Steve Madden Q1 net sales up 1.7 percent

Steve Madden net sales for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 increased 1.7 percent to 329.4 million dollars compared to 323.9 million dollars in the same period of 2015. Gross margin expanded 90 basis points to 35.3 percent as compared to 34.4 percent in the same period last year.

Commenting on the first quarter results, Edward Rosenfeld, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Our retail segment was again a standout, with a comparable store sales increase of 10.7 percent on top of an 11.6 percent increase in last year’s first quarter. Our wholesale footwear business also grew in the quarter, led by strong gains in our Steve Madden Women’s and Dolce Vita divisions.”

First quarter results in detail

Operating income totalled 29.9 million dollars, or 9.1 percent of net sales, compared with operating income of 29.8 million dollars, or 9.2 percent of net sales, in the same period of 2015. Net income was 20 million dollars, or 0.33 dollar per diluted share, compared to 19.8 million dollars, or 0.32 dollar per diluted share, in the prior year's first quarter.

Net sales for the wholesale business were 275.8 million dollars compared to 276.2 million dollars in the first quarter of 2015. Gross margin in the wholesale business increased to 31.2 percent. Retail net sales were 53.6 million dollars compared to 47.7 million dollars in the first quarter of the prior year. Same store sales increased 10.7 percent and retail gross margin increased to 56.2 percent compared to 54.8 percent in the first quarter of 2015.

During the first quarter, the company opened one full price store in Mexico and one outlet location in the United States. The company ended the quarter with 171 company-operated retail locations, including four Internet stores.

Expects net sales to improve in FY16

For fiscal year 2016, the company continues to expect that net sales will increase 2 percent to 4 percent over net sales in 2015. Diluted EPS for fiscal year is expected to be in the range of 1.93 dollars to 2.03 dollars.