UPDATE 2-Guess Q2 profit leaps; raises fiscal 2008 view
(Adds details, analyst comment)
By Aditi Samajpati
BANGALORE, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Clothes and accessories retailer Guess? Inc (GES.N) posted a 81.5 percent jump in quarterly profit, helped by double-digit revenue growth in all its businesses, and raised its 2008 outlook.
However, shares of the company slid more than 7 percent to $49.55 in late electronic trade after closing at $53.40 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Sterne Agee analyst Margaret Whitfield said the stock-slide was spurred by investors overeacting to the outlook, which was affected by a shift in the retail calendar and certain volumes from the company's European operations.
"As we have seen in the past, the guidance provided will prove conservative. The company will beat these numbers," she said by phone.
The company expects fiscal 2008 earnings of $1.79 to $1.84 a share on net revenue of $1.56 billion to $1.60 billion. Analysts on average expect earnings of $1.83 a share on revenue of $1.57 billion for fiscal 2008.
Net income for the latest second quarter rose to $37.5 million, or 40 cents a share, versus market expectations of earnings of 33 cents a share.
The Los Angeles-based company's shares have leaped 68 percent this year as trend-right merchandise has fueled robust growth in the wholesale and retail businesses, helping Guess? post strong quarterly results.
REVENUE GAINS
Quarterly total net revenue increased more than 48 percent to $388.3 million. Analysts on average expected revenue of $345.6 million.
Strong performance across all product lines in the North American retail business led to a 16.2 percent same-store sales growth for the quarter, the company said in a statement.
August sales trends helped the company boost its same-store sales view for the second half of 2008 to the mid-single digit range. For the full year, it sees overall retail revenue increasing about 13 percent, the company said in a conference call with analysts.
In June, it had forecast fiscal 2008 earnings of $1.75 to $1.80 a share on net revenue of $1.51 to $1.56 billion.
