Genesco Inc. announced that it currently expects to report total sales in the range of $190 million to $192 million for the first quarter ending May 3, 2003, compared to $190.6 million for the same period last year. The Company also stated that total same store sales for the quarter to date are currently down 4%, with Underground Station up 7%, Journeys down 3%, Johnston & Murphy down 8% and Jarman retail down 10%.
Based on these trends, the Company now expects to report earnings per share of $0.12 to $0.15 for the first quarter compared to $0.33 for the corresponding period a year ago. Genesco plans to release its first quarter earnings and host its quarterly conference call on Thursday, May 22, 2003.
Hal N. Pennington, Genesco president and chief executive officer, commented, “As we noted when we announced our previous first quarter guidance, April was the critical month of the quarter for us, particularly because of the shift in the Easter holiday. Unfortunately, mall traffic has been below expectations and we did not experience the anticipated pick up in sales of our seasonal and sandal business that we usually see in April. We look forward to a stronger performance as the external factors that have affected retail business in general so far this year improve.”
