What happened
A quarterly earnings report that was much better than expected was the impetus behind the bull run on Signet Jewelers (SIG 0.61%) stock Thursday. The company's shares closed the day nearly 6% higher on its convincing analyst beats, and very encouraging guidance.
So what
For its second quarter of fiscal 2022, Signet's sales more than doubled on a year-over-year basis, landing at just under $1.79 billion from the $888 million in the same period one year ago. On the bottom line, the big jewelry retailer flipped to a net profit of $216 million, against the year-ago quarter's $90 million loss. On an adjusted per-share basis, it earned $3.57 versus the year-ago deficit of $1.13.
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Both headline numbers topped prognosticator predictions. On average, Signet analysts estimated that the company would book only $1.63 billion in sales, and an adjusted per-share net profit of $1.62.
Signet has apparently been quite successful in getting both incoming and existing clientele to purchase its bling. In its earnings release, the company quoted CEO Virginia Drosos as saying that "our banner value propositions, product newness, always-on marketing and connected commerce experiences are resonating with new and loyal customers."
Now what
Drosos added that while Signet was cautiously optimistic given the still-challenging retail environment, "We are raising our guidance for the year reflecting our business strength and confidence in our growth strategy."
In proffering selected guidance, the company said it now expects to earn $6.80 billion to $6.95 billion in revenue in fiscal 2022, notably ahead of the collective analyst projection of $6.71 billion.
