Alliance Data Shares Fall On 3Q Disappointment

BOSTON (AP) — Shares of Alliance Data Systems Corp. tumbled on Thursday after analysts offered mostly negative assessments of the company's third-quarter results and earnings outlook for next year.

Shares of Alliance Data Systems fell $4.97, or about 7.4 percent, to $62.29 in afternoon trading. The stock hit a 52-week intraday high of $69.09 last Friday, and is still up sharply from a 52-week low of $22.76 in March.

The Dallas-based company provides private-label credit card services to retailers and wholesalers, including Victoria's Secret, Ann Taylor and Pottery Barn.

After markets closed Wednesday, Alliance Data Systems said its third-quarter profit fell 29 percent amid unfavorable currency exchange rates and a decline in sales.

The company earned $45.8 million, or 83 cents per share, in the quarter ended Sept. 30, down from the $64.8 million, or 93 cents per share, it earned a year earlier. Adjusted profit was $1.44 per share, beating a $1.34 per share consensus estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Fox-Pitt Kelton analyst Roger Smith maintained an "In Line" rating on the stock and reaffirmed his $68 price target. But he offered a mostly negative assessment of the third-quarter results, citing lighter-than-expected revenue and greater-than-expected interest expenses.