J. C. Penney Meets on Revenues, Misses on EPS

J. C. Penney (NYSE: JCP  ) reported earnings on May 16. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended May 4 (Q1), J. C. Penney met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue dropped significantly. Non-GAAP loss per share expanded. GAAP loss per share expanded.

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
J. C. Penney logged revenue of $2.64 billion. The 12 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted sales of $2.63 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 16% lower than the prior-year quarter's $3.15 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at -$1.31. The 10 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast -$0.93 per share. Non-GAAP EPS were -$1.31 for Q1 against -$0.25 per share for the prior-year quarter. GAAP EPS were -$1.58 for Q1 versus -$0.75 per share for the prior-year quarter.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 30.8%, 680 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -15.7%, much worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -13.2%, 800 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $2.84 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.90.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $12.31 billion. The average EPS estimate is -$3.45.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a one-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 697 members out of 1,082 rating the stock outperform, and 385 members rating it underperform. Among 252 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 164 give J. C. Penney a green thumbs-up, and 88 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on J. C. Penney is hold, with an average price target of $16.26.

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