Tiffany & Co (TIF) Stock Price Leaps 7% After Luxury Retailer’s Q1 Sales Get Boost From Gold Fashion, Statement Jewelry

Shares of Tiffany & Co. (NYSE:TIF) jumped 7 percent Wednesday after the luxury jeweler posted earnings and revenue that topped Wall Street forecasts, driven by a boost in sales of gold fashion jewelry and statement jewelry. The New York-based company, whose merchandise offerings include an extensive selection of jewelry, sterling silverware, crystal and fragrances, also maintained its outlook for the year, despite challenges due to a strong U.S. dollar.

The retailer faced headwinds at the end of last year, as the company’s U.S. sales were flat, while revenue in Japan remained soft.

Tiffany shares rose 7 percent Wednesday to $91.50.

In the quarter ended April 30, Tiffany reported first-quarter net income fell 17 percent to $104.9 million, or 81 cents, on revenue of $962.4 million, compared with a profit of $125.61 million, or 97 cents, on sales of $1.01 billion during the same period a year ago.

Wall Street had expected the retailer to report earnings of 70 cents per share on $919 million in revenue, according to analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Net earnings fell due to the lower sales and higher administrative expenses, primarily related to marketing spending, the company said. Meanwhile, revenue declined 5 percent from a year earlier.

The jeweler and specialty retailer continues to face challenges due to a stronger U.S. dollar. Excluding the effect of foreign exchange, Tiffany said sales rose 1 percent due to growth in all regions, except Japan, which dropped 18 percent.

“Despite those factors, our first quarter results for net sales, as well as for gross margin and net earnings, were somewhat better than we anticipated,” Frederic Cumenal, chief executive officer of Tiffany & Co., said in a statement Wednesday.

Tiffany maintained its annual forecasts for earnings of $4.20 per share for the year. “Despite these plans and the better-than-expected first quarter results, our forecast for minimal earnings growth for the full year continues to reflect caution regarding our expectations for fiscal 2015 in light of the strong dollar and other global economic uncertainties,” Cumenal added.

Shares of Tiffany have dropped 20 percent this year.