Stanley Furniture Slashes 3rd-Quarter, Full-Year Outlook on Slow Sales


STANLEYTOWN, Va. (AP) — Stanley Furniture Co. on Wednesday slashed its forecast for third-quarter and full-year results due to weaker-than-expected sales.

The wood furniture maker said it now expects third-quarter sales to drop 8 percent to 10 percent compared with the same period last year — totaling about $77 to $78 million, down from $85.6 million last year.

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Stanley Furniture cut earnings expectations to 27 cents to 29 cents per share, down from earlier guidance of 38 cents to 41 cents per share. The company earned 44 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.

For 2013, the company said it expects sales to decline 4 percent to 7 percent compared with last year; in July, the company said it was looking for a 1 percent to 3 percent drop. In 2012, the company reported sales of $333.6 million.

Stanley Furniture also lowered guidance for full-year earnings to $1.24 to $1.32 per share, down from its July estimate of $1.52 to $1.61.

“Third quarter sales to date have been weaker than previously anticipated and we believe this is a result of overall industry conditions,” said Jeffrey R. Scheffer, the company’s president and chief executive officer. “We have not seen any significant change in order trends since Labor Day and we are projecting these business conditions to persist for the remainder of 2013.”