VFC VF Corporation

   By Joshua Jamerson 
 

Apparel conglomerate VF Corp. reported its profit fell 10% in the first quarter as revenue growth was little changed and expenses grew slightly.

VF--which owns brands like Wrangler, Timberland and North Face--backed its earnings outlook for the year, forecasting strong performance in the second half, especially in the holiday quarter.

VF said sales in its imagewear segment declined 5% on lower revenue in its workwear business, which the company again blamed on reduced oil and gas exploration.

Also in the March quarter, sales in VF's contemporary brands segment fell 15% from a year before. Sportswear and imagewear also saw declines, while its much larger jeanswear and outdoor and action sports units saw more modest sales gains.

Over all, VF posted a profit of $260.3 million, or 61 cents a share, down from $288.7 million, or 67 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding items, the company earned 57 cents. Analysts, on average, had projected earnings of 58 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

Revenue was flat at $2.84 billion, as analysts, on average, had anticipated $2.83 billion. Adjusted for currency fluctuations, sales rose 2%, the company said.

Total costs and operating expenses climbed 3% to $2.5 billion.

The company still expects revenue this year to increase by a percentage in the mid-single digits.

Shares, down 14% over the past 12 months, were little changed in light premarket trading from Thursday's close at $62.66.

Write to Joshua Jamerson at joshua.jamerson@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 29, 2016 09:13 ET (13:13 GMT)

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