Weight Watchers International Inc.

Weight Watchers has more subscribers than ever, beats Q1 expectations; shares rally 10%

Shares of Weight Watchers International Inc. jumped more than 10% late Thursday after the company reported first-quarter sales and earnings well above Wall Street forecasts and said it ended the quarter with the most subscribers ever. Weight Watchers said it earned $39.1 million, or 56 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with $10.7 million, or 16 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue rose to $408.2 million, from $329.1 million a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 6 cents a share on sales of $392 million. The company said it ended the quarter with 4.6 million subscribers, the highest in its history and an increase of 1 million compared to a year ago. The company also raised its 2018 per-share earnings guidance to a range between $3 and $3.20, compared with a previous guidance of EPS between $2.40 and $2.70. "Based on our strong performance and continued momentum, we expect our annual revenue to grow by almost 20%," Chief Financial Officer Nick Hotchkin said in a statement. Shares ended the regular session down 4%.

• May. 3, 2018 at 4:28 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers raises 2018 earnings guidance

Weight Watchers raises 2018 earnings guidance

• May. 3, 2018 at 4:20 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers Q1 rev. $408 million vs. expectations $392 million

Weight Watchers Q1 rev. $408 million vs. expectations $392 million

• May. 3, 2018 at 4:19 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers shares up 11% after earnings

Weight Watchers shares up 11% after earnings

• May. 3, 2018 at 4:18 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Blue Apron stock plunges after Weight Watchers announces meal kits

Shares of Blue Apron Holdings Inc. fell 17.1% in Thursday trading after Weight Watchers International Inc. said that it would be rolling out its own meal kits. Weight Watchers plans to unveil its kits next week at a Chicago conference. Earlier this week, Walmart Inc. also announced that it would be debuting meal kits in stores. Shares of Blue Apron have come under pressure since the company's June IPO in part due to increased competition in the meal-kit industry. Shares are down 24% so far this week, and they're off 79% from their IPO price of $10. The S&P 500 Index is up 16% over the past 12 months.

• Mar. 8, 2018 at 4:17 p.m. ET
• by Emily Bary

Oprah- backed Weight Watchers ratings outlook revised to positive vs. stable at Moody's

Moody's Investors Service revised its outlook on Weight Watchers International Inc.'s ratings to positive from stable on Wednesday, and said it expects strong subscriber, revenue and free cash flow growth in 2018. The company's B1 CFR (corporate family rating) reflects Moody's expectation for debt to EBITDA of about 5 times, EBITA to interest expense approaching 3 times and over $150 million of free cash flow in 2018. Leverage was more than 7 times for the 12-month period ended Sept. 30, 2017. "The accelerating subscriber and revenue growth across products and geographies during 2017 hint at what could be a high and sustainable growth trajectory in 2018 and beyond," the agency said in a statement. Weight Watchers reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings late Tuesday. Shares were up 3.8% Wednesday, and have gained 403% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 16%.

• Feb. 28, 2018 at 11:46 a.m. ET
• by Ciara Linnane

Weight Watchers shares up 9.7% in Wednesday premarket trading

Weight Watchers shares up 9.7% in Wednesday premarket trading

• Feb. 28, 2018 at 8:21 a.m. ET
• by Tonya Garcia

Weight Watchers stock rallies on company's quarterly beat

Shares of Weight Watchers International Inc. rose more than 8% late Tuesday after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings and sales that beat Wall Street expectations. Weight Watchers said it earned $63 million, or 91 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with $13 million, or 20 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue rose to $313 million, compared with $267 million a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 31 cents a share on sales of $309 million. "We had a highly positive consumer response to the launch of our WW Freestyle program in December, which resulted in a strong finish to the year," and the company ended 2017 with about 600,000 more members than a year ago, Chief Executive Mindy Grossman said in a statement. The "excellent momentum" has carried into 2018, she said. Weight Watchers said it expects sales around $1.55 billion and per-share earnings in a range between $2.40 and $2.70 for the year. The analysts surveyed by FactSet expect 2018 EPS of $1.90 on sales of $1.44 billion. Weight Watchers shares ended the regular trading day down 2.6%.

• Feb. 27, 2018 at 4:25 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers shares up 8% after company beats Q4 expectations

Weight Watchers shares up 8% after company beats Q4 expectations

• Feb. 27, 2018 at 4:18 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers Q4 rev. $313 million vs. expectations $309 million

Weight Watchers Q4 rev. $313 million vs. expectations $309 million

• Feb. 27, 2018 at 4:17 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers Q4 91 cents vs. expectations 31 cents

Weight Watchers Q4 91 cents vs. expectations 31 cents

• Feb. 27, 2018 at 4:16 p.m. ET
• by Claudia Assis

Weight Watchers shares up 5.1% in Tuesday trading

• Jan. 2, 2018 at 11:50 a.m. ET
• by Tonya Garcia

Weight Watchers' stock soars 14% premarket after Q3 results late Monday

• Nov. 7, 2017 at 7:27 a.m. ET
• by Tomi Kilgore

Weight Watchers' stock on track to open at highest level since February 2013

• Nov. 7, 2017 at 7:27 a.m. ET
• by Tomi Kilgore