Genesco Falls To 1st-quarter Loss On Charges

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Genesco Inc., which sells shoes and hats at mall stores, said Thursday it flipped to a loss in its fiscal first quarter on charges including costs of converting debt to stock.

But the company posted a profit after items, beating expectations, and the chief executive said the results made him "slightly more comfortable" about hitting fiscal-year earnings targets.

The company said it lost $5.8 million, or 31 cents per share, in the quarter ended May 2, compared with net income of $129.3 million, or $5.14 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding charges for the early retirement of convertible debt and other items, the company said it would have earned $3.5 million, or 17 cents per share, from continuing operations in the recent quarter.

Analysts, who typically exclude items, expected the company to earn 4 cents per share, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

Sales rose 4 percent, to $370.4 million, topping the $355.7 million forecast of analysts. A year earlier, the company posted $356.9 million in sales.