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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, DC 20549
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FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported)
June 11, 2003
WINN-DIXIE STORES, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Florida 59-0514290
(State or other jurisdiction of (IRS Employer
incorporation or organization) Identification No.)
5050 Edgewood Court, Jacksonville, Florida 32254-3699
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
(904) 783-5000 (Registrant's telephone number,
including area code)
Unchanged
(Former name, former address and former fiscal year,
if changed since last report)
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Item 5. Other Events
By press release dated June 11, 2003, Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. announced a change
in previously reported earnings guidance for the quarter and year ending June
25, 2003. Reference is made to the press release of Registrant, issued on June
11, 2003, which is incorporated herein by this reference.
Item 7. Financial Statements and Exhibits
(a) Financial statements of business acquired: Not applicable
(b) Pro forma financial information: Not applicable
(c) Exhibits:
99.1 Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. Press Release dated June 11, 2003
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this report to
be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Date: June 11, 2003 Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
By: /s/ Allen R. Rowland
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Allen R. Rowland
President and
Chief Executive Officer
Exhibit 99.1
WINN-DIXIE NEWS RELEASE
THE REAL DEAL
WINN-DIXIE STORES, INC. 5050 EDGEWOOD COURT JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA
www.winn-dixie.com P.O. BOX B 32203-0297
(904) 783-5000
RELEASE DATE: June 11, 2003
INVESTOR CONTACT: R. P. McCook, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer 904-783-5221
WINN-DIXIE REPORTS PRELIMINARY IDENTICAL STORE SALES AND REVISED
EARNINGS GUIDANCE FOR THE FOURTH QUARTER 2003
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA, JUNE 11, 2003 - Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WIN)
announced preliminary identical store sales and revised earnings guidance for
its fourth quarter of fiscal 2003.
The Company expects its identical store sales to decline by 3-4% for the fourth
quarter ending June 25, 2003, adjusted for the Easter timing impact. The Company
anticipates reporting earnings per diluted share in the range of $0.28 to $0.31
for the fourth quarter, which excludes the items discussed below. These
preliminary earnings results are lower than prior guidance, primarily because of
continued softness in sales throughout the fourth quarter. The difficult
economic and competitive environment, which began in the third quarter, has
continued throughout the past few months.
As announced in early May, Al Rowland, President and Chief Executive Officer,
will be retiring prior to the end of the fiscal year. In accordance with his
employment contract, the Company will incur an expense of $7.7 million ($5.0
million, net of tax), which represents a cash payment of approximately $6.1
million with the remainder paid in stock and options of the Company. In
addition, the Company has negotiated a final settlement with the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) related to the company-owned life insurance (COLI) tax
liability. In July 2002, the Company paid $52.0 million to the IRS from a
related reserve. As no additional amounts will be paid, the remaining tax
reserve related to COLI will be reversed as a reduction of income tax expense,
which is expected to increase net earnings in the amount of $28.0 million.
Following is a reconciliation of GAAP earnings and earnings per diluted share
with adjustments for the items discussed above.
Earnings Guidance
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Dollars in millions Per diluted share
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Low High Low High
Original fourth quarter guidance $ 49.0 55.0 0.35 0.39
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Revised guidance $ 39.0 44.0 0.28 0.31
CEO retirement payment (5.0) (5.0) (0.04) (0.04)
COLI settlement 28.0 28.0 0.20 0.20
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Fourth quarter GAAP guidance 62.0 67.0 0.44 0.47
Actual reported earnings YTD 4/2/03 177.0 177.0 1.26 1.26
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Revised annual GAAP guidance $ 239.0 244.0 1.70 1.73
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Al Rowland, Winn-Dixie's President and Chief Executive Officer stated: "Our
sales have been impacted primarily in markets affected by tourism, and areas
where we have had large troop deployments, as well as the overall weakness in
the economy. We will continue to focus on our card-marketing program, improved
operations and cost reduction initiatives as we move forward. In addition, we
are pleased to have a final COLI settlement with the IRS."
A conference call will be held on Thursday, June 12 at 10:00 a.m. EST. The
dial-in number is (888)695-0614 and the passcode is 794219.
Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.(NYSE: WIN) is one of the largest food retailers in the
nation and ranks 149 on the FORTUNE 500 (R) list. Founded in 1925, the company
is headquartered in Jacksonville, FL and operates 1,073 stores in 12 states and
the Bahamas. Al Rowland serves as President and Chief Executive Officer.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Statements
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The projections and statements preceding this Cautionary Statement are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995 with respect to the results of operations of the
Company. These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and
uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from the results described
in the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause actual results to
differ materially from those projected include, but are not limited to: (i)
heightened competition, including specifically the intensification of price
competition; the entry of new competitors, including supermarkets and other
non-grocery retailers such as mass merchandisers and discount stores, seeking to
increase sales of items typically sold in supermarkets; and the expansion of
existing competitors in one or more operating regions; (ii) the Company's
ability to achieve the benefits contemplated from the various operational
changes being implemented by management; (iii) changes in federal, state or
local legislation or regulations affecting food manufacturing, food
distribution, or food retailing, including environmental compliance; (iv) the
possible impact of changes in the ratings assigned to the Company's debt
instruments by nationally recognized rating agencies; and (v) general business
and economic conditions in the Company's operating regions, including conditions
arising from the current state of the economy generally, the recent stock market
decline, war, including the war against terrorism generally, changes in tourism,
the rate of inflation/deflation, changes in population, consumer demands and
spending, and the availability of new employees. The Company disclaims any
intent or obligation to revise or update publicly these forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements. This news release, including the projections, should be read in
conjunction with the reports of the Company on file with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.