Kohl’s reports Q2 2019 earnings

Kohl’s said Tuesday that a strong start to the back-to-school season and new partnership with Amazon helped the retailer beat Wall Street earnings and sales expectations during the second quarter.

The company’s shares jumped by more than 6% in premarket trading.

Here’s how the company did, compared with what Wall Street was expecting, according to Refinitiv consensus estimates:

• Adjusted earnings per share: $1.55, vs. $1.53 estimated
• Revenue: $4.43 billion, vs. $4.2 billion estimated
• Same store sales: down 2.9%, vs. down 2.5% estimated

“We are pleased to report that our business strengthened as we progressed through the second quarter,” said Kohl’s CEO Michelle Gass said in a release announcing fiscal second-quarter earnings. “Comparable sales were better than the first quarter and improved during the period, turning positive during the last six weeks of the second quarter with 1% growth.”

Net income for the quarter ended Aug. 4 slid more than 17% to $241 million, or $1.51 per share, down from $292 million, or $1.76 a share, a year ago. Total revenue fell 2.9% to $4.43 billion. Sales at the company’s stores open more than a year fell 2.9%, wider than Wall Street’s estimates of a 2.5% decrease.

The company also cited a successful start to the back-to-school season and increased traffic from the Amazon returns program as boosts to the company’s sales.

In April, Kohl’s said it would begin accepting Amazon returns at all of its stores, growing its partnership with the e-commerce giant in an attempt to grow foot traffic at its stores. The companies’ relationship began in the spring of 2017, when Kohl’s began selling Amazon gadgets like the Fire TV and Echo Dot at its stores.

More recently, the company also announced a deal with Fanatics to sell items such as licensed NFL jerseys and NBA T-shirts online. The partnership made Fanatics the exclusive distributor of all licensed sports apparel and accessories for Kohl’s. The initiative is part of a larger push into sports apparel by the retailer. It has also started lease out its own excess real estate to gym operator Planet Fitness, which will open locations next door to Kohl’s.

The company’s stock has tumbled more than 27% since January, bringing its market value to around $7.8 billion.