PetSmart 4Q Tops Street, Guidance Rosy

PetSmart, Inc (NASDAQ:PETM) weighed in with earnings that edged out Wall Street’s expectations, but the shares fell more than 1% in extended trading Wednesday afternoon.

The pet-supplies retailer posted fourth-quarter profit that rose 6.2% to $102 million, or 91 cents a share, compared with year-ago earnings of $90.3 million, or 77 cents a share.

Revenue rose 8% to $1.64 billion, up from last year’s sales of $1.52 billion.  Same-store sales rose 5.5% during the quarter.

The Street was expecting earnings of 90 cents a share on revenue of $1.62 billion, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.

"We are pleased to report another quarter of solid earnings growth," said Bob Moran, chairman and chief executive, in a statement. "2011 was a great year overall, with even more stories of innovation and differentiation in our stores."

For the first quarter, PetSmart forecast earnings in the range of 70 cents to 74 cents a share, and comparable-store sales growth in the low- to mid-single digits. That forecast is mostly higher than the Street’s forecast for 70 cents a share.

The company forecast fiscal 2012 earnings in the range of $3.02 to $3.16 a share, better than consensus expectations for full-year earnings of $3.01 a share. Total sales are projected to rise between 7.5% and 8.5%, more than the anticipated 6% increase, while same-store sales are expected grow between 3% and 4%.

Shares of PetSmart ticked up a penny in Wednesday’s session, closing at $55.74.  The stock was down $1.25, or 2.24%, in after-hours trading. In the past year, shares of the retailer are up 35.5%.