Author: Thomas J. Ryan

Bernstein analysts upgraded their rating on Adidas from “Market Perform” to “Outperform” in part due to Lionel Messi’s move to join Inter Miami to become Major League Soccer’s biggest star. In 2017, Messi signed a lifetime contract with Adidas worth a reported $1 billion.

Recent survey data from analysts at Citi found Nike’s consumer appeal remained vibrant in North America with the brand by far the most-popular athletic brand in the region. Among Chinese consumers surveyed, Nike generated sequential improvement in consumer sentiment and held a slight lead as the favorite brand in the country.

Speaking at William Blair’s 43rd Annual Growth Stock Conference, Jim Conroy, Boot Barn’s president and CEO, said that while Boot Barn may have been founded as a western boot retailer in 1978, its growth trajectory has resized multiple times as it has expanded across work, fashion and country lifestyle categories.

Vail Resorts saw a pickup in visitation and spending in March and April to help wrap up a healthy 2022/23 North American ski season, is seeing encouraging early season pass sales for the upcoming season, and believes its ski resorts are positioned well to mitigate many of the impacts of a potential economic downturn.

Designer Brands, the parent of DSW, joined several retailers lowering its outlook for the year after seeing a first-quarter shortfall, but officials are hopeful that heightened focus on value and an increase in casual footwear brands will drive improved results in the back half of the year.

Designer Brands reported that Nike would return to DSW’s selling floors in October following its exit from the retail chain in fall 2021 and following recent moves by Nike to repair relationships with Macy’s and Foot Locker.

Speaking at Baird’s 2023 Global Consumer, Technology & Services Conference, Andrew Rees, Crocs’ CEO, said HeyDude is expected to see U.S. wholesale sales decline in the second and third quarters of 2023 as it comped against aggressive initial distribution at several major U.S. retailers in 2022. However, he insisted that the demand for casual remains strong.

Speaking at the Stifel 2023 Cross Sector Insight Conference,  On’s Co-CEOs, Marc Maurer and Martin Hoffmann, said that while the faster growth is expected to come from DTC, the running-focused brand is just getting started expanding to more mainstream wholesale accounts, marked by its recent expansion at Dick’s Sporting Goods and Foot Locker.

Favorable notes arrived on Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp. and Acushnet Holdings Corp., the parent of Titleist, from Jefferies and B. Riley following news of the merger of PGA Tour with Saudi-backed rival LIV Golf as analysts project the deal will heighten interest in golf.

Speaking at the Deutsche Bank Global Consumer Conference, John Vandemore, CFO of Skechers USA, said the U.S. wholesale business is “probably our single most challenged marketplace” due to ongoing elevated inventory levels with the pressures expected to continue for a few more quarters.

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. trimmed its outlook for the year as first-quarter results missed plan. However, company officials predicted improving sales in the back half of the year on confidence that more favorable weather and strong injections of newness will help offset macroeconomic pressures.

At an investor meeting, Artie Starrs, CEO of Topgolf, discussed the fast growth and improving unit economics of the golf-entertainment concept as well as the benefits the chain is just starting to realize from newer digital activations and marketing pushes. He said, “I believe we’re just getting started.”

Shares of Lululemon are aligned to start trading up 15 percent after the yoga-themed retailer defied inflationary pressures by reporting better-than-expected first-quarter results and lifting its full-year outlook. China stood out, with sales up 79 percent, but the core business continued to see strength, with North American sales ahead 17 percent and its women’s leggings category growing by 22 percent.

Caleres, Inc. said Famous Footwear’s same-store sales fell 8.5 percent in the first quarter due to a weather-related delay in the sandal season and a pullback in spending from its “more moderate-income customer” due to inflationary pressures. Sequential improvement in sales is expected in coming quarters but Famous Footwear’s comps are expected to be negative for 2023.

Speaking Wednesday at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference, Foot Locker officials said elevated inventory levels across the marketplace and consumer caution are now driving promotional activity above pre-pandemic levels with margin pressures expected to continue through 2023.