Crocs shares tank on updated guidance

Posted Jul 24th 2008 5:53PM by Zac Bissonnette
Filed under: Major Movement, Bad News, Crocs Inc (CROX)

Shares of Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX) are down 45% in after-hours trading after the company reported "revised" Second Quarter and Full Year 2008 Sales and Earnings Per Share Guidance. Some key points:

Quarterly revenue guidance revised down to an approximate range $218 million to $223 million from $247 million to $258 million. The company said it expected its 2008 sales to be down slightly from the prior year.
Earnings per share guided down to 3 to 7 cents from 42 cents to 47 cents. For the full year, the company expects earnings of approximately $0, including the effect of a $20 million charge associated with the shuttering of its Canadian plant.

CEO Ron Snyder commented that "While we did experience solid sell-through with many of our major accounts, retailers across the board were extremely cautious with their level of reorders, choosing to operate with leaner inventories versus a year ago."

It's easy to understand why investors are souring on Crocs. I've been a bear for a long time, questioning the strength of its brand, massive insider selling, and the appearance of its products at discount stores.

With the stock down to around $5 per share, bargain hunters might be intrigued. The stock is trading right around its book value and, assuming the company doesn't have serious inventory problems, it could be an attractive buyout target. But given the questions about management's forthrightness that I've raised in the past, I'll be staying away.

Tags: crocs, crox, featured