Abercrombie & Fitch's Stock Gains After Sales Beat Expectations, While Losses Widened

Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch Co. edged up 0.2% in premarket trade Thursday, after the apparel retailer reported fiscal first-quarter sales that beat expectations, but reported a wider loss. The company reported a net loss of $61.7 million, or 91 cents a share, compared with a loss of $39.6 million, or 59 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. The most recent results include negative tax impacts totaling 19 cents a share. The FactSet consensus was for a loss of 70 cents a share. Revenue fell to $661.1 million from $685.5 million, but was above the FactSet consensus of $651.5 million. Same-store sales fell 3%, but beat the FactSet consensus for a 3.1% decline. Same-store sales at Aberombie stores dropped 10%, missing the FactSet consensus for a 7% decline, but Hollister store sales growth of 3% beat expectations of a 0.8% increase. "We are encouraged by our progress across all brands, particularly in March and April as a whole, in an aggressively promotional environment," said Chief Executive Fran Horowitz. The stock had rallied 7.4% year to date through Wednesday, matching the gain in the S&P 500 .