Outdoor financials: Analyst initiates VF with a 'neutral' rating, plus GSI

Analyst initiates VF with a ‘neutral’ rating

A Sterne Agee analyst has a positive long-term view of VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC) and anticipates “superior growth rates” for 2011 based on the belief that the company will likely invest more money into retail and international areas this year. VF is the parent of The North Face, JanSport and Eagle Creek, among others.

Analyst Kenneth Stumphauzer said in a client note that five-year revenue growth rates for VF should be somewhere between 4 percent and 6 percent, but that 2010 will be lower due in part to the recession and retailers’ cautious approach to inventory ordering.

Stumphauzer initiated VF with a “neutral” rating and $78 price target.

GSI Commerce reports Q4 sales increase

GSI Commerce (Nasdaq: GSIC), a provider of e-commerce services to retail and manufacturing, reported a 9-percent bump in fourth-quarter net revenues — a reflection of the secular growth of e-commerce and interactive marketing, it said.

For the quarter ended Jan. 2, net revenues were $430.2 million versus $391.4 million in the same period last year.

Net income was $23.6 million, or $0.38 per diluted share, compared to net income of $23.1 million, or $0.45 per diluted share.

For FY ’09, net revenues were $1.0 billion compared to $966.9 million. Net loss was $11.0 million, or $0.21 per share, versus a net loss $23.0 million, or $0.49 per share.

Looking ahead, the company anticipates first-quarter net revenues of $260.0 million, and an operational loss of $19.5 million.

–Compiled by Wendy Geister

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