Yahoo Finance Academy Sports (ASO) Expands in North Carolina and Indiana
Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. ASO is set to open 15-17 new stores in the fiscal 2024. The first quarter will see two new locations in Knightdale, North Carolina and Greenwood, Indiana. These additions aim to bolster ASO's presence in North Carolina and Indiana.
The company is optimistic about the new openings as it provides customers with new convenient stores featuring a localized assortment tailored to the needs of active families in these communities.
Every newly-opened store will offer a variety of apparel, footwear, sports and camping equipment, hunting and fishing gear and more from top national and private label brands at an everyday value.
Focus on Expansion
Academy Sports focuses on investment in various growth initiatives, which comprise new store expansion, omnichannel advancements, digital marketing projects and existing store improvements. Also, product portfolio expansion strategies bode well.
Store expansion is the company’s prime growth strategy. In 2023, the company opened 14 new stores. As of Feb 3, 2024, it operates 282 stores across 18 states in the United States. The company's revised new store growth plan now forecasts 160-180 stores over the next five years.
Academy Sports focuses on providing a wide variety of products through collaborations and product innovation. On Aug 30, 2023, the company partnered with Fanatics to enhance the assortment of officially licensed merchandise available to Academy customers, both in-store and online. On the same date, it also collaborated with L.L. Bean to offer its customers a selection of the American brand’s products in-store and online.
Price Performance
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Shares of ASO have increased 39.3% in the past six months compared with the industry’s 13.2% growth. Store expansion efforts and product innovation primarily drove the upside. The company intends to focus on omnichannel improvements and digital enhancements and strengthen its inventory position (with seasonally appropriate products) to ensure its growth momentum in the upcoming period.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Academy Sports currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Here are some better-ranked stocks from the Consumer Discretionary sector.
Adtalem Global Education Inc. ATGE currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.
ATGE has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 16.9%, on average. The stock has gained 18.7% in the past six months. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ATGE’s fiscal 2024 sales and EPS indicates an increase of 6.4% and 10.2%, respectively, from the year-ago levels.
Ralph Lauren Corporation RL presently sports a Zacks Rank of #1. RL has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 18.7%, on average. The stock has surged 58.5% in the past six months.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RL’s fiscal 2025 sales and EPS suggests growth of 4.2% and 9.5%, respectively, from the year-ago levels.
Hyatt Hotels Corporation H currently sports a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy). Hyatt has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 17.8%, on average. The stock has increased 47.4% in the past six months.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for H’s fiscal 2024 sales and EPS calls for growth of 3.5% and 27%, respectively, from the year-ago levels.
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