Outdoor financials: Crocs reports Q1 loss, plus Deckers, Under Armour, Outdoor Channel

Crocs reports Q1 loss

Crocs (Nasdaq: CROX) swung to a first-quarter loss, hurt by charges from closing a factory, but reported a 40-percent rise in revenue.

For the three months ended March 31, the company posted a loss of $4.5 million, or $0.05 per share, down from a profit of $24.9 million, or $0.31 per share, in the same period a year earlier. Excluding charges for the shutdown of its Canadian manufacturing operations, Crocs earned $7.6 million, or $0.09 per share.

Revenue rose 40 percent to $198.5 million from $142 million.

The company said sales were below its original expectations “due to a combination of factors, including slower traffic at many of our retail partners and colder than normal temperatures that delayed the start to the spring selling season.”

For the quarter ending June 30, the company forecast a profit of $0.42 to $0.47 per share and adjusted earnings of $0.45 to $0.50 per share. Crocs also reiterated its outlook for revenue growth of 10 percent to 15 percent for the quarter.

For the full year, the company backed its sales growth forecast of 15 percent to 20 percent, and said it expects earnings of $1.54 to $1.64 per share, or $1.70 to $1.80 per share excluding items.

Shares rose $1.56, or 15.6 percent, to $11.52 in after-hours electronic trading on May 7. The stock had closed down $0.06 at $9.96.



Deckers buys Tsubo, director exercises options

Deckers Outdoor (Nasdaq: DECK), parent of Teva, Ugg and Simple, reported that its bought casual footwear company Tsubo LLC for about $6 million in cash.

The company said the purchase price does not include a potential future earn-out. Deckers said it does not expect the acquisition to affect its profit outlook for the year. The deal was funded with existing cash balances.

Deckers said Tsubo, which makes boots, sandals and heels, reported sales of about $10 million in 2007.

In other company news: Douglas Otto, a director of Deckers, exercised options for 20,000 shares of common stock, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

In a Form 4 filed with the SEC, Otto reported he exercised the options April 28 for $4.30 to $19 apiece, and then sold 40,000 shares the same day for $141.72 apiece.

Insiders file Form 4s with the SEC to report transactions in their companies’ shares. Open market purchases and sales must be reported within two business days of the transaction.

Under Armour talks about future plans at annual meeting

Under Armour (NYSE: UA) told shareholders at the company’s annual meeting that footwear has the potential to become a larger sales engine for the $600 million company than apparel.

During the meeting, the company shared plans to launch new footwear products, detailed its strategy to penetrate the European sports consumer market and downplayed concerns about how a slow retail economy might have an affect on Under Armour.

Under Armour launched its cross-trainer sneaker line — its largest product push to date — on May 3 and marks its first efforts with a footwear product other than cleats. It said it is testing a shoe geared towards runners and may one day expand into lower-impact footwear.

The company said it continues to build its pipeline of future products and is beefing up its distribution channels. While 96 percent of the company’s revenue stems from the United States, it is focusing attention on expanding sales in Europe with a primary focus on the United Kingdom, France and Germany.

Outdoor Channel narrows Q1 loss

With a boost in ad revenue but a drop in subscriber fees, Outdoor Channel Holdings (Nasdaq: OUTD) still posted a 5.4-percent increase in first-quarter revenue.

For the quarter ended March 31, revenue was $11.7 million from $11.1 million in the same period a year before. Advertising revenue rose 18.8 percent to $7.6 million from $6.4 million in the prior-year period. Subscriber fees totaled $4.0 million for the 2008 first quarter, down 14.9 percent from $4.7 million in 2007.

The company narrowed its loss from operations to $1.6 million for the 2008 first quarter from a loss from operations of $1.9 million for the prior-year period.

For the 2008 first quarter, Outdoor Channel incurred a net loss of $781,000, or $0.03 per share, compared to a net loss of $727,000, or $0.03 per share, last year.

Also, Outdoor Channel Holdings named Shad Burke as its permanent chief financial officer. Burke has been serving as the company’s interim chief financial officer since late 2007. A certified public accountant, he joined the company in October 2007 as chief accounting officer.

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