|
Venator 2Q deeper in red
|
 |
August 20, 1998: 10:32 a.m. ET
Retailer posts loss of 9 cents a share, missing mark by 2 cents; poor sales cited
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Venator Group, the struggling retailer formerly known as Woolworth, is blaming its less-than-stellar second-quarter performance on consumer apathy for athletic footwear.
New York-based Venator Thursday posted a net loss of $13 million, or 9 cents a diluted share, for the fiscal quarter ended Aug. 1, missing Wall Street estimates of a 7 cents a share loss by 2 cents.
The results compare with a loss of $181 million, or $1.33 per share, a year earlier. Last year's results included a $207 million, or $1.52 a share, charge for closing the company's F.W. Woolworth U.S. general merchandise operations. Excluding that charge, the company earned 19 cents a share.
Revenues fell 2.3 percent to $1.47 billion from $1.5 billion a year ago. Sam-store sales fell 6 percent.
"Sales during the second quarter continued to fall short of expectations, particularly for the athletic group of stores," said Venator Chairman and Chief Executive Roger Farah. "For the past six months, our industry has had to endure a significant amount of over-supplied athletic footwear, principally in close-out inventories, which has created an aggressive promotional selling environment."
That, combined with soft sales of licensed products and a drop in Asian tourism, conspired to hold down sales during the quarter, he said.
Merchandise inventories during the second quarter also rose 13 percent, reflecting the lower sales.
During the quarter, Venator opened 169 stores and remodeled 136, contributing in part to the company's increased short-term debt since 1997. The company also disposed of 154 stores.
Venator said it expects to continue "the disposition" of non-strategic real estate and businesses for the foreseeable future.
For the first half, Venator lost $18 million, or 13 cents a share, compared with a loss of $180 million, or $1.32 per share, a year ago.
Woolworth Corp. changed its name to Venator Group in June to transform its image from a five-and-dime to a high-performance sporting apparel operation.
Once known for its low-priced stores, Woolworth over the past three years has struggled to achieve a new image, acquiring athletic merchandise chains such as Champs Sports and footwear cataloguer Eastbay.
Venator recently signed an agreement to merge with The Sports Authority Inc. (TSA). Under terms of the deal, The Sports Authority will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Venator through a pooling of interests.
Shares of Venator (Z) were up 1/8 at 12-3/16 Thursday morning on the New York Stock Exchange. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
Venator
|
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNNmoney
|
|
|
|
 |
|
