Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTRN) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Jeremy Hamblin: Got it. Okay. And then just in terms of – historically, Q1 is – has always been a stronger quarter from a sales perspective than Q2. I would imagine that that pattern probably still plays out again this year. I mean, if you were to look at your splits from first half to second half last year, there was a little bit of an uptick overall, but I think it was still like 49%/51% split in terms of total sales for the year. You know, it seems like the guidance implies that there’s going to be maybe a much stronger second half of the year recovery. But I wanted to get a sense for what you’re thinking here just as it relates to Q2, whether or not that historical seasonality would play out where Q2 would be down from what you’re expecting in Q1.

Heather Plutino: So, Jeremy, this is Heather. I’ll take that. Thank you again. We’re not guiding by quarter, but I will tell you that – and you can glean this from our prepared remarks that the improvement throughout the year means that this year’s construct is going to be a little bit different than last year, right? Q1 is softer. Q2 relative to Q1 and then Q3, Q4, I mean it’s just going to look a little bit different. It will be a little more back-half weighted than what we typically see. And that’s really more a function of the pressure that the customer is under currently and how we expect that to ease up in the latter half of the year.

Jeremy Hamblin: Got it.

Heather Plutino: Obviously coupled with our initiatives. Sorry, Jeremy, talked over you.

Jeremy Hamblin: Yes, no, problem. Sorry. Sorry. And then, just in terms of – it’s kind of an SG&A-related question tied into the sale leaseback. And just to confirm, so the – when you take the combination of the two DCs that have been sold, the rent for the year, that’s – I believe, is that about $2 million a quarter or about $8 million or so for the year?

Heather Plutino: That’s fair.

Jeremy Hamblin: I just wanted to make sure and that’s embedded in your SG&A now.

Heather Plutino: Yep, you got it.

Jeremy Hamblin: All right. Thanks so much. Best wishes.

Operator: Thank you. Our next question is from the line of Chuck Grom with Gordon Haskett. Please ahead. Your line is now open.

Chuck Grom: Hey, good morning, guys. How are you? Can you talk a little bit more about your consumer and the sales compression you’re seeing? Is it traffic? Has it been basket-driven? And, I guess, I’m curious if it’s more pronounced in certain parts of the country. And then, following up on Jeremy’s question, when did the inflection occur? Was it – did it start in January if you unpack your comp? It looks like January and the stack was pretty soft, so I was wondering if it started in January. That would be helpful.