Shares of The Buckle (BKE -0.95%) were up 19.3% as of 12:40 p.m. EST on Friday after the fashion retailer announced stronger-than-expected third-quarter results.
So what
Quarterly net sales grew 4.2% year over year to $224.1 million. That translated to net income of $26 million, or $0.53 per diluted share, up from $0.42 per share in the year-ago period. Analysts on average were only expecting earnings of $0.43 per share on revenue of $219.2 million.
Within The Buckle's top line, comparable-store sales grew a healthy 4.7%, and online sales rose 5.4% to $26.9 million (12% of total revenue).
Now what
During the subsequent conference call, CEO Dennis Nelson noted the company is "in good shape" with its inventory heading into the lucrative holiday season, with reduced markdowns and much of its product made up of new arrivals.
After coupling that strong positioning with its relative outperformance in the third quarter, it's no surprise see Buckle stock rallying in response today.