J. C. Penney Company, Inc. Equity Valuation and Analysis As of ...

acking into them through crunching the numbers. Overall, the level ofdisclosure in respect to pensions is impressive in relation to industry competitors.Sales BreakdownAnother manner in which the quality of the supplemental information ofthe financial statements is helpful is the way the company breaks down thepercentages of sales of the different departments in the stores. On the followingpage is a chart extracted from the J. C. Penny 2006 10-K.Retail Sales MixThe following percentages represent the mix of consolidated netretail sales:2004 2005 2006Women’s apparel 23% 22% 22%Home 21% 22% 21%Men’s apparel and accessories 20% 20% 20%Children’s apparel 11% 11% 11%Women’s accessories 9% 10% 10%Family footwear 6% 6% 6%Fine jewelry 5% 5% 5%Services and other 5% 4% 5%This example of information is important because it shows a breakdown ofthe sales of each department. As you look at the table, you can see why J. C.Penney has focus on women when it comes to new brands and product lines,such as the new lingerie brand Ambrielle. Information such as this helps peopleunderstand the direction in which the company is heading, and why J. C. Penneyhas chosen to move in that direction. In the case of the J. C. Penney Company,52