Tractor Supply raises 2010 outlook, predicts 2nd-qtr profit growth up to 40 percent

Tractor Supply raises 2010 outlook; shares slide

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — Tractor Supply Co. raised its fiscal 2010 outlook Wednesday, saying it believed second-quarter profits rose as much as 40 percent.

The agricultural retailer said it now expects to earn $4 to $4.10 per share for the year; it previously expected $3.48 to $3.60 per share. It also said it expects revenue of $3.49 billion to $3.53 billion, up from previous guidance of $3.44 billion to $3.50 billion previously.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were looking for a profit of $3.72 per share on $3.52 billion in sales, but the company’s stock still tumbled nearly 4 percent, or $2.49 to $61.27 in after-hours trading. That was about how much the shares gained during regular hours.

Tractor Supply also expects growth in sales at stores open at least a year of 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent, up from 1 percent to 3 percent.

Tractor Supply said it expects to report a second-quarter profit of $75.6 million to $76.7 million, or $2.03 to $2.05 per share. The company earned $54.8 million, or $1.50 per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Tractor Supply said sales rose to $1.07 billion in the quarter from $946.5 million last year, helped by sales of products such as pet food and animal feed. Sales at stores open at least a year rose 6.1 percent.

The company will issue its second-quarter financial results on July 21 after the market closes.