JONES GROUP INC. $11 - New York symbol JNY

JONES GROUP INC. $11 (New York symbol JNY; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 82.3 million; Market cap: $905.3 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.3; Dividend yield: 1.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.jonesgroupinc.com) designs clothing, accessories and footwear for men and women. Its major brands include Jones New York, Gloria Vanderbilt, Anne Klein and Nine West.

The company continues to invest in new, upscale brands. It feels these additions will supply about 18% of its sales in 2012, up from 14% in 2011. Jones is also expanding overseas. In June 2011, it paid $350 million for Kurt Geiger, Europe’s largest luxury shoe retailer.

Even with these new businesses, Jones’s sales fell 2.6% in the three months ended March 31, 2012, to $936.0 million from $961.3 million a year earlier. Higher operating and interest expenses caused earnings to fall 24.8%, to $23.6 million, or $0.31 a share, from $31.4 million, or $0.38 a share.

The stock trades at 11.1 times the $0.99 a share it should earn in 2012. The $0.20 dividend yields 1.8%.

Jones Group is a hold.

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