Reuters: Global Markets: Coach first-quarter sales rise on gains in North America, China

Reuters: Global Markets Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

Coach first-quarter sales rise on gains in North America, China Oct 23rd 2012, 12:21 Tue Oct 23, 2012 8:21am EDT (Reuters) - Upscale leather-goods maker Coach Inc (COH.N) reported higher quarterly sales on Tuesday as business increased at its own stores in North America and there were large gains in China, although several retailers have said that market may be slowing. Coach's shares rose 5.2 percent to $57 in premarket trading. Sales at its own stores in North America, still its biggest market by far, rose 11 percent during the quarter. In China, which is a small market for Coach, sales at stores open a year rose by a double digit percentage. Coach has said it expects China to account for 10 percent of sales within a few years. Overall revenue in the first quarter, which ended September 29, rose 10.6 percent to $1.16 billion, in line with Wall Street analysts' projections, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. In recent months Western luxury brands such as Tiffany & Co (TIF.N) and Burberry Group PLC (BRBY.L) warned about slowing growth in China, a nation many so-called "affordable luxury" companies were banking on to fuel expansion. In North America, Coach's results were an improvement over the two preceding quarters, when gains were anemic. This time, comparable sales came in above Coach's own forecasts from three months ago, when the company warned investors that shoppers wanted bargains if they were to be convinced to buy. Coach has also faced competition in its home market from fast-growing brands including Michael Kors (KORS.N) and Fifth & Pacific Cos Inc's (FNP.N) kate spade, raising Wall Street concerns about how sustainable Coach's strength would be. Coach Chief Executive Lew Frankfort in a statement noted the successful launch of its Legacy handbag collection, a line that harkens to classic styles from the 71-year-old company. Net income in the quarter was $221.4 million, or 77 cents per share, compared with $215 million, or 73 cents, a year earlier. That was a penny above Wall Street estimates. Profit was dented by the company's efforts to buy its local distributors in Malaysia and Korea. (Reporting by Phil Wahba in New York; Editing by Maureen Bavdek) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions