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Income Taxes
6 Months Ended
Apr. 30, 2015
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes
Income Taxes
We recorded an income tax provision of $61.3 million and $53.9 million for the six months ended April 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. The effective tax rate for the six months ended April 30, 2015 was 29.1%, compared to 32.7% for the six months ended April 30, 2014. The income tax provisions for both periods included tax benefits related to the utilization of domestic production activities deductions and other permanent differences, offset by the provision for state income taxes and interest accrued on unrecognized tax benefits. The income tax provision for the six months ended April 30, 2015 also benefited from a $13.7 million reversal of a previously recognized tax provision related to a settlement with a taxing jurisdiction. The income tax provision for the six months ended April 30, 2014 also benefited from the reversal of a previously recognized tax provision related to the expiration of the statute of limitations and the settlement of a state income tax audit.
We recorded an income tax provision of $18.6 million and $28.3 million for the three months ended April 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. The effective tax rate for the three months ended April 30, 2015 was 21.5%, compared to 30.2% for the three months ended April 30, 2014. The income tax provisions for both periods included tax benefits related to the utilization of domestic production activities deductions and other permanent differences, offset by the provision for state income taxes and interest accrued on unrecognized tax benefits. The income tax provision for three months ended April 30, 2015 also benefited from a $13.7 million reversal of a previously recognized tax provision related to a settlement with a taxing jurisdiction. The income tax provision for the three months ended April 30, 2014 also benefited from the reversal of a previously recognized tax provision related to the expiration of the statute of limitations and the settlement of a state income tax audit.
We currently operate in 19 states and are subject to various state tax jurisdictions. We estimate our state tax liability based upon the individual taxing authorities’ regulations, estimates of income by taxing jurisdiction, and our ability to utilize certain tax-saving strategies. Based on our estimate of the allocation of income or loss among the various taxing jurisdictions and changes in tax regulations and their impact on our tax strategies, we estimate our rate for the full fiscal year for state income taxes at 6.7% and 7.2% for fiscal 2015 and 2014, respectively.
For state tax purposes, due to past and projected losses in certain jurisdictions where we do not have carryback potential and/or cannot sufficiently forecast future taxable income, we recognized net cumulative valuation allowances against our state deferred tax assets of $42.5 million and $43.8 million as of April 30, 2015 and October 31, 2014, respectively.
At April 30, 2015, we had $45.6 million of gross unrecognized tax benefits, including interest and penalties. If these unrecognized tax benefits reverse in the future, they would have a beneficial impact on our effective tax rate at that time. During the next 12 months, it is reasonably possible that our unrecognized tax benefits may decrease by up to $10.8 million, primarily due to the expiration of certain statutes of limitations and potential settlements with taxing jurisdictions.