Jefferies Reiterates Hold Rating, $14 PT for Staples

In a company update published earlier today, Jefferies & Company, Inc. reiterated its Hold rating and $14.00 price target for Staples Inc. SPLS. Jefferies went on to say “Relative to our model, sales were in line in NA Delivery and slightly worse in NA Retail and International. Adjusted EBIT rate was slightly ahead of our expectation, after stripping out $28 million of expenses related to headcount reductions and the settlement of a contractual dispute related to the acquisition of Corporate Express. We were including some cost pressure in our model above the line to incorporate restructuring efforts, so on a comparable basis SPLS fell short of our expectations with GAAP EPS of $0.27.” Staples Inc. closed yesterday at $14.75.