Cincinnati, OH, January 26, 2006--Federated Department Stores said it expects to post a loss in the fiscal first quarter amid weaker sales in existing stores.
Federated projects a loss of $0.05 to $0.15 per share in the quarter, on sales of between $5.75 billion to $6 billion.
Same store sales are expected to decline between half a percent to 1.5 percent.
"We expect significant improvement in 2007 and a return to our historical peak levels of profitability, adjusted for the impact of the sale of credit portfolios, by the 2008-2009 period," Federated chief executive Terry Lundgren said in a statement, adding that 2006 was a "transition year." The company is in the process of absorbing former rival May Department Stores Co., which it acquired in 2005.
For the second quarter, Federated projected a profit between $0.45 to $0.55 per share, on sales from $6 billion to $6.25 billion.
For this year's second half, it forecast earnings between $3 to $3.25 per share, on sales between $15 billion to $15.5 billion.
For the full year, Federated estimated profit of from $3.45 to $3.70 per share, on sales ranging from $27.25 billion to $27.75 billion. The outlook excludes one-time integration costs and a gain from the sale of credit receivables.
