Les Enphants Co (麗嬰房) on Thursday last week reported a 10 percent decline in sales for the first four months of this year, but said it has completed the latest round of a share buyback scheme ahead of schedule.
The Taipei-based retailer said that between March 23 and Thursday last week, it repurchased 6 million common shares on the open market at NT$13.42 per share on average.
It was the company’s third share buyback since 2015, which had an original expiry date of tomorrow.
Les Enphants shares on Friday last week fell 0.78 percent to end at NT$12.8 in Taipei trading. They have increased 8.47 percent so far this year as investors welcomed the company’s “asset-light” strategy of selling off real estate and its efforts to maximize operational efficiency.
Les Enphants supplies children’s apparel and related products under its brands, such as Les Enphants, My Nuno, Nac Nac and Little Moni. It also distributes apparel and sportswear from other major brands, including Disney, Combi, Adidas Kids and OshKosh.
The company reported cumulative revenue of NT$2.15 billion (US$71.9 million) for the January-to-April period, compared with NT$2.4 billion a year earlier.
Net profit in the quarter ending on March 31 reached NT$20.3 million, a dramatic turnaround from net losses of NT$28.67 million a year earlier, as the company reduced operating expenses, despite lower sales.
Earnings per share (EPS) was NT$0.1 last quarter, compared with losses per share of NT$0.14 a year earlier.
Les Enphants last year sold its 18-year-old headquarters building in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖) and then leased it to increase the return on assets. The move helped the company turn in net profit of NT$429 million last year, ending four years of consecutive losses, with EPS of NT$2.08.
Les Enphants last year reported losses of NT$375 million in its core business and chief executive officer Spencer Chang (張育韶) vowed to make the company profitable this year on an operating basis.
To that end, the company plans to open an “experience center” in Kaohsiung following the launch of its first such center in Taipei last year, and to become more involved in Taiwan’s e-commerce field, while increasing the number of franchised stores and the scale of online sales in China, Chang said on April 12.
Les Enphants has 290 outlets in Taiwan and about 600 in China, Chang said.
The company expects its directly run stores to account for 50 to 55 percent of its total sales this year, with franchisees contributing 20 to 25 percent and e-commerce making up 20 percent, he said.
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