Burlington Stores(BURL) ZACKS·2024-10-21 15:31Core Viewpoint - Burlington Stores, Inc. (BURL) is experiencing significant growth driven by strategic initiatives, outperforming industry benchmarks and showing strong sales momentum as the holiday season approaches [1][4][11]. Financial Performance - BURL shares are currently trading at 282.49 reached on August 29, 2024 [1][2]. - Over the past six months, BURL stock has gained 45.1%, compared to the Zacks Retail-Discount Stores industry's growth of 14.1% [1]. - In Q2 of fiscal 2024, BURL achieved a 13.4% year-over-year increase in total sales, surpassing the previous year's 9% growth [4]. - Comparable store sales increased by 5%, exceeding expectations of flat to 2% growth, driven by a 7% rise in full-price sales [5]. Growth Strategies - Burlington's growth strategy focuses on rapid store expansion, operational efficiency, and robust inventory management [4]. - The company added 36 stores in the last quarter, bringing the total to 1,057, with plans to open another 100 stores and relocate 30 by the end of fiscal 2024 [4]. - The operating margin expanded by 160 basis points, with a gross margin improvement of 110 basis points to 42.8% [5]. Future Outlook - BURL has updated its fiscal 2024 guidance, expecting total sales growth of 9-10%, up from 8-10%, and comparable store sales growth of 2-3%, improved from 0-2% [6]. - Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) are anticipated between 7.96, an increase from the previous range of 7.75 [6]. Valuation - The stock is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales ratio of 1.43, below the five-year industry average of 1.71, indicating attractive valuation [7]. - BURL currently holds a Value Score of A, reinforcing its appeal to investors [7]. Analyst Sentiment - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EPS has been revised upward, with current year estimates increasing by 21 cents to 10.71 billion and $11.80 billion, reflecting year-over-year growth of 10.1% and 10.2%, respectively [10].