Costa Mesa-based clothing maker Volcom Inc. reported a fourth-quarter profit Thursday that was well beyond what Wall Street was looking for and offered a generally upbeat outlook for the current quarter.
Volcom, which makes clothes inspired by surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, art, music and film, reported an adjusted profit of $3.3 million, versus a loss of $8.7 million a year earlier.
Analysts on average were looking for a profit of $940,000.
A dramatic decrease in operating expenses, which went from $42 million a year earlier to $28 million, drove the bigger than expected profit.
Sales were down 8% from a year earlier to $64 million but came in ahead of the $62.7 million analysts expected.
Like other clothing companies, Volcom has been dealing with the industry’s worst downturn in recent memory.
Sales in the U.S., Canada and Japan were down 16% to $46 million. Sales in Europe, Volcom’s other market, rose 18% to $12.9 million.
For the current quarter, Volcom said it projects sales of $71 million to $74 million, which would be up 4% to 8% from a year earlier and topped the $69 million analysts had been expecting.
Volcom projected a profit of $3.7 million to $4.5 million, which brackets the $4 million analysts had been expecting on average.
The company said it expects “increased revenue growth as the year progresses, primarily reflecting the company’s forecast of a generally strengthening global economy throughout 2010.”
Volcom’s shares were up about 3% in afterhours trading to a market value of $380 million.
