Shares of Foot Locker Inc. jumped 20.2 percent on Friday after the sneaker leader reported first-quarter blasted past Wall Street’s targets. Management credited the arrival of more on-trend footwear styles from top vendors. But the makeup is changing, led by a resurgence for Nike with many of styles as well as strength in Vans and Fila, offsetting some softening at Adidas, Puma and Converse.
The leadership team at Hibbett Sports Inc. fully understands that the company is far behind competitors’ digital investments, but the company is making concerted efforts to catch up, and digital progress showed up in Hibbett’s first-quarter earnings.
Revenue growth across the Deckers Brands portfolio—Ugg, Hoka One One, Teva and Sanuk—allowed the Goleta, CA-based footwear company to close fiscal 2018 on a “high note,” said President and CEO Dave Powers.
”The strong athletic and athleisure trend shows no sign of slowing down,” said Cliff Sifford, president and CEO, on a conference call with analysts.
“I believe that this gem in our portfolio, which is becoming a very nicely sized gem, remains underappreciated,” said Art Peck, Gap Inc’s president and CEO, of Athleta on a conference call with analysts.
