Revenue at Claire's Stores, Inc. Catches
Wall St. By Surprise
07/09/2004
On Thursday, Claire's Stores, Inc. (CLE)
announced that sales increased by 11%, exceeding Wall Street's
expectations. The company also increased their guidance for
the second quarter and the full year.
While the S&P 500 fell 1.1% for the
week, CLE's stock jumped 8.5% on the positive announcement.
CLE is part of our High-Dividend Blue Chip Stock Portfolio
which has an average annual return of 27.3%.
Excerpts from the company's news release
follows:
PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., July 8 -- PRNewswire-FirstCall/
-- Claire's Stores, Inc. (NYSE: CLE - News) reported today
that comparable store sales for the five weeks ended July
3, 2004 increased 11 percent after increasing four percent
during the corresponding five-week period last year. Total
sales during the five-week period ended July 3, 2004 increased
16 percent to $116,757,000 compared with $101,072,000 for
the comparable five-week period last year.
Comparable store sales results for June
2004 compared to June 2003 were as follows:
* Claire's North America: positive low
teens
* Claire's International: positive mid single digits
* Icing by Claire's: positive high teens
Bonnie Schaefer, Co-Chairman and Co-CEO
of Claire's Stores, Inc. said, "We are pleased that our
efforts overseas have given rise to the reported improvement
in comparable store sales. We have repeatedly stated that
we are in the midst of a comprehensive overview of our international
business and that numerous changes were being implemented.
We do not expect to see the full impact of our actions until
the second half of the fiscal year, but it is now clear that
real progress is being made which we believe is both sustainable
and transferable to each of the countries that make up the
international division."
Marla Schaefer, Co-Chairman and Co-CEO of
Claire's Stores, Inc. said, "The double digit performance
of our North American business is continuing, with sales driven
by jewelry and accessory selections that are providing customers
with the looks they are seeking at attractive prices. Jewelry
continues to be a great seller across the board, with interest
as strong as it has been all year. Summer accessories such
as sunglasses, flip flops and temporary tattoos are also selling
well. Our back to school items will debut later this month,
as we are setting that plan-o-gram in mid July."
Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking
statements" which represent the Company's expectations
or beliefs with respect to future events. These forward-looking
statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those anticipated. Those factors include, without limitation:
changes in consumer preferences and consumer spending for
pre-teen, teen and young adult apparel and accessories; competition;
general economic conditions; currency fluctuations and exchange
rate adjustments; uncertainties generally associated with
the specialty retailing business; disruptions in our supply
of inventory; and uncertainty that definitive financial results
may differ from preliminary financial results due to, among
other things, final GAAP adjustments. These and other applicable
risks, cautionary statements and factors that could cause
actual results to differ from the Company's forward-looking
statements are included in the Company's filings with the
SEC, specifically as described in the Company's annual report
on Form 10-K for the Fiscal year ended January 31, 2004. The
Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
The historical results contained in this press release are
not necessarily indicative of the future performance of the
Company.
The company's complete press release can
be found at www.claires.com.
Source: Claire's Stores, Inc.
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