Demand continues to be high at Atlanta-based Aaron's, a rent-to-own company that has seen its customer base grow on its way to a record quarter.
"The numbers speak for themselves and it was an excellent quarter in all aspects of our business," Aaron's president and CEO Robert C. Loudermilk, Jr. said in a statement. "We exceeded our expectations for both revenue and earnings growth, and customer traffic remains strong."
Loudermilk said he believes the company still has "excellent" growth potential, and updated its expectations for 2011. The new projections include earnings per share of $1.69 to $1.81, up from the original estimate of $1.61 to $1.77, and revenues of $2 billion at company-owned stores.
The company expects to add more than 270 stores in the next several years; it currently has 1,806 Aaron's stores.
This quarter, same-store revenues rose 6 percent. For the first quarter of the year, revenues were $532.7 million, an 8 percent increase and a record for the company. Net earnings rose 20 percent to $44.4 million, also a record.
Aaron's also had a 9 percent increase in customers, to 1.4 million people, compared to last year's first quarter.
Earnings per share for the quarter were 55 cents; they were 45 cents a share in the first quarter of 2010.
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