Abercrombie & Fitch Stuns Investors With Comparable Sales Growth

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 13, 12:29PM EST · Published Mar 2, 8:45AM EST

Abercrombie & Fitch Stuns Investors With Comparable Sales Growth — © Thinkstock

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) reported its fiscal fourth-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Wednesday. The company said it had $1.08 in earnings per share (EPS) on $1.11 billion in revenue. That compared to Thomson Reuters consensus estimates of $0.99 in EPS on revenue of $1.10 billion. In the same period of last year, the retailer posted EPS of $1.15 and $1.12 billion in revenue.

During this quarter, revenue grew by 2% on a constant currency basis, but it was down 1% from last year. What set this quarter apart was that its comparable sales increased by 1%, driven by a 4% increase in comparable sales in the Hollister segment.

Direct-to-consumer and omnichannel sales grew to roughly 28% of total company net sales for the fourth quarter, compared to 27% of total company net sales last year.

In terms of the outlook for fiscal 2016, the company expects flat to slightly positive comparable sales, adverse effects from foreign currency on sales of about $50 million and a gross margin of 61.9% on a constant currency basis. The consensus estimates call for $1.18 in EPS on $3.52 billion in revenue.
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Executive Chairman Arthur Martinez commented on earnings:

We were pleased to deliver results in line with our expectations against the backdrop of a challenging environment that included currency, traffic and weather headwinds. Our results for the fourth quarter reflect continued progress on a number of fronts and included a return to positive comparable sales, higher average unit retails as promotional activity was moderated, and meaningful improvement in adjusted operating income on a constant currency basis. In addition, inventory continued to be well managed and we generated strong free cash flow for the year.

On the books, cash and equivalents totaled $588.6 million at the end of the fourth quarter, compared to $520.7 million in the same period last year.

Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch closed Tuesday up 1% at $29.34, with a consensus analyst price target of $24.64 and a 52-week trading range of $15.42 to $29.50. Following the release of the earnings report, the stock was up 8.7% at $31.90 in early trading indications on Wednesday.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.