Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) shares slightly moved down this morning despite crushing analysts’ expectation for Q3 earnings and revenue, as digital sales improved significantly during the period.
The New Albany, Ohio-based apparel retailer reported earnings of $42.3 million, or 66 cents per share for the three months ended October 31, significantly higher than 10 cents per share in the comparable period last year. On an adjusted basis, profit rose to 76 cents per share, as compared to 23 cents per share in the year-ago quarter. Contrarily, analysts on average were expecting the company to report a loss of 4 cents per share.
Revenue for the quarter came in at $819.7 million, down 5.1 percent versus last year, though easily surpassed consensus forecast of $739.4 million. Digital sales in the quarter climbed 43 percent on a year-over-basis, significantly contributing to the company’s overall revenue.
If we look at the sales performance of different segments, Hollister store revenue declined 7 percent to $476.7 million in the quarter, while Abercrombie store revenue decreased 2 percent to $343.0 million.
Speaking on the results, CEO Fran Horowitz said in a statement “we are encouraged by quarter-to-date results, including ongoing strong digital demand, with our customers responding favorably to new product and messaging. However, this is tempered by uncertainty regarding the potential for increased COVID-related store restrictions and our expectation for elevated shipping, handling and freight costs.”
The company also announced that it plans to close four more flagship stores by Jan. 2021, besides three stores closure planned for 2020.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) shares fell more than 3 percent in the early trading Tuesday on heavy volume for unknown reasons. Overall, ANF share price has increased more than 27 percent so far this year, despite continuously trading at a lower price between April and August.
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