Hooker Dials Back 2nd Quarter Guidance

May 17, 2006  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on May 2006 Martinsville, Va.-based Hooker Furniture said it expects lower fiscal second-quarter sales than previously forecast.

The company said it expects sales for the quarter ending May 31 to be flat to down 2 percent for the quarter. Previously, Hooker was expecting a revenue gain of 3 percent to 7 percent from the year-ago quarter’s sales of $88.7 million.

“A softening in business at retail has dampened our expectations for the current quarter,” said Paul B. Toms Jr., chairman and chief executive. “We believe this decline has been precipitated by rising energy prices and a decrease in housing activity.”

He added that new products, “should help spur an upturn in business heading into the fourth quarter.”