The Buckle, Inc. (BKE), retailer of casual apparel, footwear and accessories for men and women, reported a 0.7% year-over-year increase in comparable-store sales (comps) for the five weeks ended Jul 5, 2014. Moreover, net sales of $84.8 million registered a 2.8% rise from the prior-year five-week period ended Jul 6, 2013.
Apart from June, Buckle has reported positive comps only once over the span of last 7 months, which was in Apr 2014, when comps grew 0.8% year over year. Prior to that, comps declined 3.1% in May 2014, 1.8% in Mar 2014, 1.4% in Feb 2014, 6.6% in Jan 2014, 2.8% in Dec 2013 and 0.6% in Nov 2013. Weakness in the Women’s category remains a persistent problem for Buckle.
However, comps for the 22-week period, ended Jul 5, 2014, fell 0.9% year over year, whereas net sales inched up 0.8% to $428.4 million from the prior-year 22-week period ended Jul 6, 2013.
As of Jul 10, 2014, Kearney, NE-based Buckle operated 444 retail stores across 43 states.
Most of the retailers benefited during the month under review, as favorable weather conditions, aggressive promotional strategies and improving job prospects adequately allured consumers. Retailers such as Rite Aid Corporation (RAD) and Zumiez Inc. (ZUMZ) saw their comparable-store sales increase 3.9% and 3.1%, respectively, during June.
Moreover, Zumiez raised its sales and earnings forecast for the second quarter of fiscal 2014 bolstered by better-than-expected sales results for June.
Further, warehouse retailer, Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) delivered comps growth of 6%, portraying an increase of 6% in the U.S. and 7% at international locations.
Currently, Buckle carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Get all Zacks Research Reports and be alerted to fast-breaking buy and sell opportunities every trading day.
Be the first to comment