VF Corp Issues 2016 Outlook; Declares Dividend - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - While reporting its fourth-quarter financial results today, VF Corp. (VFC) provided its financial outlook for the first two quarters of fiscal 2016 and the full year.

In the first quarter of 2016, the company expects currency-neutral revenue and earnings per share to be about flat. On a reported basis, revenue for the quarter is expected to be about flat and earnings per share is expected to be down at a low double-digit percentage rate.

On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to report earnings of $0.70 per share for the quarter on 4.4 percent increase in revenues to $2.96 billion. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

In the second quarter of 2016, the company projects revenue to increase at a low single-digit percentage rate with a low single-digit decline in currency neutral earnings per share, or down high single-digit as reported.

For fiscal 2016, VF Corp. forecast revenue to increase at a mid single-digit percentage rate and currency neutral earnings per share to increase 11 percent, or 5 percent on a reported basis, compared to adjusted earnings per share of $3.08 in 2015.

The company projects gross margin for the year of about 48.8 percent, net of an anticipated 70 basis points of negative impact from changes in foreign currency,

The Street expect the company to report earnings of $3.44 per share for the year on 5.8 percent increase in revenues to $13.33 billion.

VF Corp. expects to return $1.5 billion to shareholders in 2016 through share repurchases and dividends.

VF Corp's board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, payable on March 18, 2016 to shareholders of record on March 8, 2016.