Thanks to strong growth, the US clothing retailer American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (AEO) passed a historic milestone in the 2021/22 financial year. On Wednesday evening, the group announced that sales had surpassed the five billion dollar mark for the first time. The company also returned to profitability.
In the past fiscal year, which ended on January 29, the group was able to generate sales of 5.01 billion US dollars (4.52 billion euros). This corresponded to an increase of 33 percent compared to the previous year, which was characterized by the Covid 19 pandemic, and 16 percent compared to the pre-crisis year 2019/20.
Both group brands contributed to the strong growth: American Eagle’s sales increased by 30 percent to 3.56 billion US dollars compared to the previous year, the label Aerie, which is aimed at a younger target group, even increased by 38 percent to 1.38 billion US dollars. gain dollars.
The company posted operating income of $591.1 million despite higher freight charges that reduced earnings by approximately $90 million. Last year, the group still had to accept an operating loss of 271.3 million US dollars. At the time, however, impairments, restructuring costs and Covid-19-related charges caused negative special effects totaling almost 280 million US dollars. The bottom line was a net profit of $419.6 million (378.5 million euros) after posting a deficit of $209.3 million in 2020/21.
For the current year, the group only ventured a “cautious outlook” in view of “numerous macroeconomic uncertainties”. In the first half of the year, management expects a drop in sales due to ongoing supply bottlenecks, which should be followed by a recovery in the second half of the year. For operating profit, the target range is between 550 and 600 million US dollars.