Skechers Stock Bounces as Quarterly Earnings Nearly Double
Shares of Skechers USA Inc. surged in after-hours trading following the release of better-than-expected first-quarter financial results.
For the three months ended March 31, the shoe maker logged earnings of 63 cents per share, compared with the prior year’s earnings of 32 cents per share. Wall Street anticipated earnings of 46 cents per share. Revenues also improved 15% to $1.43 billion, compared with consensus bets of $1.34 billion.
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As of 4:30 p.m. ET, SKX stock was up more than 8% to $48.11.
“This significant growth is the result of continued demand for Skechers product as consumers desire comfort and quality in their footwear and walking remains a top COVID-19 pandemic activity,” CEO Robert Greenberg explained in a statement. “With warmer weather and increased vaccination rates around the world, traffic is improving in many of our retail stores, and our digital business continues to be a very strong growth driver.”
According to the company, the 8.5% gain in domestic sales was attributed to its direct-to-consumer business, with e-commerce growth of 143% abating the 0.9% decline in wholesale.
On the other hand, international sales saw an increase of 20.2%, propelled by its wholesale business. Advancements in the international wholesale segment were seen in China, which recorded a 174.4% spike, partially offset by a drop of 8.1% in Europe.
Overall, direct-to-consumer comps rose 10.2% — with a jump of 25.7% domestically and a fall of 27.4% internationally.
Still, COO David Weinberg added, “We saw strength across customer types and encouraging sell-through in multiple categories. The momentum in our direct-to-consumer business along with continuing demand for our comfort product, leads us to believe that Skechers remains on a positive trajectory.”
At the end of the quarter, Skechers had cash, equivalents and investments that totaled $1.51 billion. It also provided an outlook for the next three-month period: The brand predicted sales of between $1.45 billion and $1.5 billion, as well as earnings per share of between 40 cents and 50 cents.
As for the full year, revenues are expected in the range of $5.8 billion through $5.9 billion, while earnings per share are forecasted to be between $1.80 and $2.00.
“Despite the ongoing challenges related to the pandemic,” Greenberg added, “we are pleased with our exceptional start to 2021 and believe our growth is a testament to our execution and the relevance of the Skechers brand.”
