Tiffany 4Q net income rises less than 1 pct

The upscale jewelry company also offered an annual sales outlook that topped analysts' estimates, and its shares rose nearly 2 percent Friday.

The results, which include the critical holiday season, show Tiffany's resilience even as it faces challenges in the U.S. and a fiscal crisis in Europe.

For the quarter ended Jan. 31, Tiffany earned $179.6 million, or $1.40 per share. Revenue rose 4 percent to $1.24 billion.

Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of $1.36 per share on $1.25 billion in revenue.

"While financial results in fiscal 2012 were disappointing due to lower-than expected sales growth and pressures on gross margin, we continued to maintain a longer term focus on strengthening global awareness of the Tiffany & Co. brand," Michael J. Kowalski, Tiffany's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Total sales in the Americas region increased 2 percent to $620 million in the fourth quarter and 2 percent to $1.8 billion in the full year. The area represents 48 percent of last year's global revenue. Revenue at stores open at least a year declined 2 percent in both the quarter and full year on a constant exchange rate basis. Sales in the New York flagship store dropped 3 percent in both the quarter and full year, while that figure dropped 2 percent for its branch locations for both periods.

In the Asia-Pacific region, total sales rose 13 percent to $254 million in the fourth quarter and 8 percent to $810 million in the full year. The region represents 21 percent of worldwide sales. On a constant exchange rate basis, total sales rose 10 percent in the fourth quarter due to sales growth in Greater China and in other markets and rose 8 percent in the full year. On that basis, revenue at stores opened at least a year rose 6 percent in the quarter and 2 percent for the full year.