Signet Jewelers shines in Q4 and full year
Signet Jewelers Ltd. maintained momentum in its fourth quarter.
The parent company of Kay Jewelers, Zales, Jared, and other jewelry brands posted net income of $305.7 million, or $4.91 per share, for the quarter ended Jan.29, up from $245.7 million, or $4.12 per share, last year. Adjusted earnings totaled $5.01 per share, in line with analsyts’ estimates.
Sales rose 28.6% to $2.811 billion from $2.187 billion last year, beating estimates of $2.774 billion. Sales increased 30.6% compared to the same quarter in 2019.
Store sales rose 34.6% to $2.3 billion. Compared to the 2019 period, sales rose 21.7%. E-commerce sales rose 8.7% to $556 million. Compared to the 2019 period, e-commerce sales were up 85.4%.
Same-store sales grew 23.8% over the year-ago period, also more than expected.
For the full year, sales rose 49.7% to $7.8 billion. Sales rose 27.5% compared to 2019.
The company forecasts first-quarter revenue of $1.78 billion to $1.82 billion, ahead of analysts’ estimates for $1.739 billion.
For fiscal 2023, Signet expects sales of $8.03 billion to $8.25 billion and earnings per share of $12.28 to $13.00. Analysts expected revenue of $7.892 billion and earnings per share of $10.52.
"Our fiscal 2023 guidance reflects topline performance that we believe will outpace the market while also delivering a double-digit operating margin by leveraging sustainable advantages, notably fleet optimization, inventory efficiency and an enhanced labor model," said Joan Hilson, chief financial and strategy officer. "With a strengthened balance sheet and confidence in our team's execution, we will continue prioritizing investments that build sustainable competitive advantages and drive shareholder value. To that end, we've increased our capital spend for fiscal 2023 as well as our quarterly common dividend and will remain focused on share repurchases."
Signet raised its quarterly dividend 11% to $0.20 per share, payable on May 27, 2022, to shareholders of record on April 29, 2022.
Signet operates approximately 2,800 stores primarily under the name brands of Kay Jewelers, Zales, Jared, H. Samuel, Ernest Jones, Peoples, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, James Allen, Diamonds Direct and the jewelry subscription service, Rocksbox.