Lululemon Athletica Inc. announced that the company is updating its net revenue and earnings guidance for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 ending February 3, 2019.
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, Lululemon now anticipates that net revenue will be in the range of $1.140 billion to $1.150 billion based on a total comparable sales increase in the mid-to-high teens on a constant dollar basis. This compares to previous guidance of net revenue of $1.115 billion to $1.125 billion based on a total comparable sales increase in the high-single to low-double digits on a constant dollar basis.
Lululemon now expects diluted earnings per share will be in the range of $1.72 to $1.74 for the fourth quarter based on a 30 percent effective tax rate. This compares to previous diluted earnings per share guidance of $1.64 to $1.67 based on a 30% effective tax rate.
This guidance does not include certain discrete tax expenses related to U.S. tax reform and repatriation which we expect to recognize during the fourth quarter. This guidance also excludes the expected tax benefit from recent changes in legislation and guidance related to global intangible low-taxed income (“GILTI”) taxes. We are in the process of quantifying these items.
The revised guidance for the fourth quarter continues to assume 133.0 million diluted weighted-average shares outstanding.
“The momentum in our business remained strong throughout the holiday season, reflecting the ongoing success of our product offerings and our connection with guests around the globe. I speak for the entire leadership team in thanking all our teams around the world for delivering a strong 2018,” said Calvin McDonald, CEO of Lululemon.
Management will be meeting with analysts and investors at the ICR Conference in Orlando, Florida on January 14 and January 15, 2019.
