L Brands December Comps. Up 1%; Updates Q4 Earnings Outlook - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - L Brands, Inc. (LB) reported a 1 percent increase in comparable sales and a 3 percent increase in net sales for the month of December 2017. In addition, the company revised its earnings outlook for the fourth quarter.

The company's net sales for the five weeks ended December 30, 2017 was $2.52 billion, up 3 percent from net sales of $2.44 billion in the year-ago period. Comparable sales increased 1 percent for the latest period.

For the 48 weeks ended December 30, 2017, L Brands reported net sales of $11.59 billion, down from $11.77 billion for year-ago period. Comparable sales decreased 4 percent.

For the 48 week period, the exit of the swim and apparel categories had a negative impact of about 3 percentage points and 5 percentage points to total company and Victoria's Secret comparable sales, respectively.

Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, L Brands said that before the effect of any significant one-time items and including the impact of tax reform legislation, it now expects to report earnings per share of about $2.00, compared to its previous guidance of $1.95 to $2.10 per share.