Williams-Sonoma Q4 Profit Rises - Update

(RTTNews) - Williams-Sonoma Inc. (WSM) Wednesday said its fourth quarter profit rose from a year ago, driven largely by more-than-expected revenue growth.

Fourth-quarter profit rose to $155.3 million or $1.93 per share from $95.8 million or $1.13 per share last year.

On an adjusted basis, earnings for the quarter grew to $2.10 per share from $1.68 per share last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated earnings of $1.97 per share for the quarter. Analysts estimates' typically exclude one-time items.

Revenues for the fourth quarter grew 9.3% to $1.84 billion from $1.68 billion last year. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $1.80 billion for the quarter.

Williams-Sonoma reported comparable brand revenue growth of 2.4%, including double-digit comp growth for West Elm. E-commerce revenue growth improved to 14.3%.

CEO Laura Alber said, "2018 was a strong year for our business. We outperformed revenue and EPS expectations while making important investments in our business that set us up for accelerated long-term growth."

Looking forward to 2019, the company expects revenues of $5.67 billion to $5.84 billion and adjusted earnings of $4.50 to $4.70 per share. Analysts currently estimate earnings of $4.44 per share and revenues of $5.72 billion.

WSM closed Wednesday's trading at $56.85, up $0.11 or 0.19%, on the NYSE. The stock further rose $1.90 or 3.34% in the after-hours trade.