Polo Ralph Laurent sees 1st quarter profit

Polo Ralph Lauren on Wednesday said its 2008 fiscal first quarter net income rose 10 percent,

largely due to higher wholesale revenue. Profit for the quarter ended June 30 came to $88.3 million, up from $80.2 million. Results include a 10 per cent loss from acquisitions and a new income tax accounting standard. Revenue rose 12 percent to $1.07 billion from $953.6 million. ?

US analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected a profit of 85 cents per share on revenue of $1.1 billion. ??

Wholesale revenue rose 17 percent, retail sales rose 9 percent and licensing revenue fell 8 percent mainly due to ending Japanese royalties associated with an acquisition of Impact 21, now part of the wholesale segment.