Mitchell Jaworski - AHN Reporter
Minneapolis, MN (AHN) - Target Corp. announced Monday third quarter earnings fell 24 percent as sales of discretionary items and plummeting profit in its credit card division weighed on the bottom line.
The retailer posted third quarter earnings of $369 million or 49 cents a share, down from $483 million or 56 cents a share in the same period a year ago. Revenue rose to $15.1 billion, up 2 percent from $14.84 billion last year.
The results were roughly in-line with analyst estimates for earnings of 49 cents a share on revenue of $15.24 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.
Target's credit card division was the weakest with profit dropping 83 percent in the quarter to $35 million. A chunk of the decline was due to selling a 47 percent interest in the business to JP Morgan. However, the business was also affect by a rising delinquency rate in the quarter.
Same-store sales, a key metric in the retail industry, fell 3.3 percent in the third quarter.
"The increasing financial challenges and economic uncertainties facing American households continued to pressure our performance during the third quarter," Chief Executive Gregg Steinhafel said.
Target offered a weak outlook for November, expecting same-store sales to show a 6 to 9 percent decline.
Looking ahead, the company expects fourth quarter earnings of 90 cents to $1 a share. Analysts were expecting $1.14 a share.
Article © AHN - All Rights Reserved
|
