Panera Bread (PNRA) Reports In-Line Q4 EPS, Comps Increase 3.3%, Offers Outlook

Panera Bread (NASDAQ: PNRA) reported Q4 EPS of $1.82, in-line with the analyst estimate of $1.82. Revenue for the quarter came in at $672.5 million versus the consensus estimate of $675.83 million.

In fiscal Q4 2014, on a calendar basis, Company-owned comparable net bakery-cafe sales increased 3.3%, franchise-operated comparable net bakery-cafe sales increased 2.7%, and system-wide comparable net bakery-cafe sales increased 3.0% compared to the same period in fiscal 2013.

Full Year Fiscal 2015 Outlook

Diluted EPS

The number of moving pieces in fiscal 2015 makes it difficult to provide precise guidance. The Company is targeting full year fiscal 2015 diluted earnings per share growth of flat to down mid- to high-single digits when compared to full year fiscal 2014 (comparative diluted earnings per share for full year fiscal 2014 excludes certain items as outlined on Schedule V).

The full year fiscal 2015 diluted earnings per share target range is based on the following key assumptions:

Comparable Net Bakery-Cafe Sales Growth

The Company is targeting Company-owned comparable net bakery-cafe sales growth for fiscal 2015 of 2.0% to 3.5%.

The Company announced today that Company-owned comparable net bakery-cafe sales in the first 42 days of fiscal Q1 2015 were up approximately 2.8%.

Operating Margin

The Company's fiscal 2015 diluted earnings per share target range assumes operating margin will be down 100 to 175 basis points when compared to fiscal 2014. The anticipated decline in year-over-year margin reflects the cost of previously mentioned initiatives designed to make Panera a better competitive alternative and to enable expanded growth, along with higher medical costs due to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and higher labor costs due to the impact of increases in minimum wage rates.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Panera Bread (PNRA) click here.

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