Shares of retail chain Boot Barn (BOOT -8.28%) dropped on Friday after the company reported financial results for its fiscal third quarter of 2025. As of 2:20 p.m. ET, Boot Barn stock was down 6%, but it had been down 11% earlier in the day.

The beat-and-raise quarter wasn't enough

I'm actually surprised Boot Barn stock is down today. The company's Q3 report was good. Its net sales were up nearly 17% year over year to $608 million, boosted by healthy same-store-sales growth of 9%. Moreover, sales of its exclusive brands are on pace to account for nearly 39% of its total full-year sales, which would be an all-time high.

Same-store sales and sales for exclusive brands are key to Boot Barn's business. The former drives operating leverage, and the latter are higher-margin products. With these two trends, Boot Barn's Q3 net income of $75 million was up a whopping 35% -- far more than net-sales growth.

Boot Barn's full-year financial guidance was improved across the board, which further underscores how surprising it is to see the stock down today.

Is this an opportunity for investors?

Boot Barn stock trades at about 30 times its earnings, which on the surface may seem pricey for an apparel retailer. But the valuation isn't outrageous, in my opinion. Consider that the company is still fast-growing, thanks in large part to the pace of new store openings -- it's expecting 15% annual growth for its fiscal 2025. And the payback period on these new stores is getting shorter, boosting returns faster.

By its fiscal 2030, management believes there can be 900 Boot Barn locations, compared with about 450 today. The stock could always get cheaper. But if trends continue in the same general direction, I believe today's small pullback will prove to be a timely opportunity to buy and hold for the long term.