Elizabeth Arden Posts Narrow Loss, Stock Down on View

Elizabeth Arden posts loss, stock down on view

LOS ANGELES, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Elizabeth Arden (RDEN.O) reported a narrower quarterly loss on Thursday as shoppers continued to spend conservatively on perfume and face creams, but shares fell 4.1 percent after its 2010 profit forecast missed expectations.

Net loss at Arden was $3.6 million, or 13 cents per share, for the fiscal fourth quarter ended June, 30, narrowing from its year-earlier net loss of $10.4 million, or 38 cents per share.

Excluding restructuring and other expenses, its net loss was 7 cents per share. That just beat the 8-cent loss expected by analysts, according to Reuters Estimates.

Net sales at Arden, which sells Prevage anti-aging cream and perfumes by celebrities such as Britney Spears and Mariah Carey, fell 10 percent to $212.6 million. Excluding the unfavorable impact of foreign currency translation, net sales declined 5.8 percent.

For its fiscal year ended June 2010, the company forecast a 2 percent to 3.5 percent increase in sales and earnings per share in the range of 50 cents to 65 cents per share.

Analysts, on average were looking for a 2010 profit of 72 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Shares in Arden, which closed at $10.45, fell to $10.02 in extended trade on the Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Lisa Baertlein and Aarthi Sivaraman in Seattle; Editing Bernard Orr) 

(SOURCE: Reuters.com)