Tilly's (NYSE:TLYS) released second-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Wednesday. Read the complete transcript below.
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Summary
Tilly’s reported its third consecutive quarter of double-digit comparable sales growth, with a 12.1% increase in Q2 and a 14.6% increase in August, marking 13 consecutive months of year-over-year sales growth.
The company achieved a gross margin improvement of 300 basis points to 35.5%, driven by better full-price sales and improved inventory management, aided by AI price optimization.
Tilly’s posted a net income of $8.4 million in Q2, a substantial increase from the $3.2 million reported in the previous year’s second quarter.
The company plans to open new stores while closing some underperforming ones, aiming for 218 total stores by the end of the year.
E-commerce sales rose by 20.9%, supported by an increased social media presence, especially on TikTok, which helped nearly double their follower count.
Strategic investments include AI-driven inventory management tools and the upcoming implementation of RFID in stores to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency.
Future guidance projects net sales of $150 million to $155 million for Q3, with continued double-digit comparable net sales growth.
Management emphasized ongoing efforts to sustain profitability and improve operational efficiencies, projecting a potential return to full-year profitability for the first time since 2022.
Full Transcript
OPERATOR
Greetings and welcome to the Tilly's second quarter 2026 earnings conference call. At this time all parties are in a listen-only mode. A question-and-answer session will follow the formal presentation. If anyone should require operator assistance, please press star-zero on your telephone keypad. It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Gary Jackson with Investor Relations. Thank you. You may begin. Thank you.
Gary Jackson, Investor Relations
Good afternoon and welcome to Tilly's fiscal 2026 second quarter earnings call. Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will discuss the company's business and operating results, followed by a Q&A session with analysts. For a copy of Tilly's earnings press release, please visit the Investor Relations section of the company's website at tillys.com. From the same section, shortly after the conclusion of the call, you will also be able to find a recorded replay of this call for the next 30 days.
Certain forward-looking statements will be made during this call that reflect Tilly's judgment and analysis only as of today, specifically September 2, 2026, and actual results may differ materially from current expectations based on various factors affecting Tilly's business. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. For a more thorough discussion of the risks and uncertainties associated with any forward-looking statements, please see the disclaimer regarding forward-looking statements that is included in our fiscal 2026 second quarter earnings release, which is furnished to the SEC today on Form 8-K, as well as our other filings with the SEC referenced in that disclaimer. Today's call will be limited to one hour and will include a Q&A session after our prepared remarks. I now turn the call over to Nate.
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
Thanks, Gar, and to all for joining us today. Good afternoon. A couple of weeks ago I completed my first full year at Tilly's, and I can say without a doubt that it's an exciting time being part of the team. The company has once again executed with discipline, delivering our third straight quarter of double-digit comp sales growth in the second quarter, with that momentum holding strong through back-to-school in July and August. In reflecting on this past year, we have clearly demonstrated a consistency in execution that we can be proud of.
I'd like to acknowledge some important achievements that speak to the turnaround momentum that we have been building over the last year. First, we have now produced four consecutive quarters and 13 consecutive months of year-over-year comparable net sales growth, including our 12.1% comp sales increase in the recently completed second quarter and our 14.6% comp sales increase in fiscal August to begin the third quarter. Next, we have now delivered seven consecutive quarters of year-over-year product margin improvement.
We are not only seeing stronger full-price sales overall, but we are also seeing significantly improved average unit retails on aged clearance items. From the impact of the AI price optimization investment we made last year, we've been delivering higher sales on lower inventory levels so far this year, further aiding our product margin gains. Third, we have now posted five consecutive quarters of year-over-year profit improvement on the bottom line.
This has been driven not only by improved merchandise assortments, tighter inventory planning and management, and sharper pricing decisions, but also through significant efficiencies in store and distribution labor management and stable home office expenses as sales have grown. And finally, the collection of these improvements has now returned us to profitability on a trailing four-quarters basis as well as on a year-to-date basis. For fiscal '26, it's just under $2 million of profit over the past four quarters and $400,000 of profit on a year-to-date basis.
These are important milestones cleared in our turnaround story as we work towards producing what we currently believe will be our first profitable fiscal year since 2022. We are encouraged by our progress, but we're not finished. We intend to keep executing and building upon the momentum we've generated. From a merchandising perspective, in the second quarter, all departments but footwear posted double-digit percentage comp sales gains. Performance was once again strong across both proprietary and third-party brands in apparel.
With few exceptions, these results reflect an assortment that was well positioned for our critical back-to-school season. In terms of store performance, all geographic markets posted comp sales gains in the quarter. Strong conversion, units per transaction, and average sale growth fueled the performance in our stores. We believe this demonstrates the strength of our assortment and the effectiveness of our customer engagement. In terms of store real estate, we opened one new store in each of late July and early August, and we currently expect to open one additional store in mid-November.
We also closed one store in mid-July and currently expect to close one store in each of late September and December and two more at the end of January to finish the year with 218 total stores in operation. In fiscal 2027, we are tentatively targeting to open five to eight new stores depending on available opportunities and our ability to achieve appropriate lease economics. Our digital business grew by 20.9% in the second quarter. Expanding our presence across the platforms our customers use most, including TikTok and other emerging channels, has been an important evolution of our online capabilities.
We believe our improved focus on social media platforms has helped reach new audiences, based on our TikTok follower count nearly doubling to over 325,000 and our one-year active loyalty program membership growing by 20% to 4.6 million members since this time last year. We need both stores and online performing well to reach our profitability goals, and we are encouraged by our customers' response to our product offerings and content across all touch points.
In terms of technology investments, I already noted our investment in AI price optimization that was launched in October last year. We are also about to launch an AI-driven smart inventory allocation tool to improve accuracy in terms of units, sizing, and balance across our fleet of stores and online. We will also implement RFID in our stores in early 2027, starting with footwear, to improve customer experience and in-store efficiency relating to size availability.
These investments clearly indicate that we are moving forward with confidence and conviction as we continue to invest in the future of our business while we continue building our turnaround momentum. In closing, I want to once again thank and recognize our stores, field management, distribution centers, and home office teams for everything they've accomplished together this past year. There's still work ahead of us as we work toward returning to historical levels of profitability, but we are encouraged by the progress we've made and confident in the direction of the business.
We look forward to updating you as we continue to execute against our long-term plan. I will now turn the call over to Mike to walk through the details of our fiscal 2026 second quarter operating performance and to introduce our third quarter outlook.
Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Thanks, Nate. Details regarding our operating results for the second quarter of fiscal 2026 compared to last year's second quarter were as follows. Total net sales were $163.5 million, an increase of $12.3 million, or 8.1%. Total comparable net sales, including both physical stores and e-commerce, increased by 12.1%, marking our third consecutive quarter of double-digit comparable net sales increases. Total net sales from physical stores increased by 5.1% despite operating 12 fewer stores, or 5.2% less than at the end of last year's second quarter, and represented 78.9% of total net sales for the quarter compared to 81.1% last year.
E-commerce net sales increased by 20.9% and represented 21.1% of total net sales for the quarter compared to 18.9% last year. Gross margin, including buying, distribution, and occupancy expenses, improved by 300 basis points to 35.5% of net sales from 32.5% of net sales last year. Product margins improved by 140 basis points compared to last year, primarily due to improved full-price selling of inventories that were more current in terms of aging and improved productivity from selling of clearance items.
Buying, distribution, and occupancy costs improved by 160 basis points due to carrying these costs against higher net sales this year. Lower occupancy costs associated with our reduced store count were largely offset by higher e-com shipping expenses associated with e-com net sales growth. Total SG&A expenses were $49.9 million, or 30.5% of net sales, compared to $46.4 million, or 30.7% of net sales last year. SG&A improved by 20 basis points as a percentage of net sales due to carrying these expenses against higher net sales this year.
Bonus accruals associated with our significantly improved operating performance exceeding budgeted sales and earnings targets added $1.5 million to the quarter. Marketing expenses increased by $0.8 million in support of our net sales growth. Store payroll and related benefits increased by $0.6 million but improved by 70 basis points as a percentage of net sales. Pre-tax income was $8.5 million, or 5.2% of net sales, compared to $3.1 million, or 2.1% of net sales last year.
Income tax expense was $86,000, or 1% of pre-tax income, compared to an income tax benefit of $41,000, or 1.3% of pre-tax income last year. Both years' income tax results include the continuing impact of a full non-cash deferred tax asset valuation allowance. Net income was $8.4 million, or $0.27 per diluted share, compared to $3.2 million, or $0.10 per diluted share last year, representing an improvement of $5.2 million, or $0.17 per diluted share compared to last year's second quarter.
As Nate noted earlier, this represents our fifth consecutive quarter of year-over-year profit improvement, and we have now returned to profitability on a trailing four-quarters basis for the first time since the end of fiscal 2022, and we are profitable on a year-to-date basis for the first half of fiscal 2026. On our debt-free balance sheet, we ended the second quarter with total cash and investments of $62.2 million, an increase of $11.5 million compared to $50.7 million at the end of last year's second quarter.
We had no borrowings at any time, with available undrawn borrowing capacity of $63.3 million under our asset-backed credit facility at the end of the second quarter. Total balance sheet inventory decreased by 1.3% compared to the end of last year's second quarter while being several percentage points more current within 90 days' age than a year ago. Looking to the third quarter of fiscal 2026, total comparable net sales for fiscal August ended August 29, 2026 increased by 14.6% relative to the comparable period of last year, marking our 13th consecutive month of comparable net sales growth.
Based on current and historical trends, we estimate the following ranges for the third quarter of fiscal 2026: net sales of approximately $150 million to $155 million, translating to a comparable net sales increase range of 10% to 14%, respectively, which, if achieved, would represent our fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit percentage comp sales growth; product margins to be slightly improved relative to last year's third quarter; SG&A of approximately $47 million to $49 million, excluding any potential non-cash asset impairment charges; an estimated effective income tax rate in the low to mid-teens as a percentage of pre-tax income, with the continuing impact of a full non-cash valuation allowance on our deferred tax assets; net income in the range of approximately $2.2 million to $3.7 million, respectively, to net sales; and earnings per diluted share of $0.07 to $0.12, respectively, based on approximately 32 million diluted shares. This compares to a net loss of $1.4 million, or $0.05 per share, during last year's third quarter.
These results would represent a sixth consecutive quarter of year-over-year profit improvement for us. We expect to end the third quarter with 240 total stores after one new store opening and one closure during the quarter. This represents a net decrease of 10 stores, or 4.3%, compared to the end of last year's third quarter. We expect to end the third quarter with total liquidity of approximately $125 million or more, comprised of cash and investments of approximately $62 million to $65 million and available undrawn borrowing capacity of approximately $63 million under our asset-backed credit facility.
OPERATOR
Thank you. We will now be conducting a question-and-answer session. If you would like to ask a question, please press star-one on your telephone keypad. A confirmation tone will indicate your line is in the question queue. You may press star-two to remove yourself from the queue. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up the handset before pressing the star keys. Our first question comes from the line of Matt Karanda with Ross Capital Partners LLC. Please proceed with your question.
Matt Karanda, Analyst at Ross Capital Partners
Hey guys. Thanks. Nice job. I guess the August comp that you cited approaching about 15%, accelerating off of the 12% you put up in the second quarter, despite the tougher comparison that you got going on on a year-over-year basis. So I guess maybe just speak to that acceleration that you're seeing. What's working in the assortment? Any incremental benefit from the TikTok Shops initiatives or other kind of drivers that are driving that acceleration?
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
Well, really everything. As we mentioned, almost everything was double-digit positive in the second quarter, and that continued on through August. All departments but footwear were up double digits. It was broad-based across geographies, so really doing well just about anywhere you look. Really nice to see that kind of momentum continue all the way through the back-to-school season.
Matt Karanda, Analyst at Ross Capital Partners
Okay, and then I noticed, I mean, inventory really tight and good performance there. Curious how you feel about sort of the assortment and the setup into the fall period here as you gear up for holiday. Are we in chase mode? How should we think about sort of inventory movement in the back half of the year as you sort of set up for the holiday season?
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
Yeah, good question, Matt. So we, you know, we feel very strongly about how we're set up. We were, throughout the back-to-school season, we were largely speaking where we needed to be. There was a little bit of a gap in footwear, and we chased some there. But going into fall and obviously heading into holiday, we feel good about where we're at. The team has done a nice job, obviously, managing the inventories where sales were up 8% on inventory down 1% in dollars in Q2, which is a great sign.
So we feel good about Q2, and we feel strongly about how we're assorted and how we're preparing for Q3 and holiday. But overall, we continually sharpen our assortment, so we like where we're at. We were well positioned for back-to-school, but our CMO and team are continually sharpening the assortment every single week.
Matt Karanda, Analyst at Ross Capital Partners
Okay, and then maybe just one or two more from me here. I guess the inflection in the business and the acceleration that you're seeing in comp, has that changed the discussion with some of the vendors that historically you'd wanted to bring into the store—some of the brands that you were looking at bringing in but hadn't been able to before? I mean, maybe just speak to where the assortment sits in terms of the brand portfolio that is in existence now and what you have available to you with the better performance here.
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
Yeah, it's a good question. I don't think the inflection of the business has a bearing on those conversations. I mean, we are a strong retailer, and the brands that we are speaking to understand what we have to offer as far as customer base and our store experience. So, generally speaking, the conversations we have with brands we want to bring in revolves more around, you know, is it a great fit for Tilly's, as opposed to the business reaching an inflection point and now we're ready to engage with Tilly's. So we feel good about where we're at. There are some brands on our radar that we are actively going after, and we feel good about our, you know, possibly bringing those in.
Matt Karanda, Analyst at Ross Capital Partners
Okay, and maybe just last one on what's built into the guidance from an operating leverage standpoint. I guess maybe, Mike, I would have assumed with the really strong positive comp that you're guiding for the third quarter that maybe we'd get a little bit of leverage out of SG&A, but it doesn't look like that's built in, at least at the midpoint. So maybe just speak to what are the—I guess what are the things holding it back? I would assume maybe bonus accrual, but any other items to think about that are kind of keeping SG&A sort of growing in lockstep with sales.
Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
SG&A should have a little bit of improvement as a percent of sales relative to last year's third quarter, similarly to what you see in the second quarter. We were 20 basis points better. Bonus accruals are coming into that. Given that we've returned to profitability and are generating strong product margins and everything, beating our targets significantly, that's an expense that hasn't existed in our model for four years. So it's a non-comparable if you think about that. And so as long as we can continue to execute the way that we've been executing, you might see similar sorts of movements from bonus in particular that would maybe add a little more to SG&A than what you would typically expect.
Matt Karanda, Analyst at Ross Capital Partners
Okay, gotcha. I'll end it there, guys.
OPERATOR
Thank you. Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Gaussree with Singular Research. Please proceed with your question.
Gaussree, Analyst at Singular Research
Good afternoon, gentlemen. Can you all hear me?
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
Yes, yes, yes.
Gaussree, Analyst at Singular Research
Nice question, guys. Just on the question of Q3 guidance, with the August already at kind of 14.6, what's the single biggest swing factor that decides or barrier to landing at the top end of the range?
Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Yeah, good question. Most of the scenarios that we look at do point towards the upper end of our range. But when you look over the recent years, three of the last four years, our comp actually decelerated after back-to-school finished and you got out of what I'll refer to as the need-based period of the quarter. We did see three out of the last four years that September slowed by about eight comp points relative to August, and that was consistent through '22, '23, and '24.
Last year was the exception where September was consistent with August and then October actually accelerated. So in putting together our range, we're taking into account where we are. More of the scenarios that we've looked at do point to the upper end of the range as being the most likely landing point, but we are allowing for what if there is a deceleration, like there has been in three of the most recent four years, in the September–October timeframe and acknowledging that October will be the toughest comparison of the quarter, even though it's the smallest month of the quarter, given it had the strongest performance of the quarter in last year's third quarter.
Gaussree, Analyst at Singular Research
Gotcha. Okay, you said the merchandise commitments, that there's no—that you won't be chasing, but Q4 last year comped to around 10.1 and that's kind of genuinely a hard lap you face. Does the two-year stack as you're seeing in August give you confidence that you can hold a double-digit comp against that, or are we still kind of planning for single digit, or planning to stack to flatten out?
Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Well, we haven't issued any kind of specific guidance for fourth quarter yet. We always just go one quarter at a time. But, you know, looking at the two-year would suggest that we can comp the 10%. Whether or not it's in single digits or double digits, we'll see that when we get into the holiday season. I'd really love—I think we'd all really love it—if we could see us, you know, double digit on top of double digit. That would be phenomenal. But, you know, I can't predict the future with any specificity to know whether that's coming or not.
But I can tell you we're certainly planning for and expecting for us to have a positive comp in the fourth quarter. To what extent, I don't know. It's too early.
Gaussree, Analyst at Singular Research
Gotcha. With the e-commerce—you said the lower occupancy costs were largely offset by higher e-commerce shipping this quarter. E-com was around 28% like Q4 last year is the highest mix quarter. At that mix, does buying, distribution, and occupancy still leverage on a positive comp?
Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
It has been as we've been producing the comps that we've got. So occupancy, from an accounting perspective, most of it is recognized on a straight-line basis over the life of the lease. Occupancy dollars, all things being equal in terms of store count, you would expect occupancy to stay pretty stable dollars-wise. And then there are relatively fixed elements of distribution as well. The things that move within distribution are e-com shipping and shipping costs to our stores, depending on volume, number of units, and boxes that we're shipping.
So that's the variable element of distribution that can move around. And then buying is just the buying team, so it's the salaries and efforts of the buying team. So that stays pretty consistent from quarter to quarter as well.
Gaussree, Analyst at Singular Research
Gotcha. I'll make this my last question. Nate, you said this is your first profitable year since '22. I know your landlords must be hearing that too. So how many of your leases come up for renewal in the next 12 months, and what part of that renewal spread will be looking like versus expiring rent?
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
I know Mike's got the actual numbers, and we're already engaged with many of our landlords. Every year we have leases that expire that we begin negotiating in the prior year. So we're negotiating now for extensions on those stores that are coming due—no different than any other year. Mike, do you have the exact numbers?
Mike Henry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Yeah. We have 20 lease decisions left to make for this fiscal year by the time the end of the fiscal year comes, and we would anticipate keeping all 20 of those stores. Next year, we have roughly 60 to 65 lease decisions to make for leases that are expiring during fiscal '27. You know, we're starting to have conversations about '27 expirations. We've agreed to certain things already, so it's a constant effort working through the lease expirations that are coming up anywhere in the next six to 12 to 18 months, and that'll continue.
As we sit here today, we don't know of any additional closures that would come up. There likely will be some as we go forward, but it's just not clear what that number is. The great majority of our leases tend to expire towards the end of the fiscal year. So as it relates to 2027, most of those decisions are still 15 months out—16 months out.
Gaussree, Analyst at Singular Research
Thank you, guys. Congratulations. And I'll get back. Thank you.
OPERATOR
Thank you. And we have reached the end of the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the floor back over to CEO Nate Smith for closing remarks.
Nate Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer
Thank you for joining us on the call today, and we look forward to sharing more progress with you during our third quarter earnings call in early December. Have a good evening.
OPERATOR
Thank you. And this concludes today's conference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. We thank you for your participation.
Disclaimer: This transcript is provided for informational purposes only. While we strive for accuracy, there may be errors or omissions in this automated transcription. For official company statements and financial information, please refer to the company's SEC filings and official press releases. Corporate participants' and analysts' statements reflect their views as of the date of this call and are subject to change without notice.
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