• Drove sequential sales growth and significant gross margin improvement
• Achieved all-time record quarterly earnings
• Paid down an additional $100 million of debt
• Expects fiscal full-year 2021 adjusted earnings per share of between $3.25 to $3.50

Caleres (NYSE: CAL, caleres.com), operating a powerful portfolio of consumer-centric footwear brands, today reported financial results for the second quarter ended July 31, 2021. During the quarter, through its laser focus on the consumer’s evolving preferences and ongoing efforts to drive growth across its omni-channel ecosystem, Caleres continued to capitalize on positive consumer demand trends and an accelerated recovery in the footwear marketplace, achieving sequential growth in both revenues and gross margin and delivering its most profitable quarter ever. The company made excellent progress toward its balance sheet goals, paying down $100 million of debt bringing its total amount of debt reduction to $340 million since early 2020, reducing its credit facility borrowings to $100 million at quarter end.

“The Caleres team continued to execute at a high level during the quarter, achieving another significant sequential increase in sales and delivering earnings well in excess of pre-pandemic levels,” said Diane Sullivan, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “This exceptional performance was led by record-setting quarterly results at Famous Footwear, which in a single quarter delivered operating earnings that exceeded full year 2019. Driving these results, Famous Footwear achieved a more than eight-percent increase in revenue, a more than 100-percent increase in return on sales, and a 670-basis-point increase in gross margin to reach approximately 50 percent versus the same period of 2019. Complementing Famous Footwear’s outstanding performance, our Brand Portfolio surpassed its operating earnings for the same period of 2019, led by strong and improving earnings results from key leadership and emerging brands, including Vionic, Sam Edelman, Allen Edmonds and Blowfish Malibu.

Second Quarter 2021 Highlights

(13-weeks ended July 31, 2021 compared to 13-weeks ended August 1, 2020)

• Net sales were $675.5 million, up 34.7 percent from the second quarter of fiscal 2020
  • A 35.8 percent sales increase in the Famous Footwear segment;
  • A 30.2 percent sales increase in the Brand Portfolio segment;
  • Direct-to-consumer sales represented 79 percent of total net sales
• Gross profit was $322.3 million, while gross margin was 47.7 percent, or an approximately 11 full percentage point improvement over second quarter 2020;
  • A 50.1 percent gross margin in the Famous Footwear segment;
  • A 39.7 percent gross margin in the Brand Portfolio segment;
• SG&A expense of $259.5 million, or 38.4 percent of total net sales, down from 40.1 percent of total net sales in the second quarter of fiscal 2020;
• Net income of $37.4 million, or earnings of $0.97 per diluted share, compared to net loss of $30.7 million, or a loss of $0.83 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2020. Earnings of $0.97 per share includes $0.22 for the below items:
  • Fair value adjustment of $0.14 associated with the mandatory purchase obligation for Blowfish Malibu; and
  • Deferred tax valuation allowances of $0.08;
• Adjusted net income was approximately $46.0 million, or adjusted earnings of $1.19 per diluted share compared to adjusted net loss of $21.1 million, or adjusted loss of $0.57 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2020;
• Generated $65.2 million in cash from operations and ended the second quarter with $54.7 million of cash on hand;
• Inventory levels were down slightly, or approximately two percent, year-over-year, reflecting ongoing disruptions in the global supply chain;
• Reduced credit facility borrowings by $100 million from the first quarter of 2021 to end the second quarter at $100 million under its credit facility;
• Returned $2.7 million to shareholders during the quarter through its long-standing and uninterrupted quarterly dividend.

Capital Structure

The company has continued to take actions to drive long-term value for its shareholders, investing in the business and enhancing its capital structure. As indicated, Caleres reduced the borrowings under its asset-based revolving credit facility by $100 million. Subsequently, on August 16, 2021, the company proactively called $100 million, or half, of the aforementioned senior secured notes and shifted this higher-cost debt to the revolving credit facility, resulting in a nearly 50-percent reduction in the interest rate on this piece of debt. The company ended the year’s fiscal first half with $200 million of short-term debt and $100 million of long-term debt, which compares to total indebtedness of roughly $640 million at the end of the first quarter of 2020. Further complementing this effort, Caleres is currently in the process of renegotiating and renewing the terms of its asset-based revolving credit facility to better reflect the company’s dramatically improved capital structure and business outlook.

“During the period, we maintained our sharp focus on driving towards our long-term goal of zero net debt,” said Ken Hannah, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. “During the course of the past five quarters, we have utilized our strong cash generation to lower our overall indebtedness – creating significant long-term value for equity holders in the process. As we progress through 2021, we will continue to prioritize debt reduction in our capital allocation strategy, while simultaneously lowering interest expense levels still further on the debt that remains.”

Fiscal Full Year 2021 Outlook

“Looking ahead, we remain cautious about the macro environment given the uncertainty surrounding new COVID-19 variants and ongoing challenges in the global supply chain,” said Sullivan. “To that end, we are taking actions to minimize these disruptions and believe we are well-equipped to partially offset some of these cost headwinds. Even with these uncertainties, I remain highly confident in the team’s ability to build upon our recent strong performance at Famous and improving results in the Brand Portfolio, leverage our diversified brand model and continue to execute on our long-term strategic priorities in the year’s back half. We strongly believe in our prospects for delivering record annual adjusted earnings per share for fiscal year 2021 and are enthusiastic about our strategy for ongoing value creation and for the long-term opportunities that lie ahead for Caleres.”

For the third quarter we expect adjusted earnings per share of between $1.10 and $1.25 and for fiscal full year 2021, Caleres expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $3.25 and $3.50.

Investor Conference Call

Caleres will host an investor conference call at 5:00 p.m. ET today, Tuesday, August 31. The webcast and associated slides will be available at investor.caleres.com/news/events. A live conference call will be available at (877) 217-9089 for analysts in North America or (706) 679-1723 for international analysts by using the conference ID 8448125. A replay will be available at investor.caleres.com/news/events/archive for a limited period. Investors may also access the replay by dialing (855) 859-2056 in North America or (404) 537-3406 internationally and using the conference ID 8448125 through Tuesday, September 14.

Definitions

All references in this press release, outside of the condensed consolidated financial statements that follow, unless otherwise noted, related to net earnings (loss) attributable to Caleres, Inc. and diluted earnings (loss) per common share attributable to Caleres, Inc. shareholders, are presented as net earnings (loss) and earnings (loss) per diluted share, respectively.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In this press release, the company’s financial results are provided both in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and using certain non-GAAP financial measures. In particular, the company provides historic and estimated future gross profit, operating earnings (loss), net earnings (loss) and earnings (loss) per diluted share adjusted to exclude certain gains, charges and recoveries, which are non-GAAP financial measures. These results are included as a complement to results provided in accordance with GAAP because management believes these non-GAAP financial measures help identify underlying trends in the company’s business and provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain items that may not be indicative of the company’s core operating results. These measures should not be considered a substitute for or superior to GAAP results.

Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements and expectations regarding the company’s future performance and the performance of its brands. Such statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks include (i) the coronavirus pandemic and its adverse impact on our business operations, store traffic and financial condition (ii) changing consumer demands, which may be influenced by consumers' disposable income, which in turn can be influenced by general economic conditions and other factors; (iii) rapidly changing consumer preferences and purchasing patterns and fashion trends; (iv) intense competition within the footwear industry; (v) customer concentration and increased consolidation in the retail industry; (vi) foreign currency fluctuations; (vii) impairment charges resulting from a long-term decline in our stock price; (viii) political and economic conditions or other threats to the continued and uninterrupted flow of inventory from China and other countries, where the company relies heavily on third-party manufacturing facilities for a significant amount of its inventory; (ix) cybersecurity threats or other major disruption to the company’s information technology systems; (x) the ability to accurately forecast sales and manage inventory levels; (xi) a disruption in the company’s distribution centers; (xii) the ability to recruit and retain senior management and other key associates; (xiii) the ability to maintain relationships with current suppliers; (xiv) the ability to secure/exit leases on favorable terms; (xv) transitional challenges with acquisitions and divestitures; (xvi) changes to tax laws, policies and treaties; (xvii) compliance with applicable laws and standards with respect to labor, trade and product safety issues; and (xviii) the ability to attract, retain, and maintain good relationships with licensors and protect our intellectual property rights.

About Caleres

Caleres is a diverse portfolio of global footwear brands. Our products are available virtually everywhere - in the more than 1,000 retail stores we operate, in hundreds of major department and specialty stores, on our branded e-commerce sites, and on many additional third-party retail websites. Famous Footwear offers great casual and athletic brands for the entire family with convenient, curated, affordable collections. Sam Edelman keeps expressive women in step with the latest trends in a playful, whimsical way. Naturalizer shoes are beautiful from the inside out, with elegant simplicity and legendary fit re-imagined for today’s consumer. Allen Edmonds combines old world craft with new world technology to create luxe footwear for the discerning man who wants sophisticated, modern classics. Rounding out our family of brands are Vionic, Vince, Franco Sarto, Dr. Scholl’s Shoes, LifeStride, Blowfish Malibu, Bzees, Circus by Sam Edelman and Ryka. Combined, these brands make Caleres a company with both a legacy and a mission. Our legacy is our more than 140 years of craftsmanship and our passion for fit, while our mission is to continue to inspire people to feel great… feet first. Visit caleres.com to learn more about us.