By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – Shares of Deckers Brands (NYSE:DECK), maker of snuggly Uggs, were up 6% Friday on analyst upgrades that followed strong fourth quarter earnings and the announcement of another share repurchase program.
Earnings per share of $1.18 compared to the expected 67 cents on sales of $561 million, lower than the average analyst estimate of $440 million, according to data compiled by Investing.com.
The footwear designer has guided for $2.95 billion to $3 billion in 2022 net sales. This is 16% to 18% higher from 2021 net sales. Diluted EPS is expected to be in the range of $14.05 to $14.65 in 2022, higher than the $13.47 in 2021.
BofA analyst Rafe Jadrosich raised his target for the stock by more than 10% to $425, according to StreetInsider. The shares are currently trading around $330. BTIG analyst Camilo Lyon raised the target to $447. The analyst sees more to come in 2022 as the fourth quarter was “nothing short of outstanding.”
The forecast for higher EPS ignores the $750-million additional share repurchase scheme the company announced Thursday. It has $60.7 million remaining from a share buyback plan announced earlier.
Net sales in the fourth quarter rose 49.7% from a year-ago to $561.2 million. Income from operations more than trebled to $54.6 million from $16.7 million in the March quarter last year.