Michael Kors will close up to 125 stores

NEW YORK: Michael Kors Holdings Limited swung to a quarterly loss and said it would close between 100 and 125 full-price retail stores over the next two years.

The London-based company also issued a weak outlook and comparable store sales were disappointing, sending shares down 7% before the opening bell yesterday.

The retailer lost $26.8 million, or 17 cents per share in the fiscal fourth quarter, after reporting a profit in the same period a year earlier. Earnings, adjusted for asset impairment costs, were 73 cents per share.

The results topped Wall Street expectations by three cents, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.

Revenue fell 11.2% to $1.06 billion, but that too edged out expectations.

Sales in the Americas region, which makes up the bulk of revenue, fell 18% to $721 million.

Same-store sales, a key measure of a retailer’s health, fell 14.1%, which was worse than Wall Street had expected.

“Fiscal 2017 is a challenging year, as we continue to operate in a difficult retail environment with elevated promotional levels,’’ said chairman and CEO John D. Idol.

He said the company needed to take further steps to elevate “the level of fashion innovation’’ and enhance the store experience.

For the year, the company reported profit of $552.5 million, or $3.29 per share. Revenue was $4.49 billion.

For the current quarter ending in July, Michael Kors said it expected revenue in the range of $910 million to $930 million. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had expected revenue of $932.2 million.

The company expects full-year earnings to be $3.57 to $3.67 per share, with revenue expected to be $4.25 billion.

Michael Kors shares have declined 16% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has climbed nearly 8%. The stock has declined 13% in the last 12 months.