Tag: stayathome

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Business

Williams-Sonoma earnings boosted by stay-at-home developments, shares rise

Williams-Sonoma earnings boosted by stay-at-home trends, shares rise

Pedestrians walk outside a Williams-Sonoma Inc. store in San Francisco, California.

David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Williams-Sonoma posted a fourth quarter profit on Wednesday that exceeded analysts’ expectations as consumers continued to buy furniture and cookware as they spent more time at home during the coronavirus pandemic.

The company’s stock rose more than 11% in expanded trading as the company expects growth to continue over the coming year.

The company reported for the fourth quarter ended Jan. 31, relative to Wall Street analysts’ expectations based on a survey by Refinitiv:

  • Earnings per share: $ 3.95 adjusted versus $ 3.39 expected
  • Revenue: $ 2.29 billion versus $ 2.18 billion expected

“In the fourth quarter, despite shipping restrictions and low retail traffic, we achieved another quarter with sales and profitability growth of 26% and EPS growth of over 85%,” said Laura Alber, President and CEO of Williams-Sonoma, in a press release .

Net income rose from $ 166 million, or $ 2.10 per share last year, to $ 309 million, or $ 3.92 per share.

Excluding items, Williams-Sonoma earned $ 3.95 per share, beating analysts polled by Refinitiv, which was expected to $ 3.39 per share.

Revenue increased 24% from $ 1.84 billion a year ago to $ 2.29 billion, beating expectations of $ 2.18 billion.

The growth was fueled by a 47.9% increase in e-commerce sales, with approximately 70% of total sales coming from the e-commerce business.

Revenue for the entire company in the same store rose 25.7% in the most recent quarter, with all brands posting double-digit gains.

The brand of the same name, Williams-Sonoma, reported a 26.2% increase in sales in the same store. Both Pottery Barn and Pottery Barn Kids and Teen saw sales grow 25.7% in the same store. West Elm was close behind with a 25.2% increase in sales in the same business.

In fiscal 2021, the retailer expects retail traffic to recover and inventory levels to improve.

The company expects its performance to be in line with its long-term financial goals, which require mid to high single digit revenue growth.

Although the company’s business received support as consumers ate more meals at home and wanted to decorate their homes during the health crisis, Alber believes the business will continue to be driven by favorable macro trends that will support the business in the long term. Factors she cited included high consumer confidence, a strong real estate market, a shift to e-commerce, and the expectation that people will continue to work from home for more time in the future.

Williams-Sonoma said it would increase its dividend 11.3% to 59 cents per share. Meanwhile, the board of directors approved plans to repurchase shares valued at $ 1 billion. The new buyback plan replaces its previous approval and comes into effect on March 17th.

Read the full results publication here.

Categories
Business

Disney inventory has ‘excellent stay-at-home story,’ portfolio supervisor says

Disney stock has ‘perfect stay-at-home story,’ portfolio manager says

One Dow stock rebounded at a record high this week.

Disney stock hit an all-time high for three days in a row. This is the most recent surge due to the company’s streaming success. Disney launched its international streaming service Star in Europe, Canada and Australia this week.

The total number of paid subscribers for the Disney + streaming platform rose to nearly 95 million in the last quarter, counteracting significantly lower revenue in the pandemic-hit parks segment.

“The streaming business is the perfect home stay story and provides stability for the company during the shutdown,” Federated Hermes portfolio manager Steve Chiavarone told CNBC’s Trading Nation on Wednesday.

Chiavarone said investors are also pricing in high expectations for a post-pandemic recovery.

“They are in this reopening phase where theme parks, cruises – all of these are activities we expect for the next year or so – are returning. This diversified business model is paying off,” said Chiavarone.

Netflix’s subscriber base dwarfs that of Disney +, but New Street Advisors founder Delano Saporu points to the new content and strong growth to explain the stock’s high value.

“You saw how you beat your four year old subscriber [projection] in 14 months, “he said in the same interview.” They’ve also released new content, the new Star Wars series is out in May and they have some Marvel series in June as well. So investors are looking for this original content. They appreciate that. “

The combination of a strong streaming offering and a future reopening is the recipe for success, said Chiavarone.

“It’s a perfect example of a company using the pandemic to invest in technology and become more productive and stronger in the future,” he said.

Disclosure: New Street Advisors holds DIS.

Disclaimer of liability

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Health

California lifts statewide Covid stay-at-home order, permitting eating places to reopen

California lifts statewide Covid stay-at-home order, allowing restaurants to reopen

A person wearing a protective mask arranges a table outside a restaurant in San Francisco, California, July 14, 2020.

David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

California will cancel its home stay order across the state on Monday, paving the way for restaurants and personal care services to reopen with operations changed, according to a statement from the California Department of Health.

The stay-at-home order, first announced by Governor Gavin Newsom on December 3, divided the state into five regions and was based on one area’s ICU capacity. Three of those regions – the San Joaquin Valley, Bay Area, and Southern California – were still in the works before they were lifted on Monday.

As part of the order, restaurants were only allowed to offer take-out and delivery services, and personal care businesses such as hair salons and barbershops were forced to close. Retailers were allowed to stay open with limited capacity. The state is expected to revert to its tiered county-to-county reopening system that will allow businesses to reopen based on the level of Covid-19 prevalent in their area.

Virtually every county will start at the most widespread, restrictive reopening stage, meaning many businesses, including restaurants and gyms, will only be allowed to reopen for outdoor services, according to the state’s Department of Health. Retailers can reopen their stores at a quarter of their capacity below the most widely used level.

State health officials are now predicting that ICU capacity, the percentage of beds used, will drop below 85% in each region in four weeks after running at or near maximum capacity for weeks. This will allow Newsom to hold the home stay order across California. The Sacramento region left the Order as early as Jan. 12, and the Northern California region never joined the order, the state health department said.

“California is slowly beginning to emerge from the most dangerous wave of this pandemic yet. This is the light at the end of the tunnel that we have hoped for,” said California Health and Welfare Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly in a statement.

“Seven weeks ago our hospitals and health professionals had reached their limits, but the Californians heard the urgent message to stay home if possible, and our post-December vacation recovery did not overwhelm the health system as much as we feared,” Said Ghaly.

Categories
Business

California extends stay-at-home order for 2 areas

California extends stay-at-home order for two regions

Clinicians work in the former lobby of Providence St. Mary Medical Center, which was converted into a care area to treat suspicious COVID patients on December 23, 2020 in Apple Valley, California, Southern California.

Mario Tama | Getty Images

California will extend its home stay order for two regions of the state – Southern California and San Joaquin Valley – where intensive care capacity is being weighed down by a rush of Covid-19 patients, the state’s health minister. Dr. Mark Ghaly said on Tuesday.

The regional order, first announced by Governor Gavin Newsom on December 3 and due to expire on Monday, divides the state into five regions – the Bay Area, Greater Sacramento, Northern California, San Joaquin Valley, and Southern California. If the remaining ICU capacity in any region drops below 15%, a three-week home stay order will be triggered, Newsom said.

Ordering requires the temporary closure of bars, wineries, personal services, hair salons and barber shops. Personal services are available to businesses like nail salons, tattoo parlors, and body waxing, according to the state’s website. The order also prohibits gatherings of any size and requires “100% masking and physical distancing”.

As of Tuesday, all but the Northern California area were under the stay home order, Ghaly said. In the future, however, both the San Joaquin Valley, which includes the central portion of the state, and the regions of Southern California will remain under order, he said.

These two regions will continue to be subject to restrictions until state projections show ICU capacity is at least 15%, he said. Ghaly added that the projections will be calculated and updated daily in the future. Just because the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California regions stay under order doesn’t mean they will be there for the full three weeks, he said.

According to a slide that Ghaly presented at a press conference, these two regions did not show any available ICU capacity. Four-week projections from state health officials have shown that intensive care capacity is not improving in these two regions, Ghaly said.

“We are essentially assuming that ICU capacity in Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley will not improve and that demand will continue to exceed capacity,” Ghaly said at a press conference.