Abercrombie & Fitch Co (NYSE:ANF) shares were in fashion on Thursday after the teen fashion retailer reported a smaller-than-expected second quarter loss, helped by strong demand for its Hollister brand.
Comparable sales at Hollister, A&F’s beach-themed clothing brand, jumped 5% compared to the same period of 2016 and beat analyst expectations of a 2.9% rise.
That meant total sales at established stores only fell by 1% year-on-year, which was also better than Wall Street had forecast.
The main Abercrombie brand was the main drag, with same-store sales in that division falling 7%.
The total loss attributable to Abercrombie widened to US$15.5mln or 23 cents a share (Q2 2016: US$13.1mln loss, 16 cents a share).
Adjusted loss per share came in at 16 cents, comfortably lower than the 33 cents analysts had been looking for.
Sales also topped estimates, totalling US$779.3mln (Q2 2016: US$783.2mln) compared to expectations of US$759mln.
It’s been a rough 2017 for A&F shareholders with the stock down almost 20%, but things were looking up today.
ANF shares added 14.3% in pre-market trade to US$10.99.
