Express Inc. shares soared 10% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the clothing retailer posted a narrower-than-expected loss for the first quarter and offered guidance that was above consensus. Express had a net loss of $11.9 million, or 18 cents a share, for the quarter to April 30, narrower than the loss of $45.7 million, or 70 cents a share, posted in the year-earlier period. The company’s adjusted per-share loss came to 10 cents, ahead of the 13 cent loss-per-share FactSet consensus. Sales rose to $450.9 million from $345.8 million a year ago, also ahead of the $436.0 million FactSet consensus. Same-store sales rose 31%, ahead of the FactSet consensus for a rise of 26.8%. CEO Tim Baxter said the numbers exceeded the company’s expectataions. “We delivered positive comparable sales of 31%, double-digit positive comparable sales in every major category and every channel, and we recorded the highest number of active loyalty program members in the Company’s history,” he said in a statement. Express is now expecting same-store sales to rise in the mid-single digits in the second quarter. For the full year, it expects same-store sales to climb 8% to 10%, compared with a FactSet consensus of 8%. It expects EPS to range from 24 cents to 34 cents and adjusted EPS to range from 14 cents to 20 cents. The FactSet consensus is for EPS of 12 cents. Shares have fallen 23% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 has fallen 17%.
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