ROCKFORD, Mich. (Apr. 16, 2008)—Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (WWW) has posted record revenue and earnings for the first quarter of 2008 and has increased its full-year earnings per share estimate for 2008.“Wolverine World Wide had a strong first quarter, as demonstrated by our record results and continued execution of our global business model,” stays CEO and president Blake W. Krueger. “Our business model reduces our exposure to any single country, consumer group or fashion trend and permits us to consistently deliver superior results, even in challenging consumer environments.”

Women's Wolverine Wilderness Waterproof Hiker

During the first quarter, the company generated $288.2 million in revenue, a 2.6-percent increase over first quarter 2007 revenue of $281.1 million. Earnings per share increased to $0.46, a 17.9-percent increase over the previous time period’s $0.39.

“During the quarter, revenue growth was strongest in the Outdoor Group and our international businesses,” Krueger continues. “In particular, our royalty-based global licensing and distribution businesses had a very strong quarter. The Outdoor Group remained the company’s leading profit contributor during the quarter, led by the Merrell businesses in the U.S. and Europe. This marks the 23rd consecutive quarter of record revenue and earnings per share for the company.”

Krueger concludes, “We ended the first quarter of 2008 with our order backlog up over 10 percent. On the strength of our order backlog and first quarter 2008 results, we are increasing the company’s 2008 earnings per share estimate from our previous estimate of $1.80 to $1.88 to our new range of $1.83 to $1.90. We continue to expect revenue to range from $1.230 billion to $1.260 billion. The earnings per share estimate is consistent with our stated long-term objective of delivering double-digit earnings per share growth while investing in growth initiatives for the future.”

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