Before the opening bell on Friday, jewelry company Tiffany & Co (TIF ) turned a profit for the fourth quarter, which matched analysts’ estimates, but its weaker-than-expected outlook sent shares lower in premarket trading.
TIF's Earnings in Brief
- TIF reported net income of $196.18 million, or $1.51 per share, compared to a net loss of $103.6 million, or 81 cents per share, last year.
- Sales declined 1% to $1.29 billion from $1.30 billion.
- On average, analysts expected to see EPS of $1.51 and $1.31 billion in revenue.
- Looking ahead to FY2015, the company expects to see minimal EPS growth from its FY2014 EPS of $4.20.
CEO Commentary
The company’s CEO and President Frederic Cumenal commented: “Tiffany is facing challenges from global economic uncertainties, especially from the effect of a strong U.S. dollar on the translation of foreign-denominated sales into dollars and on foreign tourist spending in the U.S. As a result, we have adopted a cautious approach in our planning for the coming year, anticipating modest growth in net sales and minimal net earnings growth for the full year; this assumes pressure on sales and earnings in the first half of the year followed by healthy growth in the second half. Longer-term, we see an exciting future for Tiffany as we pursue important expansion opportunities.”
TIF's Dividend
TIF will pay its next 38 cent dividend on April 10. The stock went ex-dividend on March 18. We expect TIF to declare its next dividend in May.
Stock Performance
Shares of TIF were down $2.87, or -3.32% during premarket trading Friday. The stock is down 19.17% YTD.
The Bottom Line
Tiffany & Co (TIF ) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.
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