• Strong consolidated comparable sales, up 6.1% in the first quarter:
• Canadian Tire up 7.1%, marking 20^th consecutive quarter of growth
• Mark's up 4.9%; SportChek up 3.4%
• Continued strong Financial Services GAAR growth of 9.3%; revenue up 7.8%; and over two million active credit card accounts
• Financial Services IBT was $112.4 million, up 15.8%
• Diluted earnings per share (EPS) was $1.12, down 4.8%

TORONTO, May 9, 2019 /CNW/ - Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (TSX:CTC, TSX:CTC.A) today released first quarter results for the period ended March 30, 2019.

"Ending our winter season with exceptional sales performance positions us well as we enter our second largest quarter of the year," said Stephen Wetmore, President and CEO, Canadian Tire Corporation. "Our first quarter earnings are always focused on Financial Services, which delivered strong growth in IBT of 15.8%."

CONSOLIDATED OVERVIEW

• Consolidated retail sales increased $91.2 million or 3.3% in the first quarter. Excluding Petroleum, consolidated retail sales were up 6.3% over the same period last year.
• Consolidated revenue increased $79.5 million, or 2.8%. Excluding Petroleum, consolidated revenue increased $128 million, or 5.4% in the quarter.
• Diluted EPS was $1.12 in the quarter, a decrease of $0.06 per share, or 4.8%.

RETAIL OVERVIEW

• The following financial results reflect Q1 2019 performance compared to Q1 2018.
• Retail segment revenue increased 2.3%. Excluding Petroleum, retail segment revenue increased 5.2%.
• Canadian Tire saw retail sales increase 7.4% and comparable sales were up 7.1%.
• SportChek's retail sales increased 2.8% and comparable sales increased 3.4%.
• Mark's retail sales grew 5.5% and comparable sales increased 4.9%.
• Helly Hansen revenue in the quarter was $140.8 million.
• Income before income taxes decreased $36.5 million.

CT REIT OVERVIEW

• As disclosed in the Q1 2019 CT REIT earnings release on May 7, 2019, CT REIT announced new investments totalling $33 million.

FINANCIAL SERVICES OVERVIEW

• In Q1 2019, gross average credit card receivables (GAAR) was up 9.3% over the prior year.
• Income before income taxes increased 15.8% in the first quarter to $112.4 million.

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES

• Operating capital expenditures were $79.8 million in the first quarter, up from $45.4 million in the first quarter of 2018.
• Total capital expenditures decreased $6.7 million in Q1 2019, to $106.9 million.

QUARTERLY DIVIDEND

• The Company has declared dividends payable to holders of Class A Non-Voting Shares and Common Shares at a rate of $1.0375 per share payable on September 1, 2019 to shareholders of record as of July 31, 2019. The dividend is considered an "eligible dividend" for tax purposes.

SHARE REPURCHASE

• On November 8, 2018, the Company announced its intention to repurchase a further $300 to $400 million of its Class A Non-Voting Shares, in excess of the amount required for anti-dilutive purposes, by the end of fiscal 2019. As at March 30, 2019, $292.4 million of such shares had been repurchased.

NORMAL COURSE ISSUER BID

• On February 19, 2019, the Toronto Stock Exchange accepted the Company's notice of intention to make a normal course issuer bid to purchase up to 5.5 million Class A Non-Voting Shares between March 2, 2019 and March 1, 2020.

To view a PDF version of Canadian Tire Corporation's full quarterly earnings report please see: http://files.newswire.ca/116/CTC_Combined_Q1_2019.pdf

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This press release contains forward-looking information that reflects management's current expectations related to matters such as future financial performance and operating results of the Company. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purposes of providing information about management's current expectations and plans and allowing investors and others to get a better understanding of our anticipated financial position, results of operations and operating environment. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes.

Certain statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release may constitute forward-looking information, including but not limited to, statements concerning the Company's intention to repurchase Class A Non-Voting Shares in excess of the amount required for anti-dilutive purposes by the end of 2019 under the heading "Share Repurchase".

By its very nature, forward-looking information requires us to make assumptions and is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties, which give rise to the possibility that the Company's assumptions, estimates, analyses, beliefs and opinions may not be correct and that the Company's expectations and plans will not be achieved. Although the Company believes that the forward-looking information in this press release is based on information, assumptions and beliefs which are current, reasonable and complete, this information is necessarily subject to a number of factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from management's expectations and plans as set forth in such forward-looking information.

For more information on the risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause the Company's actual results to differ from current expectations, refer to section 2.8 (Risk Factors) of our Annual Information Form for fiscal 2018 and to sections 7.2.4 (Retail Segment Business Risks), 7.3.2 (CT REIT segment business risks), 7.4.3 (Financial Services Segment Business Risks) and 12.0 (Risks and Risk Management) and all subsections thereunder of our  Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 29, 2018, as well as the Company's other public filings, available at www.sedar.com and at https://investors.canadiantire.ca.

The forward-looking statements and information contained herein are based on certain factors and assumptions as of the date hereof and do not take into account the effect that transactions or non-recurring or other special items announced or occurring after the statements are made have on the Company's business. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by it or on its behalf, to reflect new information, future events or otherwise, except as is required by applicable securities laws.

CONFERENCE CALL
Canadian Tire will conduct a conference call to discuss information included in this news release and related matters at 8:00 a.m. ET on May 9, 2019. The conference call will be available simultaneously and in its entirety to all interested investors and the news media through a webcast at https://investors.canadiantire.ca and will be available through replay at this website for 12 months.

ABOUT CANADIAN TIRE CORPORATION
Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited, (TSX: CTC.A) (TSX: CTC) or "CTC", is a family of businesses that includes a Retail segment, a Financial Services division and CT REIT. Our retail business is led by Canadian Tire, which was founded in 1922 and provides Canadians with products for life in Canada across its Living, Playing, Fixing, Automotive and Seasonal & Gardening divisions. PartSource and Gas+ are key parts of the Canadian Tire network. The Retail segment also includes Mark's, a leading source for casual and industrial wear; Pro Hockey Life, a hockey specialty store catering to elite players; and SportChek, Hockey Experts, Sports Experts, National Sports, Intersport and Atmosphere, which offer the best active wear brands. The approximately 1,700 retail and gasoline outlets are supported and strengthened by our Financial Services division and the tens of thousands of people employed across Canada and around the world by the Company and its local dealers, franchisees and petroleum retailers. In addition, Canadian Tire Corporation owns and operates Helly Hansen, a leading global brand in sportswear and workwear based in Oslo, Norway. For more information, visit Corp.CanadianTire.ca.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Media: Jane Shaw, [email protected]
Investors: Lisa Greatrix, [email protected]

SOURCE CANADIAN TIRE CORPORATION, LIMITED

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