Brown-Forman Profit And Sales Fall Below Expectations

Jack Daniel's parent Brown-Forman Corp. reported a fiscal fourth-quarter profit that fell to $144 million, or 37 cents a share, from $522 million, or $1.30 a share, in the same period a year ago. The FactSet consensus for earnings per share was 40 cents. Total sales fell to $887 million from $933 million, while net sales declined to $694 million from $729 million, missing the FactSet consensus for total revenue of $958.2 million and for net sales of $738.9 million. For the full year, Jack Daniel's family brand sales rose 3%, with Tennessee Whiskey sales rising 3%, Tennessee Honey growing 4% and Tennessee Fire increasing in the mid-teens percentages. Finlandia vodka sales fell 1%, while El Jimador sales rose 8%. The company expects fiscal 2018 EPS of $1.80 to $1.90, surrounding the FactSet consensus of $1.87. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has soared 16.5% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 8.5%.