Brown Shoe Beats Estimates (BWS)

St Louis based footwear retailer and wholesaler Brown Shoe Company, Inc. BWS announced on Wednesday morning that it beat consensus Wall Street estimates. Brown Shoe Company, Inc. (BWS) reported a return to 2nd quarter profitability with net earnings of $5.3 million, or 12 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $4.2 million, or 10 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding special items, the company's earnings came in at 15 cents per share. Net sales rose 14.5% to $585.8 million, up from $511.6 million a year earlier. According to a survey of analysts by Thomson Reuters, the average Wall Street estimate called for earnings of 9 cents per share, on revenue of $579.45 million. The company expects a 3rd quarter sales increase in the low-teens range. Brown Shoe Company, Inc closed the previous trading session at $12.80 per share. Analysts covering the company's stock give it a consensus price target of $20.33 per share. Chairman and chief executive officer Ron Fromm said, "The positive momentum for our retail and wholesale brands continued in the second quarter and resulted in strong sales growth across our multi-channel portfolio and a significant improvement in earnings during the period. This performance reflects our growing engagement with our consumers, built upon exceptional product and compelling merchandising and marketing plans. We have seen tremendous growth from our Wholesale division, with strong performances in the quarter from Naturalizer, Dr. Scholl's, and our contemporary fashion brands. Additionally, Famous Footwear drove a double-digit sales gain with a significantly reduced promotional cadence in the quarter, resulting in solid year-over-year gross profit rate improvement. As a result of the strong performance for the first six months of the year, we are proud to have achieved our short-term milestone of delivering adjusted earnings of $1.00 per diluted share on a trailing 12-month basis in a much faster timeframe than previously anticipated." Read more from Benzinga's Company news.