Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Commitments and Contingencies

v3.22.2.2
Commitments and Contingencies
 9 Months Ended
Sep. 29, 2022
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies Commitments and Contingencies
Lease Commitments
The Company accounts for leases in accordance with ASC 842, Leases. The majority of the Company’s long-term operating lease agreements are for its corporate office, retail locations, and distribution centers, which expire in various years through 2042. Most of these agreements are retail leases wherein both the land and building are leased. For a small number of retail locations, the Company has ground leases in which only the land is leased. The initial lease terms for the Company's corporate office, retail, and distribution center facilities generally range from 10-20 years. The majority of the Company’s retail and ground leases also include options to extend, which are factored into the recognition of their respective assets and liabilities when appropriate based on management’s assessment of the probability that the options will be exercised.
When readily determinable, the rate implicit in the lease is used to discount lease payments to present value; however, substantially all of the Company’s leases do not provide a readily determinable implicit rate. If the rate implicit in the lease is not readily determinable, the Company uses a third party to assist in the determination of a secured incremental borrowing rate, determined on a collateralized basis, to discount lease payments based on information available at lease commencement. The secured incremental borrowing rate is estimated based on yields obtained from Bloomberg for U.S. consumers with a BB- credit rating and is adjusted for collateralization as well as inflation. As of September 29, 2022 and September 30, 2021, the Company’s weighted average discount rate was 5.3% and 5.2%, respectively. As of both September 29, 2022 and September 30, 2021, the Company’s weighted average remaining lease term was approximately 11 years.
Lease Costs
The table below presents components of lease expense for operating leases.
Thirteen Weeks Ended Thirty-nine Weeks Ended
in thousands Classification September 29, 2022 September 30, 2021 September 29, 2022 September 30, 2021
Fixed operating lease cost: Selling and store operating $ 33,991  $ 31,940  $ 103,035  $ 91,528 
Cost of sales 6,354  5,668  19,178  16,984 
Pre-opening 2,558  3,272  7,542  7,927 
General and administrative 1,136  1,029  3,407  3,088 
Total fixed operating lease cost $ 44,039  $ 41,909  $ 133,162  $ 119,527 
Variable lease cost (1): Selling and store operating $ 13,524  $ 10,605  $ 38,450  $ 30,356 
Cost of sales 1,231  1,101  3,886  3,693 
Pre-opening 114  13  354  83 
General and administrative 194  78  598  (10)
Total variable lease cost $ 15,063  $ 11,797  $ 43,288  $ 34,122 
Sublease income Cost of sales (681) (597) (2,041) (1,791)
Total operating lease cost (2) $ 58,421  $ 53,109  $ 174,409  $ 151,858 
(1) Includes variable costs for common area maintenance, property taxes, and insurance on leased real estate.
(2) Excludes short-term lease costs, which were immaterial for the thirty-nine weeks ended September 29, 2022 and September 30, 2021.
Undiscounted Cash Flows
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancelable operating leases (with initial or remaining lease terms in excess of one year) as of September 29, 2022 were as follows:
in thousands Amount
Thirteen weeks ending December 29, 2022 $ 32,202 
2023 183,545 
2024 180,086 
2025 167,940 
2026 157,889 
Thereafter 1,039,871 
Total minimum lease payments (1) (2) 1,761,533 
Less: amount of lease payments representing interest 476,862 
Present value of future minimum lease payments 1,284,671 
Less: current obligations under leases 107,258 
Long-term lease obligations $ 1,177,413 
(1) Future lease payments exclude approximately $237.4 million of legally binding minimum lease payments for operating leases signed but not yet commenced.
(2) Operating lease payments include $146.8 million related to options to extend lease terms that are reasonably certain of being exercised.
For the thirty-nine weeks ended September 29, 2022 and September 30, 2021, cash paid for operating leases was $131.3 million and $115.7 million, respectively.
Litigation
On November 15, 2021, the Company was added as a defendant in a wrongful death lawsuit, Nguyen v. Inspections Now, Inc., No. 21-DCV-287142, pending in the 434th Judicial District Court of Fort Bend County, Texas. Inspections Now, Inc. and Jason Post Homes, LLC were also named as defendants in the case. On March 28, 2022, Plaintiff voluntarily dismissed her claims against Jason Post Homes without prejudice. Plaintiff’s petition alleges that unspecified “wood paneling” allegedly purchased from the Company was installed in the vicinity of plaintiff’s fireplace and caught fire while the fireplace was lit. The fire consumed plaintiff’s home and resulted in injuries to plaintiff and the death of plaintiff’s three children and mother. Plaintiff alleges product defect and failure to warn claims against the Company and negligent inspection claims against Inspections Now. Plaintiff’s petition seeks damages in excess of $1.0 million for property damage, personal injury, and wrongful death. The petition also seeks exemplary damages. On August 8, 2022, Plaintiff’s ex-husband filed a petition in intervention, intervening as a plaintiff in the lawsuit. Intervenor alleges the same claims and seeks damages in excess of $10.0 million for property damage, personal injury, wrongful death, and exemplary damages. The Company has responded to Plaintiff’s and Intervenor’s petitions, denying the allegations, and the case is in the early stages of discovery.
On June 18, 2020, an alleged stockholder filed a putative derivative complaint, Lincolnshire Police Pension Fund v. Taylor, et al., No. 2020-0487-JTL, in the Delaware Court of Chancery, purportedly on behalf of the Company against certain of the Company’s officers, directors, and stockholders. An amended complaint was filed on September 14, 2022. The complaint alleges breaches of fiduciary duties and unjust enrichment. The factual allegations underlying these claims are similar to the factual allegations made in the previously dismissed In re Floor & Decor Holdings, Inc. Securities Litigation. The complaint seeks unspecified damages and restitution for the Company from the individual defendants and the payment of costs and attorneys’ fees. On October 31, 2022, the Company, along with the other defendants, filed a motion to dismiss the operative complaint.
The Company maintains insurance that may cover any liability arising out of the above-referenced litigation up to the policy limits and subject to meeting certain deductibles and to other terms and conditions thereof. Estimating an amount or range of possible losses resulting from litigation proceedings is inherently difficult, particularly where the matters involve indeterminate claims for monetary damages and are in the stages of the proceedings where key factual and legal issues have not been resolved. For these reasons, the Company is currently unable to predict the ultimate timing or outcome of or reasonably estimate the possible losses or a range of possible losses resulting from the above-referenced litigation.
The Company is also subject to various other legal actions, claims and proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business, which may include claims related to general liability, workers’ compensation, product liability, intellectual property and employment-related matters resulting from its business activities. As with most actions such as these, an estimation of any possible and/or ultimate liability cannot always be determined. The Company establishes reserves for specific legal proceedings when it determines that the likelihood of an unfavorable outcome is probable and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. These various other ordinary course proceedings are not expected to have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial position, cash flows, or results of operations, however regardless of the outcome, litigation can have an adverse impact on the Company because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources, and other factors.