Guess profit up 11%

Los Angeles Guess? Inc. said Wednesday its fiscal 2010 second-quarter profit rose 11% as revenue climbed, especially in Europe, expenses fell and the clothing supplier posted strong product margins.

For the three months ended Aug. 1, net income rose to $59.6 million, compared with $53.8 million in the year-earlier period.

Revenue rose to $522.4 million from $515.2 million. Analysts expected $485.2 million. European revenue climbed 20.6%, while North American revenue fell 6.1%.

The company also increased its dividend and issued fiscal third-quarter guidance within range of Wall Street expectations.

Paul Marciano, CEO, commented, "We are extremely pleased with our second-quarter financial performance. We increased both revenues and earnings over last year's results to record levels, which represents a significant achievement in today's challenging environment. The actions that we took to protect our margins and preserve our strong capital structure are clearly paying off.”