Q4 revenues up 3% to record $776 mn, Guess? Inc

17 Mar '12

6 min read

Guess? Inc. reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended January 28, 2012.

Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2012 Highlights
•Asian revenues increased 27%
•North American Retail revenues increased 1%; retail comp sales declined 5.0%
•European revenues decreased 1% in U.S. dollars; up slightly in local currency
•Operating earnings decreased 6% and operating margin declined 160 basis points
•Invested $92 million to repurchase 3.2 million shares

Fiscal Year 2012 Highlights
•Global revenue increased 8% to a record $2.7 billion
•Asian revenues increased 25% in U.S. dollars and 21% in constant dollars
•European revenue increased 10% in U.S. dollars and 5% in local currency; full year revenues exceeded $1 billion
•North American Retail revenues increased 4%; retail comp sales declined 3.5%
•Adjusted operating earnings increased 3%; GAAP operating earnings decreased 2%

For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012, the Company reported net earnings of $95.9 million, a 7.2% decrease compared to net earnings of $103.3 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011. Diluted earnings per share decreased 5.4%, to $1.05, compared to $1.11 for the prior-year quarter. The prior-year results included a one-time benefit to revenue of $6.7 million, or $0.05 per share, relating to the Company's completion of an assessment of North American loyalty program breakage.

Paul Marciano, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are pleased to deliver fourth quarter earnings consistent with our expectations, even as economic pressures impacted consumer confidence in some of our markets. These results mark the end of a year in which we made significant progress on important initiatives that support our long-term objectives.”

“We leveraged the global momentum of the Guess? brand, opening 261 new stores during the year, and increased revenues in all segments. We reached the $1 billion revenue mark in Europe for the first time and gained significant traction in Northern and Eastern Europe, where we are developing a strong market presence. South Korea and China continued their double digit growth and in North America, we succeeded in elevating the Guess brand, which drove significant profit improvements in that region."

Mr. Marciano continued, "We enter this fiscal year in a challenging macroeconomic environment, especially in Europe, though there are some signs of improvement in the United States. As always, we plan to focus on what we can control. We also plan to deploy our resources prudently and in a way that protects our solid capital structure and supports the long-term opportunities of the Guess? brand. We will invest in new marketing programs designed to increase brand awareness and drive more traffic into our stores.”

“While this is a long term investment to grow sales, we do expect to see some acceleration of our revenues in the second half of this year. We will continue to develop newer international markets and expand our G by Guess concept both internationally and domestically. As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Guess?, we will continue to create innovative and compelling new product designs and styles that showcase Guess? as an iconic global lifestyle brand."

Total net revenue for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012 increased 2.5% to $775.8 million from $756.9 million in the prior-year quarter. In constant dollars, total net revenue increased 3.6%.

- The Company's retail stores in North America generated revenue of $343.5 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012, a 1.4% increase from $338.6 million in the same period a year ago. Comparable store sales decreased 5.0% in U.S. dollars and 4.6% in local currency for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012, compared to the same period a year ago. The Company directly operated 504 retail stores in the United States and Canada at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012 versus 481 stores a year earlier.

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