Academy Sports Raises Outlook, But Warns Shoppers Will Stay Squeezed Through 2026

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) gave retail stock traders a reason to cheer early Tuesday, delivering a top- and bottom-line outperformance for its first quarter ended May 2.

Q1 Earnings By The Numbers

The sporting goods retailer reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 93 cents, beating Wall Street analyst expectations of 91 cents per share. Net sales rose to $1.442 billion, in line with analyst expectations.

Total sales grew 6.7% year-over-year, supported by a 2.9% jump in comparable store sales and a 17.4% surge in eCommerce revenue. Diluted GAAP EPS climbed 17.6% to 80 cents, while adjusted EPS surged 22.4% compared to the prior-year period.

Inside Management’s Conservative Optimism

The company attributed the strong quarterly showing to robust operational execution, including high single-digit positive comps from new store openings in Ohio and Oklahoma.

“We were pleased with the continued improvement in our results in first quarter, with total sales up 6.7%, driven by increases in both traffic and average ticket,” stated Steve Lawrence, CEO. “Based on our first quarter performance, we are raising the low end of our full-year guidance.”

Lawrence added that inflation continues to weigh on consumer spending and is expected to remain a factor through the rest of the year. Even so, the retailer aims to sustain its momentum by executing its long-term growth strategy while continuing to offer customers a broad product selection at competitive prices.

Raising the Bar For Fiscal 2026

Following the strong quarter, Academy raised its full-year GAAP EPS guidance from its previous $5.65–$6.15 range up to $5.95–$6.35. Analysts currently expect $6.05.

Academy Sports raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $6.40-$6.80 from $6.10-$6.60, compared with analysts’ estimates of $6.30.

The retailer also increased the low end of its full-year sales outlook to $6.230 billion-$6.355 billion from $6.175 billion-$6.355 billion, while Wall Street expects $6.333 billion in revenue.

Carl Ford, Executive Vice President and CFO, emphasized that the firm remains realistic about consumer headwinds. “We remain prudent about the macroenvironment and the updated fiscal 2026 guidance range reflects our belief that the consumer will remain under pressure for the duration of 2026,” Ford noted.

Strong Liquidity and Dividend Payouts

Cash and cash equivalents grew 18.5% to $337.8 million, up from $285.1 million last year.

Subsequent to quarter-end, on June 4, the Board declared a 15 cents per share quarterly cash dividend. The dividend is payable on July 16 to shareholders of record as of June 18.

ASO Stock Price Activity: Academy Sports shares were up 2.46% at $52.94 during premarket trading on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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