Earnings Preview for Nordstrom (JWN)

Nordstrom

is scheduled to report first-quarter 2011 results after the market closes on Thursday, May 12. Analysts expect the specialty retailer to announce that earnings came to $0.66 per share. That is up from the consensus estimate of $0.63 some 60 days ago, as well as up from per-share earnings of $0.52 in the same period of last year. While Nordstrom fell short of consensus earnings estimates in two of the past five quarters, it was by three cents per share or less. Seattle-based Nordstrom is one of the largest upscale apparel and shoe retailers in the United States. The company sells its products through various channels, including Nordstrom stores, Nordstrom Rack off-price stores, Last Chance clearance stores and Jeffrey boutiques, as well as through catalogs and the Internet. During the three months that ended in April, Nordstrom acquired online private sale marketplace HauteLook for $180 million in Nordstrom stock and options. Nordstrom's board of directors also approved a 15% boost to the quarterly dividend. The revenue forecast for that period calls for $2.2 billion, which is an increase of 11.4% from the same period of last year. Nordstrom has had a consensus Buy rating for more than 90 days. Shares are trading near the multi-year high of $48.69 and are more than 13% higher since the beginning of the year. Year to date, the stock has outperformed competitors Macy's

and Saks

.