Fitness financials: Iconix’s Q4 profit rises 29 percent, plus Hanesbrands/Champion, Play It Again Sports, Sears, Garmin

Iconix’s Q4 profit rises 29 percent

Iconix Brand Group (Nasdaq: ICON) said fourth-quarter earnings rose 29 percent as licensing and other revenue climbed. Fitness EM licenses the Danskin brand name for fitness equipment from Iconix’s property, Triumph, formerly known as Danskin.

For the quarter ended Dec. 31, earnings rose to $19.7 million, or $0.27 per share, from $15.3 million, or $0.25 per share, a year ago.

Revenue climbed 21 percent to $65.8 million in the quarter.

Full year earnings rose 19 percent to $75.1 million, or $1.10 per share, from $62.9 million, or $1.03 per share. Revenue in 2009 rose 7 percent to $232.1 million.

During the year, the company launched five direct-to-retail partnerships in the U.S., renewed four direct-to-retail contracts and formed a new joint venture for Europe. It also acquired stakes in youth brands Ecko and Ed Hardy.

Looking ahead, Iconix reaffirmed its 2010 outlook for per-share earnings between $1.13 and $1.18. Adjusted earnings are expected to be $1.25 to $1.30 per share. Sales are expected to come in between $260 million and $270 million.

Champion parent anticipates 2010 earnings growth

Hanesbrands (NYSE: HBI), parent of Champion, said it expects earnings to grow 25 percent to 35 percent this year on product demand and cost cutting.

Hanesbrands also said it could double earnings over the next three to four years, based on its growth outlook for 2010.

The company expects sales to grow 5 percent to 8 percent in 2010. Sales growth estimates are based on significant shelf-space and distribution gains and a potential rebound in consumer spending, Hanesbrands said.

For 2011 and beyond, the company said it targets annual net sales growth between 2 percent and 4 percent, while its profit growth target is between 10 percent and 20 percent.



Play It Again Sports parent swings to Q4 profit

Winmark Corp. (Nasdaq: WINA), parent of Play It Again Sports, said it swung to a profit in its fourth quarter — a year after the owner of franchise brands took a $2.8 million hit on an investment.

For the quarter ended Dec. 26, it earned $1.46 million, or $0.28 per share, compared to a loss of $2.08 million, or $0.38 per share, for the same quarter a year before.

The fourth-quarter 2008 loss was due to a charge of $2.8 million, or 52 cents per share, related to its investment in Tomsten, a retail chain that does business as Archiver’s. Winmark took over management of Archiver’s late last year.

Revenue was up 7.8 percent to $9.38 million.

For the full year, its profit was $5.85 million, or $1.10 per share, up from $1.14 million, or $0.21 per share, in 2008. Revenue was $37.2 million, up from $35.42 million in the previous year.

Sears profit more than doubles in 4Q

Returning shoppers to its Kmart stores and cost cuttings helped Sears Holdings (Nasdaq: SHLD) post its best quarterly profit in three years.

Although sales in established Kmart stores climbed 1.7 percent in the fourth quarter, they were still overshadowed by falling business at Sears stores. Same-store sales for Sears stores were down 6.1 percent.

For the quarter, Sears earned $430 million, or $3.74 per share, during the fourth quarter, versus $190 million, or $1.55 per share, during the same period last year.

Revenue for the three months that ended Jan. 30 dipped less than 1 percent to $13.25 billion.

For the full year, Sears earned $235 million, or $1.99 per share, up dramatically from its 2008 profit of $53 million, or $0.42 per share. Revenue slipped almost 6 percent to $44.04 billion.

Garmin’s Q4 sales for outdoor/fitness segment up 24 percent

As the personal navigation market becomes more crowded, Garmin (Nasdaq: GRMN) said falling prices and increased competition could hurt margins in 2010.

Garmin expects prices to decline by about 10 percent in the personal navigation device industry, putting pressure on its gross and operating margins in 2010. It also projected flat to slightly declining revenue for its core personal navigation device segment during the period. It expects 2010 adjusted earnings of $2.75 a share to $3.15 a share.

For the quarter ended Dec. 26, total revenue was $1.059 billion — up 1 percent from $1.048 billion in the 2008 fourth quarter. While the automotive and aviation segments reported sales decreases, the outdoor/fitness segment was up 24 percent to $812 million.

Net income climbed to $278.4 million, or $1.38 a share, from $157.7 million, or $0.78 a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings rose to $1.43 a share, from $0.93 a share.

For the full year, total revenue in 2009 was $2.95 billion, down 16 percent from $3.49 billion in 2008. Net income was $703.9 million, or $3.50 per share, versus $732.8 million, or $3.48 per share, last year.

–Compiled by Wendy Geister

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