Tiffany's Stock Surges After Better-than-expected Results, Upbeat Outlook

Tiffany & Co.'s stock climbed 3.5% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the luxury jewelry retailer reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter profit and sales, and provided an upbeat earnings outlook for the year. For the quarter ended April 30, net earnings fell to $104.9 million, or 81 cents a share, from $125.6 million, or 97 cents a share, in the year earlier period, but was above the FactSet consensus of 70 cents a share. Total sales declined to $962.4 million from $1.01 billion, but was above the FactSet consensus of $919 million. Worldwide same-store sales fell 7%, more than the FactSet consensus of 6.6%, as weaker-than-expected sales in Japan, Europe and Asia-Pacific offset a less-than-anticipated decline in the Americas. For the full fiscal year, Tiffany said it expects "minimal growth" in earnings per share from the $4.20 earned in fiscal 2014, while the FactSet consensus called for a decline to $4.17. The stock has dropped 20% year to date through Tuesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.2%.