Aaron’s, Inc. (NYSE:AAN) Q2 Earnings Slightly Exceed Views; Guides For Q3, FY14 EPS Below Street

Aaron’s, Inc. (NYSE:AAN) reported Q2 earnings that beat expectations by two cents while sales were in line with estimates but set a guidance range for Q3 and FY14 earnings that missed the Street view.

The consumer electronics, appliances and furniture retailer said non-GAAP earnings fell to $0.37 from $0.50 the year earlier but came in ahead of the $0.35 average estimate from analysts polled by Capital IQ. Sales rose 22% to $672.5 million, in line with the $672 million consensus estimate.

GAAP earnings meanwhile fell sharply to $8.51 million or $0.12 per diluted share from $25.85 million or $0.34 the year earlier. The company said it plans to realize at least $50 million in annual cost savings from closing stores, restructuring operations and cutting jobs.

For Q3, Aaron’s expects sales of $695 million, just shy of the $700 million estimate and non-GAAP EPS between $0.36 and $0.41, below the $0.45 consensus.

In FY14, it is guiding for sales between $2.65 billion and $2.70 billion, including approximately $500 million from the Progressive Finance acquisition since April. Analysts are expecting $2.6 billion is sales. Aaron’s also expects EPS between $1.65 and $1.75 in FY14, short of the $1.77 consensus.

AAN closed higher 1.6% in the lower half of the 52-week range between $26.18 and $36.74 on Thursday. It was seeing a lower ask of $29.39 in recent pre-market trade.