Rent-A-Center, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Year End 2005 Results; Reported Diluted Earnings per Share of $0.50, or $0.48 Excluding Non-recurring Items; Same Store Sales Improve; Cash Flow from Operations Exceeds $187 Million for the Year

Business Wire, Feb 6, 2006

PLANO, Texas -- Rent-A-Center, Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq:RCII), the nation's largest rent-to-own operator, today announced revenues and net earnings for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2005.

Fourth Quarter 2005 Results

The Company reported total revenues for the quarter ended December 31, 2005 of $583.2 million, a $2.1 million decrease from $585.3 million for the same period in the prior year. This decrease of 0.4% in revenues was primarily driven by a decrease in same store sales of 0.2% plus the closing and merging of 114 stores with existing Rent-A-Center stores and the sale of 35 stores as part of the previously announced 162 store consolidation plan, offset by an increase in incremental revenues generated in new and acquired stores.

Net earnings for the quarter ended December 31, 2005 were $33.6 million, or $0.48 per diluted share, when excluding the expenses for restructuring and the impact of the hurricanes as well as the credit for the state tax reserve adjustment discussed below, representing a decrease of 12.7% from the $0.55 per diluted share, or net earnings of $41.7 million for the same period in the prior year, when excluding the one-time other income item discussed below. The decrease in net earnings per diluted share is primarily attributable to the decrease in same store sales as well as increases in operating expenses related to new store openings, acquisitions and normal operating costs such as utility and fuel costs, offset by a reduction in the number of the Company's outstanding shares.

Reported net earnings for the quarter ended December 31, 2005 were $35.1 million, or $0.50 per diluted share, when including the $0.02 effect of restructuring expenses, the $0.01 impact of the hurricane expenses and the $0.05 benefit from the credit for the state tax reserve adjustment, representing a decrease of 18.0% from the $0.61 per diluted share, or reported net earnings of $46.9 million for the same period in the prior year, when including the one-time other income item discussed below.

"We are pleased with the results for the fourth quarter, where we saw improvement in our same store sales trend and exceeded the high end of our expectations for diluted earnings per share," commented Mark E. Speese, the Company's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "In addition, we continue to generate significant cash flow from operations that we intend to utilize to enhance stockholder value by, among other things, adding approximately 5% annually to our rent-to-own store base, opening financial services centers in existing rent-to-own stores and repurchasing our outstanding common shares," Speese added.

Year End December 31, 2005 Results

Total reported revenues for the twelve months ended December 31, 2005 increased to $2.339 billion, a 1.1% increase from $2.313 billion for the same period in the prior year. Same store revenues for the twelve month period ending December 31, 2005 decreased 2.3%, compared to a decrease of 3.6% for the twelve month period ending December 31, 2004.

Net earnings for the twelve months ended December 31, 2005 were $141.9 million, or $1.91 per diluted share, when excluding the expenses for restructuring and the impact of the hurricanes as well as the credits for the state tax reserve adjustment, federal tax audit reserve, and litigation reversion discussed below, representing a decrease of 16.2% from the $2.28 per diluted share, or net earnings of $182.7 million for the same period in the prior year, when excluding the one-time other income item and litigation and finance charges discussed below.

Reported net earnings for the twelve months ended December 31, 2005 were $135.7 million, or $1.83 per diluted share, when including the $0.14 effect of restructuring expenses and the $0.09 impact of the hurricane expenses as well as $0.05 for the state tax reserve adjustment credit, $0.03 for the federal tax audit reserve credit, and $0.07 for the litigation reversion credit, representing a decrease of 5.7% from the $1.94 per diluted share, or reported net earnings of $155.9 million for the same period in the prior year, when including the one-time other income item and litigation and finance charges discussed below.

"Our 2005 earnings were negatively affected by the weakness in our same store sales, which we believe reflects, among other things, higher fuel and energy costs that ultimately suppressed customer demand, and also believe that product evolution, particularly in low end consumer electronics, placed additional pressure on our business," stated Mr. Speese. Mr. Speese added, "I am cautiously optimistic about 2006. Though the potential impact of continued rising fuel and energy costs remains a concern, we also believe we have reached a trough in the impact on our operations from the evolution of low end consumer electronics," Speese continued. "We will continue to focus on improving our store operations, including using our resources prudently and focusing on driving more customer traffic from our advertising initiatives."