Why the Future of Jewelry in America Has Very Little Shine

Photo of Chris Lange
By Chris Lange Updated Published
This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.
Why the Future of Jewelry in America Has Very Little Shine

© Thinkstock

A couple major players in the jewelry industry reported quarterly results this week, and it seems that all that glitters is not gold, or diamonds for that matter. Although earnings looked in line for these companies, this was far from the truth. One of the contributing factors is that younger consumers seem to care less about having $10,000 on their wrists or fingers than prior generations.

Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) released its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report before the markets opened on Friday, and Signet Jewelers Ltd. (NYSE: SIG) reported its results on Wednesday morning.

Tiffany posted $1.67 in earnings per share (EPS) on $1.33 billion in revenue, which compared with consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters of $1.64 in EPS on revenue of $1.31 billion. The same period of last year reportedly had EPS of $1.45 and $1.23 billion in revenue.

During the quarter, worldwide net sales rose 9%, resulting from growth in all regions and across all product categories, and comparable store sales rose 3%. On a constant-exchange-rate basis, worldwide net sales rose 6% and comparable store sales were 1% above the prior year.

[nativounit]

In terms of the guidance for the fiscal 2018 full year, Tiffany expects to see EPS in the range of $4.25 to $4.45 and low-to-mid-single-digit comparable sales growth. The consensus estimates call for $4.38 in EPS on $4.37 billion in revenue.

Signet reported $4.28 in EPS, which beat the Thomson Reuters poll of $4.25 per share. Its total sales rose 1% to $2.29 billion, and that topped expectations for $2.24 billion. Unfortunately, that 1% gain was driven by an extra week in the cycle and an acquisition. To prove the point: Signet said that its same-store sales were down a sharp 5.2%, versus a consensus forecast of a 5.1% drop. Check out the full Signet report.

Shares of Tiffany traded early Friday at $95.51, down 7% on the day, with a consensus analyst price target of $111.85 and a 52-week trading range of $84.15 to $111.44.

Signet shares were last seen at $38.01, with a consensus price target of $45.27 and a 52-week range of $37.42 to $77.94.

[recirclink id=449966]

[wallst_email_signup]

Photo of Chris Lange
About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.

Featured Reads

Our top personal finance-related articles today. Your wallet will thank you later.

Continue Reading

Top Gaining Stocks

CBOE Vol: 1,568,143
PSKY Vol: 12,285,993
STX Vol: 7,378,346
ORCL Vol: 26,317,675
DDOG Vol: 6,247,779

Top Losing Stocks

LKQ
LKQ Vol: 4,367,433
CLX Vol: 13,260,523
SYK Vol: 4,519,455
MHK Vol: 1,859,865
AMGN Vol: 3,818,618