"The improved sales trends we experienced during the March - April period have accelerated during the second quarter so far with May comparable sales up 1% through May 25. We are encouraged by the recent momentum and optimistic about our prospects for the upcoming back to school season.
"Based on first quarter performance and current visibility, we remain comfortable with our previously issued guidance for adjusted Fiscal 2014 diluted earnings per share in the range of $5.57 to $5.67, a 10% to 12% increase over Fiscal 2013's adjusted earnings per share of $5.06.
"Consistent with our previous guidance, these expectations do not include non-cash asset impairments and network intrusion expenses, which we estimate will be in the range of $3.4 million to $4.4 million pretax, or $0.09 to $0.12 per share, after tax, in Fiscal 2014.
"They also do not reflect compensation expense associated with the Schuh deferred purchase price as described above, which is currently estimated at approximately $11.5 million, or $0.49 per diluted share, for the full year. This guidance assumes a comparable sales increase in the low single digit range for the full fiscal year." A reconciliation of the adjusted financial measures cited in the guidance to their corresponding measures as reported pursuant to U.S.
Dennis concluded, "We believe the investments we are making in our businesses, including improved e-commerce infrastructure and selective store openings, are delivering solid returns and positioning the Company for sustainable sales and earnings growth in the years ahead. Our teams continue to execute at a high level, and we remain on track to achieve our 5-year target of $3.5 billion in sales and an operating margin of 9.5% by fiscal 2017."
Genesco