News August 10, 2017
Fossil Announces Q2 Earnings, New CFO
Texas-based Fossil Group Inc., parent company of supplier Fossil Corporate Markets (asi/55145), has announced the resignation of its chief financial officer, as well as second quarter results that show a 13% decline in sales. In a statement, Fossil said that Dennis Secor – CFO, treasurer and executive vice president – was leaving the company to relocate back to California for personal reasons.
Secor, who has been with Fossil since 2012, is being replaced Jeffrey Boyer, a member of the company’s board of directors. Secor will assist with the transition and Boyer plans to resign from the board by October 15. Boyer will officially take over as CFO, treasurer and executive vice president on October 16.
“We are pleased to welcome Jeff to his new role,” said Fossil CEO Kosta Kartsotis. “As a valued member of our board of directors for the last ten years, his guidance has been critical to our success. In his new role, Jeff’s experience, expertise and leadership will be invaluable as we continue transitioning to New World Fossil.”
Kartsotis also wished Secor well. “We would like to thank Dennis for his contributions over the last five years,” Kartsotis said, in part, in a statement. “He has been an integral part of our leadership team.”
Secor’s resignation announcement comes during the same week in which Fossil revealed that 2017 second quarter net sales tallied $596.8 million, down from $685.4 million in Q2 2016. Sales were lower across categories – watches, jewelry and leathers – as well as regions (the Americas, Europe and Asia). For the half-year ended July 1, Fossil’s sales declined about 12% year-over-year to $1.18 billion.
According to an earnings report, Fossil’s gross profit also dropped for the second quarter, falling from $355.8 million in Q2 2016 to $301.3 million this year. Half-year profits for 2017 have plummeted by about $113 million to $590.9 million. Further, Fossil reported a second quarter 2017 net income loss of $344.7 million, as well as a quarterly loss in diluted earnings per share.
Despite the declines, Kartsotis remains optimistic. “With the first half of 2017 now behind us, we believe that our traction in wearables, our significant progress in our supply chain evolution, and our reduction in infrastructure costs show that we are pursuing strategies that can improve our profitability and return the company to solid growth over time,” he said in a statement. “Even as we operate in a market and retail environment experiencing unprecedented disruption, we believe we are focusing on actions that can deliver solid results and returns for our shareholders over time.”