L Brands sales growth slows to 4% in April

By

Robin Driver

Published
May 11, 2018

Columbus, Ohio-based apparel group L Brands,Inc., owner of labels such as Victoria’s Secret, Bath & Body Works and Henri Bendel, reported sales growth in the mid to high single digits for April and Q1 2018 on Thursday and updated its earnings guidance for the first quarter.

 
Net sales for the four weeks ended May 5, 2018 totaled $751.6 million, up 4% from the $719.6 million reported in the four-week period ended April 29, 2017. Comparable sales, however, were flat, negatively impacted by Easter’s shift from April to March this year.
 
The month’s performance continues the roll of net sales improvements that L Brands has been reporting since January, although the rise is comparatively low compared to previous months, in which net sales growth oscillated between 7% and 11.5%.

In the first quarter of 2018, the company’s net sales came to $2.626 billion, an 8% increase from $2.437 billion in Q1 2017, while comparable sales for the period rose 3%.
 
The company now expects to see Q1 earnings per share at the lower end of its previous guidance, between $0.15 and $0.20, an announcement which resulted in its shares falling 9.4% in Thursday trading. 
 
L Brands plans to report first quarter earnings after the close of market on May 24.