (loss) attributable to common shares — Net loss attributable to common shares for the first quarter of 2011 was $(454,000), or ($0.02) per share on a fully diluted basis, compared to net income attributable to common shares of $3.7 million, or $0.16 per share on a fully diluted basis for the first quarter of 2010.

Free cash flow (a non-GAAP financial measure) — Free cash flow for the first quarter of 2011 and 2010 totaled ($10.9) million and ($32.6) million, respectively. The $21.7 million year over year increase was due primarily to a $2.8 million decrease in capital expenditures in the first quarter of 2011 over 2010, and an $18.9 million increase in operating cash flow, which was primarily due to a larger reduction in inventory and lower payments of accounts payable during Q1 2011 compared to last year.

Free cash flow reflects an additional way of viewing our cash flows and liquidity that, when viewed with our GAAP results, provides a more complete understanding of factors and trends affecting our cash flows and liquidity. Free cash flow, which we reconcile to "net cash provided by operating activities," is cash flow from operations, reduced by "expenditures for fixed assets, including internal-use software and website development." We believe that cash flows from operating activities is an important measure, since it includes both the cash impact of the continuing operations of the business and changes in the balance sheet that impact cash. However, we believe free cash flow is a useful measure to evaluate our business since purchases of fixed assets are a necessary component of ongoing operations and free cash flow measures the amount of cash we have available for future investment, debt retirement or other changes to our capital structure after we have paid all of our expenses. Therefore, we believe it is important to view free cash flow as a complement to our entire consolidated statements of cash flows.

Our calculation of free cash flow is set forth below (in thousands):

Cash and working capital — At March 31, 2011, we had cash and cash equivalents of $100.3 million.  Working capital was $15.1 million and $14.7 million at March 31, 2011 and December 31, 2010, respectively.  

About Overstock.com

Overstock.com, Inc. (short cut: O.co) is a Savings Engine offering brand-name merchandise at discount prices.  The company offers its customers an opportunity to shop for bargains conveniently, while offering its suppliers an alternative inventory distribution channel.  Overstock.com, headquartered in Salt Lake City, is a publicly traded company listed on the NASDAQ Global Market System and can be found online at http://www.overstock.com and http://www.o.co. Overstock.com regularly posts information about the company and other related matters on its website under the heading "Investor Relations."

Overstock.com® is a registered trademark and O.co™ and Savings Engine™ are trademarks of Overstock.com, Inc.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements include all statements other than statements of historical fact.  Our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, and our other subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission identify important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those contained in or contemplated or implied by any projections, estimates or forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Overstock.com, Inc.