By Owen Tucker-Smith

VF shares were in retreat following a rise earlier in the day after the company's tepid guidance for the fourth quarter offset an increase in revenue.

The stock was down 3.8% to $25.59 in afternoon trading. The shares are up 46% in the past year.

VF, which owns The North Face, Vans and Timberland brands, on Wednesday posted revenue ahead of expectations before the market opened with sales growth in all regions. Revenue grew 1.9% to $2.83 billion, which beat the $2.75 billion forecast of analysts polled by FactSet.

The Denver-based company swung to a profit with net income of $167.8 million from a loss of $42.5 million in the same period a year earlier. Earnings per share came to 43 cents, compared with a loss of 11 cents the prior year.

VF has been working on transforming its finances, with a particular focus on fixing its struggling Vans brand, it said.

But shares retreated after the company said it expected revenue in the fourth quarter to fall between 4% and 6%. In a note on Wednesday, Citi analyst Paul Lejuez said, "After inflecting positive in 3Q, it is slightly disappointing to see guidance for a decline."

The company attributed the anticipated fourth-quarter slowdown in part to the higher-than-expected sales in the third quarter, and said VF's turnaround efforts are still on track.

Write to Owen Tucker-Smith at owen.tucker-smith@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 29, 2025 13:16 ET (18:16 GMT)

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