Buckle’s third-quarter revenues and earnings come in under estimates

By

Robin Driver

Published
Nov 27, 2018

Kearney, Nebraska-based apparel and accessories retailer The Buckle,Inc. announced Q3 net sales of $215.1 million on Monday, missing Wall Street targets by $4 million, as the company’s progress in e-commerce was let down by declines in other channels.

Buckle’s total revenues for the third quarter ended November 3, 2018 reflected a 4.1% decrease compared to the $224.3 million reported in the prior-year period, while comparable store sale slipped 1.4%. The company’s online sales were something of a bright spot, increasing 8.8% to $25.5 million from $23.4 million, but were not able to compensate for falling revenues elsewhere in Buckle’s business.
 
Net income for the quarter increased from $19.9 million, or 41 cents per share, to $20.5 million, or 42 cents per share, coming in 4 cents below Wall Street targets.

Year to date, the company’s net sales decreased 1.8% to $621.1 million, compared to the $632.2 million reported in the same nine-month period in 2017. Here again, comps were down 1.1%, with an increase of 7.8% in online sales (from $64.7 million to $69.8 million) counteracted by a weak performance in other distribution channels.  
 
Net income for the period totaled $54.5 million, up from $47.7 million.

Over the course of the third quarter, Buckle also appointed Hank M. Bounds, Ph.D., current president of the University of Nebraska, to its Board of Directors. 
 
Buckle currently operates 453 stores in 43 states, compared to 461 stores in 44 states at the end of Q3 2017.