Academy Sports (ASO) on Expansion Spree, Boosts Presence in MO
Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. ASO recently announced the opening of a new Jefferson City, MO store. This marks the company’s 11th store opening in the region and seventh store opening in 2023.
Situated at 739 Stoneridge Parkway, the 45,000-square-foot store offers customers a wide range of athletic and casual shoes, sports and outdoor equipment and clothing from renowned national brands. It also provides excellent everyday value and quality through its exclusive private label brands, covering various outdoor gear and apparel needs.
The company remains optimistic in this regard and anticipates it to drive sales in the upcoming periods.
Emphasis on Expansion
The company's primary growth strategy focuses on expanding by establishing new stores. The goal is to leverage the recent momentum by consistently enhancing all aspects of the business and executing four key growth strategies.
These strategies involve new store expansion (by 50% in existing and new markets), developing a robust omnichannel presence, driving growth from existing stores (through improved service, productivity, enhanced merchandising, and captivating customer engagement) and leveraging and scaling the supply chain.
ASO recently announced store additions in Fredericksburg, VA, Kyle and Brenham, TX. The company anticipates the development momentum to continue for some time. The company plans to open six stores in the fiscal third quarter, followed by five to six stores in the fiscal fourth quarter. The company remains steadfast in its commitment to open 120-140 new stores by 2027-end.
Stock Performance
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Shares of ASO have increased 8.7% in the past year compared with the industry’s rise of 3.1%. Pent-up demand, store expansion efforts and product innovation primarily drove the upside. Also, increased focus on omnichannel improvements bodes well. Moving ahead, the company intends to focus on price optimization, targeted distribution scheduling (during non-peak times) and scaling back on projects (that don’t fit the company’s long-term goals) to drive growth. Earnings estimates for fiscal 2024 have increased in the past 60 days, depicting analysts' optimism regarding the stock growth potential.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Academy Sports currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the Zacks Consumer Discretionary sector are as follows:
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. LYV sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). The company has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 34.6% on average. Shares of LYV have increased by 6.1% in the past year. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for LYV’s 2023 sales and EPS indicates a rise of 21.6% and 59.4%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.
OneSpaWorld Holdings Limited OSW sports a Zacks Rank #1. OSW has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 42.6% on average. Shares of OSW have increased by 23.7% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for OSW’s 2023 sales and EPS indicates a rise of 44.5% and 117.9%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.
Choice Hotels International, Inc. CHH carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). CHH has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 3.1% on average. Shares of the company have declined 6.1% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CHH’s 2023 sales and EPS indicates a rise of 10.8% and 13.9%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.
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Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (ASO) : Free Stock Analysis Report
