Pier 1 4Q Earnings Off

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Pier 1 4Q Earnings Off

Fort Worth, TX, April 12, 2007--Pier 1 Imports said its fiscal fourth-quarter loss widened on lower revenue and various charges. For the quarter ended March 3, the company reported a loss of $58.7 million, or 67 cents per share, compared with a smaller loss of $10 million, or 11 cents per share, during the same period a year ago.

 

The current quarter was hurt by settlement and curtailment charges of $6.8 million, or 8 cents per share, related to retirement plans. Pier 1 also recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $4.1 million, or 5 cents per share, related to Pier 1 Kids and costs of $2.4 million, or 3 cents per share, for store-level asset impairment charges.

 

Excluding items, the company posted a loss from continuing operations of $12.9 million, or 14 cents per share, versus a loss of 4 cents per share in the prior year.

 

Quarterly revenue for the period ended March 3 dropped 6 percent to $473.7 million from $506 million.

 

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial were looking for a loss of 32 cents per share on sales of $457.5 million.

 

Same-store sales declined 11 percent. Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, are a key measure of retailer performance, because they measure growth at existing stores rather than from newly opened ones.

 

The company said its fourth-quarter merchandise margins fell primarily due to an inventory valuation charge of about $32.5 million, or 37 cents per share, to speed inventory clearance at the end of the quarter.

 

For the year, Pier 1 posted a loss of $227.6 million, or $2.60 per share, compared with a loss of $39.8 million, or 46 cents per share, in the prior-year period. Adjusted losses from continuing operations totaled $113.1 million, or $1.28 per share, compared with a loss of 28 cents per share in the previous year.

 

Full-year sales slipped 9 percent to $1.62 billion versus $1.78 billion in the previous year.

 

Going forward, the company said it won't release sales information on a monthly basis and will shift to a quarterly reporting schedule.