progressive leasing achieved record revenues of nearly $ 2.0 billion in 2018 , an increase of 27.6 % over 2017 . progressive leasing 's revenue growth is due to a 23.2 % increase in total invoice volume , which was generated through an increase in invoice volume per active door . progressive leasing 's earnings before income taxes increased to $ 175.0 million compared to $ 140.2 million in 2017 , due mainly to its higher revenue . aaron 's business revenues increased to $ 1.79 billion in 2018 compared to $ 1.78 billion in 2017 . aaron 's business lease revenue and fees increased due to the acquisitions of various franchisees during 2017 and 2018 , partially offset by declines in non-retail sales to our franchisees and a 1.5 % decrease in same store sales . earnings before income taxes decreased to $ 84.7 million in 2018 compared to $ 110.6 million in 2017 , primarily due to the $ 20.1 million impairment of our investment in perfecthome , a rent-to-own company in the united kingdom . the company generated cash from operating activities of $ 356.5 million in 2018 compared to $ 159.1 million in 2017 . the increase in net cash from operating activities was impacted by net income tax refunds received of $ 63.8 million during 2018 compared to net income tax payments made of $ 98.3 million in 2017 . the company ended 2018 with $ 15.3 million in cash and $ 373.0 million available on our revolving credit facility . the company returned $ 175.0 million to our shareholders in 2018 through the repurchase of 3.7 million shares and the payment of our quarterly cash dividends , which we have paid for 31 consecutive years . key metrics invoice volume . we believe that invoice volume is a key performance indicator of our progressive leasing segment . invoice volume is defined as the retail price of lease merchandise acquired and then leased to customers during the period , net of returns . the following table presents total invoice volume for the progressive leasing segment : replace_table_token_7_th active doors . progressive leasing active doors are comprised of both ( i ) each retail store location where at least one virtual lease-to-own transaction has been completed during the trailing twelve-month period ; and ( ii ) with respect to an e-commerce merchant , each state where at least one virtual lease-to-own transaction has been completed through that e-commerce merchant during the trailing twelve-month period . the following table presents active doors for the progressive leasing segment : replace_table_token_8_th 34 the company 's franchised and company-operated store activity ( unaudited ) is summarized as follows : replace_table_token_9_th in may 2016 , we sold our 82 company-operated homesmart stores . same store revenues . we believe that changes in same store revenues are a key performance indicator of the aaron 's business . for the year ended december 31 , 2018 , we calculated this amount by comparing revenues for the year ended december 31 , 2018 to revenues for the year ended december 31 , 2017 for all stores open for the entire 24-month period ended december 31 , 2018 , excluding stores that received lease agreements from other acquired , closed or merged stores . same store revenues declined by 1.5 % during the 24-month period ended december 31 , 2018 . key components of earnings before income taxes in this management 's discussion and analysis section , we review our consolidated results . for the years ended december 31 , 2018 and the comparable prior year periods , some of the key revenue , cost and expense items that affected earnings before income taxes were as follows : revenues . we separate our total revenues into six components : ( i ) lease revenues and fees ; ( ii ) retail sales ; ( iii ) non-retail sales ; ( iv ) franchise royalties and fees ; ( v ) interest and fees on loans receivable ; and ( vi ) other . lease revenues and fees include all revenues derived from lease agreements at retail locations serviced by progressive leasing and the aaron 's business company-operated stores and e-commerce platform . retail sales represent sales of both new and returned lease merchandise from our company-operated stores . non-retail sales primarily represent new merchandise sales to our franchisees . franchise royalties and fees represent fees from the sale of franchise rights and royalty payments from franchisees , as well as other related income from our franchised stores . interest and fees on loans receivable primarily represents merchant fees , finance charges and annual and other fees earned on loans originated since the dami acquisition , as well as the accretion of the discount on loans acquired in the acquisition . other revenues primarily relate to revenues from leasing real estate properties to unrelated third parties , as well as other miscellaneous revenues . depreciation of lease merchandise . depreciation of lease merchandise primarily reflects the expense associated with depreciating merchandise held for lease and leased to customers by progressive leasing and our company-operated aaron 's stores and through our e-commerce platform . retail cost of sales . retail cost of sales represents the depreciated cost of merchandise sold through our company-operated stores . non-retail cost of sales . non-retail cost of sales primarily represents the cost of merchandise sold to our franchisees . operating expenses . operating expenses include personnel costs , occupancy costs , store maintenance , provision for lease merchandise write-offs , progressive leasing bad debt expense , shipping and handling , advertising and marketing , the provision for loan losses , intangible asset amortization expense , software licensing expense and third-party consulting expense , among other expenses . 35 restructuring expenses , net . restructuring expenses primarily represent the cost of optimization efforts and cost reduction initiatives related to the aaron 's business , home office and field support functions . story_separator_special_tag interest income decreased to $ 0.5 million in 2018 from $ 1.8 million in 2017 and $ 2.7 million in 2016 primarily due to the discontinuation of accruing interest income related to the perfecthome notes effective april 1 , 2017. interest income in 2018 was also negatively impacted by lower cash and cash equivalent balances throughout 2018 , while interest income in 2017 benefited from higher cash and cash equivalent balances throughout 2017 . interest expense . interest expense decreased to $ 16.4 million in 2018 from $ 20.5 million in 2017 and $ 23.4 million in 2016 due primarily to an average lower outstanding debt balance throughout 2018 and 2017 . 41 impairment of investment . during the year ended december 31 , 2018 , the company recorded an other-than-temporary loss of $ 20.1 million to impair its remaining outstanding investment in perfecthome , a rent-to-own company in the united kingdom . during the second quarter of 2018 , perfecthome 's liquidity deteriorated significantly due to continuing operating losses and the senior lender 's decision to no longer provide additional funding under a secured revolving debt agreement resulting from perfecthome 's default of certain covenants . additionally , the senior lender notified perfecthome in may 2018 of its intent to exercise remedies available under its credit documentation , which included the right to call its outstanding debt . furthermore , the u.k. governing authority for rent-to-own companies , the financial conduct authority , proposed new regulatory measures which could adversely affect perfecthome 's business . in july 2018 , perfecthome entered into the u.k. 's insolvency process and was subsequently acquired by the senior lender . the company believes it will not receive any further payments on its subordinated secured notes . other non-operating ( expense ) income , net . other non-operating ( expense ) income , net includes the impact of foreign currency remeasurement , as well as gains resulting from changes in the cash surrender value of company-owned life insurance related to the company 's deferred compensation plan . included in other non-operating ( expense ) income , net were foreign currency remeasurement losses of $ 0.1 million and $ 3.7 million during 2018 and 2016 , respectively , and gains of $ 2.1 million during 2017 . these net gains and losses result from changes in the value of the u.s. dollar against the british pound and canadian dollar . the changes in the cash surrender value of company-owned life insurance resulted in net losses of $ 1.2 million during 2018 and net gains of $ 1.5 million and $ 0.2 million during 2017 and 2016 , respectively . earnings ( loss ) before income taxes information about our earnings ( loss ) before income tax ( benefit ) expense by reportable segment is as follows : replace_table_token_13_th the factors impacting the change in earnings ( loss ) before income tax expense ( benefit ) are discussed above . income tax expense ( benefit ) the company recorded income tax expense of $ 56.0 million for 2018 , which resulted in an effective tax rate of 22.2 % . the company recorded a net income tax benefit of $ 53.0 million for 2017 , which was the result of the tax act signed into law on december 22 , 2017. the tax act , among other things , ( i ) lowered the u.s. corporate income tax rate from 35 % to 21 % effective january 1 , 2018 ; ( ii ) provided for 100 % expense deduction of certain qualified depreciable assets , including lease merchandise inventory , purchased after september 27 , 2017 ( but would be phased down starting in 2023 ) ; and ( iii ) failed to extend the manufacturing deduction that expired in 2017 under the terms of previous tax law . during the three months ended december 31 , 2017 , the company recorded a net non-cash provisional income tax benefit of $ 137.0 million related to the tax act , which is comprised of an estimated $ 140.0 million remeasurement of deferred tax liabilities at the lower tax rates , partially offset by an estimated $ 3.0 million from the loss of the manufacturing deduction and other impacts . the impact of the tax adjustments recorded in 2018 for the finalization of the tax act analysis was immaterial . the company recorded income tax expense of $ 79.1 million for 2016 , which resulted in an effective tax rate of 36.2 % . the decline in the effective tax rate since 2016 is primarily the result of the lower u.s. corporate tax rate enacted within the tax act . 42 overview of financial position the major changes in the consolidated balance sheet from december 31 , 2017 to december 31 , 2018 , include : cash and cash equivalents decreased $ 35.8 million to $ 15.3 million at december 31 , 2018 primarily due to cash used to fund the 2018 franchisee acquisitions as discussed in note 2 to these consolidated financial statements , scheduled repayments of the company 's unsecured notes and credit facilities , and the return of $ 175.0 million to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and cash dividends . this was partially offset by $ 356.5 million of cash inflows from operating activities and cash inflows from the october 2018 amendment of the company 's term loan facility , resulting in an increase of the term loan facility to $ 225.0 million from the $ 87.5 million remaining principal outstanding . for additional information , refer to the `` liquidity and capital resources `` section below . investments declined due to the full impairment of the perfecthome notes as discussed in note 1 to these consolidated financial statements . lease merchandise increased $ 166.3 million due primarily to an increase in lease merchandise in our aaron 's business as a result of the 2018 franchisee acquisitions as well as increases

cash used in financing activities was $ 129.0 million , $ 211.4 million and $ 153.7 million during the years ended december 31 , 2018 , 2017 and 2016 , respectively . the $ 82.4 million decrease in financing cash outflows in 2018 as compared to 2017 was primarily due to net borrowings of $ 55.9 million in 2018 as compared to net repayments of outstanding debt of $ 135.0 million in 2017 partially offset by : ( i ) a $ 106.2 million increase in company repurchases of outstanding common stock in 2018 compared to 2017 and ( ii ) an $ 11.2 million increase in cash payments to tax authorities for shares withheld from employees as part of our long-term incentive program in 2018 compared to 2017 . the $ 57.7 million increase in financing cash outflows in 2017 as compared to 2016 was primarily due to : ( i ) a $ 28.0 million increase in company repurchases of outstanding common stock in 2017 compared to 2016 and ( ii ) a $ 25.4 million increase in the net repayments of outstanding debt in 2017 compared to 2016 . during 2017 , the company made scheduled repayments of $ 85.0 million on unsecured notes , $ 15.0 million on the term loan facility , and paid $ 53.0 million to pay off the dami credit facility , partially offset by $ 15.6 million in borrowings from the refinanced term loan in september 2017. share repurchases we purchase our stock in the market from time to time as authorized by our board of directors . during the year ended december 31 , 2018 , the company purchased 3,749,493 shares for $ 168.7 million . during the year ended december 31 , 2017 , the company purchased 1,961,442 shares for $ 62.6 million . as of december 31 , 2018 , we have the authority to purchase additional shares up to our remaining authorization limit of $ 331.3 million . dividends we have a consistent history of paying dividends , having paid dividends for 31 consecutive years .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```cash used in financing activities was $ 129.0 million , $ 211.4 million and $ 153.7 million during the years ended december 31 , 2018 , 2017 and 2016 , respectively . the $ 82.4 million decrease in financing cash outflows in 2018 as compared to 2017 was primarily due to net borrowings of $ 55.9 million in 2018 as compared to net repayments of outstanding debt of $ 135.0 million in 2017 partially offset by : ( i ) a $ 106.2 million increase in company repurchases of outstanding common stock in 2018 compared to 2017 and ( ii ) an $ 11.2 million increase in cash payments to tax authorities for shares withheld from employees as part of our long-term incentive program in 2018 compared to 2017 . the $ 57.7 million increase in financing cash outflows in 2017 as compared to 2016 was primarily due to : ( i ) a $ 28.0 million increase in company repurchases of outstanding common stock in 2017 compared to 2016 and ( ii ) a $ 25.4 million increase in the net repayments of outstanding debt in 2017 compared to 2016 . during 2017 , the company made scheduled repayments of $ 85.0 million on unsecured notes , $ 15.0 million on the term loan facility , and paid $ 53.0 million to pay off the dami credit facility , partially offset by $ 15.6 million in borrowings from the refinanced term loan in september 2017. share repurchases we purchase our stock in the market from time to time as authorized by our board of directors . during the year ended december 31 , 2018 , the company purchased 3,749,493 shares for $ 168.7 million . during the year ended december 31 , 2017 , the company purchased 1,961,442 shares for $ 62.6 million . as of december 31 , 2018 , we have the authority to purchase additional shares up to our remaining authorization limit of $ 331.3 million . dividends we have a consistent history of paying dividends , having paid dividends for 31 consecutive years .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : progressive leasing achieved record revenues of nearly $ 2.0 billion in 2018 , an increase of 27.6 % over 2017 . progressive leasing 's revenue growth is due to a 23.2 % increase in total invoice volume , which was generated through an increase in invoice volume per active door . progressive leasing 's earnings before income taxes increased to $ 175.0 million compared to $ 140.2 million in 2017 , due mainly to its higher revenue . aaron 's business revenues increased to $ 1.79 billion in 2018 compared to $ 1.78 billion in 2017 . aaron 's business lease revenue and fees increased due to the acquisitions of various franchisees during 2017 and 2018 , partially offset by declines in non-retail sales to our franchisees and a 1.5 % decrease in same store sales . earnings before income taxes decreased to $ 84.7 million in 2018 compared to $ 110.6 million in 2017 , primarily due to the $ 20.1 million impairment of our investment in perfecthome , a rent-to-own company in the united kingdom . the company generated cash from operating activities of $ 356.5 million in 2018 compared to $ 159.1 million in 2017 . the increase in net cash from operating activities was impacted by net income tax refunds received of $ 63.8 million during 2018 compared to net income tax payments made of $ 98.3 million in 2017 . the company ended 2018 with $ 15.3 million in cash and $ 373.0 million available on our revolving credit facility . the company returned $ 175.0 million to our shareholders in 2018 through the repurchase of 3.7 million shares and the payment of our quarterly cash dividends , which we have paid for 31 consecutive years . key metrics invoice volume . we believe that invoice volume is a key performance indicator of our progressive leasing segment . invoice volume is defined as the retail price of lease merchandise acquired and then leased to customers during the period , net of returns . the following table presents total invoice volume for the progressive leasing segment : replace_table_token_7_th active doors . progressive leasing active doors are comprised of both ( i ) each retail store location where at least one virtual lease-to-own transaction has been completed during the trailing twelve-month period ; and ( ii ) with respect to an e-commerce merchant , each state where at least one virtual lease-to-own transaction has been completed through that e-commerce merchant during the trailing twelve-month period . the following table presents active doors for the progressive leasing segment : replace_table_token_8_th 34 the company 's franchised and company-operated store activity ( unaudited ) is summarized as follows : replace_table_token_9_th in may 2016 , we sold our 82 company-operated homesmart stores . same store revenues . we believe that changes in same store revenues are a key performance indicator of the aaron 's business . for the year ended december 31 , 2018 , we calculated this amount by comparing revenues for the year ended december 31 , 2018 to revenues for the year ended december 31 , 2017 for all stores open for the entire 24-month period ended december 31 , 2018 , excluding stores that received lease agreements from other acquired , closed or merged stores . same store revenues declined by 1.5 % during the 24-month period ended december 31 , 2018 . key components of earnings before income taxes in this management 's discussion and analysis section , we review our consolidated results . for the years ended december 31 , 2018 and the comparable prior year periods , some of the key revenue , cost and expense items that affected earnings before income taxes were as follows : revenues . we separate our total revenues into six components : ( i ) lease revenues and fees ; ( ii ) retail sales ; ( iii ) non-retail sales ; ( iv ) franchise royalties and fees ; ( v ) interest and fees on loans receivable ; and ( vi ) other . lease revenues and fees include all revenues derived from lease agreements at retail locations serviced by progressive leasing and the aaron 's business company-operated stores and e-commerce platform . retail sales represent sales of both new and returned lease merchandise from our company-operated stores . non-retail sales primarily represent new merchandise sales to our franchisees . franchise royalties and fees represent fees from the sale of franchise rights and royalty payments from franchisees , as well as other related income from our franchised stores . interest and fees on loans receivable primarily represents merchant fees , finance charges and annual and other fees earned on loans originated since the dami acquisition , as well as the accretion of the discount on loans acquired in the acquisition . other revenues primarily relate to revenues from leasing real estate properties to unrelated third parties , as well as other miscellaneous revenues . depreciation of lease merchandise . depreciation of lease merchandise primarily reflects the expense associated with depreciating merchandise held for lease and leased to customers by progressive leasing and our company-operated aaron 's stores and through our e-commerce platform . retail cost of sales . retail cost of sales represents the depreciated cost of merchandise sold through our company-operated stores . non-retail cost of sales . non-retail cost of sales primarily represents the cost of merchandise sold to our franchisees . operating expenses . operating expenses include personnel costs , occupancy costs , store maintenance , provision for lease merchandise write-offs , progressive leasing bad debt expense , shipping and handling , advertising and marketing , the provision for loan losses , intangible asset amortization expense , software licensing expense and third-party consulting expense , among other expenses . 35 restructuring expenses , net . restructuring expenses primarily represent the cost of optimization efforts and cost reduction initiatives related to the aaron 's business , home office and field support functions . story_separator_special_tag interest income decreased to $ 0.5 million in 2018 from $ 1.8 million in 2017 and $ 2.7 million in 2016 primarily due to the discontinuation of accruing interest income related to the perfecthome notes effective april 1 , 2017. interest income in 2018 was also negatively impacted by lower cash and cash equivalent balances throughout 2018 , while interest income in 2017 benefited from higher cash and cash equivalent balances throughout 2017 . interest expense . interest expense decreased to $ 16.4 million in 2018 from $ 20.5 million in 2017 and $ 23.4 million in 2016 due primarily to an average lower outstanding debt balance throughout 2018 and 2017 . 41 impairment of investment . during the year ended december 31 , 2018 , the company recorded an other-than-temporary loss of $ 20.1 million to impair its remaining outstanding investment in perfecthome , a rent-to-own company in the united kingdom . during the second quarter of 2018 , perfecthome 's liquidity deteriorated significantly due to continuing operating losses and the senior lender 's decision to no longer provide additional funding under a secured revolving debt agreement resulting from perfecthome 's default of certain covenants . additionally , the senior lender notified perfecthome in may 2018 of its intent to exercise remedies available under its credit documentation , which included the right to call its outstanding debt . furthermore , the u.k. governing authority for rent-to-own companies , the financial conduct authority , proposed new regulatory measures which could adversely affect perfecthome 's business . in july 2018 , perfecthome entered into the u.k. 's insolvency process and was subsequently acquired by the senior lender . the company believes it will not receive any further payments on its subordinated secured notes . other non-operating ( expense ) income , net . other non-operating ( expense ) income , net includes the impact of foreign currency remeasurement , as well as gains resulting from changes in the cash surrender value of company-owned life insurance related to the company 's deferred compensation plan . included in other non-operating ( expense ) income , net were foreign currency remeasurement losses of $ 0.1 million and $ 3.7 million during 2018 and 2016 , respectively , and gains of $ 2.1 million during 2017 . these net gains and losses result from changes in the value of the u.s. dollar against the british pound and canadian dollar . the changes in the cash surrender value of company-owned life insurance resulted in net losses of $ 1.2 million during 2018 and net gains of $ 1.5 million and $ 0.2 million during 2017 and 2016 , respectively . earnings ( loss ) before income taxes information about our earnings ( loss ) before income tax ( benefit ) expense by reportable segment is as follows : replace_table_token_13_th the factors impacting the change in earnings ( loss ) before income tax expense ( benefit ) are discussed above . income tax expense ( benefit ) the company recorded income tax expense of $ 56.0 million for 2018 , which resulted in an effective tax rate of 22.2 % . the company recorded a net income tax benefit of $ 53.0 million for 2017 , which was the result of the tax act signed into law on december 22 , 2017. the tax act , among other things , ( i ) lowered the u.s. corporate income tax rate from 35 % to 21 % effective january 1 , 2018 ; ( ii ) provided for 100 % expense deduction of certain qualified depreciable assets , including lease merchandise inventory , purchased after september 27 , 2017 ( but would be phased down starting in 2023 ) ; and ( iii ) failed to extend the manufacturing deduction that expired in 2017 under the terms of previous tax law . during the three months ended december 31 , 2017 , the company recorded a net non-cash provisional income tax benefit of $ 137.0 million related to the tax act , which is comprised of an estimated $ 140.0 million remeasurement of deferred tax liabilities at the lower tax rates , partially offset by an estimated $ 3.0 million from the loss of the manufacturing deduction and other impacts . the impact of the tax adjustments recorded in 2018 for the finalization of the tax act analysis was immaterial . the company recorded income tax expense of $ 79.1 million for 2016 , which resulted in an effective tax rate of 36.2 % . the decline in the effective tax rate since 2016 is primarily the result of the lower u.s. corporate tax rate enacted within the tax act . 42 overview of financial position the major changes in the consolidated balance sheet from december 31 , 2017 to december 31 , 2018 , include : cash and cash equivalents decreased $ 35.8 million to $ 15.3 million at december 31 , 2018 primarily due to cash used to fund the 2018 franchisee acquisitions as discussed in note 2 to these consolidated financial statements , scheduled repayments of the company 's unsecured notes and credit facilities , and the return of $ 175.0 million to shareholders in the form of share repurchases and cash dividends . this was partially offset by $ 356.5 million of cash inflows from operating activities and cash inflows from the october 2018 amendment of the company 's term loan facility , resulting in an increase of the term loan facility to $ 225.0 million from the $ 87.5 million remaining principal outstanding . for additional information , refer to the `` liquidity and capital resources `` section below . investments declined due to the full impairment of the perfecthome notes as discussed in note 1 to these consolidated financial statements . lease merchandise increased $ 166.3 million due primarily to an increase in lease merchandise in our aaron 's business as a result of the 2018 franchisee acquisitions as well as increases

