Customer Financing	9 Months Ended
Jan. 30, 2016
Receivables [Abstract]
Customer Financing	Customer Financing As a convenience to our customers, we offer several different financing alternatives, including a third party program and a Patterson-sponsored program. For the third party program, we act as a facilitator between the customer and the third party financing entity with no on-going involvement in the financing transaction. Under our sponsored program, equipment purchased by customers with strong credit may be financed up to a maximum of $500 for any one customer. We generally sell our customers’ financing contracts to outside financial institutions in the normal course of our business. We currently have two arrangements under which we sell these contracts. First, we operate under an agreement to sell a portion of our equipment finance contracts to commercial paper conduits with The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. serving as the agent. We utilize a special purpose entity (“SPE”), PDC Funding, a consolidated, wholly owned subsidiary, to fulfill a requirement of participating in the commercial paper conduit. We receive the proceeds of the contracts upon sale. At least 25% of the proceeds are held by the conduit as security against eventual performance of the portfolio. The capacity under the agreement at January 30, 2016 was $575,000. Second, we also maintain an agreement with Fifth Third Bank whereby the bank purchases customers’ financing contracts. We established another SPE, PDC Funding II, a consolidated, wholly owned subsidiary, which sells financing contracts to the bank. We receive the proceeds of the contracts upon sale. At least 15% of the proceeds are held by the conduit as security against eventual performance of the portfolio. The capacity under the agreement at January 30, 2016 was $100,000. The portion of the purchase price for the receivables held by the conduits is a deferred purchase price receivable, which is paid to the SPE as payments on the receivables are collected from customers. The deferred purchase price receivable represents a beneficial interest in the transferred financial assets and is recognized at fair value as part of the sale transaction. We value the deferred purchase price receivable based on a discounted cash flow analysis using unobservable inputs (i.e. level 3 inputs), which include a forward yield curve, the estimated timing of payments and the credit quality of the underlying creditor. Significant changes in any of the significant unobservable inputs in isolation would not result in a materially different fair value estimate. The interrelationship between these inputs is insignificant. These financing arrangements are accounted for as a sale of assets under the provisions of ASC 860, Transfers and Servicing. During the three and nine months ended January 30, 2016, we sold $128,442 and $271,381, respectively, and during the three and nine months ended January 24, 2015, we sold $82,977 and $215,125, respectively, of contracts under these arrangements. We retain servicing responsibilities under both agreements, for which we are paid a servicing fee. The servicing fees we receive are considered adequate compensation for services rendered. Accordingly, no servicing asset or liability has been recorded. The agreements require us to maintain a minimum current ratio and maximum leverage ratio. We were in compliance with those covenants at January 30, 2016. Included in cash and cash equivalents in the condensed consolidated balance sheets are $26,428 and $29,863 as of January 30, 2016 and April 25, 2015, respectively, which represents cash collected from previously sold customer financing arrangements that have not yet been settled with the third party. Included in current receivables in the condensed consolidated balance sheets are $92,366, net of unearned income of $3,982, and $88,470, net of unearned income of $4,197, as of January 30, 2016 and April 25, 2015, respectively, of finance contracts we have not yet sold. A total of $589,615 of finance contracts receivable sold under the agreements was outstanding at January 30, 2016. The deferred purchase price under the arrangements was $135,985 and $66,715 as of January 30, 2016 and April 25, 2015, respectively. Since the internal financing program began in 1994, bad debt write-offs have amounted to less than one-percent of the loans originated.

Customer Financing

As a convenience to our customers, we offer several different financing alternatives, including a third party program and a Patterson-sponsored program. For the third party program, we act as a facilitator between the customer and the third party financing entity with no on-going involvement in the financing transaction. Under our sponsored program, equipment purchased by customers with strong credit may be financed up to a maximum of $500 for any one customer. We generally sell our customers’ financing contracts to outside financial institutions in the normal course of our business. We currently have two arrangements under which we sell these contracts.

First, we operate under an agreement to sell a portion of our equipment finance contracts to commercial paper conduits with The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. serving as the agent. We utilize a special purpose entity (“SPE”), PDC Funding, a consolidated, wholly owned subsidiary, to fulfill a requirement of participating in the commercial paper conduit. We receive the proceeds of the contracts upon sale. At least 25% of the proceeds are held by the conduit as security against eventual performance of the portfolio. The capacity under the agreement at January 30, 2016 was $575,000.

Second, we also maintain an agreement with Fifth Third Bank whereby the bank purchases customers’ financing contracts. We established another SPE, PDC Funding II, a consolidated, wholly owned subsidiary, which sells financing contracts to the bank. We receive the proceeds of the contracts upon sale. At least 15% of the proceeds are held by the conduit as security against eventual performance of the portfolio. The capacity under the agreement at January 30, 2016 was $100,000.

The portion of the purchase price for the receivables held by the conduits is a deferred purchase price receivable, which is paid to the SPE as payments on the receivables are collected from customers. The deferred purchase price receivable represents a beneficial interest in the transferred financial assets and is recognized at fair value as part of the sale transaction. We value the deferred purchase price receivable based on a discounted cash flow analysis using unobservable inputs (i.e. level 3 inputs), which include a forward yield curve, the estimated timing of payments and the credit quality of the underlying creditor. Significant changes in any of the significant unobservable inputs in isolation would not result in a materially different fair value estimate. The interrelationship between these inputs is insignificant.

These financing arrangements are accounted for as a sale of assets under the provisions of ASC 860, Transfers and Servicing. During the three and nine months ended January 30, 2016, we sold $128,442 and $271,381, respectively, and during the three and nine months ended January 24, 2015, we sold $82,977 and $215,125, respectively, of contracts under these arrangements. We retain servicing responsibilities under both agreements, for which we are paid a servicing fee. The servicing fees we receive are considered adequate compensation for services rendered. Accordingly, no servicing asset or liability has been recorded. The agreements require us to maintain a minimum current ratio and maximum leverage ratio. We were in compliance with those covenants at January 30, 2016.

Included in cash and cash equivalents in the condensed consolidated balance sheets are $26,428 and $29,863 as of January 30, 2016 and April 25, 2015, respectively, which represents cash collected from previously sold customer financing arrangements that have not yet been settled with the third party. Included in current receivables in the condensed consolidated balance sheets are $92,366, net of unearned income of $3,982, and $88,470, net of unearned income of $4,197, as of January 30, 2016 and April 25, 2015, respectively, of finance contracts we have not yet sold. A total of $589,615 of finance contracts receivable sold under the agreements was outstanding at January 30, 2016. The deferred purchase price under the arrangements was $135,985 and $66,715 as of January 30, 2016 and April 25, 2015, respectively. Since the internal financing program began in 1994, bad debt write-offs have amounted to less than one-percent of the loans originated.