Nike beats by $0.03, beats on revs; futures +12% ex-FX (76.86 +0.39)
Reports Q4 (May) earnings of $0.78 per share, $0.03 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.75; revenues rose 10.9% year/year to $7.42 bln vs the $7.34 bln consensus.
- As of the end of the quarter, worldwide futures orders for NIKE Brand athletic footwear and apparel scheduled for delivery from June through November 2014 totaled $13.3 billion, 11% higher YoY and 12% higher on a currency neutral basis vs. ~11.5% expectations and +8% last year.
- Revenues for the NIKE Brand were $7.0 billion, up 13 percent on a currency neutral basis powered by growth in every key category and geography except Japan, where revenues were in line with the fourth quarter last year.
- Revenues for Converse were $410 million, up 15 percent on a currency neutral basis, mainly driven by strong performance in our largest direct distribution markets: the United States, China and the United Kingdom.
- Gross margin expanded 170 basis points to 45.6 percent. The increase was primarily attributable to higher average selling prices and continued growth in the higher margin Direct to Consumer (DTC) business, partially offset by higher product input costs and unfavorable foreign exchange rates.
- During Q4, NIKE repurchased a total of 12.3 million shares for approximately $912 million as part of the four-year, $8 billion program approved by the Board of Directors in September 2012.