SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION  
   
Washington, D.C. 20549  
_______________  
   
SCHEDULE 13D/A
 
INFORMATION TO BE INCLUDED IN STATEMENTS FILED PURSUANT
TO RULE 13d-1(a) AND AMENDMENTS THERETO FILED PURSUANT TO
RULE 13d-2(a)
 
Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(Amendment No. 1)
 

PetSmart, Inc.

(Name of Issuer)
 

Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share

(Title of Class of Securities)
 

716768106

(CUSIP Number)
 

Marc Weingarten, Esq.

Eleazer Klein, Esq.

919 Third Avenue
New York, New York 10022

(212) 756-2000

(Name, Address and Telephone Number of Person
Authorized to Receive Notices and Communications)
 

July 29, 2014

(Date of Event which Requires
Filing of this Schedule)

 

If the filing person has previously filed a statement on Schedule 13G to report the acquisition that is the subject of this Schedule 13D, and is filing this schedule because of Rule 13d-1(e), 13d-1(f) or 13d-1(g), check the following box. [ ]

NOTE: Schedules filed in paper format shall include a signed original and five copies of the schedule, including all exhibits. See Rule 13d-7 for other parties to whom copies are to be sent.

 

(Continued on following pages)

(Page 1 of 5 Pages)

--------------------------

The information required on the remainder of this cover page shall not be deemed to be "filed" for the purpose of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Act") or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section of the Act but shall be subject to all other provisions of the Act (however, see the Notes).

 

 
CUSIP No. 716768106SCHEDULE 13D/APage 2 of 5 Pages

 

1

NAME OF REPORTING PERSON

JANA PARTNERS LLC

2 CHECK THE APPROPRIATE BOX IF A MEMBER OF A GROUP

(a) ¨

(b) ¨

3 SEC USE ONLY
4

SOURCE OF FUNDS

AF

5 CHECK BOX IF DISCLOSURE OF LEGAL PROCEEDING IS REQUIRED PURSUANT TO ITEMS 2(d) or 2(e) ¨
6

CITIZENSHIP OR PLACE OF ORGANIZATION

Delaware

NUMBER OF
SHARES
BENEFICIALLY
OWNED BY
EACH
REPORTING
PERSON WITH
7

SOLE VOTING POWER

9,694,002

8

SHARED VOTING POWER

0

9

SOLE DISPOSITIVE POWER

9,694,002

10

SHARED DISPOSITIVE POWER

0

11

AGGREGATE AMOUNT BENEFICIALLY OWNED BY EACH PERSON

9,694,002

12 CHECK IF THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT IN ROW (11) EXCLUDES CERTAIN SHARES ¨
13

PERCENT OF CLASS REPRESENTED BY AMOUNT IN ROW (11) (see Item 5)

9.8%

14

TYPE OF REPORTING PERSON

IA

         

 

 

 
CUSIP No. 716768106SCHEDULE 13D/APage 3 of 5 Pages

 

This Amendment No. 1 ("Amendment No. 1") amends and supplements the statement on Schedule 13D filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on July 3, 2014 (the "Original Schedule 13D" and together with this Amendment No. 1, the "Schedule 13D") with respect to the shares ("Shares") of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of PetSmart, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Issuer").

 

Item 3. SOURCE AND AMOUNT OF FUNDS OR OTHER CONSIDERATION.

 

Item 3 of the Schedule 13D is hereby amended and restated as follows:

 

The 9,694,002 Shares reported herein by the Reporting Person were acquired at an aggregate purchase price of approximately $571 million. Such Shares were acquired with investment funds in accounts managed by the Reporting Person and margin borrowings described in the following sentence. Such Shares are held by accounts managed by the Reporting Person in commingled margin accounts, which may extend margin credit to the Reporting Person from time to time, subject to applicable federal margin regulations, stock exchange rules and credit policies. In such instances, the positions held in the margin accounts are pledged as collateral security for the repayment of debit balances in the account. The margin accounts bear interest at a rate based upon the broker's call rate from time to time in effect. Because other securities are held in the margin accounts, it is not possible to determine the amounts, if any, of margin used to purchase the Shares reported herein.

 

Item 4. PURPOSE OF TRANSACTION.

 

Item 4 of the Schedule 13D is hereby amended and supplemented by the addition of the following:

 

On July 29, 2014, the Reporting Person sent a letter to the Issuer, attached hereto as Exhibit B and incorporated herein by reference. 

 

Item 5. INTEREST IN SECURITIES OF THE COMPANY.

 

Items 5(a), (b) and (c) of the Schedule 13D are hereby amended and restated in their entirety as follows:

(a) The aggregate percentage of Shares reported to be beneficially owned by the Reporting Person is based upon 99,208,627 Shares outstanding, which is the total number of Shares outstanding as of May 16, 2014, as reported in the Issuer's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on May 29, 2014.

At the close of business on July 28, 2014, the Reporting Person may be deemed to beneficially own 9,694,002 Shares, constituting approximately 9.8% of the Shares outstanding.

(b) The Reporting Person has sole voting and dispositive powers over 9,694,002 Shares.

(c) Information concerning transactions in the Shares effected by the Reporting Person since the Original Schedule 13D is set forth in Exhibit C hereto and is incorporated herein by reference. All of the transactions in Shares listed hereto were effected in the open market through various brokerage entities.

 

 
CUSIP No. 716768106SCHEDULE 13D/APage 4 of 5 Pages

 

Item 6. CONTRACTS, ARRANGEMENTS, UNDERSTANDINGS OR RELATIONSHIPS WITH RESPECT TO SECURITIES OF THE ISSUER.

 

Item 6 of the Schedule 13D is hereby amended and restated as follows:

The Reporting Person does not have any contract, arrangement, understanding or relationship with any person with respect to the securities of the Issuer.

Item 7. MATERIAL TO BE FILED AS EXHIBITS.

 

Exhibit B: Letter dated July 29, 2014 sent by the Reporting Person to the Issuer.
Exhibit C: Transactions in the Shares Since the Original Schedule 13D.
 
CUSIP No. 716768106SCHEDULE 13D/APage 5 of 5 Pages

 

SIGNATURES

After reasonable inquiry and to the best of my knowledge and belief, I certify that the information set forth in this statement is true, complete and correct.

Dated: July 29, 2014

 

 

 

 

  JANA PARTNERS LLC
     
     
  By: /s/ Jennifer Fanjiang
  Name:   Jennifer Fanjiang
  Title: General Counsel

 

 


 

 

July 29, 2014

 

Board of Directors

PetSmart, Inc.

19601 North 27th Avenue

Phoenix, Arizona 85027

Attention: David K. Lenhardt, President and Chief Executive Officer

 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

JANA Partners LLC (“we” or “us”) beneficially owns 9.8% of the outstanding shares of PetSmart, Inc. (“PetSmart” or the “Company”), making us its largest shareholder based upon public information. While PetSmart was once an industry leader, it has long trailed most of its peers in shareholder value creation and failed to keep pace with its competitors, and shareholders have lost confidence that it can reverse course. We have therefore called on PetSmart to conduct a full review of all strategic alternatives including a sale. While we typically work constructively with boards and focus primarily on changes that can be made while companies remain public, given PetSmart’s chronic underperformance and significant private equity interest in the Company, a sale in this case very likely offers the highest risk-adjusted return for shareholders.

 

This is why we were stunned by recent reports suggesting that PetSmart’s board of directors (the “Board”), rather than conducting a fulsome review including engaging with potential acquirers, is instead considering short-circuiting this process and simply proceeding with a leveraged recapitalization. We are writing to warn the Board that pursuing any such alternative, without first determining whether a sale that delivers a greater risk-adjusted return can be consummated, would be roundly condemned by shareholders. A leveraged recapitalization is appropriate only where a company can credibly say that it will drive future value higher by addressing the underlying causes of its share price underperformance. Given the chronic underperformance of this Board for shareholders, it is clear that it has no such credibility. Such added leverage would therefore only add more risk to an already risky situation for shareholders, and thus a recapitalization is very likely to be inferior to a sale in magnitude and certainty of value creation.

 

PetSmart has clearly underperformed for shareholders over any relevant time period. As set forth below, for the 1, 2, 3, 5 and 10 year periods ending June 20, 2014 (prior to significant purchases by us that impacted the share price), PetSmart dramatically trailed its stated peer group.i

 

Total Shareholder Returns  
  1-year 2-year 3-year 5-year 10-year
PetSmart (13)% (16%) 33% 198% 91%
Proxy Peer Average 16% 41% 68% 321% 294%
PetSmart Rank 16/17 16/17 14/17 11/17 14/16

 

 
 

 

A review of PetSmart’s history makes quite clear that this consistent underperformance for shareholders is not the result of a couple of bad quarters, as the Board has suggested to us, but years of operational and strategic missteps. While PetSmart benefited in the past from positive industry trends, including the humanization of pets and consumers shifting to premium products and organic pet foods, it failed to innovate during this time and capitalize on its leading position. Instead, the Company continued to rely upon store openings and product resets for growth, while peers surpassed it in innovation and performance. For example:

 

As a result of these missteps, PetSmart’s market share in the otherwise stable pet store channel has steadily declined according to Nielsen Financial Research;viii as Bank of America has noted, “PETM was losing share to Petco, [Tractor Supply Company] and independents.”ix PetSmart’s attempts to convince the market that it has begun to address this decline have fallen flat, with Northcoast Research noting recently that, “We think that [PetSmart] is heading in the wrong direction to solving its traffic and sales problems,”x and UBS saying of the Company’s recent efforts, “We are not sure that these steps are bold enough to make a meaningful difference.”xi

 

 
 

We believe that the Board bears ultimate responsibility for these failures. In fact, we have heard from shareholders that rather than recruiting and retaining skilled executives, the Board has micromanaged operations, to largely disastrous effect as described above. This is perhaps not surprising given the mixed track records of its members. The entire Board has also been in place during PetSmart’s deterioration in performance, and the average member’s tenure is 11 years (excluding the CEO, who has been with PetSmart for over 14 years).

 

It is also clear that the market does not believe that the future will be any better. Prior to our arrival, PetSmart had the seventh highest short interest of any company in the S&P 500. Only 7% of the analysts who cover PetSmart had its shares rated as a “buy,” down from 46% in January 2013, putting PetSmart in the bottom 10% of the S&P 500. Over the same period, PetSmart’s P/E valuation decreased by 30%, despite the P/E valuation of the S&P 500 increasing by 20%. Additionally, the debt market values the debt of Petco at 6.5 - 6.75x debt/EBITDAR,xii a multiple equal to PetSmart’s entire enterprise value of approximately 6.5x EV/EBITDAR prior to our arrival, further reflecting the market’s dim view of PetSmart’s prospects. PetSmart’s recently reduced disclosure only heightens these concerns, with Wedbush noting that this decreased transparency creates “more questions about the company’s ability to rectify execution issues.”xiii

 

Even if the Board had any credibility in asking shareholders to put their faith in a recapitalization, it has shown a clear inability to generate value through share buybacks. PetSmart has generated a negative return on repurchases over the 1, 2 and 3 year periods ending June 20, 2014 and ranks 16th out of 17 among its stated peers in generating value through share repurchases over the last 3 years. In short, if the Board believes that its value creation, operational or capital allocation track record offers even the slightest justification for pursuing a leveraged recapitalization before fully exploring a sale, it is severely mistaken.

 

By contrast, a sale very likely offers the highest possible risk-adjusted return for shareholders. As long-time shareholder Longview Asset Management noted in its public letter endorsing exploring a sale, “PetSmart is likely to be valued much more highly by private market participants than by its current public market investors.”xiv This is because a private equity buyer will pay shareholders based upon its confidence in its ability to create value, a confidence which is justifiably absent among current investors. Private equity can also take advantage of a highly attractive financing market, though given the possibly fleeting nature of the current environment PetSmart cannot afford to waste more time by floating ideas for potential standalone strategies whose time has likely long passed. We also note that, should the Board adopt any debt the terms of which would make a sale more difficult or enter into acquisitions that could deter a sale, shareholders will rightly see this as a wholly unjustifiable entrenchment device.

 

For these reasons, PetSmart must begin a full strategic review now which includes engaging with potential buyers, with the assistance of an independent investment bank and a prompt timeline for conclusion. Based on our discussions with investors, including the many calls we have received since our position was disclosed, it is clear that shareholders will accept nothing less. Therefore, should PetSmart fail to do so, we will not hesitate to seek significant Board change at the next annual meeting. If you wish to discuss this matter further, we can be reached at (212) 455-0900.

 

Sincerely,

 

 /s/ Barry Rosenstein

 

Barry Rosenstein

Managing Partner

JANA Partners LLC

 
 

 

 


i PetSmart’s Compensation Peer Group for 2013, per its proxy statement: Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Advance Auto Parts Inc., AutoZone, Inc., Bed Bath & Beyond Inc., Big Lots Inc., CarMax Inc., Dick’s Sporting Goods, Dollar Tree, Inc., Family Dollar Stores Inc., Foot Locker, Inc., GameStop Corp., L Brands, Inc., Ross Stores Inc., Tractor Supply Company, Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc., and Williams-Sonoma Inc. “PetSmart Rank” represents PetSmart’s total shareholder return over the period versus these peers. Assumes all dividends reinvested. Data per Capital IQ.

ii Credit Suisse, May 27, 2014 (emphasis added)

iii Goldman Sachs, May 22, 2014 (emphasis added)

iv PetSmart FQ4 2012 Conference Call, March 6, 2013 (emphasis added)

v PetSmart 2013 Analyst/Investor Day, October 17, 2013 (emphasis added)

vi S&P Ratings Direct reports dated May 9, 2014 (PetSmart) and May 7, 2014 (Petco). EBITDAR is consistent with the S&P definition of EBITDA

vii Source: Nielsen Financial Service’s “Buying Households” metric. Such information does not constitute a reliable independent basis for investment advice and does not represent Nielsen’s opinion as to the value of any security or the advisability of investing in, purchasing or selling any security.

viii Such information does not constitute a reliable independent basis for investment advice and does not represent Nielsen’s opinion as to the value of any security or the advisability of investing in, purchasing or selling any security.

ix Bank of America Merrill Lynch, April 15, 2014 (emphasis added)

x Northcoast Research, May 21, 2014 (emphasis added)

xi UBS, May 21, 2014 (emphasis added)

xii Moody’s Investor Service: Global Credit Research, October 7, 2013

xiii Wedbush Securities, March 3, 2014 (emphasis added)

xiv Schedule 13D/A filed by Longview Asset Management LLC, July 7, 2014

 


 

EXHIBIT C

 

 

Transactions in the Issuer Since Original Schedule 13D

 

The following table sets forth all transactions in the Shares effected since the Original Schedule 13D by the Reporting Person. All such transactions were effected in the open market through brokers and the price per share is net of commissions.

 

 

Trade Date Shared Purchased (Sold) Price Per Share ($)
07/03/2014 (126,732) $67.28
07/22/2014 4,733,700* $50.00
     

 

* Exercise of options reported in the Original Schedule 13D.