Shares in Michael Kors Holdings (NYSE:KORS) soared 25 percent as the fashion house made its debut Thursday morning on the New York Stock Exchange. After a long day day at trading floor, the American fashionista eponymous firm's shares closed 21% up.
Michael Kors priced its IPO late Wednesday at $20 per share, above the expected range of $17 to $19, with shares opening on Thursday at $25. As at 11 am EDT, the stock was changing hands at $24.14. In all, the IPO consisted of 47.2 million shares sold at $20 each, generating proceeds of $944 million. The offering had originally been expected to be for 41.7 million shares, priced at $17-$19 per share.
In Europe, Swedish fashion group H&M posted a third straight monthly fall in sales at established stores in November as economic woes and unusually warm autumn weather across its main markets kept customers away from the shops.
With the euro zone deep in a debt crisis and global economic growth looking sluggish, consumers have held back on spending instead of splurging on new fashion items. Meanwhile, unseasonable temperatures have limited the demand for winter wear. In November, sales at comparable H&M stores -- open for a year or more -- fell 1 percent, missing a mean forecast for a 0.4 percent rise in a Reuters poll of analysts. Forecasts ranged between minus 4 and plus 4 percent.
"It indicates that they are growing roughly in line with the market. It seems quite reasonable, but we had expected they would grow slightly faster," said Christian Anderson, an analyst at Swedbank, to Reuters.
Total turnover at the world's second biggest apparel retailer, which recently launched a collection by Italian fashion icon Donatella Versace, rose 9 percent in local currencies in November, missing the poll average of a 10.2 percent rise.
"I was a bit disappointed this morning. We saw Inditex's third quarter yesterday, and they managed to increase both sales and earnings more than H&M," commented Nicolaj Jeppesen, an analyst at Sydbank for Reuters.
