

Note 14	Income Taxes

The Company’s effective tax rate can vary considerably from period to period, depending on a number of factors. The Company’s consolidated effective tax rates were 28.8% and 29.6% for the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2017 and April 30, 2016, respectively.

During the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2017, the Company's effective tax rate was impacted by the adoption of ASU 2016-09, as further discussed in Note 2 to the condensed consolidated financial statements. ASU 2016-09 requires prospective recognition of excess tax benefits and deficiencies in the statements of earnings, resulting in the recognition of a discrete benefit of $1.1 million in excess tax benefits for the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2017. During the thirteen weeks ended April 30, 2016, the Company recognized discrete tax benefits of $0.7 million reflecting the settlement of a federal tax audit issue. If the discrete tax benefits had not been recognized during the thirteen weeks ended April 29, 2017 and April 30, 2016, the Company's effective tax rates would have been 34.0% and 32.3%, respectively, reflecting a higher mix of domestic earnings in 2017, which carry a higher tax rate than earnings at the Company's international subsidiaries. The mix of domestic earnings is higher in 2017 due in part to the inclusion of the recently acquired Allen Edmonds business, which consists primarily of domestic operations.