Pandora Flags Concerns as More Stores Shut

RAPAPORT... Pandora has warned it is uncertain how the escalation in Covid-19 cases will impact its 2021 sales, as more stores close. Approximately 25% of the Danish jeweler's locations are currently on lockdown, as opposed to the 10% of brick-and-mortar shops that were closed at the end of the fourth quarter, the company said Monday.The jeweler expects revenue growth for the fourth quarter to be around 3% to 4% as consumers reallocated spending designated for travel and services toward gifts and discretionary goods. That revenue more than made up for the negative impact the closures caused.Sales for 2020 as a whole decreased 11%, Pandora estimated, though that figure is less severe than the 14% to 17% drop it forecast in the third quarter. The retailer's earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) margin is expected to be around 20%, up from the 17.5% to 19% it originally forecast.Pandora will release its full results on February 4, it said.Image: A Pandora Minnie Mouse charm. (Pandora)