Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE:FL) shares rose in US pre-market trading after posting fourth quarter earnings that beat expectations.
The athletic retailer reported net income of $189mln, or $1.42 per share, compared to $158mln the same period a year ago, or 1.14 per share.
Excluding non-recurring items, earnings climbed to $1.37 from $1.16.
Revenue increased 5.3% to $2.11bn from $2.0bn while same-store sales rose 5% in the face of what Foot Locker described as a challenging retail environment.
Revenue was in line with analysts’ forecasts while earnings per share beat expectations of $1.32 and same store sales growth was ahead of estimates of 4.6%.
“Due in part to the change in the cadence of income tax refund check distribution, we are facing a challenging retail sales environment as we enter 2017; however, we believe the strategic initiatives we have in place, coupled with our strong vendor relationships, will enable us to deliver another year of record performance,” said chairman Richard Johnson.
For the full year, sales rose to $7.8bn from $7.5bn and same-store sales rose 4.3%. Net income increased to $664mln, or $4.91 per share, compared to net income of $541mln, or $3.84 per share in 2015. Excluding non-recurring items, earnings per share edged up to $4.82 from $4.29.
Shares rose 3.16% to $68.58 ahead of the opening bell.