LL Flooring , the former Lumber Liquidators, said Tuesday it intends to slow the pace of new store openings and restart share buybacks in 2023, in a move aimed at better positioning the company in the current macroenvironment. “We are confident in our long-term growth strategies and our unique positioning of offering the high-touch service of an independent combined with the value and convenience of a national brand,” Chief Executive Charles Tyson said in a statement released ahead of an investor day. The flooring retailer recently opened two new stores in Bellingham, Washington, and Joplin, Missouri, to bring the total for 2022 to 18. In 2023, it plans to open three to four new stores. The company has $43 million left under its current share buyback authorization. Buybacks will be funded using existing cash, borrowings under its credit agreement and future cash flow. The company had $127.8 million available under the revolving credit facility as of Sept. 30, and $6.1 million of cash. Shares were not yet active premarket, but have fallen 64% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 has fallen 16%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.