1-800 FLOWERS.COM, Inc.


FLWS

is set to report first-quarter fiscal 2021 results on Oct 29.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the first quarter has moved up 4 cents over the past 30 days to loss of 12 cents. The company had reported loss of 24 cents in the year-ago quarter.

Notably, the company’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 14.72%.

Factors to Note

In the to-be-reported quarter, the company expects strong e-commerce revenue growth of more than 70% offset by lower wholesale orders and reduced retail revenues, reflecting the closing of the Harry & David retail stores in fiscal 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak.

1-800 FLOWERS.COM’s top line is expected to have benefited from the consistent performance of its floral products and garden merchandise business along with the anticipated contributions of the recent acquisition of PersonalizationMall.com.

Moreover, coronavirus led social distancing norms are expected to have continued to boost the company’s customer growth during the quarter.

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020, the three business segments, Gourmet Foods and Gift Baskets, Consumer Floral and BloomNet were up 112.3%, 46.5% and 10.7%, respectively compared with the prior-year period as customers increasingly turned to the company’s brands and expanded product offerings to help them remain connected amid coronavirus led social distancing norms.

Moreover, an expanded range of products and services, including hard goods such as vases and glassware and cut flowers and greenery is likely to have contributed to BloomNet segment’s top line in the to-be-reported quarter.

However, a tight labor market and rising labor costs, tariffs and tariff uncertainty and rising transportation costs are expected to have weighed on margins.

Key Developments in Q1

On Sep 8, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM announced its plans to hire more than 10,000 seasonal associates across its gourmet foods and gift brands for the upcoming holiday season. Hiring has commenced at Harry & David, PersonalizationMall.com, Cheryl’s Cookies and The Popcorn Factory to fill critical roles to meet holiday peak demand.

What Our Model Says

According to the Zacks model, the combination of a positive

Earnings ESP

and Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat.

1-800-FLOWERS.COM has an Earnings ESP of +4.35% and a Zacks Rank #1. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our

Earnings ESP Filter

.

Other Stocks to Consider

Here are a few more companies you may want to consider, as our model shows that these also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat in their upcoming releases:

Alphabet


GOOGL

has an Earnings ESP of +7.40% and carries a Zacks Rank of 2, currently. You can see

the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here

.

Activision Blizzard, Inc


ATVI

has an Earnings ESP of +3.29% and a Zacks Rank #2.

Take Two Interactive Software


TTWO

has an Earnings ESP of +7.51% and is Zacks #3 Ranked.

Just Released: Zacks’ 7 Best Stocks for Today

Experts extracted 7 stocks from the list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys that has beaten the market more than 2X over with a stunning average gain of +24.5% per year.

These 7 were selected because of their superior potential for immediate breakout.

See these time-sensitive tickers now >>

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days.

Click to get this free report

To read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Zacks Investment Research