Men's Wearhouse 1Q Profit Tops Expectations

DALLAS (AP) — First-quarter profit at clothing retailer Men's Wearhouse Inc. fell 47 percent as fewer customers came in to shop, but cost-cutting measures helped results top Wall Street expectations and the company forecast a strong second-quarter performance.

Shares jumped 9 percent in after-hours trading to $19.49, having closed earlier down 10 cents at $17.87.

The Dallas-based chain retailer, which sells men's suits and other clothing and rents tuxedos, said profit totaled $5.3 million, or 10 cents a share, for the period ended May 2. That's down from year-ago profit of $9.9 million, or 19 cents a share a year ago.

Total sales fell about 6 percent to $464.1 million from $491.1 a year ago. Clothing product sales fell 7.6 percent, the company said, though tuxedo rental sales increased 1.7 percent.

Despite declining year-over-year, the results topped the average expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, who had forecast a loss of a penny per share on sales of $459.3 million.

Looking ahead, the company said it expects second-quarter profit in the range of 56 cents to 60 cents a share, with sales forecast to decline by 3 percent to 5 percent. Analysts are predicting quarterly profit of 56 cents per share, on average, and sales of $518.3 million.