COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Limited Brands,
Inc. (NYSE: LTD) reported a comparable store sales increase of 12
percent for the four weeks ended July 28,
2012, compared to the four weeks ended July 30, 2011. The company reported net
sales of $649.8 million for the four
weeks ended July 28, 2012, compared
to net sales of $660.4 million last
year.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20020520/CLM001LOGO
)
The company reported a comparable store sales increase of 8
percent for the second quarter ended July
28, 2012, compared to the second quarter ended July 30, 2011. The company reported net
sales of $2.399 billion for the
second quarter ended July 28, 2012,
compared to sales of $2.458 billion
last year.
The company reported a comparable store sales increase of 8
percent for the 26 weeks ended July 28,
2012, compared to the 26 weeks ended July 30, 2011. The company reported net
sales of $4.553 billion for the 26
weeks ended July 28, 2012, compared
to sales of $4.675 billion last
year.
July 2011, 2011 second quarter and
2011 year-to-date sales included $67.7
million, $216.6 million and
$430.6 million, respectively,
attributable to the third party apparel sourcing business, which
was sold in November 2011.
The company now expects to report second quarter adjusted
earnings per share of $0.46 to $0.48
cents versus its previous guidance of $0.40 to $0.45 cents.
Special and Regular Dividend
Consistent with its ongoing commitment to return value to
shareholders, the company announced that its Board of Directors has
declared a special dividend of $1 per
share and its regular quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, both of which will be paid on
Sept. 7, 2012, to shareholders of
record at the close of business on Aug.
23, 2012. With this distribution, the company will
have returned over $13 billion to
shareholders since 2000. This is the company's
151st consecutive quarterly dividend.
To hear further commentary provided on Limited Brands'
prerecorded July sales message, call 1-866-639-7583
(1-866-NEWS-LTD), or log onto www.Limitedbrands.com for an audio
replay. The company will report its second quarter earnings
results after the close of the market on Aug. 15 and will conduct its second quarter
earnings call at 9 a.m. Eastern on
Aug. 16.
ABOUT LIMITED BRANDS:
Limited Brands, through Victoria's Secret, Pink, Bath & Body
Works, La Senza and Henri Bendel, is
an international company. The company operates 2,619
specialty stores in the United
States and its brands are sold in more than 700
company-operated and franchised additional locations
world-wide. The company's products are also available online
at www.VictoriasSecret.com, www.BathandBodyWorks.com,
www.HenriBendel.com and www.LaSenza.com.
Limited Brands b-roll footage of stores is available through our
online newsroom.
Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995
Limited Brands, Inc. cautions that any forward-looking
statements (as such term is defined in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995) contained in this press release or
the July sales call involve risks and uncertainties and are subject
to change based on various factors, many of which are beyond our
control. Accordingly, our future performance and financial
results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in
any such forward-looking statements. Words such as
"estimate," "project," "plan," "believe," "expect," "anticipate,"
"intend," "planned," "potential" and any similar expressions may
identify forward-looking statements. Risks associated with
the following factors, among others, in some cases have affected
and in the future could affect our financial performance and actual
results and could cause actual results to differ materially from
those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements
included in this press release or the July sales call:
- general economic conditions, consumer confidence, consumer
spending patterns and market disruptions including severe weather
conditions, natural disasters, health hazards, terrorist
activities, financial crises, political crises or other major
events, or the prospect of these events;
- the seasonality of our business;
- the dependence on a high volume of mall traffic and the
possible lack of availability of suitable store locations on
appropriate terms;
- our ability to grow through new store openings and existing
store remodels and expansions;
- our ability to successfully expand into international markets
and related risks;
- our independent licensees and franchisees;
- our direct channel business;
- our failure to protect our reputation and our brand
images;
- our failure to protect our trade names, trademarks and
patents;
- the highly competitive nature of the retail industry generally
and the segments in which we operate particularly;
- consumer acceptance of our products and our ability to keep up
with fashion trends, develop new merchandise and launch new product
lines successfully;
- our reliance on foreign sources of production, including risks
related to:
- political instability;
- duties, taxes and other charges on imports;
- legal and regulatory matters;
- volatility in currency exchange rates;
- local business practices and political issues;
- potential delays or disruptions in shipping and related pricing
impacts;
- the disruption of imports by labor disputes; and
- changing expectations regarding product safety due to new
legislation;
- stock price volatility;
- our failure to maintain our credit rating;
- our ability to service our debt;
- our ability to retain key personnel;
- our ability to attract, develop and retain qualified employees
and manage labor costs;
- the inability of our manufacturers to deliver products in a
timely manner and meet quality standards;
- fluctuations in product input costs;
- fluctuations in energy costs;
- increases in the costs of mailing, paper and printing;
- claims arising from our self-insurance;
- our ability to implement and maintain information technology
systems;
- our failure to comply with regulatory requirements;
- tax matters; and
- legal and compliance matters.
We are not under any obligation and do not intend to make
publicly available any update or other revisions to any of the
forward-looking statements contained in this press release or the
July sales call to reflect circumstances existing after the date of
this press release or to reflect the occurrence of future events
even if experience or future events make it clear that any expected
results expressed or implied by those forward-looking statements
will not be realized. Additional information regarding these and
other factors can be found in "Item 1A. Risk Factors" in our 2011
Annual Report on Form 10-K.
LIMITED BRANDS
JULY 2012
Comparable Store Sales Increase (Decrease):
|
July
2012
|
July
2011
|
Second
Quarter
2012
|
Second
Quarter
2011
|
Year to
Date
2012
|
Year to
Date
2011
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Victoria's
Secret Stores
|
12%
|
9%
|
10%
|
12%
|
10%
|
15%
|
Bath &
Body Works
|
17%
|
2%
|
7%
|
4%
|
7%
|
7%
|
La
Senza
|
(5%)
|
2%
|
(3%)
|
1%
|
(2%)
|
(1%)
|
Limited
Brands
|
12%
|
6%
|
8%
|
9%
|
8%
|
12%
|
Victoria's Secret Direct Sales
|
1%
|
5%
|
3%
|
0%
|
4%
|
3%
|
Total Sales (Millions):
|
Second
Quarter 2012
|
|
Second
Quarter 2011
|
|
Year-to-date
2012
|
|
Year-to-date
2011
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Victoria's
Secret Stores
|
$
1,170.1
|
|
$
1,063.6
|
|
$
2,257.9
|
|
$
2,050.1
|
Victoria's
Secret Direct
|
406.6
|
|
392.9
|
|
788.6
|
|
761.9
|
Total
Victoria's Secret
|
$
1,576.7
|
|
$
1,456.5
|
|
$
3,046.5
|
|
$
2,812.0
|
Bath &
Body Works
|
$
609.1
|
|
$
563.0
|
|
$
1,114.1
|
|
$
1,042.7
|
La
Senza
|
$
94.9
|
|
$
114.2
|
|
$
170.2
|
|
$
202.5
|
Total
Other
|
$
118.4
|
|
$
324.4
|
|
$
222.1
|
|
$
617.9
|
Limited
Brands
|
$
2,399.1
|
|
$
2,458.1
|
|
$
4,552.9
|
|
$
4,675.1
|
Total Company-Operated Stores:
|
Stores
|
Year-to-date
|
Stores
|
|
Operating
|
Operating
|
|
at
1/28/12
|
Opened
|
Closed
|
at
7/28/12
|
|
|
|
|
|
Victoria's
Secret Stores
|
1,017
|
12
|
(14)
|
1,015
|
Bath &
Body Works
|
1,587
|
3
|
(9)
|
1,581
|
Henri
Bendel
|
19
|
4
|
-
|
23
|
Total United States
|
2,623
|
19
|
(23)
|
2,619
|
|
|
|
|
|
La Senza
Canada
|
230
|
-
|
(33)
|
197
|
Bath &
Body Works Canada
|
69
|
1
|
(1)
|
69
|
Victoria's
Secret Canada
|
19
|
1
|
-
|
20
|
Total
Limited Brands
|
2,941
|
22
|
(57)
|
2,906
|
SOURCE Limited Brands, Inc.