What happened
Shares of Signet Jewelers (SIG 1.58%) were surging 10.2% in morning trading Thursday after the jewelry store chain offered up a sterling earnings report that beat analyst expectations on the top and bottom lines.
First-quarter sales rose 9% to $1.8 billion as comparable-store sales (comps) climbed 2.5% from the year-ago period, though that was less than the 5.1% forecast.
So what
It's a pretty remarkable performance because last year, sales at the jewelry retailer had nearly doubled following the pandemic-disrupted prior year and comps had also surged 106%, so being able to add to those gains showed some business strength.
Signet also owns the Kay, Zales, and Jared brands. While sales at the first two were lower, Jared was up 10% and the new Diamonds Direct bridal business helped fuel growth contributing $106 million.
Now what
The company bought back $318 million worth of its stock and expanded the program by $500 million, suggesting management would continue to be aggressive in its buybacks to support its earnings per share. It also boosted its guidance somewhat to indicate an improved outlook.
The jeweler maintained its outlook for sales between $8.03 billion and $8.25 billion, ahead of Wall Street's forecast of $8.03 billion, but earnings are now expected to fall within a range of $12.72 to $13.47 per share, compared to its prior guidance of $12.28 to $13. Analysts were looking for earnings of $12.14 per share.
