Elizabeth Arden Narrows 4Q Loss, But Outlook Weak

NEW YORK (AP) — Elizabeth Arden Inc. on Thursday reported a narrower-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter loss as the company booked fewer charges and margins improved, but forecast lower-than-expected profit for 2010.

The beauty products company posted a loss of $3.6 million, or 13 cents per share, for the quarter ended June 30, compared with a loss of $10.4 million, or 38 cents per share, in the same quarter last year.

Excluding restructuring costs and other one-time items, the company lost 7 cents per share in the most recent quarter, compared with year-ago adjusted profit of 22 cents per share.

Sales fell 10 percent to $212.6 million as the stronger dollar hurt overseas sales.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report a loss of 8 cents per share for the quarter on revenue of $213.4 million. Analyst expectations typically exclude one-time items.

For the full year, the company posted a loss of $6.2 million, or 22 cents per share, compared with year-earlier earnings of $19.9 million, or 68 cents per share. Total sales fell 6 percent to $1.07 billion.