Gap & Tiffany’s sales up yet not as much as expected

Gap and Tiffany´s were the clear winners Thursday when

they both reported gains and a better trading. On the contrary, Guess, Macy´s and Nordstrom saw weaker sales for the period being.

Gap Inc has seen its November comparable store sales increase 3 percent on the back of gains at its international and North American brands. However, the figures missed Wall Street's expectations, reported ‘Businessweek’.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected an increase of 3.9 percent in the measure, which excludes results from stores that have recently opened or closed. That's an important gauge of a retailer's health, as it tracks trends at established stores. Shares of Gap Inc. fell 82 cents, or 2.3 percent, to 35 dollars (Rs 1,907.5) in premarket trading Thursday, overcoming the drop alongside the trading session.

Shares of Tiffany's (TIF) fell over 6 percent during Thursday's trading session, as per its announce of its third quarter results before the market open. Net income fell 30 percent from 90 million dollars (Rs 490 crores) last year to 63 million (Rs 343 crores) during the quarter. Diluted earnings per share fell from 0.70 dollars (Rs 38.1) to 0.49 dollars (Rs 26.7) per share, stressed ‘Seeking Alpha’. Earnings missed consensus estimates of 0.63 dollars (Rs 34.3) per share.

Tiffany's reported third quarter revenues of 852.7 million dollars (Rs 4,647 crores), up 4 percent on the year, yet missing market’s consensus estimates of 858.8 million dollars (Rs 4,680 crores). Worldwide net sales rose 5 percent in constant currencies, while comparable store sales rose 1 percent. Gross margins fell to 54.4 percent, down 350 basis points compared to the year before.

Worse news though for department stores, are sales weakness was across the board. Macy's (M) comps slid 0.7 percent against the forecasted recasts of a 2.5 percent rise. Despite the largest Thanksgiving volume in its history, Macy's wasn't able to overcome Sandy's impact earlier in the month. In the same vein, Kohl's (KSS) same-store sales fell 5.6 percent from same period a year ago, falling to meet estimates of 2.1 percent rise. Also Target (TGT) saw comps fall 1 percent, while market expected a 2.1 percent increase. High-end department store didn´t report anything better, as its comps sank 1.1 percent. Analysts expected a 4.5 percent gain.