Earnings Preview for Ann Taylor

Ann Inc.

will be reporting its first-quarter 2011 results tomorrow, May 20, before the opening bell. Analysts are looking for the retailer to post earnings of $0.48 per share on revenue of $512.1 million. That is up from $0.38 per share on $476.2 million in the same period of last year. The consensus earnings estimate is unchanged from 60 days ago. Based in New York, Ann is a specialty retailer of women's apparel and accessories in the United States and Puerto Rico. The company offers its products through more than 850 retail stores and via the Internet. Competitors include Talbots

. The company changed its name from AnnTaylor Stores to Ann Inc. in March. Looking ahead to the second quarter, analysts so far expect to see per-share earnings that are 28.9% higher than a year ago and revenues up 12.2%. Note that the company's earnings have been better than expected in most recent quarters. The long-term earnings per share growth forecast is 14.5%, the price/earnings-to-growth ratio is 1.2 and the return on equity is 17.5%. The share price is about 28% higher than three months ago, and shares are trading a couple of bucks below the 52-week high of $32.49. The stock has outperformed its industry average, as well as the broader markets, in the past 90 days.