Steve Madden (NASDAQ: SHOO) 4Q18 Results: Steady Navigation Amid Rough Seas on Strength of Steve Madden Brand Portfolio

Key Points

• 4Q18 sales rose 12.6% driven by a 14.1% increase in wholesale revenues and a 7.9% increase in retail sales. Same store sales rose 4% reflecting a 30% increase in SteveMadden.com sales growth. 
• Adjusted operating profit contracted 80 bps to 9.2% of sales on 90 bps gross margin contraction in the wholesale segment offset by modest gross margin improvement in the retail segment. 
• Adjusted EPS increased 31.3% to $0.42. Adjusted EPS guidance for 2019 is $1.75-1.83 versus adjusted EPS of $1.83. Guidance includes $0.21 in expected impact from the Payless ShoeSource bankruptcy ($0.16) and a higher tax rate ($0.05).