Movado Group, Inc (NYSE:MOV) is trading up almost 10% today after reporting booming sales and strong fourth-quarter profits, as well as issuing a positive forecast and increasing its shareholder dividend. The New Jersey-based watch maker has been putting the finishing touches on a turnaround for several quarters now.
Fourth quarter earnings details
Movado Group, Inc (NYSE:MOV)’s net income slipped slightly to $7.2 million, or 28 cents per share, for the quarter that ended Jan. 31. That’s down from $7.9 million, or 31 cents per share, in the same quarter last year. However, after making adjustments for special items, it earned 46 cents per share in the fourth quarter, an increase from 41 cents per share 12 months ago. That EPS number was well above consensus analyst expectations of 30 cents per share for the quarter
The company’s total revenue was up an impressive 7% to $132.3 million from $123.6 million in 4Q 2012.
Positive guidance and increased dividend
The company also provided investors with strong forward guidance. Movado Group, Inc (NYSE:MOV) said it anticipates earning $2.44 per share for 2015, above analyst projections of $2.37 per share. It anticipates delivering revenue of $640 million for the year.
Movado Group, Inc (NYSE:MOV) also announced that it is increasing its quarterly cash dividend by 25% in the 4Q earnings conference call today. That means the firm will pay out a dividend of 10 cents per share on April 21 to shareholders of record as of April 7.
Brean Capital rates Movado a Buy with a price target of $54
After the strong 4Q report this morning, Brean Capital released an investment note revising its target for Movado Group, Inc (NYSE:MOV) from $50 to $54. “We are reiterating our Buy rating and raising our price target to $54 (from $50) after Movado registered solid 4Q upside and introduced FY15 guidance above the Street on both the top and bottom lines, drive by new launches and strong response to the Coach repositioning. We are tweaking upward our FY15 EPS by a penny to $2.44 and leaving our FY16 EPS unchanged. That said, we believe our projections could prove conservative as the company maintains its status as the leader in $500 to $1,500 watch category and further expands Ferrari worldwide.”
