MILAN—Luxottica Group S.p.A. (MTA: LUX), citing a “delay of the sun season in Europe” and ongoing restructuring of its wholesale business in China, reported Friday that its sales declined 0.8 percent to €2,136 million at constant exchange in the first quarter. The decline was 10.7 percent at current exchange rates. Luxottica executives noted that a stronger euro in the most recent first quarter had an impact on comparable results. Luxottica also noted that while the wet spring weather may temporarily impact sales, it does not affect the company’s overall outlook and forecasts for 2018 and affirmed its outlook for the year.

In a call with securities analysts following the announcement, Luxottica executives provided an update on the proposed merger with Essilor. The deal awaits regulatory clearance only in China and Turkey, and has been approved in Europe and the U.S., among other countries. Stefano Grassi, responding to a question on the conference call, said the company is confident the deal will gain approval, or a “solution” will be proposed to resolve the issues. “We are planning to close by the end of June,” he added.

On an operational basis, Luxottica said its wholesale division worldwide achieved net sales of €830 million, a decline of 4.2 percent at constant exchange rates from the year-ago total of €934 million. The retail division reported net sales of €1,306 million, an increase of 1.3 percent at constant exchange rates. At current exchange, sales fell 10.4 percent from the year-ago total of €1,458 million.

In retail, comparable-store sales decreased 0.6 percent, but “positive sales were driven by Sunglass Hut in North America (comparable-store sales up 7.6 percent), retail brands in China and Australia, Target Optical and the e-commerce business worldwide,” the company reported. Speaking to analysts, Grassi called Sunglass Hut “the shining star” and noted that the business achieved 8 percent comparable-store growth.

He also noted that the comparable-store results at LensCrafters are slightly negative, but “the journey to turn the business around at LensCrafters is not over yet” and that Luxottica intends to invest more in marketing at the U.S. eyecare chain this year. Target Optical “delivered double-digit growth,” he added.

E-commerce recorded an increase of 16 percent on the performance of Ray-Ban.com and SunglassHut.com. “These positive results offset the slowdown of the sun segment in Europe and negative sales of LensCrafters, which is still focused on transforming its business model,” the announcement noted.

In the first quarter of 2018, North America recorded net sales at constant exchange rates in line with those of the same period last year. The wholesale division grew by 0.5 percent at constant exchange rates, thanks to the solid growth of Ray-Ban, especially in the sun segment, as well as the key accounts and e-commerce business. The Retail division reported unchanged sales compared to the first quarter of last year at constant exchange rates. The excellent performance of Sunglass Hut, Target Optical, Pearle Vision, Group’s e-commerce platforms (mainly Ray-Ban.com and SunglassHut.com) and EyeMed inManaged Vision Care, fully balanced the still negative sales of LensCrafters, the company said.

“The decrease in quarterly sales, which were mainly impacted by unfavorable weather conditions in Europe, does not highlight the positive results we have achieved in many businesses and geographies thanks to our product innovation, the improvement of the consumer experience in our stores, and the development of our e-commerce platforms,” group chairman Leonardo del Vecchio said in the announcement. “Sales performance at constant currency does not affect the Group’s quarterly profitability, which remains sustained and solid. We are continuing to invest in the Group's long-term growth by adopting all the initiatives we consider necessary,” he added.

“After China, we have adjusted our distribution and commercial policies in Europe, which are now consistent and balanced between the different sales channels and aimed at fighting counterfeit and parallel. We want to be closer to our customers, with innovations that can benefit the entire industry. The large investments in new technologies will offer our customers all the advantages that digital transformation can deliver, enhancing brands and collections,” del Vecchio said.

In addition, del Vecchio said in the announcement there are “many positive signals from the markets, such as the excellent performance of Sunglass Hut and our e-commerce platforms,” which lead Luxottica to look at “the results of the whole year with confidence.”