Prada Shares Down after Revenue Retreat

Italian luxury-fashion brand operator Prada shares fell 12% in Asian trading today after reporting profit retreat in the 1H last Friday.

The Milan-based fashion brand reported net profit of EUR116 million ($138.9 million) for the six months ended July 31, versus EUR141.9 million in the same period last year. Net revenue for the first half fell 5.5% to EUR1.47 billion.

CEO Patrizio Bertelli said the company will continue to "protect cash" in its extensive overhaul. The company said unaudited result for the first half ended June, Asia Pacific bucked the trend with revenues in line with H1 2016, up 0.4% (down 0.6% at constant FX). Greater China delivered a positive performance, with sales up 5.2% at constant exchange rate and growth also seen across Macau and Hong Kong. Market conditions in Japan remained unchanged, with sales declining by 14.2% at current and constant exchange rates, highlighting weak consumption by both domestic customers and tourists.

The Americas market contained the decline compared with 2016, with sales down just 3.7% (down 5.8% at constant FX). A positive performance for the period was seen in both Mexico and Canada.

The European market was down 7.7% (down 6.6% at constant FX), penalised by the strength of the euro, especially in the second quarter, as well as the stabilization of the UK market. The Middle East registered a negative trend down 11.7% (down 13.1% at constant FX), due to ongoing geopolitical tension which impacted tourist flows within the region."