USA -- Joe's Jeans Inc announced financial results for the first quarter ended February 28, 2009.

Highlights were:
• First quarter net sales of $16.5 million, an 8 percent increase over the prior year comparative period.
• Net income of $800,000 compared to net income of $321,000 in the prior year comparative period, translating into earnings per share of $0.01 on a fully diluted basis.
• Gross margins of 50 percent compared to 45 percent for the first quarter of fiscal 2008, a 5 percentage point improvement.

For the first quarter, overall net sales were $16.5 million compared to overall net sales of $15.2 million from the prior year comparative period, an 8 percent increase. Gross profit for the first quarter of fiscal 2009 was $8.3 million compared to $6.8 million, a 22 percent increase. This translated into a 149 percent increase in net income for the first quarter from $321,000 in the first quarter of fiscal 2008 to $800,000 for the first quarter of fiscal 2009.

Marc Crossman, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are pleased to be reporting better than expected sales growth and strong margin improvement for our first fiscal quarter, coming in at the high end of our previously announced guidance for net sales. Given the current economic and retail environment, we are pleased with our results for the first quarter."

Crossman continued, "As we move through the remainder of 2009 and beyond, we plan to build on the success of the past year by continuing to expand our men's presence, open new distribution channels internationally to capture sales opportunities abroad, and focus on the operation of our retail stores. We are also actively looking for licensees for our brand to expand into other product categories. Accordingly, despite the current economic environment, we believe we are in a good position to grow our business and capture additional market share."

For the first quarter of fiscal 2009, gross margins were 50 percent compared to 45 percent for the prior year period, a five percentage point increase. SG&A expenses during the first quarter of fiscal 2009 were $7.1 million compared to $6.1 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2008, a sixteen percent increase, primarily due to expenses associated with an increase in professional fees and expenses associated with our four retail stores we opened during the fourth quarter.
 
Joe's Jeans Inc