The Buckle, Inc.’s BKE fourth-quarter fiscal 2014 earnings per share of $1.25 came a penny ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate while increasing 1.6% year over year.
The Buckle Inc. - Earnings Surprise | FindTheCompany
The company’s net sales climbed 4.3% year over year to $353.5 million and were almost in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Merchandise sales growth of 10% at the Men’s categories partly offset flat women’s category sales Women’s merchandise contributed 53% to total sales whereas Men’s business’ input was 47% for the quarter. Shares were up 1.5% on the index.
Combined accessory sales fell 4.5%, whereas footwear sales were up 10%. These two categories were nearly 9% and 5% of fourth quarter net sales, respectively.
Comparable-store sales dipped 1.1% from the prior-year period. However, online sales (not included in comparable-store sales) grew 12.6% year over year to $33 million.
Buckle’s gross profit inched up 3.7% to $167.4 million, while gross margin contracted 20 basis points (bps) to 47.4%. The contraction was mostly due to lower merchandise margins.
Operating income came in at $94.4 almost unchanged from the prior-year quarter, whereas the operating margin contracted 110 bps to 26.7%.
Other Financial Aspects
Buckle ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $133.7 million, receivables of $8.6 million and shareholders’ equity of $355.3 million. Further, the company had accounts payable of $35.7 million.
In the quarter, the company incurred capital expenditures of $9.2 million bringing the total to $45.5 million for the full fiscal. For fiscal 2015, the company expects capex to be around $35–$39 million, to be deployed toward outlet construction/remodel and technology upgrade along with the construction of a new office building at the headquarters in Kearney, NB.
As of Mar 13, 2015, Buckle operated 462 retail stores in 44 states. For fiscal 2015, the company plans to open 9 new stores and complete remodeling of 11 stores.
A Glimpse at Fiscal 2014
For fiscal 2014, Buckle’s earnings of $3.38 per share came a penny ahead of the Zacks Consensus estimate but decreased from the prior year’s earnings of $3.39 per share. Net sales came in at $1,513.1 million, up 2.2% year and year and almost in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Other Stocks to Consider
Buckle currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the industry include Citi Trends, Inc. CTRN, Aeropostale, Inc. ARO and American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. AEO. Citi Trends sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) while Aeropostale and American Eagle hold a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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