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Steven Madden, Ltd. SHOO reported fourth-quarter 2024 results, wherein both top and bottom lines beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Total revenues increased, while earnings decreased from the year-ago period’s actuals.
Management attributed the strong performance in 2024 to robust gains in international markets, expansion in non-footwear categories and strength in direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) channels, along with a return to revenue growth in the U.S. wholesale footwear business.
Looking ahead to 2025, the company remains cautious about the near-term outlook, anticipating significant headwinds, particularly the impact of new tariffs on goods imported into the United States. However, with a proven ability to navigate challenging market conditions through agile business model, the company is poised to strengthen its growth trajectory with the pending acquisition of Kurt Geiger, expected to close in the second quarter of 2025.
Share of SHOO decline 8.1% during trading session yesterday. In the past month, shares of this Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) company have lost 15.9% against the industry’s 3.1% growth.
Steven Madden’s Quarterly Performance: Key Insights
Steven Madden posted adjusted quarterly earnings of 55 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 54 cents. The metric decreased 9.8% from 61 cents in the prior-year period.
Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.
Steven Madden, Ltd. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Steven Madden, Ltd. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Steven Madden, Ltd. Quote
Total revenues rose 12% year over year to $582.3 million. Net sales of $578.8 million went up 11.9% and commission and licensing fee income of $3.5 million increased 31.5% from the year-ago period. The top line beat the consensus estimate of $549 million.
Adjusted gross profit rose 8.6% year over year to $235.5 million. We note that the adjusted gross margin contracted 130 basis points (bps) to 40.4%. We expected a gross margin contraction of 10 bps.
The company’s adjusted operating expenses increased 11.6% year over year to $182.9 million. As a percentage of revenues, adjusted operating expenses decreased 10 bps year over year to 31.4%. We forecasted an increase of 9.3% in adjusted operating expenses.
Steven Madden reported an adjusted operating income of $52.6 million, down 0.6% from the prior-year quarter. The adjusted operating margin decreased 120 bps to 9%. We expected an adjusted operating margin of 8.9% for the quarter.
SHOO’s Segment-Wise Performance Details
Revenues for the Wholesale business improved 13.6% year over year to $402.9 million, which beat our estimate of $371.3 million. Wholesale footwear revenues increased 1%, while wholesale accessories/apparel revenues surged 35.4%.
Gross profit, as a percentage of wholesale revenues was 30.5% compared with 31.7% in the fourth quarter of 2023, driven by a higher mix of private label business. We expected the gross margin to be 31.1%.
DTC revenues increased 8.4% year over year to $176 million in the quarter, driven by gains in both brick-and-mortar and e-commerce channels. Our model expected total DTC revenues of $173.4 million for the quarter.
Gross profit, as a percentage of direct-to-consumer revenues, was 62% compared with 62.7% in the fourth quarter of 2023, driven by increased promotional activity. We anticipated a 20-bps improvement in gross margin.
SHOO ended the fourth quarter with 291 brick-and-mortar retail outlets, five e-commerce websites and 42 company-operated concessions across the international markets.