Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. ASO reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 results, with earnings and revenues beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The top and bottom lines declined on a year-over-year basis.

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ASO’s Q4 Earnings & Revenues

In the fiscal fourth quarter, the company reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.96, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.82. In the prior-year quarter, ASO reported an adjusted EPS of $2.21.

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. Quote

Quarterly revenues of $1.68 billion beat the consensus mark by 0.6%. The top line declined 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. The downside was mainly caused by a fall in comparable sales.

Comparable sales during the quarter declined 3% year over year compared with a 3.6% fall reported in the prior-year quarter. The downside was caused by a 5.9% year-over-year decline in transactions. However, this was partially offset by a 3.1% increase in ticket size.

Academy Sports’ Operating Highlights

During the fiscal fourth quarter, selling, general and administrative expenses came in at $385.5 million compared with $393 million reported in the prior-year quarter.

Gross margins during the quarter declined 110 basis points year over year to 32.2%. The downside was mainly due to higher freight and distribution costs and lower merchandise margins.

Adjusted net income during the quarter came in at $138.8 million compared with $168.2 million reported in the prior-year quarter.

Adjusted EBITDA in the fiscal fourth quarter came in at $211.7 million compared with $255.2 million reported in the prior-year quarter.

ASO’s Balance Sheet

As of Feb. 1, 2025, cash and cash equivalents totaled $288.9 million compared with $347.9 million on Feb. 3, 2024.

Merchandise inventories during the quarter came in at $1.3 billion compared with $1.2 billion reported in the prior-year period.

As of Feb. 1, 2025, the long-term debt net stood at $482.7 million compared with $484.6 million reported in the prior-year quarter.

The company declared an 18% dividend hike to 13 cents per share, payable on April 17, 2025, to its shareholders of record as of March 25, 2025.

ASO’s Fiscal 2024 Highlights

Total revenues in fiscal 2024 amounted to $5.9 billion compared with $6.2 billion in fiscal 2023.

Adjusted EBITDA in fiscal 2024 totaled $720.2 million compared with $846 million in fiscal 2023.

In fiscal 2024, adjusted EPS came in at $6.02 compared with $6.96 reported in the previous year.

ASO’s Fiscal 2025 Outlook

For fiscal 2025, the company expects net sales to be $6.1-$6.3 billion. The company expects comparable sales to be in the range of 2% to 1%.

The gross margin rate in fiscal 2025 is expected to be between 34% and 34.5%. Capital expenditures during the year are anticipated in the range of $220-$250 million. The company expects fiscal 2025 adjusted net income to be between $400 million and $435 million.
 
Adjusted free cash flow during the year is expected to be between $290 million and $320 million. The company anticipates fiscal 2025 Adjusted EPS to be in the range of $5.75-$6.20.

ASO’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Academy Sports currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Here are some better-ranked stocks from the Zacks Consumer Discretionary sector.

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The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RICK’s 2025 sales and EPS indicates growth of 2.5% and 1,278.8%, respectively, from year-ago levels.

Mattel, Inc. MAT currently flaunts a Zacks Rank #1. MAT delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 37.6%, on average. The stock has gained 3% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MAT’s 2025 sales and EPS indicates growth of 1.4% and 4.9%, respectively, from year-ago levels.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. RCL currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). RCL delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 15.7%, on average. The stock has surged 57.8% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RCL’s 2025 sales and EPS indicates growth of 9% and 26.4%, respectively, from year-ago levels.

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