Selling clothing to teenagers virtually demands that retailers have the latest fashion item available instantly. The so-called fast-fashion firms like Uniqlo and H&M have moved swiftly to grab onto the demand for the latest fashions immediately and it has been hard for Aeropostale and other more traditional teen chains to keep up. American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) reported lackluster results earlier this week, and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) is expected to post an earnings per share loss of $0.19 next week.
Aeropostale missed on revenues and earnings, and it forecast second-quarter earnings below current estimates as well. Same-store sales tanked 13% in the quarter and online sales were worse, down 18%.
The company closed 18 Aeropostale stores and one P.S. kids store in the quarter, and the CEO said on the conference call that the remaining 150 P.S. stores will also be closed.
The company’s stock was dropped from Outperform to Sector Perform Friday morning by RBC Capital, which also chopped its price target from $8 to $6.
Aeropostale’s deal with private equity firm Sycamore Partners for $150 million in senior secured debt facilities is nearing completion, but the company might have to adjust the exercise price for Sycamore’s convertible preferred shares of $7.25, given the company’s current share price below $4 a share.
It has been an ugly day for Aeropostale shares, which traded down nearly 25% in the noon hour at $3.40, after posting a new 52-week low of $3.37. The 52-week high is $16.82. More than 14 million shares had traded so far, against a daily average of around 4 million.
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