The New York leather accessory retailer, Coach, has raised its earnings expectations for the second fiscal quarter ended December 27, 2003 to at least $0.48 per share. The level is above the company's guidance of at least $0.44 announced October 21, as well as analysts' estimates of $0.46.
Lew Frankfort, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Coach, Inc. said, "I'm delighted with the continued strength of our results which enabled us, for the first time, to surpass $1 billion in annual sales in calendar year 2003. In fact, we posted sales of $1.1 billion, an increase of 34% over calendar 2002. Our robust holiday sales reflect the power of the Coach brand and the strength of our product offering across all distribution channels and key categories.
Sales for the second fiscal quarter ended December 27, 2003 increased 33% to $411 million from $308.5 million for the comparable quarter of the prior year. The increase exceeded the company's estimate provided on October 21 of at least $385 million.
Mr. Frankfort added, "We're very pleased with the continued double-digit increases in comparable location sales in Japan this quarter and the excellent performance of our new stores which are not yet in the comp base. Given the Japanese consumer's sustained demand for luxury accessories and the growing appeal of the Coach brand, we're well positioned for further rapid market share gains in Japan."
