Tiffany & Co's quarterly sales missed estimates as a slowing Chinese economy prompted Chinese tourists to spend less at the jeweler's stores in the United States and Hong Kong, a shortfall that sent the company's shares down as much 13 percent. Investors were also disappointed by the 180-year-old New York City headquartered company's failure to raise its full-year profit outlook ahead of the holiday season.
Weakening economic growth in China, against the backdrop of a trade spat between Beijing and Washington, has been a worry for luxury goods companies that rely on the country to boost sales. Louis Vuitton owner LVMH said in October it had experienced a slight slowdown in demand among its Chinese clientele, sparking a selloff in shares of luxury accessories retailers on both sides of the Atlantic.
Tiffany shares were down 12.39 percent at $91.95 in pre-market trading. Chief Executive Alessandro Bogliolo tried to reassure investors that while spending outside of China was down, sales in the country was robust. "We can speculate on the reasons for the tourist spend down outside of China but the reality is that the Tiffany brand is appealing to Chinese customers as evidenced by the continued strong sales growth in Mainland China in the quarter," he said on an investor call.
Typically, Bogliolo said, around a third of the total business is by Chinese nationals. The company does not break out separate sales figures. In Asia-Pacific, total net sales rose 4 percent to $294 million in the third quarter, highlighted by strong sales growth in mainland China. The company's comparable-store sales, excluding the impact of currency changes, rose 3 percent, while analysts on average were expecting a rise of 5.3 percent, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
"Declining Chinese tourist spending is concerning and may be reflective of strained relations with the US," said research firm Retail Metrics founder Ken Perkins. "China's growth has been slowing so to see strong spending on the mainland is encouraging." Tiffany forecast full-year profit between $4.65 and $4.80 per share. Analysts on average had estimated $4.83 per share. The unchanged outlook also reflected Tiffany's planned increases in marketing expenditure to entice younger shoppers into its stores and expenses related to the renovation of its flagship store in New York, the company said.
The 180-year-old jeweler, headquartered in New York City, refreshed its fashion jewelry with more affordable items such as pendants and earrings to appeal to millennials who have been gravitating to newer companies such as Denmark's Pandora A/S and Signet Jewelers. Bogliolo said the company has also invested in marketing to reach Chinese customers and tourists. The company's net income fell to $94.9 million, or 77 cents per share, in the third quarter ended Oct. 31, from $100.2 million, or 80 cents per share, a year earlier. Total revenue rose 3.7 percent to $1.01 billion. Analysts on average expected earnings of 77 cents per share on revenue of $1.05 billion.
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