Q1 results are solid by any measure – CEO of Oxford
09 Jun '10
3 min read
Oxford Industries, Inc. announced financial results for its fiscal 2010 first quarter ended May 1, 2010. Consolidated net sales were $217.8 million compared to $216.7 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2009. Diluted net earnings per common share were $0.76 compared to $0.42 in the first quarter of fiscal 2009.
J. Hicks Lanier, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Oxford Industries, Inc., commented, "Our first quarter results are solid by any measure. Increased consumer demand at both our own stores and those of our wholesale customers drove stronger than expected sales. In our retail stores, we achieved healthy comparable store sales. On the wholesale side, our customers had initially booked Spring 2010 very conservatively and finished 2009 with very lean inventories. As they began to experience positive sales trends during Holiday 2009 and the early part of this year, many of them scrambled to try to re-build inventories to what we believe are more normalized levels. We did everything we could to service these customers and, as a result, some sales originally planned for our second quarter shipped in the first quarter. With increased gross margins across the Company, we were able to leverage the additional sales into a respectable bottom line result of $0.76 per share despite a modest increase in SG&A that primarily resulted from the resumption of our performance-based bonus plan which we had suspended for fiscal 2009.
"Looking forward, we continue to anticipate a steady recovery in the business and are increasing our guidance for the year to net sales of $790 to $805 million and EPS of $1.70 to $1.80. On the retail side, we expect to see continued positive comp store sales for the balance of the year. On the wholesale side, second quarter sales will be impacted by the sales our customers pulled forward into the first quarter. Excluding the impact of businesses we exited, we generally expect to see continued steady sales improvement through the year. For the second quarter we expect net sales of $175 to $185 million and EPS of $0.30 to $0.35."
Mr. Lanier continued, "While there is still significant uncertainty in the economy, we are pleased with our first quarter results and the improved trajectory of our business. The steps we took last year to protect our brands, mitigate risks and aggressively reduce our expense structure are paying off for our shareholders."