Stock Buy: Phillips-Van Heusen

Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation (PVH: 40.22 +0.35 +0.88%) continues to see bullish earnings forecasts after the retailer hiked its full-year guidance.

Company Description

Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. is a global designer and marketer of branded dress shirts, sportswear footwear and other similar products, offering several well-known brands. Calvin Klein , Izod, Bass and DKNY are just a few of the company’s brands.

The company grants licensing rights to its brands and holds key licenses to brands in the dress shirts, neckwear, and sportswear segments.

Bullish Forecasts and Strong Momentum

The company is expecting fourth-quarter earnings to range between 52 and 54 cents per share.

Analysts polled by Zacks are calling for earnings of 54 cents, an increase of 10 cents from the 2 months-ago level of 44 cents.

For the full year, Phillips-Van Heusen is projecting an earnings range of $2.73 to $2.75 per share.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate stands at $2.75 for the year ended January 2010, versus the 2 months-ago level $2.65. For the following year, the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.14 per share climbed from $3.03 over the past 60 days.

Results for the fourth quarter and full year are scheduled for release on Mar 23.

Shares have been soaring. During the past year, PVH advanced by more than 115%, while S&P 500 was up about 30%.

A Robust Third Quarter

Phillips-Van Heusen announced third-quarter results in mid-November. Earnings per share of $1.08 came in 21% ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Revenue of $697.4 million was relatively flat year-over-year. Management stated that the improvement in business trends the company experienced in the second quarter intensified during the third quarter and contributed to the surpassing of PVH’s previous revenue and earnings guidance.

Phillips-Van Heusen added that the global strength of the Calvin Klein brand was evident in the third quarter’s 9% growth in royalty revenue. Additionally, as consumers have demanded more and more value, PVH’s IZOD, ARROW and Van Heusen brands have also benefited.