Williams-Sonoma (WSM) Down after Lowering Outlook

Shares of home retailer Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE:WSM) are down over 3% in morning trade after the company lowered its first quarter and full year profit outlook. The company said it expects fiscal 2012 earnings in a range of $2.37 to $2.47 per share. This is below the lower end of analyst forecasts that were looking for full-year earnings of $2.48 per share.

Fiscal 2012 revenue is expected to come in between $3.93 billion and $4.02 billion. This is above analyst consensus forecasts of $3.91 billion. Williams-Sonoma (WSM) expects first-quarter earnings between 29 cents and 32 cents per share. This is again below the lower end of analyst forecasts that were looking for first-quarter earnings of 33 cents per share. First quarter revenue is expected between $800 million and $820 million. This is in line with analyst forecasts.

For the fourth quarter Williams-Sonoma (WSM) reported net income of $122.6 million, or $1.17 per share, for the period ended Jan. 29. That’s up from $113.4 million, or $1.05 per share, a year earlier. Quarterly revenue rose 13 percent to $1.27 billion from $1.12 billion a year ago. The results exceeded lowered analyst forecasts that called for earnings of $1.13 per share on revenue of $1.25 billion.

Laura Alber, President and Chief Executive Officer commented, “Fiscal 2011 was a year of milestones – both in terms of operational performance and progress against our long-term growth initiatives. Through strong execution and a superior multi-channel strategy, we delivered record earnings and profitability in a promotional environment, never losing sight of our mission to enhance our customers’ lives at home.”

Alber concluded, “As we look forward to 2012, we continue to be laser-focused on our customers – putting them at the center of everything we do. We will deliver continued sales growth in our brands through innovative product introductions and compelling marketing. We will continue to serve our customer anywhere, anytime by building on the competitive strengths of our multi-channel business. We will ensure the highest levels of service in the industry by investing in our supply chain. We will leverage our significant customer insights to develop new businesses within and outside of our brand portfolio, and we will answer the worldwide demand for our products by increasing our global presence.”

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Post Written By: Ed Liston Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.