Nordstrom Earnings Miss Expectations

(RTTNews) - Department store chain Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN) announced disappointing results for its third quarter. The bottom line was impacted by soft sales trends across the board. The company also lowered its forecast for the full year.

Total sales were up 6.6 percent, but this was below the growth that Wall Street analysts had expected. Comparable store sales edged up by less than 1 percent.

The company reported net earnings of $81 million, or $0.42 per share. This was down from $142 million, or $0.73 per share, in the same period last year.

The bottom line was reduced by $0.15 per share by transaction costs related to the sale of its credit card portfolio. During the quarter, the company sold the credit card portfolio to TD Bank U.S.A., N.A. For $2.2 billion.

Wall Street analysts had expected the company to earn $0.72 per share in the third quarter, according to a survey conducted by Thomson Reuters.

Total revenues for the period rose to $3.33 billion, compared to $3.14 billion in last year's third quarter. Analysts had projected a revenue figure of $3.37 billion.

Comparable sales were up 0.9 percent for the quarter. This figure tracks performance of established locations and strips out sales growth from new store openings. It is considered an important measure of retailing performance.

Looking ahead, the company provided updated guidance for the full year.

Nordstrom said it now expects sales growth of 7.5 percent to 8.0 percent for fiscal 2015, compared to a previous forecast of 8.5 percent to 9.5 percent.

Full-year earnings are projected to be between $3.40 and 3.50 per share. Previously, the company had predicted a full-year figure of $3.70 to $3.80 per share. Both sets of figures exclude the impact of the credit card transaction.

Nordstrom also gave a reduced forecast for comparable store sales and gross margin.