Tuesday, specialty retailer Gander Mountain Co. (GMTN) reported a wider loss for the second quarter, hurt primarily by discounts and markdowns related to withdrawal from PowerSports categories and higher advertising expense, said the company.
For the quarter, the Saint Paul, Minneapolis-based company's net loss was $7.34 million or $0.3 per share compared with a loss of $4.85 million or $0.20 per share in the prior-year quarter.
On an average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to attain a loss of $0.04 per share. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Consolidated sales for the quarter slid 1.8% to $248.41 million from $252.87 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2008. Analysts expected Gander Mountain to generate revenues of $271.30 million during the quarter.
On a segmental basis, sales from retail was $210.84 million versus $213.15 million, and direct sales fell to $37.58 million from $39.73 million a year ago.
For the quarter, comparable store sales slipped by 2.4%. Excluding the negative impact of 4.2% due to withdrawal from boat, ATV and power sport services categories, comparable store sales was a positive 1.8%.
The company's selling, general and administrative expenses, or SG&A expenses, for the period surged to $68.48 million from $66.94 million last year, reflecting higher advertising expense.
For the first-half period, Gander Mountain's net loss narrowed to $25.98 million or $1.07 per share from $29.30 million or $1.22 per share in the comparable period prior-year. Consolidated sales for the year-to-date period was $476.07 million as against $460.54 million in the same period last year.
Comparable store sales for the period rose 2.2%, excluding the negative 4.8% impact of boat and ATV sales and power sport services, comparable store sales was a positive 7%.
Looking ahead to the second half of the year, Chairman and interim Chief Executive Officer David Pratt said the company expects retail environment to be challenging.
GMTN is currently trading at $4.85 per share, down 13.70%, on the Nasdaq.
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