burberry Blog

In September, I told you about FedEx’s (NYSE: FDX – News) fiscal-first-quarter earnings’ growth story. In the second quarter, the company reported a bombastic 76% income growth compared to its previous-year quarter. The world’s second-largest packaged delivery company posted better-than-expected results thanks to strong Thanksgiving weekend online sales and a better price/volume mix, sending the shares up after the announcement.

Let’s dig deeper.

The quarter
Profits increased to $497 million, a 76% year-over-year rise. The company earned $1.57 per share, beating the Street expectation of $1.53 per share. FedEx also improved its operational margins to 7.4%, from 4.9% last year, helped by fewer flights and frequencies.

Overall sales inched up by 10%,Cheap Ed hardy belts, to $10.59 billion. Sales at FedEx’s largest business — FedEx Express — grew 10% and helped the company push up its revenue. Although international priority daily package volume was lower due to a weaker Asian market, the company still logged higher international priority revenues per package due to higher fuel surcharges, rate per pound, and weight per package.

Shopping and holiday mix
With an increase in online shopping during the Thanksgiving weekend, demand for residential delivery services shot up. The fact that online retailer Amazon.com is expected to have a strong holiday season is certainly good news for shipping companies like FedEx.

Looking beyond the quarter
Despite being hurt by a weak Asian market, FedEx has opened its largest express facility in China. The company sees China as an important market for express offerings as it can account for the bulk of FedEx’s future growth. Rival United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS – News) is also increasing capacity in Asia.

Apart from expanding in Asia, FedEx has been conscious of lowering its costs. The company is buying 27 new 767-300 freighter planes from Boeing (NYSE: BA – News) to replace its aging MD-10 planes. The new planes will be 30% more fuel-efficient and more reliable. The order is valued at $4.7 billion. This investment will reduce unit operating costs by 20%.

The Foolish bottom line
FedEx posted bright numbers this quarter due to a combination of strong Thanksgiving weekend e-commerce and higher margins. With well-planned investments in Asia and cost-efficient strategies, FedEx looks intriguing. The company expects to earn $1.25 to $1.45 per share this quarter as compared to the Street expectation of $1.31 per share.

FedEx looks to be a solid bet going into 2012, but if you’d like to take a look at the one company our chief investment officer has picked for tremendous growth in 2012, check out The Motley Fool’s brand-new report, “The Motley Fool’s Top Stock for 2012.” It highlights a company that is revolutionizing commerce in Latin America. You can get instant access to the name of this company by clicking here — it’s free.

Navjot Kaur does not own shares of any of the companies mentioned in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of FedEx, United Parcel Service, and Amazon.com. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of FedEx and Amazon.com. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

LONDON (Reuters) Christie’s held a highly anticipated auction of old master paintings in London on Tuesday night, with one of the star works selling for more than 2 million pounds ($3.12 million) above the pre-auction estimate.

“The Battle between Carnival and Lent” by Pieter Brueghel II sold for almost 6.9 million pounds to an anonymous buyer, Christie’s said on its website.

The sale price exceeded the pre-auction estimate of 3.5-4.5 million pounds and set the world record price for the artist at auction, Christie’s said.

The second highest-priced painting on the night was a Willem van de Velde II work, “Dutch men-o’-war and other shipping in a calm,” which sold to a European private collector for nearly 6 million pounds, also a world record price for the artist at auction, Christie’s said.

However,wholesale Burberry, the auction’s star attraction “Portrait of Juan Lopez de Robredo,” by Spanish painter Francisco Goya remained listed on the auctioneer’s website as unsold, with an estimated sale tag of 6.2-9.3 million pounds.

The total sale of 24 million pounds, which did not include a sale for the Goya painting, as well as a Nicolaes Maes work that carried an estimated price of 1.5-2.3 million pounds, was just shy of the pre-sale estimate for all the lots of 26 million pounds.

Much of the interest in this week’s series of old master and British art auctions in London has been generated by a Velazquez original that was first valued at 300 pounds ($470).

The portrait of an unknown gentleman goes under the hammer on Wednesday and is set to fetch up to 3 million pounds at Bonhams.

($1 = 0.6410 British pounds)

(Reporting by Stephen Mangan; Editing by Michael Roddy)

PORTLAND, Ore. Nike Inc.’s second-quarter profit rose 3 percent as strong demand and higher prices for its shoes, clothes and gear offset increased costs.

Nike and other consumer product companies have been coping for some time with higher costs for materials, labor and freight. But while others have struggled to regain their footing in the weak U.S. economy, the world’s largest athletic shoe and clothing company has been able to increase sales and raise prices without consumer backlash.

“We’re able to accomplish this by staying focused on what we do best – deliver innovative products and experiences that serve athletes, inspire consumers and reward our shareholders,” said Mark Parker, Nike’s CEO.

The company, based in Beaverton, Ore., reported Tuesday that it earned $469 million, or $1 per share,wholesale Ed hardy jeans, for the quarter that ended Nov. 30. That’s up from $457 million, or 94 cents per share, in the same quarter last year. Nike’s total revenue increased 18 percent to $5.73 billion as it sold more of its branded products in nearly every market around the globe.

The quarter beat analysts’ expectations for the quarter of 97 cents per share on revenue of $5.63 billion, according to FactSet.

During the quarter, some of its most popular lines were in basketball and running, with Nike noting that it hasn’t seen this much energy around running since the original boom in the sport during the 1970s. Additionally, strong sales at Converse more than offset lower revenue from the Nike Golf, Cole Haan, Hurley and Umbro brands.

Nike leaders expressed confidence in the company’s future sales growth as the NBA season resumes and it prepares to launch a number of new products in anticipation of major athletic events such as the summer Olympics.

As an indication of what is ahead, Nike disclosed that orders for items that were scheduled to be delivered between December and April rose 13 percent by comparison to the same period last year. Investors keep a close eye on this measure as an indicator of demand for the coming period.

Going forward, some of Nike’s costs are beginning to ease up. But the company said that won’t make a difference to its bottom line for several quarters.

Nike plans to raise prices further this year to help relieve some of its margin pressures. The company did not disclose how much it will increase prices but said the hikes would be larger than those put in place during the past year. As a result of these price hikes and a seemingly endless appetite for its products, the company expects its gross margin declines to narrow over the balance of the year.

Nike’s shares rose 25 cents to close at $93.63 in regular trading. Shares rose $2.37, or more than 2 percent, to $96.00 in after-hours trading on the news.

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