Abercrombie lowers annual sales outlook, shares drop 17%
Birkenstock's Q1 revenue forecast misses expectations
American Eagle, Urban Outfitters also flag muted holiday sales, retail stocks drop
Adds background and details, analyst comment in paragraph 4, updates shares
By Neil J Kanatt
Jan 12 (Reuters) - Apparel and footwear retailers from Abercrombie & Fitch ANF.N to Birkenstock BIRK.N forecast subdued holiday-quarter sales on Monday, signaling cautious discretionary spending during the critical shopping period.
Abercrombie slumped 17% in early trading, putting the stock on track for its worst day since May 2022, after the company lowered its annual sales outlook.
American Eagle AEO.N maintained its fourth-quarter sales forecast and Urban Outfitters URBN.O reported a slower holiday sales growth compared to a year earlier. American Eagle shares slid about 8% and Urban Outfitters tumbled 11%.
"The theme of value-seeking behavior was on full display in this morning's slew of retail pre-announcements," Consumer Edge analyst Michael Gunther said, noting a continued shift toward affordable options, among even high-income consumers, as economic uncertainty persists.
Lingering economic effects of President Donald Trump's trade policies have led shoppers to tighten spending, while apparel and footwear makers have struggled to keep costs in check amid supply-chain disruptions caused by U.S. tariff uncertainty.
The raft of updates ahead of the ICR industry conference this week also weighed on other apparel retailers including Gap GAP.N, Under Armour UAA.N and VF Corp VFC.N, all down about 2%. Department-store chains Macy's M.N and Kohl's KSS.N were also down in morning trading.
Abercrombie now expects annual sales growth of at least 6%, down from its prior outlook of 6% to 7% growth. It estimated net sales for the quarter ending in February to increase about 5%, compared with Wall Street estimates of a 5.8% rise, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Birkenstock forecast revenue of 402 million euros ($470.06 million), short of expectations of 403.3 million euros for the quarter ended December 31. Shares reversed course to rise 1%.
Lululemon LULU.O, however, said it expects holiday-quarter sales and profit at the top end of its prior outlook, signaling a rebound for the Canadian athleisure apparel maker. Its shares were up about 1.6%.
($1 = 0.8556 euros)
(Reporting by Neil J Kanatt in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore, Tasim Zahid and Sriraj Kalluvila)
((Neil.JKanatt@thomsonreuters.com))