Wolverine World Wide Inc. reported a first-quarter profit that matched expectations but revenue that came up a bit shy, while lifting its full-year outlook amid stronger-than-anticipated ecommerce growth. The stock was still inactive in premarket trading. The footwear and apparel company, which brands include Hush Puppies, Stride Rite and Saucony, said net income tripled to $38.5 million, or 45 cents a share, from $13.0 million, or 16 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 40 cents, matching the FactSet consensus of 40 cents. Revenue rose 16.3% to $510.7 million, below the FactSet consensus of $511.8 million, with owned ecommerce revenue growing 83.6%. Cost of goods sold increased 12.0%, with gross margin improving to 43.5% from 41.4%. For 2021, the company nudged up its revenue guidance range to $2.24 billion to $2.30 billion from $2.19 billion to $2.25 billion. “Our ongoing investment in digital fueled eCommerce growth of 84%, well ahead of our expectations. Our brands are well positioned in trending, performance-oriented product categories like running, hiking, and work; and their momentum remains strong,” said Chief Executive Blake Krueger. “We anticipate growth to continue to accelerate moving forward.” The stock has rallied 36.8% year to date, while the S&P 500 has advanced 10.5%.
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