Earnings - 26th Aug 2008

4:07PM J. Crew misses by $0.04, reports revs in-line; guides Q3 EPS below consensus; lowers FY09 EPS guidance (JCG) 26.64 +1.03 : Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.28 per share, $0.04 worse than the First Call consensus of $0.32; revenues rose 10.3% year/year to $336.2 mln vs the $337.9 mln consensus. Co says gross margin decreased to 41.0% of revenues from 43.7% of revenues in the second quarter of fiscal 2007. Co issues downside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.28-0.33 vs. $0.46 consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY09, sees EPS of $1.44-1.54 down from previous guidance of $1.70-1.75 vs. $1.71 consensus. Co says " ... based upon the disruption to our Direct business, as well as the continued softness in our Stores business due to the macro economic environment, we are revising our guidance for fiscal 2008. The Direct systems upgrades impacted our Direct sales trend, limited our ability to leverage our multi-channel platform and resulted in incremental expenses..." The co's revised expectations for 2H08 include comparable store sales growth in the range of flat to slightly negative, Direct sales growth in the high single-digits and net square footage expansion of approx 10% to 11%.

4:04PM Hain Celestial beats by $0.02, beats on revs; guides FY09 EPS in-line, revs above consensus (HAIN) 24.99 +0.15 : Reports Q4 (Jun) earnings of $0.34 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.02 better than the First Call consensus of $0.32; revenues rose 25.2% year/year to $278.3 mln vs the $264.3 mln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY09, sees EPS of $1.54-1.61 vs. $1.60 consensus; sees FY09 revs of $1.2-1.3 bln vs. $1.17 bln consensus. Similar to fiscal year 2008, the Company expects to incur $0.08 per share in stock compensation expense to amortize equity grants made this past fiscal year in fiscal year 2009. A recently announced price increase in the United States is expected to have a positive impact on margin beginning with the Company's second quarter of fiscal year 2009.

4:03PM Applied Signal beats by $0.01, beats on revs (APSG) 14.72 -0.59 : Reports Q3 (Jul) earnings of $0.15 per share, $0.01 better than the First Call consensus of $0.14; revenues rose 26.3% year/year to $49.9 mln vs the $46.4 mln consensus.


8:38AM Daktronics beats by $0.05, beats on revs; reaffirms FY09 rev guidance (DAKT) 18.11 : Reports Q1 (Jul) earnings of $0.22 per share, excluding $977K gain on property sale, vs consensus of $0.17; revenues rose 33.3% year/year to $161.2 mln vs the $141.5 mln consensus. The co is reiterating its financial guidance for fiscal 2009. Daktronics expects that net sales will increase by more than 20% over fiscal 2008 (equates to ~$599.60 mln vs. $598.87 mln consensus) and operating margin will range from 8.0-9.5%. The growth of net sales depends on a number of large contracts, particularly in our live events and international business units, which could cause this growth level to change. Operating margin may vary, primarily as a result of fluctuations in gross profit levels. This guidance is subject to a number of factors that could cause it to vary, and investors should refer to our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete list of risk factors.

7:48AM Corinthian Colleges beats by $0.02, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs above consensus; guides FY09 EPS above consensus, revs in-line (COCO) 16.21 : Reports Q4 (Jun) earnings of $0.11 per share, ex-items, $0.02 better than the First Call consensus of $0.09; revenues rose 18.3% year/year to $274 mln vs the $276.6 mln consensus. Total student population at fiscal year-end was 69,211 versus 61,332, an increase of 12.8%. Total student starts were 23,015 versus 20,643, an increase of 11.5%. Including discontinued operations, starts increased 7.2%. Co issues mixed guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.06-$0.08 vs. $0.08 consensus; sees Q1 revs of $285-$290 mln vs. $283.31 mln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY09, sees EPS of $0.58-$0.63 vs. $0.55 consensus; sees FY09 revs of $1.21-$1.25 bln vs. $1.22 bln consensus.

7:47AM American Eagle beats by $0.01, misses on revs; guides Q3 EPS below consensus (AEO) 13.74 : Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.29 per share, $0.01 better than the First Call consensus of $0.28; revenues fell 2.0% year/year to $688.8 mln vs the $705.5 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.31-0.36 vs. $0.39 consensus, with the view that the business environment remains challenging through the 2H. "While the consumer environment is clearly challenging, we are taking steps to invigorate our business. We are strengthening our competitive position by underscoring AE's value pricing, which is consistent with our heritage of great value together with excellent quality. Additionally, we are driving improvements within our merchandise assortments. Yet, we are managing to the current macro environment, with tight inventories and we continue to pursue expense opportunities. As I look ahead to 2009 and beyond, I have tremendous confidence in the strength of our brands, our teams, and that we are positioning our company for improved financial performance, future growth and success."

7:33AM Chico's FAS beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line (CHS) 4.98 : Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.04 per share, $0.01 better than the First Call consensus of $0.03; revenues fell 7.1% year/year to $405.2 mln vs the $405.3 mln consensus. "The retail environment continues to be challenging as customers remain increasingly cautious in their spending across the entire retail sector, especially in the missy category. While we anticipate consolidated comparable store sales for the fall season to remain negative, we expect to see an improvement in trend and continue to believe we will be profitable in the second half."


7:04AM Smithfield Foods beats by $0.02, beats on revs (SFD) 23.53 : Reports Q1 (Jul) loss of $0.02 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.02 better than the First Call consensus of ($0.04); revenues rose 20.1% year/year to $3.14 bln vs the $2.87 bln consensus. "Looking forward to the remainder of fiscal 2009, the future is uncertain. Even as hog prices recently have risen and grain markets have moderated somewhat, the delayed impact of grain costs will result in continued elevated raising costs," he said. The volatile nature of both the domestic and world markets for meat prices and grains, combined with uncertainty surrounding the economy and the U.S. dollar, make any prediction of future results very difficult. However, we continue to pursue our long-term strategy of emphasizing our packaged meats business and improving our fresh meat operations. This strategy is working and is improving the base of our business."

6:39AM Sanderson Farms misses by $0.09, reports revs in-line (SAFM) 39.49 : Reports Q3 (Jul) loss of $0.09 per share, excluding settlement payment, $0.09 worse than the First Call consensus of ($0.00); revenues rose 18.3% year/year to $466.9 mln vs the $464.8 mln consensus.

6:06AM Big Lots beats by $0.05, reports revs in-line; guides Q3 EPS in-line; guides Q4 (Jan) EPS in-line; guides FY09 EPS in-line (BIG) 33.06 : Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.32 per share, $0.05 better than the First Call consensus of $0.27; revenues rose 1.9% year/year to $1.11 bln vs the $1.1 bln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.15-0.19, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.18 consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q4 (Jan), sees EPS of $1.02-1.09, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.03 consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY09, sees EPS of $1.90-2.00, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.90 consensus. For Q308 and Q408, co anticipates a 1%-2% comparable store sales increase.