Guess? brand enjoys tremendous momentum worldwide

28 May '10

5 min read

Guess? Inc. reported financial results for the first quarter of its 2011 fiscal year, which ended May 1, 2010.

First Quarter Fiscal 2011 Results
For the first quarter of fiscal 2011, the Company reported net earnings of $50.3 million, an increase of 55% compared to net earnings of $32.5 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2010. Diluted earnings per share increased 54% to $0.54 in the current quarter, compared to $0.35 in the prior-year quarter. In the quarter, the Company recorded a $5.8 million charge, or $0.04 per share, related to the acceleration of pension cost amortization resulting from the departure of Carlos Alberini from the Company's supplemental executive retirement plan.

Paul Marciano, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are very pleased with our strong performance this quarter. We achieved excellent results across all of our businesses around the world, with each of our segments delivering double-digit revenue growth and improving their profitability significantly. In North America, we posted a 9.7% same store sales increase and our international expansion drove significant growth in the period. Europe and Asia combined represented almost 60% of our quarterly revenue increase. We managed our business effectively, which resulted in an operating margin expansion of 230 basis points, even as we continued to invest in our infrastructure to support our ambitious growth initiatives."

Mr. Marciano continued, "We remain focused on our key priorities for this year: to increase sales productivity across all businesses, to grow our European and Asian businesses and to expand our retail store base in North America. Our brand enjoys tremendous momentum worldwide and we strive to achieve its full potential as we develop our business in many markets where the brand is well known. We have a dedicated management team, a successful and diversified business model and a solid capital structure that position us well to continue to grow our business and deliver solid returns for our shareholders."

Total net revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 increased 22% to $539.3 million from $441.2 million in the prior-year quarter. The Company's retail stores in North America generated revenue of $235.8 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2011, a 13.6% increase from $207.6 million in the same period a year ago. Comparable store sales increased 9.7% (5.8% in constant dollars) for the first quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to the same period a year ago. The Company operated 433 retail stores in the U.S. and Canada at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2011 versus 429 stores a year earlier.

Net revenue from the Company's North American wholesale segment increased 27.3% to $42.7 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2011, from $33.6 million in the prior-year period.

Net revenue from the Company's Europe segment increased 28.3% to $187.0 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2011, compared to $145.7 million in the prior-year period.

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