Record Q1 Net Sales and Multi-Quarter Growth
Record first quarter net sales of $1.1 billion, up 2% year-over-year, marking the 14th consecutive quarter of net sales growth and a company record for Q1.
Strong Regional Performance — APAC and Americas
APAC net sales grew 24% (comps +15%) and the Americas grew 3% (comps +1%), with growth across brands and healthy traffic in both stores and digital in these regions.
Operating Results Above Expectations
Operating margin of 8% exceeded plan and results beat internal expectations on operating income and EPS; diluted EPS was $1.47 (above outlook). Adjusted EBITDA margin was 12% on adjusted EBITDA of $131 million.
Shareholder Returns and Strong Liquidity
Returned $105 million to shareholders in Q1 via share repurchases (≈3% of shares outstanding); ended Q1 with $594 million cash, ~ $1 billion liquidity, and $745 million remaining on share repurchase authorization; targeting $450 million of buybacks for 2026.
Successful ERP Cutover and Technology Investments
Completed upgraded merchandising ERP implementation in March (multiyear effort) to enable long-term channel/category expansion; continuing investments in AI (AI academy, Copilot premium, Perplexity testing) to improve forecasting, customer care and speed-to-market.
Brand and Product Momentum
Abercrombie Brands net sales grew 3% for the quarter with positive AURs and flat comps; Hollister saw strength in warm-weather categories (graphic tees, shorts, swim). Collaborations (Sperry, Kappa) and new store experiences (e.g., expanded SoHo Abercrombie) drove higher-than-average conversion.
Disciplined Inventory Management
Inventory at cost down 2% year-over-year while inventory units were up low single digits; management controlled receipts and promos regionally to align to demand, enabling tight inventory posture following ERP implementation.
Maintained Full-Year Guidance and Growth Plans
Maintained full-year outlook: net sales growth of 3%–5% to an expected $5.27 billion, operating margin guidance of 12%–12.5%, EPS guidance $10.20–$11.00, capital expenditures around $225 million, and plan for ~130 new experiences (50 new stores, 80 remodels/rightsizes).