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SBD/March 7, 2012/Finance
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Lowered Expenses Help Adidas To See Net Profit Gain In Q4
adidas pointing to UEFA Euro '12 as potential driver of growth in coming year
adidas announced today that net profit in Q4 ‘11 rose to $23.6M from $9.2M in the same period of the previous year due to lower expenses, according to Harriet Torry of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Sales rose 11% on the year to $4.3B, "boosted by growth in North America and Greater China." The athletic apparel brand "maintained its guidance and warned higher raw material and labor costs will continue, particularly in the first half of the year." It pointed to the ‘12 London Games and '12 UEFA European Championship as "potential drivers of sales growth over the coming year." However, the company "disappointed analysts by maintaining its expectation" for ‘12 sales growth at a "mid- to high-single-digit rate on a currency-neutral basis," and earnings per share growth to between $4.62 and $4.83 from $4.19 in ‘11. Profit in Q4 was "boosted by lower marketing costs, lower expenses and increased insurance compensation, although the company declined to specify" from where the insurance proceeds stemmed. Higher input costs "pushed the company's gross margin down" to 45.6% from 46.5% a year earlier though adidas said that it expects the margin to remain at the ‘11 level of around 47.5% (WSJ.com, 3/7).
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SMI Cites Economy, Lower Ticket Prices As Reasons For Turning A Net Loss In '11
Challenging economic conditions and decreased ticket prices swung Speedway Motorsports Inc. to a net loss in '11. The company today reported a net loss of of $6.4M compared to net gain of $44.5M in '10. Its total revenues increased by $3.6M largely as a result of a $7M increase in event-related revenue, which includes sponsorship sales, suite rentals, merchandise sales and concessions. The company’s ticket revenue fell by $8.6M. SMI said the decline in admissions revenue reflected lower average ticket prices, and, to a lesser extent, fewer fans attending races. SMI’s largest revenue stream was the $185.4M it received in NASCAR broadcast money. The company said fans are waiting until closer to race dates to purchase tickets and added that it has developed promotional campaigns to encourage people to buy tickets earlier. Total expenses over the period increased by 13% to $487.9M on the year. SMI President & COO Marcus Smith in a statement said: “We are proud to report higher revenues for 2011 with almost four million fans attending our events despite tough economic times, and that television ratings increased significantly for NASCAR’s three largest racing series. Our full year 2011 results exceeded our expectations and reflect that our business is continuing to stabilize.” The company estimated '12 revenues will be $475-510M.
