This article for those who need xmas gift suggestions.

http://library.northernlight.com/ED19991104400000022.html?cb=0&dx=1006&sc=0#doc

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Fruit of the Loom Has $166.4M Loss

Story Filed: Thursday, November 04, 1999 6:02 PM EST

CHICAGO (AP) -- Fruit of the Loom Inc.'s stock fell more than 10 percent Thursday after the company reported a steep third-quarter loss and predicted its troubles will continue into the fourth quarter.

The apparelmaker said it lost $166.4 million, or $2.49 a share, compared to net earnings of $50.4 million, or 70 cents a share, a year earlier.

The loss reflected $90 million in charges, including $30 million each for inventory adjustments and provisions for slow-selling and discontinued products.

Sales fell to $548 million from $593.7 million.

The company's stock fell 31 1/4 cents to $3.06 1/4 a share in trading at 5:15 p.m. on the New York Stock Exchange.

Acting chief executive Dennis Bookshester blamed ``manufacturing inefficiencies'' which he said will continue to affect the Chicago-based company in the fourth quarter. He said more charges are anticipated in the final quarter and that the company is working to sell non-core assets.

Gains in retail sales were more than offset by lower sales in the sports and licensing division due to weaker demand in outerwear apparel and sales declines in Europe, the company said.

The apparelmaker has been beset by production and customer-service problems for months, although Bookshester expressed optimism for the future based on rising demand and a 6 percent quarterly growth in sales of men's and boys' underwear, a Fruit of the Loom mainstay.

Long-time chief executive William Farley departed that post in August because of the difficulties, some of which were blamed on Fruit's computer system.

Fruit of the Loom, which has about 40,000 employees in over 60 locations worldwide, makes underwear, casual wear, sports wear and children's wear under the brand names Fruit of the Loom, BVD and Gitano, among others.

For the nine months ended Oct. 2, Fruit of the Loom reported a loss of $177.7 million, or $2.61 a share, compared to a gain of $146.9 million, or $2.04 a share, for the same period of 1998.

Nine-month sales fell to $1.51 billion from $1.68 billion.

Copyright ) 1999 Associated Press Information Services, all rights reserved.

-- Homer Beanfang (Bats@inbellfry.com), November 08, 1999

Answers

Load up on BVDs at FOL. Are you a briefs or a boxer guy?

-- (Loomingfruit@fruity.loom), November 08, 1999.

Bottom line is that computer snafus impact the bottom line negatively. Depression at the very least.

-- Back to Manual (allaha@earthlink.net), November 08, 1999.

Oh sh**t.

It's gonna be worse than I thought. (I was hoping "almost all" big companies would be in the 95% to 98% complete remediated - at most a 2-5% drop in earnings.)

This one company dropped 8% in the quarter, losing not only the lower sales, but those "pesky" 90 million extra in "charges" ..... this ain't gonna be pretty.

---

On the other hand, if the rest of the world is moving their d=funds into US markets - guess where their markets are going to go? It might keep up the demand for "US" stocks, as US owners sell, but who is buying overseas?

-- Robert A. Cook, PE (Marietta, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 08, 1999.

It's obviously all the fault of those panicky people who stock up on food, buy guns, and become nudists...

-- Mad Monk (madmonk@hawaiian.net), November 08, 1999.

OK, here's one company taking a loss for a quarter or two. Four reasons are mentioned in this story. In order, they are:

1) Manufacturing inefficiencies.

2) Lower sales in the sports and licensing division due to weaker demand in outerwear apparel.

3) Sales declines in Europe.

4) Difficulties, some of which were blamed on Fruit's computer system.

Sounds like the makings of a depression to me, yup. But then, maybe I'm getting carried away by my determination to see a depression hiding behind every normal everyday change in fashions? Nah...

-- Flint (flintc@mindspring.com), November 08, 1999.

always to wear decent, clean underwear, in case you were in a car accident, so not as to disgrace yourself.It is not BAD ENOUGH to have to worry about electricity, food, water. Now I have to contend with the possibility that I might have to wear holey pantalooms(misp)to possibly display to the Emergency Room. To what depths must I sink in my preparations!? Seriously, it isn't looking too good for the Big Boys. p.s. Got snakes.

-- Your Mama warned you (reducedtothis@horror.com), November 08, 1999.

My company makes Hanes - our SAP is still running ?!? - if we can't ship, the employee store will be full of bargins....

-- BH (bh_slientvoice@hotmail.com), November 08, 1999.

Tomorrow I'm going shopping. I'm going to buy a couple dozen packages of underwear for me and my husband, some more T-shirts and socks. Next we'll be hearing about shoe and toilet paper factory problems, I wonder if this is the beginning of a trickle down effect we've all been waiting for? Who would of ever thunk--chocolate and underwear?

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), November 08, 1999.

LOL bardou!

Two key essentials of life.

;-D

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), November 08, 1999.

No humor here. This is exactly how we go from the bull market to a Russian economy in 6 months. I DID buy several dozen pairs of socks, underware, sneakers, etc. for exactly this reason. It's not like my feet are growing.

-- Dave (aaa@aaa.com), November 09, 1999.

And Ladies, don't forget about the extra bras! Victoria's Secret, here I come.

-- Debi (LongTimeLurker@shy.com), November 09, 1999.

Debi--I wish I could buy Victoria Secret, but I'm afraid I'm stuck with "Cross Your Hearts." I'm off to the mall now.......

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), November 09, 1999.

No, no, no. You've got your priorities mixed up.

Leave the bra's in the store - save your money; buy more mud-wrestling supplies.

-- No worries Mate! (whatmelook@you.orogle), November 09, 1999.

Wait up Debi!!!

-- Male (Ch@uvinist.Pig), November 10, 1999.