By David Randall and Marcus E. Howard
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. companies are singing the warm weather blues this corporate earnings season.
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 (N:WFC) 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.
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.
