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CNNfn after the bell
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January 7, 1999: 6:11 p.m. ET
Sports Authority, Cendant dominate the headlines after the closing bell
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - News of a possible charge at Cendant Corp., a stock split at Compuware, and a new batch of earnings warnings grabbed the spotlight after the bell on Thursday.
Real estate franchiser Cendant Corp. (CD) said it will record an after-tax charge of $220 million, or 26 cents a share, in the fourth quarter of 1998 if a preliminary agreement with the class of holders of its PRIDES securities is approved.
If approved, the agreement will affect those who purchased Income or Growth PRIDES securities on or before April 15. Under the agreement, the affected security holders will receive a new right for each security held.
The Sports Authority (TSA) said it expects fourth quarter profits to be well below analysts' estimates due to weaker sales of sports apparel and ski wear.
In a statement, the company said it expects fourth quarter sales to be approximately $450 million, with a comparable store sales decrease of approximately 4.5 percent over the prior year. Earnings per share are expected to be only "slightly positive."
According to First Call, analysts had expected the company to post a profit of 32 cents a share for the quarter, down from 35 cents a year ago.
The Fort Lauderdale-based company attributed the shortfall to extremely warm weather throughout the country, which hurt sales of outerwear and ski category products. Additionally, the continued softness in the licensed category was somewhat exacerbated by the NBA lockout.
Scientific-Atlanta (SFA) said it expects to report higher-than-expected revenues for the second quarter due to strong sales of interactive set-top boxes to cable companies.
The company said revenues for the second quarter will be approximately $308 million compared to $294.5 million a year ago and current average Wall Street expectations of approximately $262 million.
As a result of the increased revenue, the company said its income from operations, which has not yet been finally determined, will significantly exceed current analyst expectations, although margins are expected to be somewhat impacted by the higher percentage of digital set-tops in the product mix.
In after-hours trade, shares of Scientific-Atlanta were up about 3 from the earlier New York close of 23 15/16.
Compuware Corp. (CPWR)declared a two-for-one stock split, payable as a 100 percent stock dividend to shareholders of record as of Jan. 26.
Empi Inc. (EMPI) said it expects to report fourth quarter earnings of about $3.1 million or 48 cents a diluted share, up from $2.9 million or 35 cents a share the previous year.
The medical device company said fourth quarter sales are expected to reach a record $19.1 million, up 3 percent from the previous year's $18.6 million.
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