Levi lifts annual guidance as fiscal Q1 results beat estimates on margin growth
Investing.com -- Levi Strauss&Co lifted its guidance on full-year earnings after reporting Wednesday first-quarter results that topped analysts' estimates, driven by a jump in margins amid cost cuts.
Levi Strauss&Co Class A (NYSE: LEVI) is up more than 4% in afterhours following the news.
The apprael maker said it now sees earnings per share in a range of $1.17 to $1.27, up from a prior range of $1.15 to $1.25, topping Wall Street estimates of $1.21. While revenues were expected to be up 1% to 3% year-over-year, unchanged from a prior forecast.
For the three months ended Feb. 25, Levi reported adjusted fiscal Q1 EPS of $0.26, down from $0.34 as revenue fell to $1.56 billion from $1.69 billion a year earlier. That was, however, ahead of Wall Street forecasts for EPS of $0.20 and revenue of $1.54 billion.
Gross margin climbed 240 basis points to 58.2% from Q1 2023, driven by "lower product costs and favorable mix shift," the company said.
Direct-to-consumer net revenue was up 7%, led by a 10% increase in the U.S. and a 4% increase in Europe, excluding Russia, while wholesale net revenues declined 18%.
