We’ve heard from many retailers this week, but BJ’s Wholesale topped things off before the bell. 🔔
The membership-based warehouse retailer’s third-quarter same-store sales came in lighter than expected. Excluding gasoline, comparable sales fell 0.1% YoY, with Wall Street looking for a 1% miss. It marks the company’s third straight quarter missing on this metric, with the company saying it’s seeing “shifts in consumer behavior” driven by the macroeconomic environment. 🛒
Total revenues grew 2.9% YoY, driven by a 2.8% increase in sales and a 6.6% increase in membership fee income. Overall, executives said the disinflationary trend led to lower prices and sales, even as store traffic increased. They also reiterated their fiscal 2023 adjusted earnings guidance of $3.80 to $3.92 per share.
However, its fourth-quarter same-store sales outlook of a 2% decline to a 1% increase was below expectations and caused it to lower its full-year guidance from about 2% to 1.0%-1.8%. 🔻
$BJ shares fell about 5% on the day, though sentiment continues to lean bullish on the streams. 🐂
As we’ve seen with other retailers, disinflationary pressures and a cautious consumer are expected to continue weighing on sales for the foreseeable future. Companies continue to focus on operational efficiency and cost cuts to buoy earnings as they await an uptick in consumer spending. ⏳