The Men’s Wearhouse, Inc. Posts Q4 Net Loss; Misses Estimates (MW)

Today, Men’s Wearhouse (MW) followed up its announcement that it will be buying Jos. A Bank Clothiers (JOSB) with a lackluster fourth quarter earnings report.

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MW’s Earnings in Brief

Men’s Wearhouse reported fourth quarter sales of $560.6 million, which was down 7.9% from last year’s Q4 figure. The company reported a net loss for the quarter of $17.9 million, or 38 cents per share, worse than last year’s Q4 loss of $4.9 million, or 10 cents per share. Men’s Wearhouse missed analysts’ views of a 13 cent loss per share on revenues of $611.69 million

CEO Commentary

Men’s Wearhouse president and chief executive officer, Doug Ewert, commented: “We were not immune to the effects of weak consumer spending sentiments and severe weather disruption that impacted most retailers in December and January.  Tuxedo and corporate apparel sales were in-line with internal expectations, while clothing sales in all three retail chains were lower than expected.  Weather-related store closures and an aggressive promotional retail environment resulted in a traffic decline. We estimate that approximately one-quarter of the 2.5% comparable sales decrease in the fourth quarter at Men’s Wearhouse was due to these closures.”

MW’s Dividend

Men’s Wearhouse has not raised its dividend since March of 2012, and it most recently declared a dividend of 18 cents on January 28 to be paid on March 28. The stock has an ex-dividend date of March 14.

Stock Performance

On the news of its purchase of JOSB, Men’s Wearhouse stock ended the day up $2.57, or 4.71%. However, after the company’s earnings came out, the stock was down 55 cents, or 0.96%, in after hours trading.