Home furnishings retailer Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. late Monday warned that its fiscal first-quarter earnings may come in below Wall Street's expectations.
The company forecast net income in a range of 36 cents to 38 cents per share for the quarter.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expect a first-quarter profit of 39 cents per share.
Bed Bath & Beyond said its same-store sales would rise about 1.6 percent in the first quarter, versus the 3 percent to 5 percent growth that was expected.
According to the Yahoo Industry Center, BBBY is the largest home furnishings retailer by market share. That makes this an important announcement.
Because BBBY is tied into the housing market, this shouldn't surprise anyone. However, because of the economy's lackluster 1st quarter numbers and the economy's dependence on consumer spending, it's important to keep an eye on the large retail companies to see how they are doing.
