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Good news, bad news: True Religion earnings

DenimMy boss at WeSeed.com has a favorite stock - True Religion Apparel Inc. (NASDAQ: TRLG), designer of jeans in the $200 - $300 range. On one hand, who has three hundred clams to spend on denim these days? On the other, people who always had such money for frivolities may have not been hurt as much as those always wearing discount threads. Plus, the TRLG store here in Chicago is always crowded, and people are buying.

Well, the fashion-conscience company reported fourth-quarter earnings last night, and while people may still be buying, the continuation of this trend is suspect. In its last reporting period, TRLG earned $12.7 million, or 53 cents per share, easily exceeding analysts' estimates of 46 cents per share. This topped year-ago results of 37 cents per share by 43%. Net sales more than doubled, surging to $24.4 million.

Continue reading Good news, bad news: True Religion earnings

Guess? beats in Q3, but I'll avoid the stock

Apparel maker Guess?, Inc. (NYSE: GES), competitor of Gap (NYSE: GPS), reported some fashionable stats for its third quarter on Thursday after the market close. Indeed, double-digit growth rates are always in style as far as Wall Street is concerned. Especially during this tough period for retail selling.

Guess? said that total net sales for Q3 increased over 12% to nearly $528 million. Diluted earnings per share expanded by over 11% to $0.69. This was a six-penny beat on the bottom line. You know, you can't really blame the analysts for missing this one by such a wide margin. Honestly, you would figure that a company like Guess? would have a difficult time moving its clothing and accessories with all the financial turmoil going on around it.

Management, apparently, wasn't asleep at the wheel. However, there are some important negatives to note. First, gross and operating margins slipped during the quarter. Second, comps at the company's retail locations dipped 0.8%. Third, guidance has changed to a lower range due to a conservative outlook. This is to be expected, certainly, since it is hard to believe that Guess? won't find some issues with its business model in the short-term considering that the brand premium associated with its jeans might not be viewed as the best value proposition out there by the struggling Christmas-shopping consumer.

Continue reading Guess? beats in Q3, but I'll avoid the stock

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA-154.4810,309.92
NASDAQ-37.612,138.44
S&P 500-19.141,091.49

Last updated: November 28, 2009: 02:30 AM

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