Shares of Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL) tumbled 20
percent Friday morning after the company's second-quarter results fell short of expectations.
Foot Locker earned 62 cents per share in the quarter on revenue of $1.70 billion. Analysts were expecting the shoe and apparel
retailer to earn 90 cents per share on revenue of $1.80 billion.
Net income for the quarter fell from $127 million in the same quarter a year ago to $51 million, although this figure does
include a $50 million pre-tax litigation charge. Comparable-store sales for the quarter as fell 6.0 percent as the company's CEO
Richard Johnson acknowledged that "sales of some recent top styles fell well short of our expectations and impacted this quarter's
results."
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Foot Locker's performance in the quarter was also negatively impacted by the
limited availability of innovative and new products in the market, Johnson noted. Looking forward, Johnson isn't expecting much
improvement and is calling for comparable sales to be down by 3 to 4 percent for the full fiscal year.
"In addition to working with our vendor partners to identify and capture new trends faster, we are also evaluating a realignment
of our capital expenditure priorities and additional expense reductions so we can regain our momentum on both the top and bottom
lines and deliver long-term value for our shareholders," Johnson stated.
During the quarter Foot Locker opened 24 new stores, remodeled or relocated 38 others and closed 19 and ended the quarter with
3,359 stores in 23 countries. The company also spent $21 million to buy back 350,000 shares of its stock and paid investors $41
million directly through a $0.31 per share dividend.
The stock traded around $38.40 in pre-market hours, down 19.5 percent.
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