Avon may sell its North American business.
Shares of the beauty products retailer surged by more than 15% in early afternoon trading Tuesday after the Wall Street Journal reported the news.
The company is reportedly exploring strategic alternatives, a term used to describe moves aimed at improving a company's competitiveness, and the market read-through is often that the company will sell a part of itself or the whole thing.
The pop in Avon comes as the stock has tumbled 45% over the past 12 months and last 14% year-to-date.
On Monday, the company cancelled its analyst meeting scheduled for next month because executives would have had to discuss the plans with investors while still thinking through parts of it, the Journal reported.
North American revenues fell 12% in the fourth quarter of 2014 compared to the previous year, and 17% for the full year compared to 2013, its earnings statement showed.
For the full year 2014, Avon reported an earnings-per-share loss of $0.53 with revenues of $8.85 billion, missing the expectation for $0.80 EPS on revenues of $8.87 billion.
Here's a chart showing the surge in trading.
NOW WATCH: Here's what it takes to be President Obama's right-hand man
See Also:
- Guy who spent $37,000 on a computer-science degree can't get a job at Best Buy's Geek Squad
- This story about Under Armour's CEO withdrawing thousands of dollars from an ATM at the Masters shows how far his company has come
- One of the biggest teases from the ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ trailer won’t even be in the movie
