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 The long spate of warm temperatures this winter likely will have a
slightly positive affect on the U.S. economy, as a whole as
construction projects can continue unabated and fewer workers will
need to leave the office on account of snow, said Brain Jacobsen,
chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Funds.
After a December that was the warmest on record in most of the
United States, a total of 38 U.S. companies have mentioned unusually
high temperatures as a factor in their most recent quarterly profit
results since the start of the year, according to a Thomson Reuters
analysis of earnings calls transcripts.
That is a jump from just nine companies who said they were feeling
an impact from higher-than-average temperatures at this point last
year, when a warm spell in Europe affected sales revenue at
companies including Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co and Deckers Outdoor
Corp.
Companies who are feeling the heat range from the obvious, like
snowmobile maker Polaris Industries Inc who called its quarter
"difficult and disappointing" and noted it was the worst
year-over-year performance since 2009, to those farther afield.
Monro Muffler Brake Inc told analysts that "unseasonably warm
weather" across the Northeast led to a 9.0 percent decline in
same-store sales in November, while grocery-store chain Supervalu
Inc cited high temperatures in Florida cutting into the quality and
availability of strawberries and other produce.
Not every company is hurting though. McDonald's Corp told analysts
that the mild weather added a "positive contribution" to sales,
while Petmed Express Inc said warm temperatures are helping sales
because customers are administering flea and tick medication to
their pets well into the winter.
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Yet there is also the danger that consumers will start their spring
and summer spending early and forgo winter-related purchases
entirely, cutting sales of retailers, said Douglas Roberts, chief
investment strategist at Channel Capital Research.
Department store chain Macy's Inc said in early January it plans to
cut more than 2,000 jobs after its same-store sales fell 4.7 percent
in November and December. It estimated that 80 percent of the sales
decline was due to warm temperatures that hurt sales of sweaters,
coats and gloves.
"Even with low gas prices, consumers are looking for ways to save
money, and the weather is giving them a perfect excuse," Roberts
said.
(Reporting by David Randall)
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