Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) to shutter at least 1,200 stores

• Update Dec 23, 2020: Ascena announced that Sycamore Partners has completed its acquisition of Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lou & Grey and Lane Bryant brands. Ascena is now a privately held company owned by Sycamore Partners and no longer a publicly traded company.

  

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(Bloomberg) -- Ascena Retail Group Inc., the owner of mall brands that occupy almost 3,000 stores in the U.S., is preparing to file for bankruptcy and shutter at least 1,200 of those locations, according to people with knowledge of the plan.

The company, which owns brands such as Ann Taylor and Lane Bryant, could enter Chapter 11 as soon as this week with a creditor agreement in place that eliminates around $700 million of its $1.1 billion debt load. Lenders including Eaton Vance Corp. would assume control of the company, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing a private matter.

Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) reported earnings on Mon 10 Dec 18 (a/h)

** charts after earnings **

 

Ascena Retail Group beats by $0.02, beats on revs; guides Q2 EPS below consensus, revs in-line; guides FY19 EPS in-line

• Reports Q1 (Oct) earnings of $0.06 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.02 better than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of $0.04; revenues rose 0.1% year/year to $1.59 bln vs the $1.57 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
• Co downside bottom-line guidance for Q2, sees EPS of ($0.25) - ($0.15) vs. ($0.13) S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees Q2 revs of $1.68-1.71 bln vs. $1.7 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
• Co continues to see EPS of $0.00-0.10 in FY19, supported by low single digit comp growth, with underlying assumptions consistent with its previous guidance issued on September 24, 2018, vs. $0.06 S&P Capital IQ Consensus

Earnings this week : Dec 10 - 14, 18 (wk 50)

Earnings confirmed to report this  week

Monday (Dec 10)    

• Morning: None
• Afternoon: ASNA CASY NX ROAD SFIX

Tuesday (Dec 11)

• Morning: DSW FRAN
• Afternoon: AEO PLAY POWL PVTL 

Wednesday (Dec 12)

• Morning: PLAB VRA
• Afternoon: NCS NDSN OXM TLRD

Thursday (Dec 13)

• Morning: CIEN
• Afternoon: ADBE CIVI COST

Friday (Dec 14)
None

=Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) reported earnings on Mon 24 Sept 2018 (a/h)

Ascena Retail Group beats by $0.05, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS below consensus, revs above estimate; guides FY19 EPS in-line, revs above consensus 

• Reports Q4 (Jul) adj. earnings of $0.07 per share, $0.05 better than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of $0.02; revenues rose 6.5% year/year to $1.77 bln vs the $1.62 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus. 
• Comps +4% vs. +0-2% guidance. Gross margin 57.5% vs. 56.5-57.0% guidance
• Co issues guidance for Q1, sees EPS of ($0.04)-0.06, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.15 S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees Q1 revs of $1.54-1.56 bln vs. $1.51 bln single analyst estimate; comps +0-2%, gross margin 60.0-60.5%
• Co issues guidance for FY19, sees EPS of $0.00-0.10, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.08 S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees FY19 revs of $6.45-6.55 bln vs. $6.22 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus; comps up low single digits; gross margin 57.6-58.1%.
• "Our fourth quarter reflected sequential comp improvement across all our brands, and the first enterprise-level positive comp quarter for ascena since the second quarter of Fiscal 2015... We remain on track to achieve $300 million in annual run rate savings by July 2019, and are currently implementing the two remaining large capability-building components of our transformation program - localized planning and our customer experience management ecosystem."

Earnings expected this week : Sept 24 - 28, 18 (wk 39)

Earnings confirmed to report this week

Monday (Sept 24)    

• Afternoon: ASNA DAC MARA HUSA ALN

Tuesday (Sept 25)

• Morning: FDS INFO  JBL MANU NEOG
• Afternoon: AIR  CTAS KBH NKE

Wednesday (Sept 26)

• Morning: ATU KMX OMN WOR
• Afternoon: BBBY FUL  CMTL SPRT SCX

Thursday (Sept 27)

• Morning: ACN ANGO  CAG CCL CMD MKC RAD SCHL
• Afternoon: CAMP PRGS

Friday (Sept 28)

• Morning: BB  MTN

=Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) reported earnings on Mon 4 June 2018 (a/h)

Ascena Retail Group beats by $0.01, beats on revs; guides Q4 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus 

• Reports Q3 (Apr) loss of $0.08 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.09); revenues fell 3.9% year/year to $1.5 bln vs the $1.47 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Co reported net sales for the third quarter of Fiscal 2018 were $1,503.3 million compared to $1,565.1 million in the year-ago period, with the decline caused primarily by a 3% decline in comparable sales
  • The co had previously guided for Q3 comps of down 3-5%
  • Gross margin declined to $883 million, or 58.7% of sales, for Q3 of Fiscal 2018 compared to $948 million, or 60.6% of sales in the year-ago period, vs. gross margin 59.7-60.2% guidance
• Co issues upside guidance for Q4, sees Q4 EPS of ($0.05) to $0.05, excluding non-recurring items, vs. ($0.14); sees revs of $1.62-1.66 bln vs. $1.58 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate
• Co also sees comparable sales in the range of flat to up 2%; Gross margin rate in the range of 56.5% to 57.0%

Earnings this week : June 4 - 8, 18 (wk 23)

Monday (June 4)

• Pre-Market:  PANW
• After-hours: ASNA, COUP, HQY, NX, SMAR, TEDU

Tuesday (June 5)

• Pre-Market: DLTH, FRAN, GIII, GCO, HDS, NAV
• After-Hours: AMBA, ALOG, GWRE, PAYN, NCS, OLLI, YY

Wednesday (June 6)

• Pre-Market: BF.B, SCWX, SIG, VRA
• After-Hours: ABM, CLDR, FIVE, GEF, MDXG, MDB, OKTA, REVG, THO, UNFI, ZS

Thursday (June 7)

• Pre-Market: CONN, HLNE, HOV, SJM, MTN
• After-Hours: HOME, AVGO, CBLK, COO, DOCU, SFIX, ZUMZ

Friday (June 8)

• None

  

This week's biggest % winners & losers : March 5 - 9, 18 (wk 10)

This week's biggest % gainers/losers The following are this week's top 20 percentage gainers and top 20 percentage losers, categorized by sectors (over $300 mln market cap and 100K average daily volume).

This week's top 20 % gainers

• Healthcare: ZSAN (17.25 +126%), ADRO (8.75 +35.66%), GEN (1.62 +30.65%), ATRS (2.79 +27.4%), NTLA (34.95 +27.18%), RGNX (36 +22.45%), PGNX (8.1 +21.08%), CLDX (2.82 +21.03%), ACHN (4.23 +20.51%), PDLI (3.04 +19.69%), TSRO (68.12 +18.1%)
• Industrials: ERII (8.47 +26.23%)
• Consumer Discretionary: RCII (8.62 +18.08%)
• Information Technology: BZUN (47.88 +34.19%), CHUBK (22.41 +27.77%), NTNX (49.1 +26.31%), CHUBA (22.41 +21.07%), ADSK (139.36 +19.85%)
• Telecommunication Services: NIHD (1.71 +33.59%)

This week's top 20 % losers

• Healthcare: DERM (9.43 -62.52%), SPPI (18.67 -13.4%), MYOK (53.05 -13.18%), OTIC (5.03 -11.84%)
• Industrials: HDSN (5.44 -12.48%)
• Consumer Discretionary: FTD (4.65 -24.59%), TRNC (14.76 -24.5%), ASNA (2.01 -17.62%), DFRG (15.4 -17.43%), BIG (48.45 -13.93%), JCP (3.27 -11.86%), DLTR (92.7 -11.22%)
• Information Technology: TECD (89.98 -13.94%), PRGS (40.38 -13.01%)
• Energy: PEIX (3.35 -14.1%)
• Consumer Staples: BRFS (8.11 -13.91%), KR (24.08 -11.96%), BGS (26 -11.86%)

=Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) reported earnings on Mon 5 March 2018 (a/h)

Ascena Retail Group misses by $0.03, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS below consensus, revs in-line 

• Reports Q2 (Jan) loss of $0.12 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.09); revenues fell 1.7% year/year to $1.72 bln vs the $1.65 bln Capital IQ Consensus
  • The decline in sales was primarily attributable to a 2% comparable sales decline that resulted primarily from merchandise strategy challenges and store traffic declines at its Value Fashion segment, and assortment misses at our Premium Fashion segment, partially offset by high single digit comparative sales growth at its Kids Fashion segment
  • Net sales for the second quarter included ~$25 million associated with the extra week discussed above
• Co issues downside bottom line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of (0.12)-(0.07), excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.06 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q3 revs of $1.48-1.52 bln vs. $1.49 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.

=Ascena Retail (ASNA) reported earnings Mon 4 December 2017 (a/h)

Ascena Retail Group reports EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides Q2 towards the low end of expectations 

• Reports Q1 (Oct) earnings of $0.11 per share, excluding non-recurring items, in-line with the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.11; revenues fell 5.3% year/year to $1.59 bln vs the $1.58 bln Capital IQ Consensus. The decrease in sales reflected the impact of a 5% comparable sales decline vs. down 4-5% guidance, which was caused primarily by a mid-single digit decline in average selling price, offset in part by double digit transaction growth in our direct channel. The three hurricanes which impacted the southern United States and Puerto Rico during the first quarter negatively impacted our sales by ~$11 million. Gross margin decreased to $965 million, or 60.7% of sales vs. 60.8-61.3% guidance, compared to $1,014 million, or 60.4% of sales in the year-ago period.
• Co issues guidancefor Q2, sees EPS of ($0.12-0.07), excluding non-recurring items, vs. ($0.07) Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q2 revs of $1.62-1.66 bln vs. $1.66 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Comparable sales in the range of down 4% to down 6%; Gross margin rate in the range of 55.0% to 55.5%.
• "Our first quarter adjusted earnings per share of 11 cents was in the middle of our guidance range, but represented a disappointing quarter. We were unable to capitalize on the improving macro traffic environment due to fashion missteps that we cannot afford in today's environment. We continue to deliver double-digit transaction growth in our direct channel, but must improve our overall level of merchandising execution. Our move to create the ascena Brands structure in August was made specifically to strengthen product execution and comp sales performance, and we are working aggressively to fully transition to this new structure." Jaffe continued, "All of our enterprise transformation cost takeout workstreams remain on plan, and we are currently deploying the first phase of our new merchandise planning capabilities. We will continue to roll-out advanced capabilities in merchandise planning and marketing over the next 12 to 18 months, and we expect these capabilities will provide meaningful support to both the top line and gross margin rate."  

=Ascena Retail (ASNA) reported earnings Mon 25 Sept 2017 (a/h)

Ascena Retail Group beats by $0.08, beats on revs; guides Q1 (Oct) revs above estimates

• Reports Q4 (Jul) earnings of $0.05 per share, $0.08 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.03).
• Gross margin on a GAAP basis decreased to $951 million, or 57.4% of sales, for the fourth quarter of Fiscal 2017 compared to $1,041 million, or 57.5% of sales in the year-ago period.
• Comps are down 4% Y/Y company-wide. Notable comps by division (All comps below are y/y):
  • Maurices down by 8% 
  • Lane Bryant down 6% 
  • Catherines up 1% 
  • Ann Taylor down 2%
  • LOFT down 3 %
  • Justice down 6%
• Co issues upside guidance for Q1 (Oct), sees Q1 (Oct) revs of $1.58-1.62 vs. $1.56 bln two analyst estimate.
  • Co guides Comparable sales in the range of down 4% to down 5% and Gross margin rate in the range of 60.8% to 61.3% FY18
• FY18:
  • Gross margin rate in the range of 58.1% to 58.6%, including approximately $30 million of gross margin dollar improvement related to ANN deal synergies and cost savings
• "At this point in time, the Company is not issuing full year guidance for Fiscal 2018 earnings per share due to limited visibility to macro trends impacting sales."
• "Our fourth quarter adjusted earnings per share of five cents came in well above our guidance range, reflecting a modest easing of store traffic headwinds. To be clear, conditions remain challenging - store traffic was down mid-single digits for the quarter, and we are planning for this trend to continue for the foreseeable future. While comp sales performance was several points better than our guide, we were not pleased with the results, and we will not be satisfied until we deliver positive, sustained enterprise-level comp sales. As part of our transformation efforts, we are investing in leading edge planning and marketing capabilities to support top-line growth and improved margin, and we remain on track to deliver cost savings of $250 to $300 million."

=Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) lowers Q3 outlook

Ascena Retail Group lowers Q3 Outlook :

Ascena Retail Group lowers Q3 outlook, 'cites highly elevated promotional environment have persisted at levels significantly above our expectations'

• "Industry-wide traffic headwinds and a highly elevated promotional environment have persisted at levels significantly above our expectations, resulting in a miss to our third quarter sales and earnings outlook. We have adjusted our second-half outlook to reflect this environment and limited near term visibility, and no longer believe it appropriate to expect a stabilization of traffic and resulting normalization of comp sales against softer demand in the year-ago period."

The Company's revised third quarter and full year fiscal 2017 sales and earnings outlook is as follows:

• Period Comparable Sales Non-GAAP EPS Q3 FY17 Down 8% $0.04 - $0.06 (Prior $0.07-0.12), Capital IQ consensus $0.09.
• Full Year FY17 Down 7% - Down 6% to $0.10 - $0.15 (Prior $0.37-0.42), Capital IQ consensus $0.38.
  • "The specialty retail sector is in a period of unprecedented secular change that is disruptive to traditional business models, and we believe operating conditions in our sector are likely to remain challenging for the next 12 to 24 months.
• Implementation of Change for Growth enterprise transformation program is well underway,These initiatives, along with an expanded structural cost reduction scope, are now expected to deliver $250 to $300 million in cost savings as compared to prior $150 million target. Co plans to provide a timeline and additional context regarding this increased target on Q3 earnings call, scheduled for June 5th.

Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) lowers guidance

Ascena Retail Group reports holiday comps down 3.1%; lowers Q2, FY17 EPS guidance below consensus :

• Reports holiday comps down 3.1% (guided quarter down 4-5%)
  • Ann Taylor -8.2%, Loft -1.8%, Maurices -7.1%, Dressbarn -4.6%, Lane Bryant -5.1%, catherines +1.6%
• Lowers Q2 EPS to ($0.11-0.08) from ($0.05)-0.00 vs ($0.03) Capital IQ Consensus.
• Lowers FY17 EPS to $0.37-0.42 from $0.60-0.65 vs. $0.58 consensus.

** charts before guidance **

 

ASNA — is it a buy?

• Jan 4:  #37; Is ASNA a buy? 

• 5 days later:  NO

This week's biggest % winners & losers : Dec 19 - 23, 16 (wk 51)

The following are this week's top 20 percentage gainers and top 20 percentage losers, categorized by sectors (over $300 mln market cap and 100K average daily volume).

This week's top 20 % gainers

• Healthcare: PTLA (25.06 +33.16%),LOXO (34.97 +29.95%),ARWR (1.59 +28.23%),AKBA (10.6 +27.71%),CLVS (45.35 +21.91%),RVNC (21.7 +20.89%),
• Materials:RFP (5.55 +30.59%),DRD (5.22 +18.91%),
• Consumer Discretionary:FRED (20.2 +75.65%),WTW (12.05 +19.43%),
• Information Technology: INVN (12.87 +19.28%),BITA (20.49 +15.44%),MU (23.26 +14.75%),
• Financials:AWH (53.75 +17.43%),
• Energy:PZE (6.48 +35%), KOS (6.93 +20.94%),CVRR (10.65 +19.66%),FMSA (11.32 +16.22%),CRR (10.5 +15.64%),

This week's top 20 % losers

• Healthcare:MACK (4.35 -16.18%),SCMP (13.3 -15.56%),SGMO (3.1 -15.07%),CEMP (6.2 -11.43%),MYGN (16.88 -10.21%),
• Materials:WOR (49.18 -10.97%),
• Industrials:LNN (75.48 -12.18%),ERII (10.67 -10.26%),
• Consumer Discretionary:GNC (10.84 -16.74%),SHLD (8.79 -15.56%),BBBY (40.77 -13.75%),FINL (19.41 -13.46%), ASNA (6.26 -11.83%),WSM (48.65 -11.13%),ANF (11.94 -10.29%),
• Information Technology:NPTN (10.91 -13.41%),TWTR (16.5 -11.43%),RHT (71.01 -11.18%),
• Financials:AMBC (22.83 -12.19%),
• Energy:PGH (1.41 -13.5%),

Ascena Retail (ASNA) reported earnings Thur 1 Dec 16 (a/h)

** charts after earnings **

 

** 3 weeks later **

MAHWAH, N.J. (AP) _ Ascena Retail Group Inc. (ASNA) on Thursday reported fiscal first-quarter net income of $14.4 million, after reporting a loss in the same period a year earlier.

On a per-share basis, the Mahwah, New Jersey-based company said it had net income of 7 cents. Earnings, adjusted for costs related to mergers and acquisitions and restructuring costs, were 18 cents per share.

The results missed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 21 cents per share.

The owner of clothing retail chains posted revenue of $1.68 billion in the period, which also fell short of Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $1.71 billion.

Ascena Retail expects full-year earnings in the range of 60 cents to 65 cents per share.

Ascena Retail (ASNA) reported earnings Mon 19 Sept 16 a/h

** charts before earnings **

 

** charts after earnings **

 

Ascena Retail Group misses by $0.08, beats on revs; guides FY17 EPS and revenue below consensus:

• Reports Q4 (Jul) earnings of $0.08 per share, excluding non-recurring items,$0.08 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.16; revenues rose 54.9% year/year to $1.81 bln vs the $1.77 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
• Comps down 4%.
  • -4% at Justice, +1% Lane Bryant, -9% maurices, -7% dressbarn, -5% Catherines.
• Co issues downside guidance for FY17, sees EPS of $0.60-0.65, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.83 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY17 revs of $6.9-7.0 bln vs. $7.13 bln Capital IQ Consensus; comps down 1-2%.. 
• "Fiscal 2016 was a challenging year for ascena, characterized by a highly competitive selling environment and significant store traffic headwinds. While we are seeing good customer demand during peak periods, off-peak demand has been inconsistent, and fourth quarter financial performance fell well below our expectations... The Justice team delivered full-year operating margin in the middle of the guidance range we provided last September. Second, our integration of ANN continues to progress well, and we remain ahead of plan with our synergy and cost savings workstreams. Third, the new ascena omni-channel platform went live at Justice in the fourth quarter, and the early reads on demand growth have significantly exceeded our expectations. And finally, we continue to make progress with our enterprise transformation work, and we are currently moving forward to address identified opportunities."

ASNA — is it a buy?

• Sept 16: fin15; Is ASNA a buy?

• 4 days later, after earnings 

Ascena Retail (ASNA) reported earnings Tue 15 Sept 2016 a/h

** charts before earnings **

** charts after earnings **

big reversal after earnings, later in the day...

Ascena Retail (ASNA) reported earnings Tue 24 Sept 2013 (a/h)

ASNA : Beat quarterly EPS by $0.13 ($0.34 ex items vs $0.21 estimate), revs rose 27.5% yoy to $1.2 bln vs $1.16 bln estimate; sees FY14 EPS of $1.25-1.30 ex items vs $1.37 estimate

** charts after earnings **

  

** daily **