Q2 Earnings, American Eagle Outfitters
What a quarter these guys had:
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEOS) today announced that earnings for the second quarter ended July 29, 2006 increased 27% to $0.47 per diluted share from $0.37 per diluted share for the quarter ended July 30, 2005. Included in the second quarter 2006 earnings per diluted share of $0.47 is $0.01 per share of stock option expense, which was not included last year. Net income for the fiscal 2006 second quarter increased to $72.1 million from $58.0 million for the same period last year.
“American Eagle delivered solid top-line growth, outstanding profitability and strong cash flow for the second quarter of 2006,” said CEO Jim O’Donnell. “I am very pleased with this performance, especially in light of the investments we are making in our future growth initiatives, such as our real estate strategy, aerie intimates sub-brand and our new MARTIN + OSA concept. These results are clearly the by-product of a strong and successful team effort across our organization.”
(See full press release here.)
A record earnings quarter for American Eagle and this doesn’t look like a blip - it looks like they are poised for a great second half of 2006.
The key to their success this quarter has really been their mixture of trend-right and basic fashion. They adknowledge that not everyone is ready to go after the latest trends, and their assortment has reflected this. They refer to their denim assortment as over “90% new” in style and washes. The AMC Movie Ticket promotion was a great opportunity to get people in the door and into the dressing room. They seem to be very pleased with how that worked out.
Growth in sales, growth in profit, growth in bottom line performance, growth in transactions per store. They are nailing almost everything that they need to nail. This store is going to be a power house going into the rest of the year.
Some more coverage from The Street and the Motley Fool.
me that I’m a huge fan of American Eagle’s marketing and merchandising. Their transformation from an Old Navy-esque, second tier chain into a top dog is pretty incredible. For any of the doubters out there, Tom over at No Turn On Red reports that AE’s Q2 earnings are up a staggering 27%: Growth in sales, growth in profit, growth in bottom line performance, growth in transactions per store. They are nailing almost everything that they need to nail. This store is going to be a power house going into the rest of the year.