PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., Nov 4, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Claire's Stores,
Inc. (NYSE: CLE) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a
two-for-one stock split on its common and Class A common stock.
Simultaneously, the Board announced that the dividend would remain at its
current per share level rather than being adjusted downward to reflect the
stock split, effectively doubling the dividend payout.
The quarterly dividend payable on the Company's common stock will remain
at $0.06 per share and the quarterly dividend on its Class A common stock will
remain at $0.03 per share. This marks the second dividend increase in Fiscal
2004. In May 2003, the Company raised the quarterly dividend on the common
stock to $0.06 from $0.04 per share and the quarterly dividend on the Class A
common stock to $0.03 from $0.02 per share.
The payment date for the stock split as well as the cash dividend is
December 19th, 2003 to stockholders of record on December 5th, 2003.
Following the two-for-one stock split, there will be approximately 92,150,000
shares of Common Stock and 5,365,000 shares of Class A common stock issued and
outstanding.
Bonnie Schaefer and Marla Schaefer, the Acting Co-CEO's and Co-Chairmen of
the Board, said, "Claire's Stores delivered strong performance last year in a
difficult environment and has continued to register significant improvement
year to date. The demand for our costume jewelry and accessories is
continuing unabated and we believe the strategies we have in place will result
in sustainable growth over the long-term. Today's decision to split our stock
and increase our dividend reflects our confidence in the future of this
Company. We also took this step to enhance liquidity and return to
shareholders."
Company Overview
Claire's Stores, Inc., is a leading international specialty retailer
offering value-priced costume jewelry and accessories to fashion-aware tweens,
teens and young adults through its two store concepts: Claire's (North America
and Europe) and Icing by Claire's. As of October 4, 2003, Claire's Stores,
Inc. operated approximately 2,850 stores in the United States, the Caribbean,
Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, Austria,
Germany and France. Claire's Stores, Inc. also operates through its
subsidiary Claire's Nippon, Co., Ltd., over 120 stores in Japan as a 50:50
joint venture with AEON, Co., Ltd. (fka JUSCO, Co. Ltd.).
Note: Other Claire's Stores, Inc. press releases, a corporate profile and
most recent 10-K and 10-Q reports are available via Claire's Internet home
page: http://www.clairestores.com.
Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" which represent
the Company's expectations or beliefs with respect to future events. These
forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. Those
factors include, without limitation, changes in consumer preferences and
consumer spending for pre-teen and teen apparel and accessories, competition,
general economic conditions, currency fluctuations, uncertainties generally
associated with the specialty retailing business, and potential difficulties
or delays in identifying, attracting and retaining qualified individuals to
serve in senior management positions and uncertainty that definitive financial
results may differ from preliminary financial results due to, among other
things, final GAAP adjustments. These and other applicable risks, cautionary
statements and factors that could cause actual results to differ from the
Company's forward-looking statements are included in the Company's filings
with the SEC, specifically as described in the Company's annual report on Form
10-K for the fiscal year ended February 1, 2003. The Company undertakes no
obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect
subsequent events or circumstances. The historical results contained in this
press release are not necessarily indicative of the future performance of the
Company.
SOURCE Claire's Stores, Inc.
Marisa F. Jacobs, Vice President of Corporate Communications
and Investor Relations, Claire's Stores, Inc., +1-212-594-3127,
Fax - +1-212-244-4237, or marisa.jacobs@claires.com
/Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/174913.html
http://www.clairestores.com
