American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) second quarter net revenue of 1.3 billion dollars rose 8 percent, while store revenue rose 7 percent and digital revenue increased 12 percent. AEO’s diluted earnings per share were 39 cents.
For the third quarter, the company expects operating income to be in the range of 120 to 125 million dollars, comparable sales to increase in the range of 3 to 4 percent, with total revenue flat to up slightly.
For the year ahead, the company is updating its operating income outlook to 455 to 465 million dollars, the high end of prior guidance. The company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4 percent, with total revenue up 2 to 3 percent.
“Our Powering Profitable Growth strategy is off to a great start, locking in a strong first half and setting us on track to achieve the high end of our prior operating profit outlook for 2024,”said Jay Schottenstein, AEO’s executive chairman and chief executive officer in a statement.
Across brands, Aerie revenue of 416 million dollars rose 9 percent, with comp sales up 4 percent and American Eagle revenue of 828 million dollars increased 8 percent, with comp sales growing 5 percent.
The company said gross profit of 499 million increased 10 percent, reflecting a gross margin rate of 38.6 percent, expanding 90 basis points. Operating income of 101 million dollars increased 55 percent, while operating margin expanded 240 basis points to 7.8 percent.
During the quarter, the company paid a quarterly cash dividend of 0.125 cents per share, or approximately 24 million dollars, bringing year-to-date cash dividends to 49 million dollars.
