Shares of Leslie’s slipped after the pool- and spa-supply retailer unexpectedly swung to a loss in the fourth quarter and warned about its first-quarter results due to continued softness in larger ticket and discretionary categories.
The stock was down 22%, to $2.75, in post-market trading Monday. Through the close, shares have fallen 49% since the beginning of the year.
The company posted a loss for the three months ended Sept. 28 of $9.9 million, or 5 cents a share, compared with a profit of $16.5 million, or 9 cents a share, for the same period a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 10 cents.
Stripping out one-time items, earnings per share came in at 2 cents, missing the 11 cents per-share expected by analysts.
Sales fell 8%, to $397.9 million, below the $405.2 million forecast by Wall Street, according to FactSet.
Overall, the company experienced another year of softness in its core residential category, Financial Chief Scott Bowman said on a call with analysts.
“We continue to operate in a dynamic environment, which has been felt acutely across the pool industry for the last two years,” Chief Executive Jason McDonell said.
The company provided only an outlook for the first quarter following the recent appointment of McDonell.
For the period, Leslie’s forecasts a loss of $39 million to $41 million, an adjusted loss per share of 20 cents to 21 cents, and sales of $169 million to $176 million. Wall Street expects a quarterly loss of $39.4 million, an adjusted loss per share of 19 cents, and sales of $178.7 million.