Hibbett Sports sales decline 21% due to pandemic

By

Robin Driver

Published
May 28, 2020

Birmingham, Alabama-based sportswear retailer Hibbett Sports, Inc. reported a 21.4% decrease in net sales for the first quarter on Tuesday, as a peak in online revenues helped to temper declines related to temporary store closures implemented as part of the response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
 

For the first quarter ended May 2, 2020, the company posted $269.8 million in net sales, down from $343.3 million in the prior-year period, with comparable store sales falling 19.5%.

Hibbett’s e-commerce sales, however, saw an impressive 110.5% rise, representing 22.3% of the company’s total net sales for the quarter and helping to offset some of the negative impact related to the ongoing health crisis.

Although some of Hibbett’s brick-and-mortar locations were allowed to remain open with increased hygiene and security measures during the pandemic, a large number of the retailer’s Hibbett Sports and City Gear stores have been closed, with curbside pick-up being introduced at select locations in March.
 
With previously closed stores reopening toward the end of April, almost 700 of Hibbett’s locations were up and running by the end of Q1. As of Tuesday, more than 1,000 of the retailer’s stores are currently open.
 
Hibbett’s total first-quarter net loss came to $15.3 million, or $0.92 per share, falling from the net income of $27.9 million, or $1.50 per diluted share, reported by the company in the same period in the previous year.
 
“I am extremely proud of the Hibbett team. Through their hard work and dedication, we were able to produce strong results during this very challenging retail environment,” commented Hibbett Sports president and CEO Mike Longo in a release.
 
“Through the hard work of our Hibbett Sports and City Gear stores, the dedication of our distribution center employees and the seven day a week work from our people in the Store Support Center, we accomplished a result that we believe sets us apart from the majority of retail,” he added.
 
Due to the continued uncertainty related to the Covid-19 pandemic, Hibbett has not provided financial guidance for the second quarter or the full fiscal year 2021.
 
Having opened three stores and permanently shuttered eight over the course of the quarter, Hibbett also announced on Wednesday that it will soon be opening its 56th Hibbett Sports location in North Carolina, in Winston-Salem, and is already recruiting retail associates in the area.