Unusual Options Activity Fri 11/24/23

Stocks seeing volatility buying (bullish call buying/bearish put buying):

Calls:

• VNOM Dec 32 calls are seeing interest with 2000 contracts trading vs. open int of 30, pushing implied vol up around 4 points to ~29%. Co is expected to report earnings late February
• HD Dec 315 calls are seeing interest with 5570 contracts trading vs. open int of 200, pushing implied vol up around 1 points to ~15%. Co is confirmed to report earnings February 20 before the open.
  

Puts:

• HUT Dec 3 puts are seeing interest with 4040 contracts trading vs. open int of 500, pushing implied vol up around 26 points to ~197%. Co is expected to report earnings late February.
• ANF Dec 73 puts are seeing interest with 2110 contracts trading vs. open int of 70, pushing implied vol up around 3 points to ~44%. Co is expected to report earnings early March.
  

Sentiment: The CBOE Put/Call ratio is currently: 0.94, VIX: (12.90, +0.10, +0.8%).
December 15 is options expiration -- the last day to trade December equity options.

=Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings on Wed 29 May 19 (b/o)

Abercrombie & Fitch misses by $0.13, reports revs in-line; guides Q2 revs below consensus; reaffirms FY20 revs guidance

• Reports Q1 (Apr) loss of $0.56 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.13 worse than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.43); revenues rose 0.4% year/year to $733.97 mln vs the $730.79 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus. 
  • Gross profit rate of 60.5%, flat to last year.
  • Positive comparable sales of 1% includes Hollister comps +2% and Abercrombie comps +1%
• Co issues downside guidance for Q2, sees Q2 revs flat to up 2% (implying $842-859 mln) vs. $868.76 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Comparable sales to be approximately flat, on 3% last year. 
  • Gross profit rate to be down approximately 100 basis points compared to 60.2% last year, assuming only the current tariffs in place.
• Co reaffirms guidance for FY20, sees FY20 revs of $3.66-3.73 bln vs. $3.68 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus. Comparable sales to be up low-single digits. Gross profit rate to rise slightly from the fiscal 2018 rate of 60.2%, assuming only the current tariffs in place.
• "Reflecting a continued focus on global store network optimization, the company will be ceasing operations of its SoHo Hollister flagship store in New York City and has exercised the kick-out clause for its Fukuoka, Japan A&F flagship store. The company is also announcing that it exercised the kick-out clause for its Milan, Italy A&F flagship location."

Earnings this week : May 27 - 31, 2019 (wk 22)

Monday (May 27)

• Markets closed for Memorial Day

Tuesday (May 28)

• Morning: AMWD BAH BNS MOMO NIO PLAN
• Afternoon: HEI NXGN RAMP WDAY YY

Wednesday (May 29)

• Morning: ANF BMO BZUN CMCO CPRI DAKT DKS GOOS HLNE HMLP THR WUBA
• Afternoon: DSGX KEYS PANW PVH QADA SMTC TLYS UHAL VEEV VRNT

Thursday (May 30)

• Morning: BITA BURL CSIQ DBI DG DLTR EXPR JILL MOV SAFM SPWH TECD TITN
• Afternoon: COO COST DELL GPS MRVL NTNX OKTA RRGB UBER ULTA VMW WSM YEXT ZS ZUO

Friday (May 31) 

• Morning: BIG GCO

• Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY), Momo (NASDAQ:MOMO), Nio (NYSE:NIO) and YY (NASDAQ:YY) on Mon May 28; 
• Palo Alto Networks (NYSE:PANW), Capri Holdings (NYSE:CPRI), Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) and Dick's Sporting Goods (NYSE:DKS) on May 29; 
• Lululemon (NASDAQ:LULU), Dell (NYSE:DELL), Costco (NASDAQ:COST), Gap (NYSE:GPS), Dollar General (NYSE:DG) and VMware (NYSE:VMW) on May 30; 
• Big Lots (NYSE:BIG) and Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE:BBW) on Fri May 31.

=Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings on Thur 29 Nov 2018 (b/o)

Abercrombie & Fitch beats by $0.12, reports revs in-line; provides in-line Q4 sales expectations 

• Reports Q3 (Oct) earnings of $0.33 per share, $0.12 better than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of $0.21; revenues rose 0.2% year/year to $861 mln vs the $856.34 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Hollister comp +4%
  • Abercrombie comp +1%
  • Direct-to-consumer net sales increased 16% from last year to $243.6 million
  • The gross profit rate was 61.3%, flat to last year, and down approximately 40 basis points on a constant currency basis, net of hedging.

Q4 Guidance: 

• Net sales to be down mid single digits, including the adverse effect from the calendar shift and the loss of fiscal 2017's 53rd week of approximately $60 million and the adverse effect from changes in foreign currency exchange rates of approximately $15 million.
• Comparable sales to be up low single digits.
• A gross profit rate to be flat to up slightly from the fiscal 2017 rate of 58.4%.
• Estimate was for 4% sales decline Y/Y on comps of 1.3%

=Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings on Thur 30 August 2018 (b/o)

Abercrombie & Fitch beats by $0.10, reports revs in-line, comps +3%; reaffirms FY19 guidance 

• Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.06 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.10 better than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.04); revenues rose 8.1% year/year to $842.41 mln vs the $845.11 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
• Comparable sales increased 3%, with Hollister up 4% and Abercrombie up 2%
• The gross profit rate was 60.2%, up 110 basis points from last year, and up approximately 70 basis points from last year on a constant currency basis, net of hedging.
• Co reaffirms guidance for FY19, sees FY19 revs of $3.56-3.63 bln (+2-4%) vs. $3.57 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus; continues to see Comparable sales up in the range of 2% to 4%
• Q3: Sees net sales approximately flat to last year (in-line with estimates for growth of 0.1% to $860.2 mln)
• "We are pleased with our second quarter performance, capping off a strong first half of the year. During the second quarter, we delivered both top and bottom line growth, while continuing to invest in the transformation of our business. Our results reflect another quarter of profit improvement fueled by comparable sales growth across both brands, gross margin expansion and expense leverage as we continue to execute our playbooks. Hollister continued its momentum with another quarter of strong sales growth and Abercrombie posted its third consecutive quarter of positive comparablesales, led by strength in the U.S...Our customers remain at the center of all we do, and that singular focus continues to improve brand health metrics and drive our brands forward. We continue to make tangible progress in our transformation efforts, and after a strong first half of the year, we remain on track to achieve our full year 2018 expectations and our longer term 2020 targets."

Earnings this week : August 27 - 31, 18 (wk 35)

Earnings confirmed to report this week

Monday (August 27)

• Morning: AMWD  PKX MBT JT SVA FGBI PEBK TATT
• Afternoon: HEI PAHC  SHG BAP WF BILI  RYB MESA

Tuesday (Aug 28)

• Morning: BBY BJ BMO BNS CTLT  DSW HAIN SFUN SXI TIF
• Afternoon: BOX HPE HRB LCI NCS OOMA PSEC SCSC  SCVL TLRY YRD

Wednesday (Aug 29)

• Morning: AEO BF.B CHS DKS DY EV EXPR MOV
• Afternoon: CRM GEF GES HOME PVH SMTC TLYS UEPS

Thursday (Aug 30)

• Morning: ANF BURL CIEN CPB DG  DLTR  GMS KIRK MEI MIK PDCO SIG TD TECD TITN
• Afternoon: AMBA  AOBC  COO  LULU  NTNX PAGS ULTA YEXT ZUO

Friday (Aug 31)

• Morning: BIG  

=Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings on Fri 1 June 2018 (b/o)

Abercrombie & Fitch beats by $0.21, beats on revs; guides FY19 revs above consensus; comps +5% 

• Reports Q1 (Apr) loss of $0.56 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.21 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.77); revenues rose 10.6% year/year to $730.9 mln vs the $695.68 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Comparable sales increased 5%, with Hollister up 6% and Abercrombie up 3%. Gross margin expanded to 60.5%, up 20 basis points from last year.
• Co issues upside guidance for FY19, sees FY19 revs of +2-4% to ~$3.56-3.63 bln (prior guidance was for low single digit growth) vs. $3.55 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Comparable sales to be up in the range of 2% to 4%. Net sales in the second quarter to be up high-single digits, including benefits from changes in foreign currency exchange rates and the calendar shift. A gross profit rate up slightly from the fiscal 2017 rate of 59.7%

=Long trade : ANF +9% (4/18)

• April 3:  #3; vol. 3.9M

This week's biggest % winners & losers : Nov 13 - 17, 17 (wk 46)

This week's biggest % gainers/losers The following are this week's top 20 percentage gainers and top 20 percentage losers, categorized by sectors (over $300 mln market cap and 100K average daily volume).

This week's top 20 % gainers

• Healthcare: NKTR (45.2 +39.08%), COLL (17.02 +20.79%), AFAM (61.9 +20.78%), ARA (13.05 +20.23%)
• Materials: VHI (5.21 +21.05%)
• Consumer Discretionary: TIME (16.4 +49.77%), SCVL (26.71 +37.4%), FL (40.97 +35.04%), ENT (2.52 +34.49%), MAT (18.49 +26.44%), ANF (15.73 +25.24%), HIBB (17.25 +23.21%), CATO (16.31 +20.64%), IGT (28.68 +20.48%), RH (103.04 +20.46%), TOUR (8.97 +20.24%), FOSL (7.91 +19.85%), VIPS (9.79 +19.24%), ICON (2.15 +19.17%)
• Information Technology: NTES (368.27 +21.59%)

This week's top 20 % losers

• Healthcare: ACOR (17.73 -36.58%), SGYP (1.96 -27.94%), CRIS (0.9 -26.9%), DPLO (14.81 -24.66%), CHRS (8.18 -18.66%), SGRY (8.3 -12.17%)
• Materials: AKG (0.81 -17.74%)
• Industrials: GRAM (3.18 -14.05%)
• Information Technology: SMI (7.12 -18.59%), BITA (39.6 -15.6%), QUOT (12.05 -13.62%)
• Financials: BMA (101.86 -13.07%)
• Energy: SDRL (0.31 -18.29%), SD (16.53 -14.97%), REN (27.62 -14.17%), PDS (2.71 -13.97%), PGH (0.88 -13.41%), CPE (10.16 -13.31%), ESV (5.46 -12.72%), PDCE (43.86 -12.28%)

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings on Fri 17 Nov 17 (b/o)

** charts before earnings **

 

** charts after earnings **

Abercrombie & Fitch beats by $0.09, beats on revs; guides Q4 sales towards high end of expectations 

• Reports Q3 (Oct) earnings of $0.30 per share, $0.09 better thanthe Capital IQ Consensus of $0.21; revenues rose 4.6% year/year to $859.1 mln vs the $818.41 mln Capital IQ Consensus. 
• Comparable sales for the third quarter up 4% vs. ests near +0.5% and changes in FX rates benefiting net sales by 1%. By geography, net sales for the third quarter increased 4% to $554.7 million in the U.S. and increased 5% to $304.4 million in international markets over last year. Direct-to-consumer sales grew to ~24% of total company net sales for the third quarter, compared to ~23% of total company net sales last year.
• The gross profit rate for the third quarter was 61.3%, 80 basis points lower than last year on a constant currency basis, as lower average unit cost was more than offset by lower average unit retail.
• Q4 guidance: Comparable sales to be up low-single digits (ests near +0.5%), and net sales to be up mid- to high-single digits (ests +2.2%), including benefits from the 53rd week and changes in FX rates; The 53rd week to benefit net sales by ~$38 million and operating income by ~$2 million; Changes in FX rates to benefit net sales by ~$20 million and operating income by ~$5 million, net of hedging; A gross profit rate down ~100 basis points to last year's rate of 59.3%, in line with the third quarter year-over-year decline 

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings on Thur 24 August 2017 (b/o)

** charts 2 days after earnings **

 

• Abercrombie posts much smaller loss than expected

Aug 24 (Reuters) - U.S. teen apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co posted a much smaller than expected quarterly loss on Thursday, helped by robust demand for its Hollister brand, sending the company's shares soaring nearly 20 percent.

Hollister, the retailer's California beach-themed brand of surfwear, reported a 5 percent rise in comparable sales in the second quarter ended July 29, beating analysts' average estimate for a 2.9 percent increase, according to Consensus Metrix.

Abercrombie said total sales at established stores fell 1 percent. That result, too, topped analysts' expectations.

The company's upbeat results come as several teen apparel companies struggle in the face of intense competition from fast-fashion retailers such as H&M and Zara as well as online merchants such as Amazon.com Inc.

Net loss attributable to Abercrombie widened to $15.5 million, or 23 cents per share in the second quarter, from $13.1 million, or 19 cents per share, a year earlier.

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings Fri 18 Nov 2016 (b/o)

** charts before earnings **

  

** charts after earnings **

  

• One month later:

Abercrombie & Fitch misses by $0.22, misses on revs; sees challenging but sequentially improved Q4 comps with adj. gross margin down slightly Y/Y  :

• Reports Q3 (Oct) earnings of $0.02 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.22 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.24; revenues fell 6.5% year/year to $821.7 mln vs the $832.48 mln Capital IQ Consensus. 
  • Comps -6% vs ests just below -4%; with A&F -10% and Hollister -1%.
• By geography, net sales for the third quarter decreased 7% to $531.4 million in the U.S. and decreased 5% to $290.3 million in international markets over last year.
• Direct-to-consumer and omnichannel sales grew to ~23% of total company net sales for the third quarter, compared to ~21% of total company net sales last year.
• The gross profit rate for the third quarter was 62.2%. Excluding certain items last year, the gross profit rate decreased 60 basis points on a constant currency basis, primarily due to lower average unit retail, partially offset by lower average unit cost.
• Q4 guidance:
  • Comparable sales to be challenging, but modestly improved from the third quarter (ests near -3.2%)
  • Continued adverse impact from foreign currency on sales and operating income.
  • A gross margin rate down slightly to last year's adjusted non-GAAP rate of 60.7%, driven by lower average unit retail, partially offset by lower average unit cost

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings Tue 30 Aug 2016 (b/o)

** charts before earnings **

  

** charts after earnings **

Abercrombie & Fitch misses by $0.04, reports revs in-line; softens FY17 comp, gross margin guidance:

• Reports Q2 (Jul) adj. loss of $0.25 per share, $0.04 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.21); revenues fell 4.2% year/year to $783.2 mln vs the $782.64 mln Capital IQ Consensus. 
• Comps fell 4%: 7% at A&F and 2% at Hollister.
  • By geography, net sales for the second quarter decreased 7% to $478.8 million in the U.S. and were ~flat at $304.4 million in international markets versus last year.
• The gross profit rate for the second quarter was 60.9%, 140 basis points lower than last year. Excluding certain items last year, the gross profit rate decreased 20 basis points on a constant currency basis, primarily due to higher average unit costs, partially offset by higher average unit retails. CO had guided for GM down modestly from 62.3%.
• For fiscal 2016, the company now expects:
  • Comparable sales to remain challenging through the second half of the year(previously called for improvement in 2H), with a disproportionate effect from flagship and tourist locations. Adverse effects from foreign currency on sales of ~$25 million and on operating income of ~$20 million, with the greatest impact in the third quarter
  • A gross margin rate flat to last year's adjusted non-GAAP rate of 61.9% (down from up slightly), but down in the third quarter due to adverse effects from foreign currency. 

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings Thur 26 May 2016 (b/o)

** charts before earnings **

  

** charts after earnings **

Abercrombie & Fitch misses by $0.02, misses on revs and comps down 4%; expects comps to remain challenging in Q2 but to improve in 2H :

• Reports Q1 (Apr) loss of $0.53 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.02 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.51); revenues fell 3.3% year/year to $685.5 mln vs the $709.48 mln Capital IQ Consensus. The gross profit rate for the first quarter was 62.1%, 410 basis points higher than last year. Excluding certain items last year, the gross profit rate reflected an improvement of 100 basis points on a constant currency basis, primarily due to higher average unit retails, partially offset by higher average unit costs.
• For fiscal 2016, co now expects: Comparable sales to remain challenging in Q2 but to improve in the second half of the year. Adverse effects from foreign currency on sales of ~$10 mln and on operating income of ~$15 mln, including the year- over-year impact from hedging. A gross margin rate up slightly to last year's rate of 61.9%, but down modestly in the second quarter. Operating expense dollars to be approximately flat to last year, with investments in marketing, store management and omnichannel offset by savings from expense reduction efforts.
• Based on the timing of these investments, the company expects operating expense dollars in the second quarter to be up 2% to 3% over last year. Continues to expect capital expenditures of $150 mln to $175 mln for the full year. The company plans to open ~15 new stores in fiscal 2016, including ~10 in international markets, primarily China, and ~5 in the U.S. In addition, the company anticipates closing up to 60 stores in the U.S. during the fiscal year through natural lease expirations.

This week's biggest % winners & losers : Nov 16 - 20, 15 (wk 47)

The following are this week's top 20 percentage gainers and top 20 percentage losers, categorized by sectors (over $300 mln market cap and 100K average daily volume).

This week's top 20 % gainers

• Healthcare:SRPT (33.36 +29.15%),PACB (10.18 +28.54%),VRX(91 +20.67%),CXRX (39.43 +19.12%),AIMT (20.93 +18.52%)
• Materials:ARG (138.81 +36.33%),BAK (14.52 +20%),SID (1.51 +18.9%)
• Industrials:BRC (25.49 +19.56%)
• Consumer Discretionary:EROS (9.47 +33.76%), ANF (24.37 +22.46%),VIPS (16.35 +20.22%),NFLX (123.84 +19.48%),HZO (17.67 +18.83%)
• Information Technology:BZUN (7.6 +23.98%),OLED (48.71 +22.02%),NUAN (20.08 +21.26%)
• Financials:PRAA (41.39 +27.35%),NOAH (32.79 +20.02%)
• Telecommunication Services:MBT (7.8 +26.62%)

This week's top 20 % losers

• Healthcare:CLVS (26.41 -73.44%),OSIR (10.73 -25.02%),RDUS (61.05 -18.17%),ADAP (8.96 -17.57%)
• Materials:CLF (2.16 -20.59%),AGFS (5.72 -18.4%)
• Industrials:SALT (0.84 -28.37%)
• Consumer Discretionary:KIRK (12.91 -32.73%)
• Information Technology:NMBL (10.05 -51.84%),SUNE (2.82 -42.8%),MENT (17.85 -34.3%)
• Financials:NBG (0.19 -63.69%),UVE (18.47 -39.4%)
• Energy:MEMP (3.64 -26.91%),MDR (4.37 -23.6%),SWN (9.04 -17.97%),CHK (5.08 -16.72%)
• Consumer Staples:NHTC (42.56 -17.29%)
• Utilities:TERP (9.2 -33.33%),GLBL (5.27 -23.62%)

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings Fri 20 Nov 2015 (b/o)

** charts before earnings **

  

** chart 2 months later **

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) reported earnings Wed 26 Aug 2015 (b/o)

** charts before earnings **

  

** charts after earnings **