Staples Sees Net Income Climb

Staples (NASDAQ: SPLS) announced its results for the third quarter on November 15, 2011. Let's take a closer look at the company's industry, financials, and commentary and see what steps you can take next.

Earnings and Revenue:
Staples' EPS fell in line with analyst expectations of 47 cents/share while revenue of $6.6 billion missed estimates of $6.72 billion. EPS rose 17.5% while revenue climbed 1% from the same period last year.
Last quarter marked the third in a row of rising net income. Staples' revenue has grown during each of the past four quarters on a year-over-year basis.

Income:
Over the past year, Staples reported net income of $1.36/share. The company fell short of analysts' projections of $1.42/share. According to the reported number, the company's income rose 12.9% from last year's levels.

Conference Call:
The conference call for third quarter earnings can be accessed here.

Official Comment:
"Our results in North America reflect our team's ability to drive strong profit improvement in a tough environment," said Ron Sargent, Staples' chairman and chief executive officer. "International results were weaker than expected as tight expense management was more than offset by very challenging top line trends."

Industry:
The retail-miscellaneous company's industry is currently enjoying price/earnings growth of 0.8%.

What to Do Next:
Now you're all set to decide what to do with those Staples shares until the next earnings announcement. Whether you buy, sell, or hold, check back with us before the company's next earnings release for a full preview.

• To see up-to-date news on Staples, click here
• To see other trading ideas, click here
• To see other company earnings recaps, click here

• To see up-to-date news on Staples, click here
• To see other trading ideas, click here
• To see other company earnings recaps, click here

(Estimates Source: Zacks)