Shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) surged more than 14% on Thursday after the sports equipment retailer raised its full-year profit forecast.
The Texas-based company now expects FY24 adjusted profit between $6.95 per share and $7.65 per share, compared to previous outlook of $6.80 per share and $7.50 per share. Analysts on average estimate profit to be $6.91.
The company reported profit of $2.09 per share during the second-quarter, compared to analysts’ estimate of $2.00 per share.
Revenue of $1.58 billion, which declined more than 6%, was in-line during the quarter.
Academy Sports and Outdoors said that its operating margin improved 420 basis points from the first quarter, driven by “higher gross margin, sequential improvement in shrink as a rate to sales and disciplined expense management.”
Seeking Alpha analysts and Wall Street rated the stock as “strong buy”, while Seeking Alpha’s Quant rating considers the stock a “hold”.
According to a recent Seeking Alpha analysis, Academy has a plenty of room to grow in the U.S. because it is still a little more than a strong regional player compared to its competitors.
The company, which announced partnership expansion with digital sports platform Fanatics on August 30, has gained more than 9% so far this year. This is in comparison to rival DICK’s Sporting Goods (DKS) which lost nearly 3% this year.
