Signet Jewelers Misses Sales Estimate, Offers Softer-than-expected Outlook

Signet Jewelers Ltd. said Thursday it had net income of $387.8 million, or $3.92 a share, in its fiscal fourth quarter to Jan. 28, up from $271.9 million, or $3.42 a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $4.03, ahead of the FactSet consensus of $4.00. But sales fell to $2.27 billion from $2.39 billion, missing the FactSet consensus of $2.30 billion. Same-store sales fell 4.5%, more than the 4.2% FactSet consensus. "We are adapting to a challenging retail environment and weak mall traffic," Chief Executive Mark Light said in a statement. The company is now expecting fiscal 2018 same-store sales to be down in the low-to-mid single digits, and for EPS to range from $7.00 to $7.40. The FactSet consensus is for same-store sales to rise 1.9% and for EPS of $8.26. Shares are down 31% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 5.6%.

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