Shares of GNC Holdings Inc. soared 22% in premarket trade Thursday, after the health and performance products retailer provided a fourth-quarter profit outlook that was above expectations. The company said same-store sales of its U.S. company-owned stores rose 5.7% from a year ago. As a result, it expects adjusted earnings per share, which excludes non-recurring items, of 24 cents to 25 cents, above the FactSet consensus of 23 cents. The company affirmed its 2017 free cash flow estimate of $190 million to $210 million, and said it ended 2017 with cash and cash equivalents of $64 million and long-term debt of $1.3 billion. The company had announced in December that it had hired Goldman Sachs to evaluate alternatives. The company said Thursday that it did not plan to provide preliminary financhial information in the future other than “unique circumstances,” or unless there is a “material event.” The stock has plunged 57.3% over the past three months through Thursday, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF has run up 17.4% and the S&P 500 has gained 9.4%.
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