West Marine reports lower sales, higher net loss for Q1
By IBI Magazine
West Marine today reported net sales of US$113.3 million for its quarter ended March 31, 2007, compared to net sales of US$125.8 million a year ago. Same-store sales decreased 9.4 per cent compared to the same quarter a year ago. West Marine also reported a net loss of US$17.6 million, compared to a net loss of US$11.3 million a year ago. "Our operating results were mostly in line with our internal expectations, reflective of market softness and weak sales previously announced for the first quarter," said Geoff Eisenberg, CEO, in a statement. "While we've always experienced a loss in the first quarter, we have taken significant steps to ensure that West Marine remains very strong financially during this current industry downturn. We believe that our present inventory position, our reduced capital spending plan, and our roughly US$100 million credit availability will allow us to make appropriate strategic investments." Eisenberg said he remains "cautiously optimistic" about second-quarter sales. "The boating season in North America is just starting to move into high gear, and while we don't see a dramatic turnaround in customer activity, we are pleased to see a recent slight improvement in sales compared to first quarter results," he said.
(30 April 2008)
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