For the second time in about six weeks, Body Central Corp.’s stock plunged Monday after disappointing sales and earnings forecasts.
Body Central said it expects second-quarter earnings of 19 to 21 cents per diluted share on sales of $77 million to $79 million, with comparable-store sales dropping 7 percent to 9 percent.
That’s lower than the company’s forecast in early May of earnings of 26 cents to 28 cents on sales of $80 million to $82 million, with comparable-store sales falling 5 percent to 7 percent.
The May forecast was already lower than analysts’ expectations and it caused Body Central’s stock to lose almost half its value in one day, dropping from $28.92 to $14.88.
The latest forecast sent the stock down by $7.77 on Monday to $8.22. That’s the lowest level for the stock since the Jacksonville-based retailer of young women’s fashions went public at $13 a share in 2010.
“Our second-quarter comparable sales remain soft and have not improved since April. We continue to diligently manage inventory and
to take aggressive markdowns on slow-moving items,” President and CEO Allen Weinstein said Monday in a news release.
“We now believe the recent sales trends will continue into the third quarter with some impact to gross margin. We expect sales to improve in the fourth quarter as we receive new fall and holiday assortments,” he said.
Body Central also lowered its forecast for the full year from its May earnings projection of $1.34 to $1.38 a share.
The company now expects earnings of $1.07 to $1.11 for the full year on revenue of $323 million to $328 million.
“We continue to believe that we have a compelling business model and are actively working to address near-term sales challenges and get our business back on track,” Weinstein said.
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