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Investing.com -- Burlington Stores, Inc. shares jumped 7% after the off-price retailer reported second-quarter earnings that significantly exceeded analyst expectations and raised its full-year guidance.
The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.72, handily beating the analyst estimate of $1.29. Revenue rose 10% YoY to $2.71 billion, surpassing the consensus estimate of $2.63 billion. Comparable store sales increased 5%, matching the growth rate from the same quarter last year.
Burlington raised its full-year adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $9.19 to $9.59, up from its previous forecast of $8.70 to $9.30.
"We are pleased with our exceptional performance in the second quarter," said Michael O’Sullivan, CEO. "This was a high-quality earnings beat driven by ahead of plan sales, higher merchandise margin, lower freight expense and leverage on SG&A expenses."
Gross margin improved by 90 basis points to 43.7% compared to the same period last year, with merchandise margin expanding 60 basis points due to lower shortage and reduced markdowns. Adjusted EBIT margin increased 120 basis points, while adjusted EPS grew 39% compared to the second quarter of last year.
For the third quarter, Burlington expects total sales to increase 5% to 7% with comparable store sales growth of 0% to 2%. The company projects adjusted EPS between $1.50 and $1.60 for the quarter.
Burlington plans to open approximately 100 net new stores this year as part of its ongoing expansion strategy. The company ended the quarter with $1.69 billion in liquidity, including $748 million in unrestricted cash.