Cherokee Q1 FY'14 sales rise 7.2%

Highlights:

- Q1 revenues up 7.2% year-over-year
- Expanded e-commerce presence in Asia; RT Mart China retail sales up 46% over Q1 2013
- Landmark Group’s Max Stores launch the Cherokee brand at 48 stores in the Middle East
- $1.0 million in fees related to the material weaknesses identified in the 2013 annual report

Net revenues for the quarter were $8.1 million, up approximately 7.2% from $7.5 million in the prior-year period. The increase in revenues was primarily the result of revenues from Liz Lange and higher revenues from other international licensees partially offset by a decrease in royalty revenues at Zellers due to their recent closing.

SG&A expenses, which include the amortization of trademarks, totaled $5.4 million, compared to $4.2 million in the first quarter of Fiscal 2013. Included in this increase in SG&A for the quarter are $1.0 million of professional and consulting fees that the Company believes will not recur and are related to the identification and remediation of weaknesses identified in the Company’s 10-K/A for the Fiscal Year 2013.

These fees included audit fees, legal fees and consulting fees to evaluate Cherokee’s control systems and procedures, perform SOX related testing and compliance work, and provide additional analysis around tax provision, expense oversight and reconciliation analysis.

Management believes that these expenses make it difficult for investors to evaluate the underlying performance of the business and that non-GAAP net income excluding these expenses and related tax effects provides a useful measure of performance for the quarter as it offers consistency and comparability with past financial performance, facilitates period-to-period comparisons, and enables better comparisons with other peer companies.

Excluding these items, first quarter 2014 adjusted net income totaled $2.2 million or $0.27 per diluted share, up from $2.1 million, or $0.25 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2013.

For the quarter, the Company generated GAAP net income of $1.6 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, compared to GAAP net income of $2.1 million or $0.25 per diluted share in the prior-year time period.