Movado Group makes watches in its Switzerland manufacturing facilities under the brands Movado, Ebel, Concord, ESQ Movado, Coach, Tommy Hilfiger, Hugo Boss, Juicy Couture, Lacoste and Scuderia Ferrari. It also operates Movado company stores in the United States.
Second Beat in a Row in Fiscal Q4
On Mar 26, Movado reported its fiscal fourth quarter and full year 2014 results. It easily beat the Zacks Consensus by 16 cents. Earnings were $0.46 compared to the consensus of $0.30.
Sales were up 9% in the quarter to $132.3 million from $123.6 million a year ago led by growth in the licensed brand category.
Gross profit margin got a nice bump to 52.4% of sales compared with 50.7% of sales in the year ago quarter.
The company also took a $8.3 million pre-tax charge for its decision to reduce its ESQ Movado business, which is one of its watch brands at the lower price point, to focus on Movado brand watches. These are a higher price point and also have higher gross margins. It will still sell ESQ with its retail partners and at Movado.com but it will free up shelf space for its higher priced branded product.
Double Digit Earnings Growth Expected in Fiscal 2015
The company gave fiscal 2015 earnings per share guidance of $2.44, which is 18% earnings growth from fiscal 2014. The analysts are on board, with the Zacks Consensus Estimate coming in a penny above that at $2.45.
However, the possible introduction of a smartwatch later this year is an unknown. Will buyers of a smartwatch forgo buying a traditional one? No one knows.
Shares Pulled Back
Shares had a big rally in the second half of 2013 but as retail jitters picked up around the holidays, the shares weakened.
All this uncertainty means Movado trades with an attractive valuation. It has a forward P/E of 17 and a price-to-book ratio of 2.3. A P/B ratio under 3.0 usually means a company is undervalued.
As an added bonus, the company also just raised its quarterly dividend by 25%. It now yields 0.9%.
Movado is also in an industry which is at the top 1% of the Zacks Industry Rank. The retail-jewelers rank 3 out of 265 industries.
If you're looking for a retailer with double digit earnings growth, and one which is NOT blaming the weather, you might want to keep Movado on your short list.
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