Hooker Furniture CEO provides outlook

Hooker Furniture CEO Jeremy Hoff said, “”Much remains unsettled on the macroeconomic front. Economic indicators remain mixed with unemployment continuing under 4% and inflation easing slightly in April, leading to record stock market performance in mid-May. However, consumer sentiment index fell nearly 10% in May after holding steady for months, indicating a deterioration in optimism across age, income and education levels. Additionally, in both March and April, existing home sales decreased year-over-year. Because the Federal Reserve has yet to cut interest rates this year, we believe home sales may be ‘stuck.’ As long as interest rates remain high, we believe the housing industry – and therefore home furnishings demand – will remain subdued. This environment has necessitated the adjustment of our cost footprint to current and expected medium-term demand through a realignment of operations which we expect will lead to a 10% reduction in overall fixed costs, the largest cut in our history, but one necessitated by current industry conditions…We’re still finalizing those plans and expect to have more information in the current fiscal quarter. We’re intensely focused on creating an appropriate expense structure, while not jeopardizing the pace and impact of our strategic initiatives, which we believe will have a significant positive impact on Hooker once demand normalizes. We expect to be profitable in the current fiscal year and beyond.”