>>> Tiffany & Co misses by $0.05, misses on revs; lowers guidance

--> TIF -7.15% Pre open 8k shares traded for nomw

Tiffany & Co misses by $0.05, misses on revs; lowers guidance

Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.86 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.05 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.91; revenues fell 0.2% year/year to $991 mln vs the $1 bln consensus; comparable store sales increased 7%.
  • Gross margin (gross profit as a percentage of net sales) of 59.9% in the second quarter was equal to the prior year, while gross margin of 59.5% in the first half was modestly above 59.1% a year ago.
  • Co sees no earnings growth in Q3 (~$0.73) vs. $0.84 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
  • Co lowers guidance for FY16, to EPS of 2-5% below last years's $4.20 ($3.99-4.12), vs minimal growth prior guidance and $4.23 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Also for the full year, this forecast does not assume recording any further similar loan impairment charges; this forecast does continue to assume inventories increasing at a rate below sales growth; capital expenditures of $260 million; and free cash flow in excess of $400 mln. All assumptions are approximate and may or may not prove valid.
  • "In light of the difficult environment exacerbated by the strong dollar and ongoing external uncertainties, we are tempering our full year earnings forecast. However, we remain focused on pursuing longer-term growth opportunities that strengthen Tiffany's position among the world's important luxury brands."

>>> Signet Jewelers beats by $0.13, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS in-line

--> SIG +0.67% pre open - only 2k traded

Signet Jewelers beats by $0.13, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS in-line

Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $1.28 per share, $0.13 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $1.15; revenues rose 15.1% year/year to $1.41 bln vs the $1.39 bln consensus.
  • Same store sales increased 4.2% compared to an increase of 4.8% in the 13 weeks ended August 2, 2014 driven by positive sales performance across all national store brands.
Guidance
Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.36-0.40 vs. $0.37 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
  • Co sees Q3 Same store sales +3-4%

>>> Movado Group follow-up: MOV beats by $0.08, beats on revs; reaffirms FY16 EP

--> No Pre-market for now

Movado Group follow-up: MOV beats by $0.08, beats on revs; reaffirms FY16 EPS guidance, revs guidance

Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.50 per share, $0.08 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.42; revenues rose 1.4% year/year to $145.6 mln vs the $142.1 mln consensus. Gross profit was $141.5 million, or 53.2% of sales, compared to $142.8 million, or 54.0% of sales in the same period last year.
  • Co reaffirms guidance for FY16, sees EPS of $2.00-2.10 vs. $2.05 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY16 revs of $590-600 mln vs. $593.13 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
  • Co is expecting to deliver its first connected Movado timepiece during the fourth quarter and believes wearable technology represents a great opportunity for Movado Group.

>>> Dollar General beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; reaffirms FY16 guidance

Dollar General beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; reaffirms FY16 guidance

Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.95 per share, $0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.94; revenues rose 8.1% year/year to $5.1 bln vs the $5.13 bln consensus. Reports same store sales growth of 2.8%.
  • Co reaffirms guidance for FY16, sees EPS of $3.85-3.95 vs. $3.95 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Total sales are expected to increase 8-9%, vs. consensus expectations for +8%, with same-store sales expected to increase 3 to 3.5 percent.
    • Considering sales performance to date and the current operating environment, co sees same-store sales likely to be closer to the low-end of the range.

FT : Abbott lines up $25bn bid for St Jude


Abbott Laboratories, the US pharmaceutical and healthcare company, is preparing a takeover bid for St Jude Medical that is likely to value the medical device maker at $25bn, people familiar with the matter have said.
Illinois-based Abbott has been working with advisers — thought to include JPMorgan and Citi — for several weeks, the people added, lining up the financing for a cash and shares offer.

Sources nevertheless cautioned that a bid has not yet been tabled and may not materialise. Abbott declined to comment. St Jude did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Abbott and St Jude, which is based in St Paul, Minnesota, already have a strong alliance in the field of cardiovascular devices, and sell their portfolio of products jointly to hospitals. A full merger would potentially give the enlarged company greater leverage in negotiating with all healthcare providers.
If a bid materialises, it would add to the wave of mergers and acquisitions that has swept the healthcare and pharmaceuticals sectors over the past two years as drugmakers scramble for growth assets and greater scale. About $400bn worth of transactions have been announced since January — the largest value of dealmaking in such a period ever seen in the sector, according to Thomson Reuters.
St Jude Medical, which has a market capitalisation of about $19bn, recently agreed to acquire US-listed Thoratec for about $3.4bn in cash.
Abbott is believed to have considered moving on St Jude earlier in the year, but was waiting for clarity on the future of Mylan, the generic drug specialist in which Abbott has a 15 per cent stake. Abbott’s holding dates from a deal 12 months ago, when Abbott sold Mylan its developed market generic drugs business for $5.3bn in stock.
Mylan, in turn, has had to wage an aggressive defence against a takeover by Israeli drugmaker Teva Pharmaceuticals, which finally abandoned its pursuit at the end of July.
While Abbott supported Mylan’s determination to remain independent, a takeover by Teva would have replenished Abbott’s cash war chest. Nevertheless, Abbott is said to be confident it can now fund a full offer for St Jude.

>>> Fed's George (non-voter, hawk): FOMC has signaled that every meeting is live

Fed's George (non-voter, hawk): FOMC has signaled that every meeting is live for rate hikes; my view for some time has been that the US can handle rate hikes - CNBC interview 
- The US is prepared for rate normalization
- This week's events in markets complicates the picture for the Fed, too soon to say what market volatility might mean for the US
- US economy is in a fundamentally in a good place, have not seen anything that would change economic outlook- Inflation expectations are relatively stable