Joann missed third-quarter Wall Street estimates on sales and earnings while citing double-digit e-commerce growth as a positive development.
Net loss was $21.6 million, or 51 cents per diluted share, versus $17.5 million, or 43 cents per diluted share, in the year-before quarter. Adjusted for one-time events, net loss was $8.8 million, or 21 cents per diluted share, versus net income of $2.3 million, or six cents per diluted share, in the year-previous period.
An analyst consensus estimate from Zacks Investment Research called for a net loss of 19 cents and revenues of $541 million.
Net sales declined by 4.1% from the year earlier to $539.8 million, with total comparable sales decreasing by 4.1%. E-commerce sales increased 11.5% versus the year past and accounted for 13.1% of total company net sales in the third quarter, a 180-basis point increase in the penetration rate over last year, the company noted. Operating loss was 15.4 million versus $7.9 million in the year-prior quarter.
In announcing the third quarter financials, Chris DiTullio, Joann chief customer officer and co-lead of the interim office of CEO, said, “With continued progress and strong execution against our strategic priorities, we were pleased with our third-quarter results in what remains a dynamic consumer environment. Loyal customers are engaging with us at a greater rate. We are winning in our core categories, and we entered the fourth quarter with very clean inventory quality. Our e-commerce performance was particularly strong with double-digit quarter growth as we delivered a better and faster consumer experience, and benefitted from site enhancements driving increased conversion. We also recently launched a social media campaign #gettingknotty, capitalizing on the trend of tie-knot blanket making and focused on reaching younger, new customers. Although we have many important selling days ahead of us, our customer engagement during Black Friday week was strong, and we will continue to offer great value, inspiration and guidance to help all customers create Handmade Happiness this holiday season.”
