Early 2024 Holiday Sales

Retailers Post Better-than-Expected Early Holiday Results

Big-name retailers posted largely better-than-expected early holiday results on Monday, but their shares fell as Wall Street came away unimpressed.

Companies Raise Fourth-Quarter Outlooks

Lululemon, Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, and Urban Outfitters raised their fourth-quarter outlooks on Monday after seeing a strong response from shoppers during the all-important holiday season. Urban Outfitters also saw strong holiday growth, but Macy’s said its key quarter was going worse than it had anticipated.

Lululemon Expects Sales Growth

Lululemon now expects sales to grow between 11% and 12% to between $3.56 billion and $3.58 billion, up from a previous range of $3.48 billion and $3.51 billion. Excluding an additional fiscal week the company will have in the fourth quarter of 2024, Lululemon expects sales growth of between 6% and 7%.

Abercrombie Expects Sales Growth

Abercrombie also expects its holiday quarter to be slightly better than anticipated. The apparel company nudged up its net sales growth outlook to a range of between 7% and 8%, compared with previous guidance of between 5% and 7%. Abercrombie now expects full-year sales to grow 15%. It previously expected sales to rise between 14% and 15% for the period.

Urban Outfitters Sees Strong Holiday Growth

Urban Outfitters also released early holiday results and said net sales for the two months ended Dec. 31 grew 10% compared with the year-ago period. Comparable retail segment sales rose 6%, driven by strong online sales.

Macy’s Sales Fall Short

Macy’s, which is expected to present at the annual ICR conference in Orlando, also released early results but didn’t have good news to share like some of its competitors. The department store is now expecting sales to be at, or slightly below, its previously issued range of between $7.8 billion and $8.0 billion.

Conclusion

The holiday shopping season wasn’t expected to produce the blowout numbers that became common in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. The National Retail Federation said it was expecting sales to grow between 2.5% and 3.5%. When inflation is taken into account, real growth was expected to be minimal.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What did the retailers post for early holiday results?
A: Big-name retailers posted largely better-than-expected early holiday results, but their shares fell as Wall Street came away unimpressed.

Q: Which retailers raised their fourth-quarter outlooks?
A: Lululemon, Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, and Urban Outfitters raised their fourth-quarter outlooks.

Q: What did Lululemon expect for sales growth?
A: Lululemon expects sales to grow between 11% and 12% to between $3.56 billion and $3.58 billion.

Q: What did Abercrombie expect for sales growth?
A: Abercrombie expects its holiday quarter to be slightly better than anticipated, with net sales growth of between 7% and 8%.